
The Blue Marble
By The Blue Marble

The Blue MarbleNov 25, 2022

Blockchain and Beer - with Pete Kais (aka: Kasey)
Kasey is the founder and developer of BEERToken and a family of drinks tokens, a project brewing on the Stellar Blockchain focused on connecting brands, industry and consumers to the blockchain, digital currencies, and NFT's in a fun, familiar and entertaining way.
He is also behind other projects on Stellar that include VEND, a Point of Sale system, and wallet bridging the gap between cash and crypto for small business and customers, inspired from growing up in the family business where easy technology solutions just weren't available.
In parallel, he is co-founder at Merchant Media, based out of Melbourne, Australia, a digital agency and niche publisher of eMagazines and web directories that work in multiple lifestyle verticals.
Career wise, Kasey is an ex brewery executive, and a strategic sales marketing leader with extensive experience across Tech, FMCG, Franchising, Food & Beverage categories in both Australia and International.
Connect with Kasey https://www.linkedin.com/in/peterkais/ and learn about BEERtoken at beertoken.com
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The web3 journey for brands - Jessica Yarmey, Kickhouse
Jessica Yarmey is the CEO of KickHouse, a modern kickboxing franchise that inspires members and communities to take their health and kick it up a level. (www.thekickhouse.com) A former college athlete who played Division I soccer at Loyola University in Maryland and ran two marathons in “retirement," Jessica recognizes the value of fitness and its ability to transform lives. As a result, she aspires to bring more health and fitness opportunities to neighborhoods across the nation. She currently leads her company’s franchise development strategy and brand expansion efforts.
Helping franchises grow is one of Jessica’s specialties; prior to starting KickHouse, she was the Chief Marketing Officer at Club Pilates. Under her leadership, the company grew from 225 to over 615 locations in the U.S., Canada, and in Master Franchise countries.
Starting her business during the pandemic, Jessica brings a creative approach to fill the void of how studio owners are supported in the fitness space. As an Entrepreneur, Jessica is passionate about helping other entrepreneurs and leaders find and thrive in their passion.
Jessica’s weekly workout routine consists of lifting, yoga, kickboxing, and listening to podcasts while walking with her Belgian Malinois.

Changing the narative on Carbon and Blockchain - Speaking with Erin Grover
Erin Grover's experience in blockchain began in asset management and crypto algo funds. She is currently focused on blockchain for impact, including blockchain verified carbon credits and smart supply chain for agriculture. She has conducted extensive field research of emerging DeFi markets in Kenya, Uganda and India. She is a part of the World Economic Forum's Crypto Sustainability Coalition as a member of the blockchain and carbon working group.
She is an advisor for the AKASHA Innovation Hub in Dublin which provides on‐the‐ground incubation and acceleration for blockchain projects at various stages, whether for early startups still working on an idea or companies plotting their investor pitches, or go‐to‐ market strategies.
Her passion is to create more opportunities for financial prosperity and sustainable investment products for diverse populations and women in particular. She is a strong advocate for the potential of blockchain technology to bring efficiency and transparency to the delivery of funds for international aid.
Prior to her work in blockchain, she worked for the United Nations, USAID and other international NGOs as a content producer and marketing strategist.
Her previous work has been featured in The New York Times, The Washington Post, Time Magazine, Gizmodo, TechCrunch, Mashable, The Times of India and many other international news sources. Her digital strategy has raised over $2 million in crowdfunding for various tech and business ventures, as well as millions in views for numerous online campaigns.

Building a community of blockchain beatmakers - Alejo Mendoza, Founder SKYHITZ
On this episode we chat with Alejo Mendoza, Founder and Developer of SKYHITZ, a community where people can buy or sell music NFTs on the Stellar Network.
Involved with music at a young age, Alejo has always believed that music is one of the most powerful forces behind human ingenuity. After finishing music studies, he embarked on a journey to travel the world while being a producer of shows in cruise ships, this expanded his thinking on how creating and performing music can enhance people's lives.
In 2013, he traveled to the city of Los Angeles to study and research how to transform music so more people could become creators or experience at least once in their lifetime what it feels to make music. In this process, he met the founders of Splice in Las Vegas, who were just getting started and asked him to join their founding team as an engineer.
The startup became a success for everyone involved and quickly reached more than a million customers worldwide in less than three years. After his success in the startup world, Alejo challenged himself by starting Skyhitz, an organization with a mission to combine the power of decentralized economies with music.

Paving the way for a greener world - a conversation with Steph L Dickson
Steph L Dickson is a leading voice in sustainability in Asia. She founded Green Is The New Black, Asia's first Conscious Festival and media platform, that uses stories, curated experiences to advocate for social & behavioural change that leads to little green steps with big impact. Her mission is to make conscious living mainstream, accessible and sexy.
Steph is also the host of the Live Wide Awake podcast, which brings conversations to life at the intersections of consciousness and climate change, sustainability and Spirituality.
As a founding member of UNTAM3D, Steph is also part of a collective force carving out a place for APAC Women+ in Web3 for impact.
She is regularly asked to conduct talks and workshops on conscious living, rethinking and driving sustainability at work, inspiring keynotes on actionable green steps for meaningful change and eco-anxiety. She has conducted talks and workshops in cities around Asia and in the UK.
As a changemaker in the green space, Steph has been described as a "sustainability entrepreneur helping Asia businesses combat climate change" (CNBC) and a "force of nature" (Honeycombers). She is also a two-time TEDx speaker (P&G), a Gen.T by Tatler Leader of Tomorrow (2020), and Prestige 40 Under 40 (2018).
For speaking, workshops, or hosting, contact
stephdickson@gmail.com
IG: @stephldickson
LI:/stephldickson
https://www.instagram.com/livewideawake/
https://www.instagram.com/be_untam3d/
https://www.instagram.com/greenisthenewblackcom/
UNTAM3D Fb Group - https://www.facebook.com/groups/268792121874056

