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Paola Pollmeier | COLOMBIA + GERMANY | M.Sc. in Global Management & Governance | Founder PLATOS SIN FRONTERAS | Innovation and Network Advisor With over a decade of experience initiating, driving, and leading public, private, and social innovation networks, projects, and teams, Paola Pollmeier is a dynamic force in the field of social entrepreneurship. She brings her extensive expertise in social innovation and citizen participation to empower bottom-up community projects that directly transform and enhance the quality of life for marginalized communities. As a seasoned social entrepreneur, innovation and smart city advisor, Paola is the visionary founder and director of the Colombian foundation, Platos sin Fronteras. Her current projects represent the culmination of her profound personal journey. Paola began her career in the private sector in Germany as an innovation consultant, later transitioning to the public sector in Medellín. In her role as the open innovation and citizen participation lead at the public science, technology, and innovation center, she spearheaded the groundbreaking Cities for Life program—a network of cities that championed the transformative power of citizen co-creation. This initiative successfully expanded to four countries, Peru, Mexico, France, and Ecuador. Driven by her desire to gain a deeper understanding of the essence of citizen co-creation, Paola decided to immerse herself in the community itself. Seeking firsthand experience, she began volunteering in the vulnerable neighborhood in Medellín. It was there that she became acutely aware of the alarming levels of malnutrition among citizens, particularly women and children. Recognizing the profound impact of food and nutrition, Paola realized that by fostering knowledge in these areas, she could effect significant change. This revelation motivated her to establish PLATOS SIN FRONTERAS—a food movement dedicated to providing nutrition education for families and fostering a strong connection to local, fresh, and nutritious food. Through this initiative, Paola harnesses the power of food to strengthen community bonds, promote health and well-being, and create new employment opportunities.  Paola's unwavering belief in the importance of nutrition for all drives her commitment to equity and inclusivity. She passionately advocates for collaborative efforts to ensure that nutrition becomes accessible to everyone, irrespective of their circumstances. With her visionary leadership, Paola endeavors to empower communities and foster a world where no one is left behind.

Hello Kete and all. I am a 76 year old retired GP living in Martinborough, NZ (a small wine town about 80 kms north east of Wellington). I have a wife and we have four daughters and a new grandson who live in the UK presently. The last forty years of my life have been in a sense seriously blighted by the stupidity of the neoliberal economic ascendancy and the abandonment of the value of the commons, Thatcherism, Reaganism. It never made any sense to me - it is a cruel Darwinian way to run society and that economics has become the ideology of nearly everything running our society is madness. Economics is like studying our existence through a telescope, you can only see one small part at at time, magnifying the detail to an importance is never deserves, whereas everything truly important in our human existence lies outside the telescope's field of view and is never examined or accounted for.  Economics is not a science, at the best it is a social study, and subject to all the randomness and unpredictability of human behaviour, as individuals, as groups. I go on to suggest with appropriate cynicism that economics is most like criminology, the only difference being that criminology is the study of greed and corruption in those tried and found guilty, whereas economics is the study of greed and corruption in those yet to be arrested.  Neoliberal capitalism died in 2008 only to be resuscitated in Frankenstein fashion by the infusions of trillions of dollars of public money, without of course any permission from the citizenry, to use their assets this way,  only to die again just 12 years later in the face of Covid. What use an economic system of such systemic weakness and moral and physical decay? I have written diatribes, rants, letters to papers , spoken at political meetings etc against this capitalist supremacy takeing our societies and our planet to ruin.  In the early 2000s I suggested the world needs a "New Ecological Enlightenment". To summarise, I wrote  how likely is it that the ideologies of even the most brilliant minds of the original Enlightenment would be still appropriate 250 years later, when these ideas developed in a world with a population ten times smaller, and vast land masses still to be conquered and tamed, both people and resources.? It makes no sense to me to think these ideas are any longer relevant in our present situation, which is slipping into serious peril. .  And as for growth?? PM Liz Truss: "We need growth, growth, growth", echoing precisely Starmer's "Growth, growth, growth". I think these two people, and anyone else who thinks the same thing is literally "insane, insane, insane".  Prof. Albert Bartlett is a hero of mine. 

Pacific Northwest

 I am continuously curious about life's deep patterns, resourcing regenerative design lenses and cultivating an integrative living personal and professional practice.  A few of the areas of study I am currently passionate about are ancestral healing, resonance tuning, coherence building, biofield science, overcoming legacy burdens, deep biomimicry and permaculture, traditional medicine, paradigm research.  I am interested in this community as a practice of reverently weaving individual and collective interior and exterior expression.  In infinite gratitude,  Jas 

Huntsville, ON, Canada

I am a third career United Church of Canada clergy person.  I serve four small country churches in what is called the Lake of Bays Pastoral Charge.

