Over the last few years, as reading has taken a backseat to video, a large number of awesome social innovation podcasts have begun to spring up. Many of which offer excellent insights, or interviews, on topics of sustainability, social innovation, and entrepreneurship. The below is a list that I have put together, knowing full well that there are many others. Change Creator: Better Business. Be…
From my recent speech Stop Complaining. Do Something. to the 2017 Hult Business School Graduates: Congratulations graduates! Students, families, guests, and faculty. Thank you for inviting me to speak today at this amazing occasion. I am entrepreneur focused on how cities are going to work in 2050, when we have 7+ billion people in them. Which means, I spend my life looking at cities trying t…
Prior to his departure from Hong Kong, and SOW Asia, I was fortunate enough to catch up with Scott Lawson to talk about his 7 years in the social impact investment space. More than an investor, Scott had become a trusted advisor, mentor, and thought leader to many in the space, and during our discussion he issued this warning to aspiring entrepreneurs. It came as part of a wider discussion on…
As an entrepreneur, I know that one of the greatest obstacles to be faced is one’s own fear. A step needs to be taken. There are million reasons why one should do something, and in the minds of an entrepreneur, there are often another million for why one can’t. For some, this fear is a figment of their imagination, while for others it is a keen awareness of the challenge itself. It comes fr…
Have you ever been half way through the rollout of a new program, or been in the planning phases of something you were excited about, but your local team wasn't responding ... at all. If so, I invite you to head over to Corporate Citizenship, to read my latest article Why top-down sustainability strategies are often doomed to fail where I speak about a key challenge that many firms face in exec…
As part of my recent US trip, I was given the opportunity to fly to Indianapolis to give two presentations to DOW Agriculture leadership and sustainability teams on the sustainability and the future of food in China. As one of the largest firms in the food & agricultural sector, and one whose products extend throughout the food & agricultural value chain, I covered a wide range of importan…
Hailed as one of the greatest diplomatic efforts of the past 30 years, 196 countries came to an agreement on December 12th at COP21 in Paris, to take steps to reduce the risk of a global temperature rise beyond 2 degrees. An effort that once again went down to the wire, the agreement represents the start of a long road towards climate change mitigation. It’s a road that many are already calling u…
[In] the last century [the thinking was], if you wanna grow as entrepreneurs, you should find a good opportunity. But today, if you want to be a great company, think about what social problem you could solve.” – Jack Ma, Founder of Alibaba When looking for leadership on sustainability, and for those who are going to deliver the solutions that are needed, the search typically begins with big busin…
For the first time ever (as of 2012) more people – over 700 million – live in China’s urban areas than in its rural regions. By 2020, about 60% of China’s population will live in cities; and 300 million urban residents are expected to move into its urban centers by 2030. Along with this shift to a more urban population comes a dramatic change in lifestyle: from a subsistence level or an agrarian f…
Changes in China’s environmental rules and regulations, the first revision in 25 years, take effect January 1 next year with stiffer penalties for companies that flout the law. In recent years, as well, there have been a number of cases across the country where residents’ objections, because of environmental concerns, have led to major projects being scrapped. China, it appears, is now getting se…