Telehealth for women created by women - meet Mary Kucek of OvaryIt
On this episode I speak with Mary Kucek, the founder, and CEO of OvaryIt, a telehealth platform that was created for women by women.
Mary is a highly energetic and analytical IT professional with success in new business startups and business expansion. Her technology career has included: Business Analysis, Project Management, and multi-state territory ownership for a large privately held IT consulting organization. After working with State, Federal, and commercial clients throughout the United States, Mary hung up her consulting hat to become an entrepreneur. Her Biochemistry background has given her a strong scientific foundation which puts Mary in the unique position to effectively speak with technology and medical teams alike.
We chat about Mary’s decision to start a nonprofit and the challenges with that, and how the OvaryIt platform that Mary and her team have created is allowing women to make key health decisions from the comfort of their own home.
Facebook and Instagram: @OvaryIt_
TikTok: @OvaryIt
Twitter: @OvaryIt

Transforming social impact with Web3 - chatting with Drew Simon
Drew Simon is a social impact and technology enthusiast with ten years of leadership experience in the non-profit and higher education sectors. Drew has served as a Senior Leader, Director, and Advisor for multiple non-profit organizations, and has helped charities around the world secure millions in funding to support their missions. More recently, Drew was introduced to blockchain and cryptocurrency, and was amazed by its potential to transform the social impact sector. This led to the launch of Crypto Altruism, a Blog and Community of Practice dedicated to advancing the social impact use cases of cryptocurrency and blockchain.
- Website: cryptoaltruism.org
- Twitter - Drew - https://twitter.com/DWSimon
- Twitter - Crypto Altruism - https://twitter.com/Crypto_Altruism
- LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/drew-simon/

Cleaning the air and fighting climate change with biochar - chatting with Michael Shafer
In this episode we speak with Michael Shafer, the founder and director of Warm Heart, a community development organization serving Phrao, one of the poorest districts in northern Thailand.
Since 2008, Warm Heart has been transforming the lives of many people, addressing issues such as family care, education, micro-enterprise, environmental sustainability, and health care for the elderly.
Michael is also on a mission to reduce smoke pollution by teaching famers how to create biochar - and on this episode that's what we discuss.
What is biochar?
Why is it important?
And how does it help remove carbon?
You can find out more about Michael at these links:
https://warmheartworldwide.org/
d.michaelshafer@gmail.com

Exploring the world of NFTs - speaking with Charu Sethi
On this episode of The Task Podcast I speak with Singapore based Charu Sethi, the Chief Marketing Officer of Unique Network, an NFT chain for Polkadot and Kusama. Charu is a leading voice in tech marketing, with experience in the blockchain industry. Before Unique she worked for companies like IBM, helping build out their blockchain adoption marketing.
We chat everything NFTs - the crazy growth we’ve seen in the last 12 months, what that has meant to the art and gaming world and how these digital assets can support the non-profit sectors.
Charu can be reached at:

Social Enterprise Series EP1 - Soap Cycling
This is the first in a series where I’ll be speaking with a number of social enterprises to learn about the work they do and the varying business models that fund their missions.
Today's episode is with Charlotte Breyer, the Director of Soap Cycling, an organisation that works with the hospitality industry to collect, process, and distribute lightly used soap bars and bottled amenities. These life-saving items are then distributed to disadvantaged communities around the world, particularly Asia.
Charlotte has worked for NGOs in the overseas aid sector and is also the co-founder of Big Heroes Ltd., a social enterprise connecting corporates with great local charity organisations through professionally managed social team-building events in Singapore. She believes a sustainably thriving business is in touch with its impact on people and planet, and that respect for the triple bottom line is the best foundation for long-term success.

Blockchain, cryptocurrency and the future of finance - speaking with Topp Jirayut
On this episode I speak with one of the leading voices in the cryptocurrency and blockchain technology industry, Topp Jirayut.
Topp has dedicated the majority of his career in the cryptocurrency and blockchain technology industry. He co-founded coins.co.th, Thailand's largest bitcoin exchange. Before Blockchain emerged, Topp worked as an investment banker, financial consultant, and central banker. He is a speaker and one of Thailand's leading bitcoin and open blockchain experts. He holds an MPhil in Economics from Oxford University, UK. Now he is the founder and group CEO at Bitkub Capital Group Holdings Co., Ltd. (BCGH), the largest blockchain and cryptocurrency company in Thailand. He is also the Executive Board Member and Vice President at the Thai Fintech Association.
We talk about where Topp sees the crypto sector heading over the next decade, the excitement over NFTs & the varying use cases, and how the social sector will benefit from blockchain and crypto.
You can follow Topp on Facebook at https://web.facebook.com/toppjirayutofficial

Technology and conservation at Seneca Park Zoo - speaking with Tom Snyder
Growing up in the Finger Lakes of New York provided Tom with access to abundant nature, cementing a fascination with the natural world, and laying the roadmap for a career in conservation.
As an adult, the majority of Tom’s professional career has been in or around zoos. Starting as a Zookeeper, Tom has worked with a wide variety of animals, from hoof stock to crocodilian. As his career progressed, his interested in conservation of the species he worked with grew.
Always interested in technology, the two paths crossed as Tom spent time in Central America working with indigenous populations. As the integrations of technology in conservation grew, so did Tom’s aspirations and scale of work.
Today, Tom is working on long term proof of impact, and greater donor transparency to achieve the UN Sustainable Development Goals. As Director of Programming and Conservation Action for the Seneca Park Zoo Society in Rochester NY, Tom is mostly focused on community projects in Borneo, Madagascar and Equatorial Africa. More info on the zoo projects can be seen at:

