Simon fled Rwanda aged 16 in 1994 and never saw his home again. This is one of those really deep episodes where we really explore what it even means to be human and reflect on what is important in life. In this interview we talk about his experience of being a refugee, what it is like to have your identity stripped from you, key points that he has learned from his journey and how he survived. We also talk about what he learnt from his parents and their positive attitude and the impact on his lif...
Sep 24, 2018•1 hr 5 min•Ep. 61
Dr Sharon McIver founded social enterprise 'Our Daily Waste' and in this conversation we talk about her entrepreneurial journey. Before getting to that though we discuss her childhood as well as work as a music journalist that meant she reviewed hundreds of albums and interviewed many musicians such as Radiohead and Ben Harper. We also talk about her doctoral thesis on outdoor dance culture which also looked at the influence of the New Zealand landscape on Kiwi music. This is one of those conver...
Sep 17, 2018•1 hr 5 min•Ep. 60
Reuben is a co-founder and Managing Director of Smudge which has been developing apps since the iPhone first came out. In this interview we start with a discussion about his love of music before we turn to his early experiences developing apps. We then discuss some of the work they do today including with the New Zealand Police to save thousands of hours of time and reduce the paperwork involved in their jobs. This is being released in the week of the Canterbury Tech Summit 2018 which had more t...
Sep 12, 2018•1 hr 5 min•Ep. 59
To celebrate getting to 15,000 listens this " Legal Mashup " is a bonus episode recorded at XCHC recently. In this I presented along with Kris Morrison about key start-up issues including what a social enterprise is, best legal structure options for them, the charitable option, governance, board size, liability, intellectual property, overseas considerations, employment, and other start-up issues ... we covered a lot! If you enjoy it consider sharing with someone else who is at the start of thei...
Sep 10, 2018•56 min•Ep. 58
Dave Lane is an advocate for open source software and is the President of the NZ Open Source Society. In this interview we talk about his early years (including his Quaker roots) and growing up in a multilingual home. We also discuss his studies and what led him to New Zealand and his experiences as an entrepreneur. You can access a lot of information at https://davelane.nz This particular episode - in the spirit of the content discussed - is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAl...
Sep 03, 2018•1 hr 2 min•Ep. 57
Philipp is researching fuel use in rockets at the University of Canterbury looking in particular at rocket flight mechanics and control in collaboration with Rocket Lab. In this interview we talk about his childhood in Germany, what he learned from his Father who got cancer and passed away and how it prepared him for his own battle and surviving cancer. We then get pretty deep about what that experience of survival has meant for how he approaches the rest of his life and finds his purpose. We al...
Aug 27, 2018•54 min•Ep. 56
Professor Julia Rucklidge has been researching the link between diet, nutrients and mental health and in this interview we talk about that work. We also discuss her childhood and background growing up in Canada, how she got into this field, what the research is actually showing and what it was like to give a TEDx talk that has almost a million views. To learn more visit: https://www.facebook.com/mentalhealthandnutrition/ TEDx talk: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3dqXHHCc5lA University page: htt...
Aug 20, 2018•55 min•Ep. 55
Zoë Hector (nee Haws) founded social enterprise 'Talk Town' after she had worked as a teacher aide and saw deaf children left out of games on the playground. In this interview we talk about her own background and journey that has led to this initiative, what it was like to win the Entre start-up challenge in 2017 and her plans for the future. Zoe has a crowdfunding campaign at the moment - check it out in the link below. Website: https://www.talktowngame.net Pledge me campaign page: https://www....
Aug 13, 2018•48 min•Ep. 54
This is a bonus compilation episode to celebrate getting to 52 interviews looking back through some of the conversations to pull out short extracts of "the moment" when something changed for the people I was interviewing. I hope you enjoy it! The people I talked to on this episode are: - John Hammond - Kit Hindin - Michelle Sharp - Dr Jarrod Gilbert - Tim Jones - Dr James Austin - Michael Mayell - Camia Young - Gary Shaw - Elena Casolari - Stuart Dillon-Roberts
Aug 06, 2018•44 min•Ep. 53
Only a few social enterprises that I meet are focused on the digital and online world - so it was refreshing to talk with Stuart Dillon-Roberts who founded social enterprise Digital Journey . The aim is to 'deliver digital projects and initiatives to support our goal of creating an environment where everyone has the opportunity to use, understand and benefit from digital services.' In this interview we talk about Stuart's background and what led to forming this venture as well as how they work a...
