Two Pence Worth: Stories from Female Founders in ClimateTech

Cherry Swayne
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Hey everyone! Cherry Swayne here, Founder of Above and Beyond Recruitment, Carbon13 Domain Expert, organiser of online ClimateTech communities and Mother of two small, wonderful children. Most importantly to you though, I'm your Host of Two Pence Worth: Stories from Female Founders in ClimateTech👩‍💻 In a series of bitesize episodes, we will be taking you through their journeys, giving insight into what it’s like founding a business as a woman in the climate sector and the challenges that may be faced along the way, as well as an action toolkit to help you on your own journey. Happy listening💫 Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Episodes

  1. 09/19/2023

    E11. Nikki Gaddo from GoodMine

    On our eleventh and last episode of Two Pence Worth: Stories from female Founders in Climate, I spoke to Nikki Gaddo: Founder and CEO of GoodMine. Nikki is CEO and Founder of GoodMine, a female-led, profit-for-purpose technology company redesigning how consumer goods flow through the system to advance the circular economy (SDG12). In her earlier career, she spent 13 years in investment banking, which equipped her future entrepreneurial self with the skills required for success! 0:00: Podcast introduction 01:50: Tell us about GoodMine. What are you building and who is it for? 07:45: What was your inspiration for GoodMine? And tell us about the early days of getting it off the ground? 15:30: How was the process winning your recent grant with Innovate UK? 17:00: How have you found going through this journey as a sole female Founder? Do you feel you’ve faced adversity? 26:30: What people-based resource would you recommend others access to support them? 30:05: What media-based resource would you recommend others access to support them? 32:10: Do you have anyone that you look up to? 30:28: Conclusion Video versions of these episodes are available here. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    34 min

  2. 09/11/2023

    E10. Saasha Celestial-One from OLIO

    On our tenth episode of Two Pence Worth: Stories from female Founders in Climate, I spoke to Saasha Celestial-One: Co-Founder and COO of OLIO. Saasha is Co-Founder and COO of OLIO, a free app harnessing the power of mobile technology and the sharing economy to provide a revolutionary solution to the problem of food waste. Before OLIO, Saasha founded London’s first pay-as-you-go high street childcare provider, and prior to that she spent 13 years at Morgan Stanley, McKinsey and American Express. 00:00: Podcast Introduction 02:28: Talk to us about Olio 03:45: What’s the origin story? How did you meet Tessa? 12:50: What are the key milestones that you’re most proud of? 17:10: Given that your platform is primarily B2C, would it work as well as B2B do you think? 20:30: What as your experience going through the funding process? Why do you think you got the money where perhaps others haven’t? 27:30: What people-based resource would you recommend others access to support them? 28:40: What media-based resource would you recommend others access to support them? 30:28: Conclusion Video versions of these episodes are available here. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    31 min

  3. 09/08/2023

    E9. Lucy Lyons from Kestrix

    On our ninth episode of Two Pence Worth: Stories from female Founders in Climate, I spoke to Lucy Lyons: Co-Founder and CEO of Kestrix. Lucy, commercial Co-founder of Kestrix, is an entrepreneurial leader with international experience founding and scaling sustainability-focused ventures and conducting policy research. After their first experience as a founder as the CEO of reLive, an angel-backed sustainable end-of-life platform, she was the first hire under the CCO at Berlin-based Plan A, Europe’s first B2B carbon accounting SaaS company. 00:00 - Podcast introduction 02:45: About Kestrix 04:18: Was this an idea you came into the Venture Builder with or is it one you formed after meeting Matt? 06:15: When did you actually come out of Cohort 4 and go it alone? How has the business evolved since that point? 09:35: How has the fundraising process been? Have you found through the journey that you have felt any gender adversity? 16:23: How have you found the rest of your working career? Can you share some of your journey with us please? 21:38: What people-based resource would you recommend others access to support them? 24:20: What media-based resource would you recommend others access to support them? 27:37: Do you have a role model you look up to? 29:57: Conclusion Video versions of these episodes are available here. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    31 min

