Upcycling Agricultural Waste in China | Teck Tin Wong, RenewMaterial
In this episode of Entrepreneurs For Good, I speak with Teck Tin Wong, Founder of Renew Material. A firm upcycling agricultural waste into a wide range of construction materials.
It is a fantastic conversation that is packed full of insights about being persistent in solving a problem, his process for product development, and having a long term vision for change. Even in the face of a "one-in-a-century" event like COVID19.
About the Entrepreneurs For Good Series:
Through this series, we speak with Asia based entrepreneurs whose mission it is to bring solutions to the environmental, social, and economic challenges that are faced within the region to learn more about their vision, the opportunities they see, and challenges that they have had to overcome.
It is a series that we hope will not only engage and inspire you, but catalyze you and your organizations into action. To identify a challenge that is tangible, and build a business model (profit or non) that brings a solution to the market
About TT:
See the that as the world's economies advance pollution has became a real danger, Teck Tin (TT) saw the opportunity to save millions of trees for many generations to come by founding RenewMaterial.
Renew Material specialises in the design, development, and manufacture of environmentally friendly materials and products for a wide range of application. Its products are made from up to 95 per cent agricultural fibres such as rice stalks, wheat stalks, and bamboo waste, and can be customised for different textures and colours that are ideal for furniture, flooring, wall tiles, decorative panels,
Prior to founding RenewMaterial, TT worked as a Corporate Development Manager at Hong Leong Asia and was involved in various startup projects in the Asia Pacific region. In 2007, TT moved to China to develop a technology that converts agricultural straws to a new green material as an alternative to wood that is now patented worldwide and has won multiple international awards including the Asia Packaging Award and World Packaging Award.
Follow TT:
Website: https://www.renewmaterial.com/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/teck-tin-wong/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/tecktin.wong
About Rich:
Driven by the belief that change begins with a single step, Richard Brubaker has spent the last 15 years in Asia working to engage, inspire, and equip those around him to take their first step.
Acting as a catalyst to driving sustainability, Brubaker works with government, corporate, academic and non-profit stakeholders to bring together knowledge, teams, and tools that develop and execute their business case for sustainability.
Follow Rich:
Website: http://www.richbrubaker.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/rich.brubaker
LinkedIn Page: https://www.linkedin.com/in/richbrubaker Instagram: https://instagram.com/richbrubaker
Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/richbrubaker
Contact Rich:
Accelerating Disruptive Innovation as an Impact Investor | Tom Schmittzehe, Moonshot Ventures
In this episode of Entrepreneurs For Good, I speak with Tom Schmittzehe of Moonshot Ventures about supporting entrepreneurs who are racing against the clock to develop and deploy products, services and platforms with disruptive Innovation against the the social, environmental, and economic challenges that are coming to scale in Asia.
In Tom's mind, we do not have any time to waste, and while he is always on the look out for disruptive entrepreneurs and business models to fund, he is also working hard to bring ideas to the market himself as well.
About the Entrepreneurs For Good Series:
Through this series, we speak with Asia based entrepreneurs whose mission it is to bring solutions to the environmental, social, and economic challenges that are faced within the region to learn more about their vision, the opportunities they see, and challenges that they have had to overcome.
It is a series that we hope will not only engage and inspire you, but catalyze you and your organizations into action. To identify a challenge that is tangible, and build a business model (profit or non) that brings a solution to the market
About Tom:
Tom has been working in impact investing and social finance since 2002, and in Asia since 2006. He has held leadership roles with several prominent organizations in this field, such as Ashoka, and among other was also the co-founder of Ennovent, a leading social business accelerator in South Asia. He is a long-serving mentor and coach to social entrepreneurs, and volunteers as a guest speaker or to help with social enterprise competitions.
Tom started his career in banking and strategy consulting, and has degrees from Oxford University (BA), the Wharton School (MBA – where he also studied at INSEAD), and the Harvard Kennedy School (MPA).
Follow Tom:
Website: https://www.moonshotventures.org/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tomschmittzehe/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/tom.schmittzehe
About Rich:
Driven by the belief that change begins with a single step, Richard Brubaker has spent the last 15 years in Asia working to engage, inspire, and equip those around him to take their first step.
Acting as a catalyst to driving sustainability, Brubaker works with government, corporate, academic and non-profit stakeholders to bring together knowledge, teams, and tools that develop and execute their business case for sustainability.
Follow Rich:
Website: http://www.richbrubaker.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/rich.brubaker
LinkedIn Page: https://www.linkedin.com/in/richbrubaker
Instagram: https://instagram.com/richbrubaker
Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/richbrubaker
Contact Rich:
Educating Hearing Impaired Children in Vietnam | Duong Hanh, CED
In this episode of Entrepreneurs For Good, I speak with the amazing Duong Hanh, Founder of the Saigon based Center for Research and Education of the Deaf and Hard of Hearing, about her work educating hearing impaired children in Vietnam.
Duong's story is an amazing one, and in sharing it with me, she showed amazing bravery. Not only because she and I were speaking in English, her second language, but also as her own hearing impairment meant that she was having to read my lips, and then respond IN ENGLISH with a voice she has not heard for many years.
Something she was concerned with while scheduling our interview, but served as no barrier to her ability to telling me about her inspirational work.
About the Entrepreneurs For Good Series:
Through this series, we speak with Asia based entrepreneurs whose mission it is to bring solutions to the environmental, social, and economic challenges that are faced within the region to learn more about their vision, the opportunities they see, and challenges that they have had to overcome.
It is a series that we hope will not only engage and inspire you, but catalyze you and your organizations into action. To identify a challenge that is tangible, and build a business model (profit or non) that brings a solution to the market
About Duong & CED:
Established in 2010 by its founder and director, Ms Duong Phuong Hanh, CED is the only hearing-impaired organisation that looks beyond ‘deaf education’ and instead undertakes a holistic approach to hearing issues of the poor in Viet Nam. This includes fostering life skills for the hearing-impaired and generating employment opportunities, as well as actively participating in national policy lobbying, research and publications. CED also supervises social-work students who support people with hearing impediments and provides healthcare services, such as conducting hearing checks and supplying hearing aids to poor children.
Follow Duong & CED
Website: https://cedhcmc.wixsite.com/ced-special-site
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/duong.p.hanh
Twitter: https://twitter.com/phonhang
About Rich:
Driven by the belief that change begins with a single step, Richard Brubaker has spent the last 15 years in Asia working to engage, inspire, and equip those around him to take their first step.
Acting as a catalyst to driving sustainability, Brubaker works with government, corporate, academic and non-profit stakeholders to bring together knowledge, teams, and tools that develop and execute their business case for sustainability.
Follow Rich:
Website: http://www.richbrubaker.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/rich.brubaker
LinkedIn Page: https://www.linkedin.com/in/richbrubaker
Instagram: https://instagram.com/richbrubaker
Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/richbrubaker