Filmmaking for an era of change - speaking with Mark Downes
THE GREEN EYED MONSTER film and animation company brings a wealth of multi-disciplined talent to create finely crafted content. Video of any format to match your communication needs, engage audiences and drive positive messages about people and planet.
Ethical, Sustainable, Purposeful, call it what you want, we can help. Whether you are beginning your sustainable journey and need to let everyone know, or are well established and want to celebrate it, we have the story tellers who can help bring your mission to life. Consider us a video extension of your ethical supply chain. Our portfolio of clients has grown slowly and strategically. We aim to stay small, focussed and dynamic whilst maintaining a high, friendly and very personal level of service on all projects.
Green Eyed Monster Films was founded by Mark Downes. He has a degree in Political Science, a Masters in Cultural Studies and another Masters in Film Production. He has made films with Sir David Attenborough and for UNICEF in Mozambique. He has directed, produced, edited and written films for a plethora of global brands and brings that experience and network to the Green Eyed mission. He is also the technical director of the New Directors Showcase at the Cannes Lions Festival of Creativity. It was in Cannes where he witnessed UN Secretary General Ban Ki Moon made a call for agents of change.
‘We are the first generation that can end global poverty. We are the last generation that can address climate change before it is too late,’” Ban Ki Moon
GREEN EYED MONSTER FILMS was born shortly after and draws on a wide network of very talented strategists, directors, producers and technicians who have an incredible understanding of story and storytelling. Making sustainability an integral part of how we work, and furthering the message of the SDG's is what sets us apart.
For more about Mark go to: Greeneyedmonsterfilms.com

Blockchain Powered Giving - speaking with Pat Duffy / The Giving Block
Pat Duffy, Co-Founder of The Giving Block, came from the nonprofit sector, focusing on executive leadership and fundraising. Merging his nonprofit experience and passion for Bitcoin trading, The Giving Block was born, as he and Co-Founder Alex Wilson created the turnkey cryptocurrency solutions used by the nonprofit sector.

Collaboration and partner ecosystems - chatting with Stu Hawkins
Stu is the founder of Red Arc, builders of systems that help charities and nonprofits fundraise more effectively. With their name almost synonymous with Blackbaud’s SKY Add-ins™, Red Arc have been helping pioneer the Blackbaud partner ecosystem since Custom Tiles were something fancy you had in your bathroom.
He’s been building community one way or the other, from indie bands to business ecosystems as long as he can remember. And loves to share what he’s learned with anyone who will listen.
Along with his wife Henrietta, co-founder of Red Arc, they currently divide their time between their (adult!) children in sunny Sydney, and grandchildren in castle-filled Scotland.
Red Arc - We build systems for good

Systemising Sustainability with ISO Standards - speaking with Melanie Blackmore
Melanie has been involved with the creation, development and implementation of British and International standards for over 18 years. With her passion for improving business performance through the implementation of Management Systems, Melanie founded her first business in the standards sector in 2006, Blackmores, a consultancy firm which implements and maintains management systems for clients ranging from SME’s to blue chip organisations.
Blackmores rapidly grew to be an award winning, leading provider of consultancy services, specialising in environmental, quality and risk standards and offering expertise on the widest range of standards in Europe. Her clients are spread across a broad spectrum of sectors including manufacturing, telecommunications, IT, retail, transport, healthcare, public sector and construction to name but a few. She is now set to launch a game-changing innovation in her field, called the isology hub, which is a membership-based platform that companies or individuals can use to get a comprehensive, step-by-step understanding of how to become ISO certified.
Blackmores:
The ISO Show:
https://blackmoresuk.com/the-iso-show/
isology hub:
Mel also mentioned the ISO Standards Blueprint on the podcast. Here is a link to a free download and step-by-step guide on everything you need to plan, create and get ISO certified: https://isologyhub.com/blueprint/
And Mel’s LinkedIn where you can connect with her:

A new model for connecting consumers and producers - speaking with Scott Fry
Scott Fry is the founder of Loving Earth, an ethically driven company that believes Food is Sacred.
Loving Earth is best known for its organic chocolate products and the story began in 2007 when Scott, along with cofounder Martha Butler, returned to Melbourne from Mexico, bringing with them the ingredients to create their very first chocolate bars.
Scott’s mission is to support disenfranchised farming communities around the world by bringing a brand to market created from local commodities like cacao, by commercialising these commodities in a way that allows indigenous people to continue their ancient, sustainable farming practices.
Loving Earth was founded with the mission to create the highest quality, whole food raw chocolate bars based on ingredients from around the globe that honour both the Indigenous communities who cultivate them and the earth and ecosystems in which they are grown.
Task is working on an initiative with Loving Earth that will allow their customers to scan their chocolate bar with their smartphone, launching a web page/app that connects them directly with the Ashaninka communities who produced the raw cacao. They will be able to pledge support as well as taking part in Loving Earth’s regenerative program by donating trees to be planted. A process that supports the community, the environment and brings Loving Earth consumers closer to the products they purchase.
About Loving Earth
Loving Earth is dedicated to sourcing and manufacturing the highest quality organic, fairly-traded and wild-crafted functional foods and raw chocolate. The three central principles of Loving Earth’s mission are to create products that always are Healthy, Sustainable, and Fair. You can find Loving Earth products on their online shop at lovingearth.com and in select retailers in the US, Europe and Australia. For more information about Loving Earth, please visit https://lovingearth.com/.

The role of the Director - speaking with Jonathan Finnigan
Self-employed since 2001, Jonathan is a British award-winning film director and director of photography based in France and Hong Kong.
Brought up in Yorkshire and educated in the UK, professional life followed art college in London.
Since moving to Asia 27 years ago the world opened up. Hanging out of helicopters in Sumatra, filming with nomads in Tibet, rescuing elephants from Pakistan and wandering through the Taklimakan desert in search of Marco Polo’s legacy are just some of the adventures that have presented themselves in the course of the ordinary day job. So, it’s no surprise that filming in wild places in difficult situations are considered his specialty for the likes of National Geographic.
As we all know, technology has revolutionized the film industry and Jonathan realized he needed to evolve to stay competitive. So becoming a skilled editor and cinematographer was a natural evolution and has, as importantly, increased his enjoyment of the craft of filmmaking.
View more of Jonathan's work over on Vimeo : www.vimeo.com/luckydevilfilms

Blockchain economics and the world of Stellar - speaking with Sam Conner
Sam Conner is an entrepreneur, business and real estate investor, researcher, historian and Stellar enthusiast. He's a Stellar champion and regular on both the Stellar Podcast and Public Node Podcast.
You can follow Sam at his Twitter account: @samconnerone