  4. 09/04/2023

    E8. Alexandra Birtles from In Good Company

    On our eighth episode of Two Pence Worth: Stories from female Founders in Climate, I spoke to Alexandra Birtles: Co-Founder and CEO of In Good Company. Alexandra is the Co-Founder and CEO of In Good Company, a tech-for-good start-up which makes it quick and easy for people to find the best ethical and sustainable businesses and experiences around them. She's a firm believer in businesses doing well by doing good and the power of technology to help make the world a better place. 00:00: Podcast introduction 02:35: Talk to us about In Good Company, what does the platform do, who is it for and what makes it unique? 08:37: At what point did you meet your Co-Founder / Decide to go for it with the business? 12:30: Talk us through the early days of getting it off the ground 16:00: At what point did you bring in your CTO? And is it just the three of you at this point? 19:20: How have you found being a woman in business building a career? Have you or Sarah felt adversity due to gender? 28:35: What people-based resource would you recommend others access to support them? 30:30: What media-based resource would you recommend others access to support them? 32:10: Do you have a role model you look up to? 34:35: Conclusion Video versions of these episodes are available here. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    36 min

  5. 08/31/2023

    E7. Jade Cohen from Qualis Flow (QFlow)

    On our seventh episode of Two Pence Worth: Stories from female Founders in Climate, I spoke to Jade Cohen: Co-Founder and CPO at Qualis Flow. Jade is Co-Founder and CPO of Qualis Flow (Qflow), a construction tech company committed to reducing carbon in construction. After spending time on site on two of Europe's largest infrastructure projects, Jade created Qualis Flow in 2018 alongside industry peer Brittany Harris, bridging the AI, software and civil engineering worlds. 00:19: Podcast introduction 02:54: What is Qflow? Talk us through the platform, who it’s for and what it does 07:06: How did you found the business and meet your Co-Founder? 11:20: How was your experience with Entrepreneur First (EF)? 12:50: How much did the idea change throughout the first 6 months in EF? 14:00: At what point did you bring in the technology resource? 15:15: What was your journey from Seed to Series A? 18:30: What does this Series A unlock for you? 20:50: How has the journey as a female-founded team been? Has there been challenges or adversity? 24:50: Do you think that your past experiences within your career gave you an inner resilience to deal with the sort of adversity you’ve dealt with as a female founder? 26:57: Do you have any core bits of advice for people in a similar funding position to you? 28:45: What people-based resource would you recommend others access to support them? 29:35: What media-based resource would you recommend others access to support them? 31:22: Do you have a role model you look up to? 32:25: Conclusion Video versions of these episodes are available here. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    33 min

  6. 08/28/2023

    E6. Francesca Kennedy Wallbank from CarbonBright

    On our sixth episode of Two Pence Worth: Stories from female Founders in Climate, I spoke to Francesca Kennedy Wallbank: Co-Founder & Co-CEO at CarbonBright. Francesca is a passionate advocate for sustainability, dedicated to making eco-friendly choices easier for everyone. Leveraging her expertise in lifecycle assessments and a drive for innovation, she co-founded CarbonBright, an automated platform that utilises machine learning to help the Consumer Packaged Goods (CPG) industry measure, report, and reduce their product environmental footprints in real-time. 00:00: Podcast introduction 02:35: What’s the platform for, what does it do and what are you generally working on? 06:00: It’s a huge data challenge I imagine? 08:45: Your experience of Carbon13 and meeting your Co-Founder 11:50: How much did your idea change during the Carbon13 process? 14:30: When did you spin-out of Carbon13 and where are you today in your journey? 15:40: What does the next 6-12 months look like for you? 17:00: Talk us through your experience in Uniliver and the Founding of your other businesses 23:25: Did you feel scared or feel imposter syndrome during those experiences? 29:25: What people-based resource would you recommend others access to support them? 29:55: What media-based resource would you recommend others access to support them? 31:14: Do you have a role model you look up to? 32:40: Conclusion Video versions of these episodes are available here. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    34 min