Jul 30, 2018•39 min•Ep. 52
Angela Sothern has an idea for a new charity fundraising loyalty programme which is intended to to help towards the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals. We discuss Angela's background and history as well as her new initiative. In this interview we disagree a bit about the steps to implement the idea and have global impact. Angela has also provided the update below as well on positive progress since the intervew. http://www.globalnetworksupportcharity.org Angela gives the following u...
Jul 23, 2018•57 min•Ep. 51
Welcome to the 50th episode! Marcelle Lunam is the founder and project lead for Tūmanako Wellness Centre. Marcelle has worked in film as a director and we discuss the influence her Grandfather had on her as a child learning to appreciate light, paintings and film. We also discuss her career and work with the innovative Chris O’Brien Lifehouse in Sydney as well as being a creative who has been the international Creative Director of Mambo and Creative Director of zSpace in Sydney. We then discuss ...
Jul 16, 2018•1 hr 4 min•Ep. 50
Andrew Bell is the Executive Director of The Fred Hollows Foundation NZ which he has led since 2010. In this interview we discuss his background and childhood in South Africa as a child of apartheid, studying anthropology and sociology and what that was like with a growing sense of the injustice of apartheid. We also discuss his role now with efforts to prevent blindness through the work of The Fred Hollows Foundation. https://www.hollows.org.nz/ From the Fred Hollows Foundation biography: "Andr...
Jul 09, 2018•59 min•Ep. 49
Sarah Kessans is a research fellow at the University of Canterbury. In this interview we talk about her work as a synthetic biologist and discuss genetic engineering and the ethics of change as well as how it all actually works at a practical level. We also talk about her application to become an astronaut to NASA and what it was like to go through that process. This is one of 48 interviews with people doing things a little differently in a wide variety of areas. Check some of the others out at ...
Jul 02, 2018•57 min•Ep. 48
Peter is the project coordinator for the local urban food hub Ōtākaro Orchard. Its aim is to provide knowledge and inspiration about sustainable food systems as part of the Food Resilience Network. In this interview we talk with Peter about his background and experiences in different parts of the world and what led him to move to Christchurch to be involved with this new initiative as well as his time in Edinburgh, Costa Rica, discussing modern dance, acting and theatre. There are three stages t...
Jun 25, 2018•1 hr 17 min•Ep. 47
Alanna Chapman is a co-founder of 27 Seconds which is a social enterprise winery whose profits go to ending modern day slavery. They do this by supporting the work of Hagar with their profits. In this interview we talk about her childhood that included living in South East Asia, her more recent encounters with modern slavery and the resulting origin of the idea for 27 Seconds and how it operates as a social enterprise. https://27seconds.co.nz https://www.facebook.com/27secondswinery/ http://haga...
Jun 19, 2018•39 min•Ep. 46
Samantha Jones is a social entrepreneur who founded B Corp certified Little Yellow Bird (https://www.littleyellowbird.co.nz/). It’s aim is to ethically make uniforms and other workwear while also considering the source of organic cotton, impact on the environment and the fair treatment of the workers involved. In this interview we talk with Samantha about her childhood, living in Russia, some initiatives she is involved in such as Campus and the origins of Little Yellow Bird. https://www.littley...
Jun 11, 2018•52 min•Ep. 45
Michael founded the iconic New Zealand brand Cookie Time more than 30 years ago. But that wasn't his first business idea and the initial ones he had tried failed - but he kept trying. When you talk to Michael it is apparent that if the cookie idea hadn't worked then he would have tried something else - that entrepreneurial spirit is still evident today with the launch of social enterprise Nutrient Rescue and other ventures we discuss in the interview. Michael's focus has shifted greatly in the l...
Jun 04, 2018•59 min•Ep. 44
A bonus episode to celebrate getting to a total of 10,000 listens of the show and to say thanks to those who subscribe! This is a bit different as it is from the recent conference at Te Papa where I was able to help moderate a session on the topic " Are there too many Charities in New Zealand ". Thought it was worth sharing as there were a lot of very stimulating ideas and perspectives shared by the following 5 panelists: Cheryl Spain - The Gift Trust https://www.thegifttrust.org.nz/ Dellwyn Stu...
May 30, 2018•43 min•Ep. 43
Miranda is the STEM Coordinator at the Ara Institute of Canterbury. In this conversation we talk about Miranda's background including her early years in the ski industry, involvement in space camps for youth, visiting NASA, the mission of Spacebase, the colonisation of Mars and the promotion of STEM for the next generation. http://www.ara.ac.nz/ https://spacebase.co/ Earlier interview with Emeline Paat-Dahlstrom on Space http://seeds.libsyn.com/emeline-patt-dahlstrom-on-space...