Blockchain economics and the opportunity for social advancement - speaking with Navroop Sahdev
Navroop Sahdev is the founder and CEO of The Digital Economist, an impact organization with the mission to drive technological convergence by bringing investable opportunities, in line with the Sustainable Development Goals, to the fore. A pioneering economist and technology futurist, Navroop’s work lies at the intersection of emerging technologies, economic science and business strategy. Along with the world’s most respected digital economists, in 2019 she co-authored “Blockchain Economics: Implications of Distributed Ledgers: Markets, Communications Networks, and Algorithmic Reality”, the first book on the economics of blockchain.
Navroop is currently a Connection Science Fellow at the MIT Media Lab, part of a curated group of top scholars and entrepreneurs in emerging technologies with a track record of outstanding achievement, who are building the future of Distributed Ledger Technologies, Digital Identity and Digital Networks. She was listed as one of the Top Blockchain Influencers in 2018 by Media Shower.
Navroop is frequently interviewed by Forbes as a subject matter expert on the economics of emerging tech. She has co-authored Hyperledger’s "Blockchain for Business" online course - the biggest on the subject - with over 170,000 students so far and is regularly requested as a keynote speaker at industry conferences. She holds three masters in IP Management, Economics of Innovation and Applied Economics. Previously, she worked at Harvard University and the United Nations Environment Programme. In 2017, Navroop served as a United Nations Youth Delegate.
Links:

Stellar and opportunities in the nonprofit sector - speaking with Daniel Fisher
Daniel (aka Magofox) is from Portland Oregon
Father of two with no shortage of ideas. A mostly non-developer enthusiastic about Stellar. Creator of lumenthropy.com, stellarmint.io, and co-founder of publicnode.org.

NFTs, Smart Contracts and why decentralisation rules - Tyler from the Stellar Development Foundation
Today we speak to Tyler van der Hoeven, Ecosystem Evangelist at the Stellar Development Foundation for a techie podcast that dives into the world of NFTs and Smart Contracts.
Tyler has been with Stellar since 2019, and brings broad technical knowledge to the application of tough to understand technologies such as NFTs (Non Fungible Tokens) and Smart Contracts.
We attempt to cut through the current hype that surrounds NFTs - for sure they are here to stay, but the really interesting use cases are likely to be quite different from the hype currently dominating the media.
We also dive into Smart Contracts including Tyler’s current focus “Stellar Turrets'' which is “A decentralized, turing complete network for the secure, cost-effective, creation and signing of Stellar transactions.”
Tyler gets into the importance and relevance of decentralised systems, and why these systems are going to be so important as we look to create better ways of rewarding people inside the economic communities we create.
If you want to connect with Tyler, you can find him on LinkedIn and Twitter.
If you want to get involved in Smart Contracts on Stellar then learn more about Stellar Turrents here or join the Discord channel.

Donor insights and fundraising tips & tricks with Jason Lewis
On this episode I speak with Jason Lewis, the Founder of Responsive Fundraising, an organisation that helps nonprofit leaders discover a holistic, meaningful and sustainable approach to advancing their mission. Jason is also the author of The War for Fundraising Talent and How Small Shops Can Win.
Jason challenges many of the sector’s deeply engrained beliefs and assumptions about how fundraising really works. Whether writing, speaking or training, he questions the prevailing wisdom about fundraising practices, hiring decisions, and donor behaviour. Jason's first book, The War for Fundraising Talent, is an honest yet hopeful critique of contemporary fundraising practices.
As founder of Responsive Fundraising, Jason strives to ensure that nonprofit leaders can understand and experience a holistic, meaningful and sustainable approach to fundraising.
For more information on Jason and Responsive Fundraising you can visit their website at this link:

Digital marketing and the donor landscape - a conversation with Brady Josephson
Brady is the Managing Director of the NextAfter Institute where he performs original research, develops evidence-based resources, and provides data-driven training to help organizations raise more money online to fund their life-changing work.
A charity nerd, adjunct professor, and international speaker, his thoughts have been featured in The Huffington Post, NPR, and The Chronicle of Philanthropy among others. He was the lead researcher and author of The Canadian Online Fundraising Scorecard, The State of Nonprofit Donation Pages, and The State of Nonprofit Email Cultivation. Brady is also a host of The Generosity Freakshow — a podcast discussing how we can improve, optimize, and grow giving and an adjunct professor at North Park University’s School of Business and Nonprofit Management.
Before coming to NextAfter, Brady worked for the company he started, The Josephson Group, which founded Shift, a digital agency, and Nonprofit Supply Co., a Google Ad Grant advertising service.
Brady began his career at Spark Ventures, a start-up non-profit doing development work in Zambia, after receiving his Masters in Nonprofit Administration. He oversaw fundraising and marketing there before moving to Opportunity International, the world’s largest Christian microfinance organization, where he worked in digital fundraising and then served as National Marketing Director in Canada.
He lives just outside Dallas, Texas with his wife, Liz, son, Hendrix, and dog, Melly. You can connect with him on LinkedIn, follow him on Twitter, @bradyjosephson, and learn more about his speaking here.

Blockchain, rewards and smart agriculture - speaking with Marc Eberle
On this episode we speak with Marc Eberle the Executive Director of SmartAgro. Marc has been making documentaries for international broadcasters in Southeast Asia since 2000, then in 2018 he founded SmartAgro Sustainable Innovations Co. Ltd. to create a driver for change.
SmartAgro’s mission is to re-design agricultural practices and transform the paradigm of how we add long term value to people, smallholder communities and the ecosystem in the farming industry.
We chat about the work Marc does at SmartAgro with designing and engineering new cropping systems, how those are implemented in the field and where technology such as blockchain and cryptocurrency can help to increase livelihoods whilst slowing climate change.
During the pod Marc mentions a role playing game used to train the farmers. This was developed and refined by Jean-Christophe Castella with a team of researchers Jean-Christophe Diepart, Florent Tivet, Rada Kong, Vuthy Suos, Vira Leng, Sovann Pat, Raksmey Sen.
More information can be found at this link: Implementation e-book
And you can find out more about Marc and his team at SmartArgo at the SmartAgro website: SmartAgro

