Circular Economy

My Circular Story

Talk at Factory 9/2020

I discovered the Circular Economy model in 2015, in Paris, at a talk given by the founders of design agency Circulab. “In nature”, they said, “there is no such thing as waste. Everything has a purpose”. I was hooked, and I thought: ‘this is what I want to work on!’. Few had heard of circular economy back then, even less than CSR (corporate social responsibility), my former job at energy group EDF. I gave them my card and said I’d be keen to be involved.

Later that year, the founders called me: they needed facilitators and a translator to adapt their tools into English. I became one of their first trained and certified facilitators. We were a small team of 5 freelance consultants with varied backgrounds, ready to train and support on the topic: whether SME, university, start-ups, corporates, NGOs or social-profits, we support organisations to change their business model using Circulab tools. Ideally, we help them shift to do business in a ‘circular’, regenerative, future-proof way. We are now over 80.

I don’t work alone: I have a communications background, including 8 years in a major energy group working in transversal teams. In line with systems thinking and the idea that we should get out of silos and work in a more interconnected way, a practice essential to circularity, I call upon a variety of people to work with depending on your needs. These can include product designers, leadership, marketing and supply chain experts, in various organisations or independent, both here in Germany, France, the UK and globally within the 80+ Circulab network.

What I offer

CE Workshops

Workshops with CE-related Tools

Mentoring & Speaking

Editorial/Communications

1- Circular Economy Workshops:

Workshop at Hemofarm, Serbia, 2019

2- Other Tools:

3- Mentoring and Speaking opportunities:

 

With 7 years experience and knowledge in a fairly new sector, I have a lot of advice to give jobseekers, start-ups, SMEs and organisations looking to develop circular economy activity and knowledge. I have now mentored 30+ startups for circularity. I also have an extensive global and national network (Germany, France & global) built up over the years, and access to the ‘movers & shakers’ globally who are shaping the future of the model.

I know the books and texts to read, the local versus the global setup, the flaws and the virtues of the model. With my communications background and expertise, I can also support your editorial and messaging needs on your circular activities – no greenwashing!

As well as the tools above, I offer:

4- Editorial, Communications & Storytelling:

Recent Circular Economy Projects 

Circular Design workshop, Antwerp university, 2020
Circular Design workshop, Antwerp university, 2020
  • OneOne ofDesigning workshops and talks for companies, universities, social-profits, events and mentoring to understand CE and identify opportunities. On/offline, across Europe, in three languages. 
  • Mentoring for ‘circular’ startups since 2020 (Impact Hubs, Universität der Künste, privately)
  • Speaker on CE for Future Females, German ministries, Sustainability Slams, pecha kucha, New Mittelstand, keynotes. Co-host for workshops, webinars and demos with Circular Berlin, Circonnact (Vienna)Hello Circular! Over 800 sign-ups over 5 years.  
  • Podcast on CE and Germany in 2019
  • Interview on WDR German public radio in 2022 (in German): Circular Economy: die Wirtschaft der Zukunft? One of several experts from Berlin in the interview.
  • Cited in Internationale Politik review (in Germany) in November 2022 edition.
  • Initiating and drafting position paper on CE for a global NGO involving over 60 actors, internal and external
  • Writing statements, endorsements etc. for various publications, in print and online, such as the Mastering the Circular Economy textbook (2021, left) and for the Expert Series in Circular Conversations 
  • Guiding visitors to Europe’s first profitable circular economy aquaponics city farm, Stadtfarm, in Berlin (2019/2020)
  • Study on takeback in the clothing retail sector in Germany 
  • Translation of a Study on EU CE actors by l’Orée (French CE association)

See Testimonials Page and Client list. 

Relevant qualifications

  • Background: corporate responsibility, internal communications and chief of staff roles at major energy firm in London and Paris over 8 years
  • Certified consultant at Circulab since 2015, a global network of licensed facilitators in 20 countries, in all continents, sharing one workspace.
  • Co-designed and delivered workshops on CE for over 20 organisations, including universities, corporates, SMEs, non- or social profits, across Europe
  • Attended major conferences and events: Helsinki WFCE 2019, Circle Economy in Amsterdam in 2019 and Cradle to Cradle‘s 2020 conference in Berlin
  • Co-founding member of a sustainability consultancy (2y, also in Supervisory Board), familiar with start-up scene and setting up a business
  • From Linear to Circular course, Ellen MacArthur Foundation; 2-day Ecodesign course at Fraunhofer Institut, IZM, Berlin; 2-day permaculture course, Brandenburg (2020)
  • Photo exhibition on dustbins and waste shown in Paris and Berlin in a dozen spaces, including the City of Paris (+1k visitors)
  • First-class degree from Oxford University (MA Oxon) in Modern Languages
  • Trilingual with strong understanding of UK, French and German cultures, with 8 years spent in Germany in 5 cities, 20 years in Paris and 15 in the UK.
  • International awareness: solo travel around the globe for 1y, from Taillinn to Goa, 1 mth volunteer in 2 NGOs (ecotourism & handicap) in Hanoi, Vietnam, 2012-13.

See also: Testimonials.

contact @ phenomenalwords.com