May 28, 2018•47 min•Ep. 42
David is the Chair of Canterbury Tech and in this episode released during Techweek '18 we talk about the origins of Canterbury Tech, what it is involved in and the future of technology for the next generation. We also discuss David's childhood in South Africa, his different entrepreneurial ventures, what makes a good manager and how you hire to get the best people and culture fit. Canterbury Tech: http://canterburytech.nz/ Stratos Technology Partners: http://stp.co.nz/ This episode is released d...
May 21, 2018•55 min•Ep. 41
Stella is the Chief Digital Officer (and Acting Executive Director Allied Health) for the Canterbury DHB and West Coast DHB. In this interview we talk about Stella's career and what she is involved in relating to technology and the health sector. What will a ward of the future look like? What will 'big data' mean for health care? We explore these and other questions in this interview. This interview is released in the lead up to Techweek '18 and is part of a focus on technology and the role it p...
May 14, 2018•47 min•Ep. 40
Peter is the Chief Executive of Antarctica New Zealand and in this interview we talk about his background as well as the history of explorers in Antarctica, the work being done supporting world leading science and environmental protection, keeping people safe on the ice, the role of technology now and in the future as well as the international significance of Antarctica and the Southern Ocean. This episode is released in the lead up to Techweek '18 as we are focusing on Technology for a few epis...
May 08, 2018•54 min•Ep. 39
Rob is a Professor and Research Leader at the HIT Lab NZ (Human Interface Technologies) at Canterbury University. This interview is released in the lead up to Techweek '18 as we highlight stories from the tech sector. In this interview we talk about Rob's background and how he started researching virtual reality in the 1990s, the origins and key points in the history of virtual reality, how you have to start with the human problem faced before getting carried away with technology and what the fu...
May 03, 2018•59 min•Ep. 38
Fiona is the Chief Executive and Secretary General of Paralympics New Zealand. In this interview we talk about her childhood growing up in the UK, the role her parents played in her days as an elite athlete in Europe and how the transition to being involved in Paralympics happened. We also talk about the role of elite sport and in particular in the context of Paralympians, what it is that they inspire in those who get to know them and understand the work they put in, what she has learned from th...
Apr 29, 2018•49 min•Ep. 37
Peter has written many books on New Zealand's leading creative authors, writers, painters and musicians. His most recent recognition was the 2017 Prime Minister's Award for Literary Achievement in honour of his non-fiction. In this interview we talk about his work as an editor, writer, critic, curator and former academic in New Zealand and Canada. We also talk about his memories of growing up just after World War II, the thriving literary scene in Christchurch between 1933 and 1953, his life as ...
Apr 23, 2018•1 hr 15 min•Ep. 36
Chris is the Founder of Impact Ventures NZ which is a partner in the Impact Enterprise Fund which recently completed a first close having raised $8 million dollars for impact investing in New Zealand. In this interview we talk about his background and work as an investment banker before the decision to get into impact investing. We also discuss what impact investing actually is and what you look for when you go to invest such a fund which is commercially focused and wants market returns but also...
Apr 16, 2018•59 min•Ep. 35
Nigel is a co-founder and Manager of social enterprise Crave Cafe in Morningside in Auckland. In this interview we talk about his childhood memories of the Solomon Islands, how he moved from the desire to make lots of money into setting up Crave, the challenges of operating a social enterprise (particularly in the hospitality industry), the dangers that can come with "success" and the transformation it is bringing to the suburb there and plans for the future. Crave: http://www.cravecafe.co.nz/ A...
Apr 09, 2018•1 hr•Ep. 34
Jarrod is a sociologist at the University of Canterbury and the author of " Patched: The History of Gangs in New Zealand" which was a finalist for best non-fiction book in the New Zealand Book Awards in 2013 (and is also the most stolen book in New Zealand). He recently co-edited " Criminal Justice: A New Zealand Introduction" . In this interview we discuss his life and what has led him to become an expert in this area as well as reflect on the role mentors have had in his life, the importance o...
Apr 02, 2018•59 min•Ep. 33
Erica is involved in a wide variety of different groups and organisations and we talk with her about all of them and her role as an Experience Curator, Photographer, Community Weaver, #ChChAmbassador and Social Intrapreneur (working with existing organisations to help them grow). The interview begins with her memories of coming from China to New Zealand as a child, studying architecture and then making the decision to move to Christchurch and help support and grow movements here. E.A. Curation h...
Mar 26, 2018•59 min•Ep. 32
