Meet the DEAL Community

Ukraine

My name is  Bohdan, I'm from Ukraine, writing to you as a part of our great live community) We are creating nature collaborative education for childrens, girls on own land. There is a small house, several creative workshops, horses for learning and a farm in few words..) Our education is alive, closely connected with nature and natural processes. Now we have many children, but there are not enough places and living conditions need improvement. So we began to reconstruct another house, as the House of Creativity, restored the source of water - the lake. But without your help, we cannot do anything now. Development requires financial support. I am ready to chat/talk with you, provide more specific information with a photo. I hope your heart is open to the new, unknown! :) Thank you, have a nice day!

Nijmegen, The Netherlands

I am an Assistant Professor at the chair group of Economic Theory and Policy at Radboud University. I am co-coordinating the multi-disciplinary hotspot Transformative sustainable change in Action at my institute and lead the Participatory Policy Hub with Sustainable Futures Global. My research focuses on transformations and transformative governance towards post-growth and post-development models. My main empirical focus is West and Central Africa.   Since my first year as a student in economics, I have been struggling with the content of what I learned. I was lucky enough however to study at a University (Lille) with a real pluralist non-mainstream institute (Clersé, gathering heterodox economists and sociologists), and realised how much the assumptions and foundations of the economics field are wicked. Now I am back as an Assistant Professor in an economics department in the Netherlands that is not the usual type and one of my goals being an academic is to contribute to changing the discipline and the way we teach from the inside.  Being part of this action lab is an amazing opportunity for this. Besides, we can see so many changes in society as in academia. However, economics departments are not changing or very slowly in comparison, and it is urgently needed as economists are mainly heard when formulating recommendations. Let’s join forces!    

Ramapo College of New Jersey

Ashwani Vasishth – Bio-sketch  (June 20th, 2025)  vasishth@ramapo.edu (323) 206-1858 I am a retired Professor of Sustainability, who directed both the BA in Sustainability and the BA in Environmental Studies.  I was also Director of the Center for Sustainability at Ramapo College of New Jersey.  I was the founding Chair of the President’s Committee on Campus Sustainability from 2010 through 2025, which has the mission of promoting sustainable practices throughout the campus and of building a deeply pervasive culture of sustainability within the community.  I was past-President of the New Jersey Higher Education Partnership for Sustainability (NJHEPS).   My pedagogy has been focused on taking a whole systems approach to depicting wicked problems in the context of adaptive intervention, and on Education for Sustainability (EfS) from within a truly interdisciplinary framework. I also have an interest in looking for alternative ways to articulate more viable alternatives to the morass of memes which we call "Capitalism." I have a background in informal architecture (self-help and vernacular), international development, systems thinking (ecosystem approach and soft-systems thinking), and whole systems sustainability (transdisciplinary and beyond environmentalism).

Paris, France

I'm a current master's student at UAB studying degrowth. Past director of content @ ClimateScience, an educational NGO creating accessible and reliable content focused on climate solutions.

Aalst, Belgium

Hi, I am Walter from Belgium. I am an economist by degree and a CFO by profession.   I have lived and worked almost my entire life abroad: first 10 years in Africa, then 20 years in the Middle East and finally (but unfortunately only) 1 year in Asia. It was a bit of an adaptation when returning to Belgium after 30+ years. I worked primarily in the construction, engineering and energy sectors. Since returning to Belgium I started my own consultancy business (in finance obviously).   Since my younger days in the 70s and 80s, I have always felt aligned with the green movement but that got a bit lost in transition as I lived abroad and my career became my prime focus. Since returning back to Belgium, I took it up in a serious manner and became a Climate Corps Reality Leader. As a result, I equally want to focus my consultancy business on the intersection of sustainability, strategy and finance. In particular, I would like to help companies imptove on their ESG ratings and transition from a linear to a circular business model.     Besides my personal passion about the environment, social justice, good governance etc, I equally feel that my generation has to give something back to the younger generations and I want to make sure that my kids, grandkids and their kids still live on a healthy, bio-diverse blue dot in a just and equal manner.   I look forward engaging with and learning from all of you!