Donor motivation and Decoding the WHY - chatting with Nate Andorsky
Nate is an entrepreneur who blends behavioral science, data, and technology to help socially focused organizations scale their impact. He believes the key to unlocking the potential of technology lies within our understanding of the psychological factors that drive human decision-making. By combining scientific findings with outside-of-the-box thinking, he helps turn human understanding into business advantages.
As the CEO of Creative Science, he leads a team focused on this mission. He is a frequent international speaker, has been featured in Forbes, INC Magazine, and Huffington Post and his team’s work has earned accolades from Fast Company and TopNonProfits.com. Prior to Creative Science, he was a team member at the Startup America Partnership, a nonprofit led by Steve Case to help build entrepreneurial communities throughout the US. He geeks out about the intersection of human behavior and the ways in which it can improve human outcomes.
We chat about donor behaviour and what motivates people to give, the technology that can help nonprofits to better understand that process and how story telling is key to building relationships with donors. We also touch on sections of Nate’s book, Decoding the Why.
Nate’s email: nate@creativescience.co

The importance of student wellbeing - speaking with Beth Kerr
Beth Kerr is Group Wellbeing Director at Cognita, the global schools’ group, and an experienced media commentator on young people’s wellbeing. She is responsible for ensuring that Cognita’s approach to wellbeing is proactive and empowering for all members of its community. Beth believes passionately that wellbeing is the foundation of learning and that an authentic commitment to it leads to academic achievement and character development for children and young people, as well as giving them a global perspective.
Beth is an experienced teacher and educational leader specialising in pastoral care and wellbeing, has taught in the state and independent sector and is also a Team Inspector at the Independent Schools Inspectorate. She finished her MSc from UCL in Child and Adolescent Mental Health in 2018, and is passionate about the role of educators in improving the wellbeing of young people today. She has a special interest in ensuring that children and young people are the masters of their technology, rather than its servant!
References and resources that Beth mentioned:
Common Sense Media
Child Mind Institute plus
Congita's Be Well section on their website www.cognitabewell.com
Beth's Instagram: @bkerrwellbeing

Learn how the right mindset is essential during times of adversity - Speaking with Karen Tok
Karen is an Inspirational Speaker, Thought Leader on A New Way to Win, and Founder of award-winning biotechnology recruitment firm, ScienTec Consulting Pte Ltd. A highly dynamic individual and forward-thinking business leader, Karen was nominated for the Great Woman of Our Times Award 2018 by Woman’s Weekly Magazine and a recipient of the merit award for Shell LiveWire Young Business Start-up Award 2005.
Karen is a visionary self-starter who attained outstanding entrepreneurial success despite being written off as an academic no-hoper with a learning disability. With a seed capital of S$10,000, she built a thriving business valued at S$10 million dollars at the time of trade sales some 12 years later.
Karen start-up weathered the storm of two recessions: she first started her business during the 2001 recession post-dot-com bubble crash and was further hit by the Global Financial Crisis in 2009 during the scale-up stage. Tons of near-fatal business mistakes were made with six-figure sums spent on an expansion that went down the drain. With escalating overheads, fierce competition, high staff turnover, and unfavourable economy, they didn’t just weather the storms, they thrived. Under her helm, ScienTec won over 20 prestigious industry awards and expanded its Biotech and Pharmaceutical headhunting services to other verticals and related services. To think that Karen had no prior industry knowledge nor sector expertise when she started the company!
For Karen's full profile and more on her work visit her website:

Connecting and protecting our ecosystems - a conversation with Pei Su or ACTAsia
On this episode I chat with Pei Su, the CEO and co-founder of ACTAsia, an award-winning humane education charity.
Pei Su’s background is in animal welfare and sociology. She co-founded ACTAsia in 2006 with an Asian veterinarian, to support the development of caring societies in Asia.
We talk about Pei Su’s work at ACTAsia and what life is like running a large nonprofit as well as touching on the pandemic, what’s been learnt from it and what needs to change to prevent repeated outcomes.
For more details on Pei and ActAsia please click the link below:

The importance of collaboration as we work towards a greener world - chatting with Will Richardson
Sustainable Business Podcast Host | Fellow IEMA | EMS Implementor | ISO 14001 | Proud BCorp Owner
Founder and CEO Will established Green Element in 2004 (certified B-Corporation) and Compare Your Footprint in 2018 with a desire to help as many businesses as possible go ‘green’. The business is now the market leading environmental management consultancy, servicing a strong list of clients including Grant Thornton, Linklaters and Interpublic Group. A pioneer and early adopter of many now-mandatory environmental standards, his visionary approach and inspiring leadership is exemplary. As a Fellow of IEMA he drives change through every aspect of sustainability. Paying attention to environmental impact is a fundamental part of a successful business strategy and makes a real, tangible difference to where it matters the most – the bottom line.
• Fellow of IEMA
• Authored article for the Law Society’s Legal Sustainability Alliance: ‘Implementing an Environmental Management System’.
• Part-time lecturer at a variety of different Universities in Environmental Management for Business.
• Running a Sustainable Business Podcast for over 2 years; now being featured as in the top 10% of all podcasts.
• Leading expert on Environmental Management having been interviewed on a wide section of media outlets.
• Non-Executive Director of the ‘National Governing Body” for Kite Sports.
For more on Will and Green Element clink the following link:

Leadership, culture and effectively engaging your teams - speaking with Nada Lena
On this episode I speak with Nada Lena about the importance of defining company culture and what it means to effectively engage the workforce.
Nada is the founder and CEO of Rise Up For You, Leadership and Career Confidence Coach, and TEDx Motivational Speaker.
With over 10 years of experience as a college professor and former top executive for an education corporation, Nada understands the importance of fusing education, empowerment, and leadership together as she works with her clients and speaks to audiences worldwide. She has toured the world as a singer, has a Master’s degree in Administrative Leadership, and has coached and mentored close to 50,000 individuals around the world on self-empowerment, career strategy, and soft skills.
Nada has been featured on hundreds of podcasts and radio shows and has also been a motivational and educational speaker on platforms such as TEDx Talks, The Female Quotient, The California Human Resources Conference, Wonder Women Tech, The Human Gathering and more. Her company, Rise Up For You has been featured and worked with brands such as CBS, LA Fitness, Google Next 19, and more.
Nada is a proud TEDx Women speaker, has been awarded the Chief's Award from the Orange County Sheriff's Department for her work in 2018 and is a three-time finalist for The Emerging Woman-Owned Business Award from Connected Women of Influence.
Nada believes that in order to create change within our communities, companies, and households, we must first create change within ourselves. It’s a collective effort needed from all parties; no company, adult, or young adult can be left behind. The world needs us at our best!

