More About Me

My name is Michael and I created this site to spread the word about creating a more sustainable future for generations to come. A little bit about me: I’ve built a career in growth marketing, leading teams to drive measurable business outcomes across various industries and countries. Not all my jobs contributed to making the world a better place from a sustainability standpoint, and as the years went by I realized I’d like that to change. I’m deeply passionate about transitioning society to a sustainable future and will put my skills to use to help achieve that vision.

The effects of climate change in particular have hit close to home for me. I am from the Netherlands (or ‘low countries’) and grew up in a society acutely aware of its dire and worsening situation. The Dutch have been fighting to keep water out for eons. Although in the Netherlands the ongoing struggle isn’t exclusively due to climate change, the conversation there has changed the past few years as a direct result of climate change. When I was younger the conversation in the Netherlands centered around keeping the water out. This has now morphed into “the water is here to stay. How can we work with it rather than against it?” The government is actively involved and is going as far as buying up farmland to designate it as flood zones. Rotterdam has parks and parking garages with the same designation in an effort to at least control where the water goes and minimize its impact. We can no longer keep it out.

Subsequently, I spent ten years in Miami, Florida and saw first hand how flash flooding increasingly made parts of the city inaccessible, more frequently. Having to change plans due to floods wasn’t uncommon. Sometimes you’d just hope your car would make it through the roads turned rivers. Living in Miami, climate change and its effects on people were an undeniable fact of life. And unfortunately it got worse over the decade I was there. At some point I thought to myself “I’ll move to the mountains next”. I love mountains! But guess what, the rugged California landscape I love so much and now call home is plagued by wildfires more than ever before as a result of climate change. This topic keeps chasing me. Or maybe I keep chasing it. Either way, I want to help do something about it.

We have a formidable challenge ahead. I believe that together we can rise to the occasion and build a better future. What gets me truly excited is the notion that we can achieve better lives for ourselves while at the same time helping to develop a sustainable economy and society for generations to come. One does not have to come at the expense of the other. We may have to change the way we measure economic and business success, but in the long run there are no insurmountable barriers that would prevent us from achieving both. Opportunities that will help us achieve a sustainable future are all around. Let’s find and act on those opportunities. Let’s put a spotlight on them and invest in the most promising initiatives that will help humanity build a greener future. I hope you will join me in the movement and look forward to collaborating!