Denmark

Working as civil engineer within sustainable building - and urban design, and passionate about spreading the good intentions with circular economic initiatives in my projects.  I'm here to absorb from the abundant knowledge buffet, and get intrigued by the new economic thinking, which could be relevant in building- and urban development desing.  Feel free to reach out, if you think I need to participate in wide-ranging talks on circular economy or you think I can help you in some kind of way with regards to circular economy.  #liveability  

Liverpool

I am a creative popular education practitioner, and performance maker. Amongst others, I work with Collective Encounters Theatre for Social Change. I am also a Post Graduate Researcher at Edge Hill University, starting a PhD investigating radically generative transition communities. I am interested in the power of performance to imagine and realise new ways of building communities that integrate social, racial, and climate justice, and heal individual and collective trauma. I always knew there was something fishy about economics as taught at Universities and projected on the media when on day one of my undergraduate course a lecturer asked me to believe that consumers make rational decisions. 

Frankfurt, Germany

Change enthusiast, mother of 4, executive director of investment company, speaker, agile coach, ex-management consultant. During my studies (Mathematical Finance) I was strongly felt, that something was lacking in this education. After finally reading "Doughnut Economics" I sincerely believe that it's contents are able to fill this gap. I am a learner, so learning about those ideas made me crave more.

London

I'm an urban designer, planner and economist who is passionate about improving social integration, equity and inclusion in and through place. I work on the regeneration of Tottenham for London Borough of Haringey, building the capacity of local communities to co-design and co-deliver change they want to see.          

Sydney, Australia

Hi, I’m based in Sydney, Australia. 

Chicago, IL

I am an Assistant Professor of Management at the University of Illinois Chicago. My research interests lie at the intersection of social movements, markets, and sustainability. I examine how activists pressure firms and industries to change their socially and environmentally detrimental practices, as well as how they support new sustainable industries. Additionally, I study how targeted firms and markets push back against this pressure, especially through the creation of corporate front groups. I teach an undergraduate course that covers topics on business and society, and I have classes that explore circular economies, closed-loop systems, and biomimicry. I have my students watch a video on doughnut economics as part of this content. My interest in the DEAL Community is in continuing to learn, accessing new content to share with my students, and hopefully in the future engaging in research, education, and advocacy that can advance this approach to economic systems.      

UK

I co-founded the charity Arts Emergency in 2011 and became Chief Executive in 2015. Prior to becoming CEO, I worked for a variety of global rights campaigns and human rights charities. I was voted one the 50 most influential UK fundraisers in 2013, 2014 and 2015, and was awarded an Honorary Doctorate by London Metropolitan University in 2020 for my work as a distinguished humanitarian. I am a lifelong activist and campaigner, delivering talks and lectures nationally and am passionate about the potential of culture to shape a world beyond extraction and greed.

Uppsala, Sweden

Hi! I created Atonom as a response to what I see as an unsustainable addiction treatment industry in Sweden. More and more I am coming to see the value of resiliency and sustainability thinking. 

Dublin, Ireland

Trained in Economics and Maths, I went to uni to make the world a better place. Totally disillusioned by economics theory and teaching, I meandered off and worked for a number of years in training, facilitating and co-ordinating before doing an MBA and switching to  business strategy for both MNCs and startups.  Over the last couple of years, I've been reading more and more about the climate and its intersection with capitalism and was thrilled to discover Doughnut Economics last year.  My hope now is to marry my economics knowledge with my strategy experience in a way that is meaningful for the planet. 

Edinburgh, City of Edinburgh, Scotland, United Kingdom

I help leaders make change for sustainability happen in, and through, their organisations. Host of the Leadership for Sustainability podcast.   

Tromsø

I am a Ph.D. candidate at the Department of Language and Culture under the Media and Documentation Science Research Unit at University of Tromsø - The Arctic University of Norway. As a member of the research group LAMCOM - Libraries, Archives, and Museums in the Community, I am focused on studying the essential role of cultural and innovation diplomacy towards LAMs' learning environments in providing educational, economic, and social opportunities to the civic public. I am currently teaching a course on HIF-3113 Libraries, Archives, and Museums for Sustainable Development at University of Tromsø.