Supporting the Goals with Colin Curtis
On this episode we speak with Colin Curtis the Managing Director of Support the Goals, an initiative to rate and recognise the businesses that support the UN Global Goals. A former Group Head of Sustainability for one of the world’s largest technology companies, Colin spent many years consulting with business leaders to help them understand the importance of balancing people, planet, and profit.
Colin is passionate about the UN Sustainable Development Goals and the vital role of businesses to help achieve the goals . He’s a straight-talking Lancastrian who prides himself on his ability to keep things simple and honest – this can get him into trouble!
You can learn more about Colin and his organisation on the link below:

Food insecurity in 2020 - Speaking with Chris Costanzo, the founder and editor of Food Bank News
On this episode we speak with Chris Costanzo the founder and editor of Food Bank News. Chris started Food Bank News in 2019 with the goal of providing a forum for food bank executives to share news and best practices to better solve hunger.
Before that, she worked as an editor, writer and reporter for nearly 30 years covering financial services. Chris is a graduate of Cornell University and she lives just outside of New York City with her family.
We talk about the challenges being seen with food insecurity in 2020, the increase in demand and the disruption due to the pandemic, and what Chris has learnt about the sector since starting Food Bank News.
To find out more about Chris, connect on LinkedIn or check out the website Food Bank News.

Mental wellbeing in the modern era - chatting with Yen-Lu Chow
Yen-Lu is a former Apple Distinguished Technologist, serial entrepreneur, angel investor, mentor and advisor, social innovator, and humanist.
He's the Executive Chairman, WholeTree Foundation; Co-Founder and Director, Asia Institute of Mentoring; Chairman, Singapore Creations; Founding Partner, Fatfish MediaLab; Executive Mentor, YSI SEA; and founder of the Deep Human Movement.
With the launch of his family foundation and other social impact initiatives, Yen-Lu devotes his time serving both society and the nation in his various capacities. He is on a life mission to help bring about a kinder, gentler, more inclusive, more just, and sustainable world.
We talk about Yen's journey from entrepreneur to mental health and wellbeing advocate.

Talking with Bian Li on startups, SDGs, purpose and what lies ahead
On this episode we speak with Bian Li (aka B). B is an entrepreneur, futurist and former investment banker at the intersection of finance, operations, technology and social innovation.
With 15+ years of experience working with hundreds of entrepreneurs of all sizes across 30 countries, she is now the founder of The Hungry Lab, where she specializes in building startups and designing the collaborative value networks and "glocal" ecosystems needed to grow them. She has been a TEDx speaker, appeared in Inc. Magazine and presents frequently around the world. She is a board member and advisor to a diverse array of startups. She is a member of Women in Blockchain and a mentor for Blockchain for Social Impact's Decentralized Hackathon and Incubator.
B is a certified Rescue Diver and when not at work, you'll find her scuba diving and raising awareness for ocean conservation. When B grows up, she wants to be a stand-up comedian/professional Latin dancer/anthropologist.
We chat about her work with Hungry Lab, some of the pivots she’s seen due to Covid, also what startups can expect in 2021 and beyond, we talk the UN Sustainable Development Goals and their importance in business and we touch on the notion of purpose and understanding your WHY.
Books that B recommended:
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/40745.Mindset
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/42940498-limitless-mind

WOCStar investment for startup success - chatting with Colleen Bataille
Today I’m chatting with Colleen Bataille of the WOCstar fund, and the podcast VCs off the record. Colleen is on a mission to build out new businesses that are disrupting and transforming the marketplace.
She is an entrepreneur at heart with in-depth business development, operational, and event management experience from leading her own successful company and most recently serving in a senior management role at startup, 828 Venue Management.
Colleen thrives on business development, sales, project management and working with startups in her current position with the WOCstar Fund.
We chat about working with startups in 2020, what qualities it takes to thrive and we touch on workplace diversity - what the future might look like with all the positive shifts we're seeing today.
The WOCstar Fund -
Website: The WOCstar Fund
Instagram:@wocstarfund
About Us: WOCstars r ROCKstars video (sneak peek)
Podcast | VCs off the Record -
Subscribe and Listen to VCs off the Record podcast wherever you listen to podcasts.

Business in 2020 and what lies ahead - speaking with Steve Gibbons
On this episode we chat with Steve Gibbons. A member of our board, Steve is co-founder of Ergon, one of our business partners and a company that helps organisations implement commitments on human rights, labour standards and gender equality.
Steve has over 25 years’ experience in labour and human rights issues. He has consulted to major international institutions, multinational companies, not-for-profit organizations and trade unions, including the ILO, World Bank Group, EBRD, the European Commission, London 2012, the ETI, UK Department for International Development and OSCE. He has worked in more than 20 countries across sectors including oil and gas, mining, retail, agribusiness, finance, and clothing and merchandise supply chains.
Steve has particular expertise in facilitating stakeholder dialogue and in devising and managing grievance and dispute resolution mechanisms in line with the UN Guiding Principles, including for the London 2012 Olympic Games. He is a expert member of the Independent Complaints Mechanism of DEG and FMO.
Before Ergon, Steve was head of employment law at Incomes Data Services, the UK’s largest labour relations research centre. He is a UK-qualified lawyer, a regular conference speaker and the founder of the UK’s leading online training company for lawyers, CPDCast®.
We chat about the current pandemic, how it has disrupted business and whats still to come in 2020 and beyond.
You can find our more about Steve’s work at: https://ergonassociates.net