  7. 08/21/2023

    E5. Marianna Herold from NatureBound

    On our fifth episode of Two Pence Worth: Stories from female Founders in Climate, I spoke to Marianna Herold: Co-Founder and CEO at NatureBound. Marianna is Co-Founder and CEO of NatureBound, who help farmers and corporates leverage functional biodiversity. Their observability platform integrates agricultural and biodiversity data from an open ecosystem with remote sensing and AI technology. She has a PhD in supply chain management with a focus on sustainability, and has previously spent over 15 years working in the food sector. 0:00: Introduction 3:00: About NatureBound and what you’re currently working on 4:25: What was your experience going through Carbon13 and finding your Co-Founder Gidi? 6:50: How much did the idea change from the first seeds of you and Gidi in the beginning? 08:10: What are you looking forward to for the rest of this year and into next year? What does potential funding unlock for you? 09:45: Are you happy to share your positive journey into being an entrepreneur? 12:10: Tell me about the early stages of your career journey? 14:00: Did you overcome the feeling of imposter syndrome and if so, how? 17:20: Have you always been interested in yoga and self care? Or was it a result of burn out? 17:50: Tell me about your travelling 19:35: How long did it take for you to do the journey and roughly what route did you take? 21:00: Do you think your experiences travelling taught you anything specific that has been helpful for your journey into business? 21:55: How do you juggle being a single parent and a Founder? 25:00: What people-based resources would you point people in the direction of for support? 26:35: What media-based resources would you point people in the direction of for support? 27:45: What female business role model do you look up to? 30:30: Conclusion and the future of the session Video versions of these episodes are available here. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    32 min

  8. 08/11/2023

    E4. Sioned Owen from Unbound Energy

    On our fourth episode of Two Pence Worth: Stories from female Founders in Climate, I spoke to Sioned Owen: Founder and Chief Product Officer at Unbound Energy. Sioned is passionate about enabling carbon removal and reduction strategies. She discovered there's enough roof space in the UK to service all our energy needs with solar energy. So, she founded Unbound Energy to enable this. They're currently working with landlords and tenants to break down the barriers surrounding the 'landlord-tenant' paradox of 'who pays' to 'you don't need to pay'. 0:19: Podcast introduction 1:55: Introducing Sioned Owen 2:55: About Unbound Energy 04:10: How does it operate on a day to day basis as a landlord or a tenant? 05:38: Experiencing Carbon13 and the development of the idea 08:45: How was the Founder ‘speed dating’ and how did you find your Co-Founders? 12:07: How has the business developed over the last 8 months? 13:05: What have you got planned for the next 6-12 months? 14:30: How has your experience been as a female and what adversity or challenges do you feel you’ve faced because of gender? 16:29: As you’ve moved into leadership level, have you witnessed other instances with other people that you’ve worked with that explains the split between the level of funding going to male and female founders? 19:30: On your journey through your career, what resources have you lent on to support you? 21:48: Working through Entrepreneur First and On Deck 23:10: What people based resource has helped you? 25:15: What media based resource has helped you? 26:25: Who is your female business role model? 28:30: Conclusion and the future of the series Video versions of these episodes are available here. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    29 min

  9. 08/10/2023

    E3. Aranzazu Carmona Orbezo from Parallel Carbon

    On our third episode of Two Pence Worth: Stories from female Founders in Climate, I spoke to Aranzazu Carmona Orbezo: Founder and CTO of Parallel Carbon.. Aranzazu is the Founder and CTO of Parallel Carbon, a start-up developing technology that removes carbon dioxide from the air while producing hydrogen to eliminate emissions. She has a PhD in Chemistry from the University of Manchester, with experience in electrochemical engineering, water treatment/desalination, and more. 00:00: Introduction to episode 3 01:20: Introducing Aranzazu Carmona Orbezo 02:12: About Parallel Carbon and how the technology works 03:15: Where did the idea come from and how did it develop? 05:50: What was the experience like working with a Co-Founder so geographically different to you? 07:35: Since spinning out from the venture builder, how has the last 18 moths - 2 years been for you? How has the technology and business developed in that time? 08:35: What does the future look like or the next 12 months? 09:45: How has your funding experience been? Is it your first time going through it? 11:29: Post-funding round 13:15: How have you found the experience as a female founder? To what extent do you feel you’ve faced adversity? 17:00: Balancing a brand new business with a baby 19:00: Managing without a physically-close support network 21:15: Cherry’s own experience with building a family and a business simultaneously 22:30: Communicating to people in the industry that you’re pregnant 24:35: Controversial book: Sheryl Sandberg: Lean In 27:10: What support or resources have you leant on that could benefit other people? 30:00: What people based resource has helped you? 32:00: What media based resource has helped you? 34:25: Who is your female business role model? 35:35: Conclusion and the future of the series Video versions of these episodes are available here. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    36 min