Santiago, Chile

London, United Kingdom

Sustainability professional providing advice on responsible business, ESG/CSR, environment, social justice and climate change. #sustainability #climateemergency #responsiblebusiness

Indirapuram, Ghaziabad, Ghaziabad, Uttar Pradesh, India

 I am Vaani Garg, an enthusiastic 2nd -year college student pursuing Economics Honours . I am driven by the will to create a student-led start-up whose benefits would accrue to society. I have spent 10 years of my childhood living in the countries of Mozambique and Tanzania. This cross-cultural experience has widened my perspective on diversity inclusivity and has created an interest of mine to interact with people from different places to know their cultures better therefore I enjoy taking part in MUNs and debates because it brings me to the interactive and exciting world of research, innovative solutions, and negotiations. It also helps me relate to the real world through an Economic approach. I currently aspire to make a career in Public Policy and International Economic Development. I vision myself as working in institutions like the World Bank and United Nations. I am open to writing economics based research paper that would aim towards making a positive and a helpful impact on our society. Thanks for reading till the end and hoping to hear from you! #environment  

London, UK

Hello! I grew up in Omaha, Nebraska in the United States but moved to London recently to pursue a MSc at LSE. My primary interests are Environmental Policy and Latin American studies. I'm a current MSc student at the London School of Economics studying Environmental Policy & Regulation. I'm fascinated by Doughnut Economics and hope to be part of making these concepts a reality. 

France

Lafayette, Indiana

I am a physics lecturer at Purdue University. In recent years, I have become very interested in the field of ecological economics.

Maine, USA

What brings me to this community is that I work in my community for climate and economic action. I started a low-profit limited liability company to continue my work as a "permaculture developer" which is a planning and development approach to applied permaculture and design thinking. I am an activist that is committed to social innovation and I have a fierce ecological imagination. I have been writing and practicing "regenerative leadership" the best I can since 2007.  Being an ancestor that did something is a deep edge and I work on my own healing there, as part of our collective healing. This is the scale where my leverage is the greatest and my capacity as a facilitator expands. I have navigated the local governance structure and funding opportunities, (not always has my work been funded) to offer a program that started a week ago, as 207permaculture.  The day that I signed a contract with the State of Maine to provide services to three municipalities and one school district, for one year, to activate a network that will learn together and act together on climate and economic projects in the region, I saw The Schumacher Institute talk by Kate Rawworth in my email box.  After the talk, joined my action co-lab would be well served to use these tools. The intergeneration and interdisciplinary group of leaders that gather will be approaching their town leadership and the State's Climate Action Plan Program Director with a vision of a thriving rural bioregion, and request support for their action plans. It is my hope that they will spinning off several other social innovations, educational pathways and businesses as well.   I have a BA in Sociology from the University of Southern Maine, a MA in Applied Behavioral Science from the Leadership Institute of Seattle at Bastyr University, Advanced Permaculture Design Certifications, Soil Food Web Lab Certification. I am a Mom, a friend, a sister, a partner, unwed, a home cook, a future ancestor, a grant writer, a group facilitator, an educator and an serial entrepreneur. My pronouns are she and her. 

Mahone Bay, Nova Scotia, Canada

# Tom Webb is a political economist who has had a varied career as a welfare worker, an adviser to two Canadian cabinet ministers and the Prime Minister, a consultant, a senior manager in a large co-operative, Director of the St. Francis Xavier University Extension Department.  In the St. Mary’s University Sobey School of Business he oversaw the creation of the English speaking world's only Masters level co-operative management degree located in a business school.  He has more than 35 years involvement with co-operatives and credit unions as a board member, manager and consultant.  Mr. Webb has been a speaker at co-operative events in Canada, the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand and India.  He is currently Adjunct Professor at Saint Mary's University, was a key organizer of Imagine 2012: The International Conference on Co-operative Economics.   He retired from teaching in 2019 but still supervises Final Research Papers, writes, works on co-operative public policy proposals, and researches. Doughnut Economics was part of the curriculum for co-operative managers.  In 2012 he organized Imagine 2012: The International Conference on Co-operative Economics.  Currently working on a film about co-operatives and the economy.