Rugby, tech and the UN SDG's - chatting with Andy Gomarsall MBE
Andy is a Rugby World Cup winner in 2003 & played for 7 premiership clubs spanning 17 years & amassing over 200 premiership appearances, matched only be 9 others in the Premiership.
He was educated at Bedford School where he captained England U18 to a Grand Slam & Oxford Brookes University achieving a degree in Marketing Management & Tourism.
Andy has won League titles, Premiership titles & Cup titles in his time with London Wasps & Gloucester. His dream of wearing the England No 9 jersey in a World Cup Final was reached in RWC 2007, the team showing enormous resilience to make back to back World Cup finals. He was awarded an MBE for services to Rugby in 2004 for his part in winning the world cup in 2003.
Andy retired from the game in May 2010 & is now a Director & Owner of his family business N2S. (Network 2 Supplies Ltd). N2S are a Telecoms & IT services supplier, started in 2002 by his father Jack. His role see’s him lead the overall sales strategy & partnerships in the channel. N2S provide unique services in the lifecycle of products, specialising in reuse & recycling of all associated materials. Investment in the circular economy places N2S in an exciting phase, especially with new privacy laws (EU GDPR) set to become official in 2018, supporting business & government to protect their data holding devices.
Andy's drive, inspiration & determination in sport & business came from his hero Muhammad Ali to whom he met as a 5 year old. His involvement in rugby is now as a commentator, starring in RWC 2011 & 2015 with ITV. He commentated in last years Rugby World Cup Final for the World Feed, his 3rd involvement in a Final.
Andy is also a trustee to ‘The School of Hard Knocks’ (SOHK), currently filming their 9th series in London Docklands, & is an ambassador to The Wooden Spoon. His fundraising is normally achieved on the golf course where he is a 16 handicap! He is married to Francesca & has three daughters, Olivia, Indianna & Grace.
You can find out more about Andy on Linked in: https://www.linkedin.com/in/andrewgomarsall/

Where technology and social impact interact - speaking with Samira Khan
Today we're chatting with Samira Khan. Samira works at the intersection of social impact + tech at Salesforce. She's focused on impact measurement and the SDGs and has worked on global social impact and innovation across corporations, governments, and the social sector for over twelve years. Samira's work spans the Americas, the Middle East, and Asia. She is a former strategy /management consultant at Accenture; and while with A.T. Kearney in Southeast Asia, played a leading role in starting their social impact organization. Samira is also passionate about youth empowerment toward the SDGs and gender.
We speak about social entrepreneurship, what that means today and how its important, where technology is being put to good use both in the for profit and not for profit sectors and of course touch on the current situation - the impact and changes being seen following the disruption of 2020.
Samira can be found@samiraakhan on Twitter / LinkedIn.

Supporting families and the pets they love - Nicole Wilks & Animal Food Bank
On this episode I’m speaking with Nicole Wilks from Animal Food Bank in Canada. An organisation she founded and runs with her partner AJ. Originally started in Kelowna, BC, the Animal Food Bank aims to become a national organization promoting the sharing of resources and knowledge, and promoting collaboration between organizations working to feed and shelter the homeless and their pets and low-income individuals, house them, and help change their circumstances. Their aim is to help fill gaps where they find them, and collaborate and support existing organizations.
They plan to create a nationwide network of support for each other, and people in need with their pets, from food, to supplies, to vet care, to housing.
For more information on Nicole and Animal Food Bank visit their website:
https://animalfoodbank.ca

Crowdsourcing, purpose and understanding your why - chatting with Epi Ludvik
As one of the pioneers in the crowdsourcing ad space, Epi Ludvik has established himself as a radical thinker and leader in crowdsourcing. As a global citizen, Epi has worked with clients throughout Asia, Europe and the US and understands the purpose-driven influence the crowd economy can have, not only on brands, but also on the greater society. With this knowledge and experience Epi founded Crowdsourcing Week in 2013. Since the first CSW Global conference in 2013, over 20,000 people from 75 countries have attended various CSW events, marking them as the crowdsourcing events to attend.
A serial entrepreneur since graduation, Epi creates the strategies needed to leverage the crowd and drive exponential business growth.
You can find our more or contact Epi on the following links:
https://crowdsourcingweek.com
https://sg.linkedin.com/in/epirot

Engineering business success whilst navigating Covid-19 - John Walker
John started his working life as a professional soccer player, having played for England schoolboys, but was forced to retire from this sport following a serious injury, after which he pursued a career in finance.
He achieved a first place in the ACCA Accountancy Examination and worked in the motor and advertising industries before joining Heuga, moving to Holland with the Company in 1978 as group finance director. He transferred to Sales and Marketing during the eighties with profit responsibility for just about every part of Heuga (now Interface) stretching from Western Europe to Australia and Japan. In addition, he pioneered the opening of a number of businesses for Interface in Eastern Europe in the early nineties. He also helped to develop and initiate a strategy to enable Interface to become the first name in industrial ecology and a truly sustainable enterprise.
Since retirement, John has set up and helped to develop a number of successful businesses in the following business sectors: change management consultants, a nursing home group specialising in care for mentally ill patients, a company specialising in development of software products for the recruitment industry, a business to business mobile/landline communications company, a digital advertising company and a tennis centre incorporating a top tennis academy. He also advises several other companies and in a number of cases has been appointed chairman of the board.
He chairs the board of a growing company, which provides a performance improvement product and service to the NHS and is engaged in leadership development and coaching with senior management of a significant hospital trust.

Leadership during crisis - speaking with Peter Baines OAM
Investigating homicides, leading international teams into scenes of crisis and disaster is not your normal path to global keynote speaker and business consultant. It was this unique path that provided insights into leadership which are so different yet offer relevant reflections and learnings to businesses facing change, growth or challenges of their own.
Peter Baines worked in countries following major crisis including Indonesia, Japan, Thailand and Saudi Arabia. His grounding came from two decades as a forensic investigator that saw him unravel the mysteries and discover the secrets of criminals thought rested solely with them. Prior to finishing his career as a forensic investigator he would spend time working with both Interpol in Lyon, France and the United Nations Office of Drug and Crime advising on Counter Terrorism and capacity building.
But it was the work in Thailand that brought the biggest change. In response to the needs of the children left without a home or parents he would form Hands Across the Water and commence fundraising in Australia to build them a home. Ten years after starting the charity he now spends much of his time helping other charity leaders through The Growth Project and advises business on how they can and indeed should benefit from their engagement with their community partners through corporate social responsibility programs.
If you'd like to speak with Peter to enquire on his services or support his charity, you can do at his website.