  10. 08/04/2023

    E2. Josephine Bromley from Mortar IO

    On our second episode of Two Pence Worth: Stories from female Founders in Climate, I spoke to Josephine Bromley: COO and Co-Founder at Mortar IO. Josephine is the COO and Co-Founder at Mortar IO, the SaaS platform that creates virtual models of buildings to accurately simulate retrofit strategies and de-risk decarbonisation. The company is a graduate of Carbon13 (Co-hort 3), the venture builder for the climate emergency from the University of Cambridge. Previously, Josephine has contributed to companies such as Curve and Google. 00:00: Introduction to episode 2 01:10: Introduction to Josephine Bromley at Mortar IO 02:40: Josephine’s background and the story of Mortar IO 05:30: How was the Founder matching experience at Carbon13? 07:20: Did you go into the programme with the bones of the idea for Mortar or did you create it from scratch as a three? 08:00: Talk us through a brief summary of what the platform does and who uses it? 11:00: When did you graduate from the cohort? 12:00: How has the last 9 months since graduating been? What have you been working on? 13:45: Over this last 9 months what would you say you’re most proud of? 14:55: What are you most excited about moving forward post-grant? 16:10: What’s your experience as a female Founder? Have you recognised instances where you’ve faced adversity? 20:31: Do you find that there are times when your male Founders are spoken to but you’re not? 22:05: What support and resources have been the most impactful for you on your business journey? 23:40: How did you find those people who were just a fraction of the road further than you in your journey? 25:30: What people-related resource would you advise people connect with the help them? 26:25 What media-related resource would you advise people connect with the help them? 27:30: What female role model do you look up to? 28:55: Conclusion and what’s coming for the rest of the series Video versions of these episodes are available here. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    30 min
  11. E1. Claire Rampen from Reath

    07/28/2023

    E1. Claire Rampen from Reath

    On our first episode of Two Pence Worth: Stories from female Founders in Climate, I spoke to Claire Rampen, Co-Founder at Reath. Claire is Co-Founder and CEO of UK-based start-up, Reath, a specialist software platform for scaling reusable packaging systems. Claire co-authored the Open Data Standard, the first Open Data Standard for reusable packaging. Reath powers reuse systems for clients such as Marks & Spencers, Unilever and Google, and many pioneering SMEs. 00:00: Introduction to episode 1 01:10: Introduction to Claire Rampen: Co-Founder of Reath 02:10: Claire’s background and the story of Reath 04:20: How has the product and the platform evolved in the last 4 years? 06:40: How did the headcount of Reath grow and evolve? 08:40: What does Reath look like today? 12:20: What stands out as achievements for you? 15:30: Maternity leave: How was this factored into the journey? 18:30: How do you now manage the juggle between being a Co-Founder and a Mother? 21:05: What’s been your experience as a female founder in business and to what extend do you feel you’ve faced adversity? 24:30: How did you overcome those experiences? 25:50: If you could talk to 2019 Claire now, what would you say? 28:00: How did you know where to start with the grant writing process? 29:15: Who is Elemental and what the programme looks like? 31:40: What people-related resource would you advise people connect with to help them? 32:45: What media-related resource would you advise people connect with the help them? 34:10: What female role model do you look up to? 35:40: Conclusion and what’s coming for the rest of the series Video versions of these episodes are available here. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    36 min
  • 11 Episodes

About

Hey everyone! Cherry Swayne here, Founder of Above and Beyond Recruitment, Carbon13 Domain Expert, organiser of online ClimateTech communities and Mother of two small, wonderful children. Most importantly to you though, I'm your Host of Two Pence Worth: Stories from Female Founders in ClimateTech👩‍💻 In a series of bitesize episodes, we will be taking you through their journeys, giving insight into what it’s like founding a business as a woman in the climate sector and the challenges that may be faced along the way, as well as an action toolkit to help you on your own journey. Happy listening💫 Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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