In Conversation with Nathalie Nahai

Today I speak with Sharath Jeevan, an author and speaker who helps organisations and individuals to re-ignite inner-drive and solve deep motivational challenges. Recognised as one of the UK’s ten leading social entrepreneurs in 2019, Sharath’s work has been featured in The New York Times, The Economist, CNN, National Public Radio and The Times of India, and he has served on the High Level Steering Group of the Education Commission, the pre-eminent global think-tank founded by former British Prime Minister Gordon Brown. His forthcoming book, Intrinsic: A manifesto to reignite our inner drive, explores how we can harness ground-breaking research to solve what he describes as our motivational crisis, so as to better create the lives we want. In this conversation we navigate everything from motivation and meaning to purpose, autonomy and mastery, and I’m excited to share his insights with you here.

Today I have the pleasure of speaking with Austin Whitman, CEO of Climate Neutral, and a thought-leader well-versed in the world of corporate carbon responsibility. Having served as Vice President of Climate Change Capital, and Vice President of M.J. Bradley & Associates, two leaders in climate-focused investing and asset management, in 2019, Austin started Climate Neutral, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit aiming to accelerate the decarbonization of global emissions through their achievable certification framework. By using this framework to certify brands who measure their carbon footprint, offset it with verified offsets, and create future reduction strategies, Climate Neutral aim to turn consumer purchases into funding for climate solutions, and empower brands and consumers to take voluntary action against climate change. This was an eye-opening conversation for me, in which Austin really lifted the lid on how we might practically and proactively move towards a net zero carbon world, and I hope you find it as inspiring and useful as I did.

In this episode, I speak with Cory Doctorow, a Canadian-British blogger, science fiction author, activist, and journalist, whose recent books include "Attack Surface" and "How to Destroy Surveillance Capitalism", a work of nonfiction that explores conspiracies and monopolies. A special consultant to the Electronic Frontier Foundation, Cory is also a MIT Media Lab Research Affiliate and co-founder of the UK-based Open Rights Group, and serves as a visiting professor of computer science at the Open University, and a visiting professor of practice at the University of North Carolina’s School of Library and Information Science. In this conversation we dissect the murky world of monopolies, technology and surveillance capitalism, and how these powers are shaping our economic and civic possibilities.

In this episode, I speak with Della Duncan, a Renegade Economist and host of the Upstream Podcast, who facilitates opportunities for personal and systemic transition to a more equitable, sustainable, and enlivened world. Trained as a Right Livelihood coach, Della is also an Atlantic Fellow of Social and Economic Equity at the International Inequalities Institute at the London School of Economics, a Gross National Happiness Master Trainer, and a Regenerative Economics Consultant. Our conversation traverses many themes, from regenerative economics and alternative value systems, to sufficiency and one-planet living, and explores how we might reinvent how we live in a post-growth world.

Today I speak with Chris Willan, a multi-award winning travel photographer and nature enthusiast whose clients include The Times, Condé Nast, BBC Worldwide, The Nature Conservancy and The Arts Council UK. Having collaborated with some of the world’s most iconic photographers at the legendary Magnum agency, his photography has taken him around the world, traversing the realms of advertising, travel, TV and film, NGO, editorial and corporate assignments. Chris has also had solo exhibit at Tate Modern and The National Theatre, and he has received the World Responsible Travel Award for photography. In this conversation we explore stories of empowerment, sustainability and change, and how our capacity for curiosity and attention can reconnect us with the people and places we encounter.

Today I have the pleasure of speaking with author, art therapist and Jungian analyst, Mary-Jayne Rust, who lectures and facilitates workshops on Ecopsychology. Having worked in a men’s prison in the 1980s, and at the Women’s Therapy Centre in London during the early years of feminist psychotherapy, she has developed a rich and varied understanding of how culture shapes our internal worlds. In this conversation we talk about culture, breakdown and rites of passage, and how we might better understand and transform not only how we relate with ourselves, but also with the greater web of life.

Today, I have the pleasure of speaking with Casper Ter Kuile, author of The Power of Ritual and co-host of the award-winning podcast Harry Potter and the Sacred Text. A Ministry Innovation Fellow at Harvard Divinity School, Casper is also the co-founder of startup Sacred Design Lab, a research and design consultancy working to create a culture of belonging and becoming. In today’s conversation we explore how we might engage in practices that bring us a deeper sense of depth, connection and meaning, and how we might revisit the art and power of ritual through a modern lens.

Today, I have the pleasure of speaking with Simon Hill, CEO & Co-founder of Wazoku - a tech company that helps businesses unlock the nascent innovation potential of their employees, partners, customers the world over. An Angel investor, author & speaker on topics relating to collaborative innovation, crowdsourcing, co-creation and intrapreneurship, Simon also advises several B2B & B2C early stage tech businesses, and he has received many awards and nominations for his tech leadership over the years. In this conversation, we explore how organisational culture, business and innovation can remake the way in which we work and live, and learn about the extraordinary ways in which we can discover powerful solutions to complex problems.

Today, I have the pleasure of speaking with Looby MacNamara – an author, facilitator, designer, gardener and mother. Having discovered permaculture in 1999, Looby was deeply inspired by the collaborative learning environment and the focus on emerging solutions through collective wisdom, and she has since written 4 books connected with these themes: Cultural Emergence, People & Permaculture, 7 Ways to Think Differently and Strands of Infinity. In this conversation, we explore everything from community and resilience, to cultural emergence and education, in what I hope will offer an enlivening source of ideas and inspiration. Join in the conversation #hivepodcast, and find out more at www.nathalienahai.com/the-hive-podcast/ Recorded on 3rd February 2021.

In today's conversation, I speak with Betsy Reed, an author, speaker and award-winning director of innovative behaviour change approaches, whose work explores social and environmental issues. Her first book, ‘Communicating Social and Environmental Issues Effectively,’ was published in July 2020 by Emerald Publishing and the UK’s PRCA, the largest PR association in Europe. Betsy has led sustainability public affairs work for the world’s biggest food company and worked as an independent consultant advising executives in the food, tech and fashion industries on sustainability strategy, risk, and internal and external engagement. With her passion to engage people in exploring 'How connection, play and being human in everything we do can save the world,’ this was a vibrant, thought-provoking conversation which I hope will inspire you along your way. For more information, you can find Betsy's podcast and book via her website www.betsy-reed.com Join in the conversation #hivepodcast, and find out more at www.nathalienahai.com/the-hive-podcast/ Recorded on 15th January 2021.