How creativity is curiosity - a podcast with Fredrik Haren aka The Creativity Explorer
On this episode we speak with Fredrik Haren, The Creativity Explorer, who is an author and global keynote speaker who speaks on business creativity and human innovation, on embracing disruption and change, and about the importance of having a global, human mindset. He has been invited to speak at over 2,000 conferences and internal events in 70 countries, across six continents of the world, and usually speaks in 20 to 35 countries per year.
Fredrik is the author of 10 books, the most significant ones being The Idea Book which has sold over 200,000 copies (self published), and which was included in “The 100 Best Business Books Of All Time”.
Fredrik is driven by his Inner Theme: “Humanity to the Power of Ideas” and he believes in the potential of humanity and in the power of human creativity. He is passionate about helping as many people as possible reach their full creative potential.
He travels all across the globe to learn as much as possible about humanity’s ability to have and develop great ideas. From North Korea to South Africa, and from the vast plains of Mongolia to Silicon Valley, he goes do the most exotic and undiscovered places in the world as well as to the hotspots of global innovation.
For the last 20 years he has interviewed thousands of creative people from all walks of life, and inspired over a million people from the stage.
His latest video: "Join The Creativity Explorer. Discover your full creative potential.” : Watch it here

Beyond C19 - Purpose and value with Simon Meyer
Simon Meyer is a successful serial entrepreneur operating in the recruitment space in Australia just on the cusp of launching his new start-up Compono.
He has also joined the advisory board of Task - and we're very happy to be bringing his expertise and advice to the Task team.
In this podcast we examine the role of purpose and value in businesses, whether the affects of Covid-19 will see increased need for purpose within the work place, and how the investments landscapes might change as a result.
If you'd like to speak to Simon, contact him via LinkedIn or get in touch via the Compono website.

Solar leasing and Covid-19 isolation in Goa - speaking with Sam Goyal
On this episode of the podcast we speak with Samridh (Sam) Goyal. Sam founded Singapore based Solar Horizon back in 2014, a solar leasing company operating in south east Asia. He’s a leading voice in cleantech, and earlier this year Sam was recognised amongst the 50 Global Green Leaders by the World CSR Congress in Mumbai, India.
We talk about solar and where the industry is heading as well as touching on the current impact of Covid-19, a somewhat unavoidable topic for all of us right now. You can find out more about Sam and Solar Horizon at the website: Solar Horizon

Where silence is communication - a conversation with Dr. Matt Yoxall
We originally spoke to Dr Matt Yoxall at the beginning of 2019, hearing about his experiences working with NGO's helping to reduce trafficking, being part of theatre groups in Chin State, and his emerging work with corporates on the power of story telling. That podcast can be found under the title - Why we should all tell stories (published 31.1.19). In this episode we go in to greater depth on that corporate work and how attributes such as silence, play a key role in top level communication.
For more on Matt Yoxall visit his website: https://dryoxall.com

SeedTribe - combining financial success with Impact investments
In the episode of the Task podcast we talk to Rosalind Grubin from SeedTribe.com.
SeedTribe believe that "business can be our most powerful driver to enact meaningful and positive change in the world."
Rozzy talks us through the background of SeedTribe, success stories, the thinking behind impact investing and what they hope to achieve as an organisation which extends services beyond just finding start-ups investment.
Visit SeedTribe.com to speak to their team, and enjoy our conversation with Rozzy.

Hollywood, Thailand, and week old moustaches - a conversation with Craig Ryan
On todays episode I am speaking with Craig Ryan, an actor and producer based out of LA. Craig first came to Thailand in 2017 to shoot an action film in Bangkok, Haphazard. I met him shortly after that and we worked on my own film project, Dark Karma. We talk movies of course, Thailand and travel, as well as covering some of Craigs up coming projects. You can find out more about Craig at his IMDB page: https://www.imdb.com/name/nm7477601/

From London's west end to full moon island - a conversation with DJ Graham Gold
LEGEND is a word frequently used by people when they talk about Graham Gold, one of the most influential and ground breaking DJ’s ever on London’s Kiss 100. 5 years in the DJ Mag Top 40, when it truly meant something, over 700,000 mix albums sold (6 x British Phonographic Institute artist) and played in clubs and festivals in over 150 cities across 50 countries. Fast forward to 2019, and whilst those heady days of global fame are gone, he remains very much a recognised name as a dance music pioneer, and as such plays his deep house, progressive house, progressive trance and melodic techno at all of the parties on Koh Phangan, Thailand where he now lives including Guys Bar, Eden Garden, LostParadise, Loi Lay, Maya, Addict and Lighthouse
Graham previously ran the Koolworld, Peach and Good:As record labels where he took numerous tracks from the underground and turned them into commercial successes. One of his biggest singings was Mat Darey’s ‘Liberation”’ which made the UK Top 20. Good:As also managed the UK & Ibiza diaries of Armin, Tiesto and Ferry Corsten from 1998-2001. He was a sought after TV presenter and hosted the clubbing TV show ‘BPM’ which aired on the UK’s number one commercial channel as well presenting a few shows from WMC for MTV.
Graham has been a DJ his whole life and lived through disco, soul, jazz funk and was there at the beginning of the house music phenomenon. In 1985-1986 after years on London’s Pirate radio stations he presented the soul show on London’s Capital FM ahead of his move to Kiss 100FM. His real ‘craft learning years’ were at Gullivers in London’s Mayfair from 1980-1989 where he played 6 nights a week, 7 a hours a night to the capitals movers and shakers. It’s no wonder clubbers and the whole industry call him a legend! He is to be found in the global online dictionary WIKIPEDIA.
www.facebook.com/DJGrahamGold
www.mixcloud.com/GrahamGold/
www.soundcoould.com/dj-graham-gold
twitter.com/DJGRAHAMGOLD
www.instagram.com/djgrahamgold/
www.youtube.com/c/GRAHAMGOLD
dj.beatport.com/grahamgold
pro.beatport.com/artist/graham-gold/2194