Hampshire, UK

I'm a Chartered Engineer and Certified Management Consultant, a Fellow of the UK Institute of Consulting, I'm a Board Member and Secretary of the International Council of Management Consulting Institutes (ICMCI).  I've led teams developing the ICMCI Management Consultancy Standards and the Project Self-declaration Checklist for implementation of the ISO 20700 Standard – Guidelines for Management Consultancy Services. I'm a member of the Rogue Monkey Alliance - a collaborative group of management consultants who use the EFQM Model to help organisations develop and execute strategies that are centred on creating sustainable value and contribute to the achievement of the UN 17 Sustainable Development Goals. I've been a consultant since 1990 and founded Keypath Ltd. a consultancy practice engaged in business transformation and performance improvement in a variety of sectors and with collaborations in East Europe and the Middle East. Before entering consultancy I followed a successful career in industry with Dunlop in the UK, India and Germany, before becoming a Director of companies in the packaging and security printing sector.   Alongside my consultancy work I'm a Director of the SCRATCH charity which provides furniture and household necessities for people in need in my home county of Hampshire as well as giving training and work experience for volunteers to enable them to enter employment.  I also undertake fund-raising for a Debt Advice charity. I'm married with two grown-up children and four grandsons.  My hobbies are playing golf and growing fruit and vegetables.

Escazú, Costa Rica

Luis has a master’s degree in management of natural resources, from INCAE, a postgraduate in business, and a bachelor’s degree in Agricultural Economics from the University of Costa Rica. He is also an instructor in “Transformative Leadership”, “Intercultural Communication and Mutualism”, “Circular Economy”, “Nonprofit-Management”, “Quality Management”, “Project Design” and “Evaluation of Socio-Economic Projects”. He is the director of the master’s program in Environmental Leadership and Management at the University for International Cooperation, UCI, where he integrates leadership with regenerative action. He was the Executive Director of a non-governmental organization for 18 years in the indigenous territories of Costa Rica. He has more than 25 years of experience in the entire life cycle of socio-environmental projects.  He has experience in projects in Colombia, Bolivia, Ecuador, and Peru. He has been an entrepreneur in the industries of jewelry, gluten-free products, and natural honey in Costa Rica. Luis is the father of four youths. He likes cooking (in development), walking, and biking. He also dedicates service time to community development activities.

Chicago, IL

Southside Chicago native with a passion for leveraging education, cross-cultural collaboration, and social innovation to enhance sustainable development on a local and global scale. Currently studying Global Wealth and Poverty part-time at the University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign (UIUC), while working full-time as a Senior ESG Analyst at Nasdaq on the Corporate ESG Strategy and Reporting team. During my studies at UIUC, I have gained sustainable development practitioner experience through participating in four international programs in three countries on the African continent. These programs included conducting research on gender-based violence at the University of Dar es Salaam in Tanzania in 2018, working as a micro-enterprise consultant in Cape Town, South Africa and Arusha, Tanzania in 2019, and spending a semester taking courses in International Development and Kiswahili at the University of Nairobi in Kenya in 2020. I take pride in continuing to leverage these bottom-up/local engagement experiences to inform potential macro-impact strategies in the private sector.

Savannah, Georgia, United States

I'm the co-author and graduate coordinator of the Design for Sustainability program at SCAD (Savannah College of Art and Design), a trans-disciplinary design program focused on facilitating sustainable change through systems thinking, design strategy, and behavior change. I've authored four books, including one on sustainable packaging, one on design, social innovation, and equity, and a volume of poetry on environmental degradation. I founded Re:Purpose Savannah in 2009, an award winning non-profit organization that facilitates the deconstruction of unwanted buildings and the innova­tive repurposing of building materials into community-based resources through multi-stakeholder engagement. I'm also Chief Regenerative Officer of 4 Fungi’s Regenerative, a circular economy, region-based food company. I'm on the Board of Directors of Catapult Design, a National Design Award winning non-profit design agency, and member of the Founders Circle of the Winterhouse Institute. 

Putra Business School, Malaysia

Dr. Ida is an associate professor at Putra Business School (PBS). She teaches Master of Business Administration (MBA) students and supervises research students (MSc and PhD). Her publications on business and management include topics such as cross-cultural management, micro-finance, knowledge management, human resource management, tourism, etc. Prior to joining PBS, she served the Malaysia Productivity Corporation for 24 years in various departments. She was also a registered expert with Asian Productivity Organization (APO) which is based in Tokyo. She conducted training programmes for APO member countries and co-authored four books on knowledge management. Ida obtained her doctoral degree in Quality and Productivity Improvement from National University of Malaysia (2008), her thesis is on knowledge management. Her Master’s degree in Economics from National University of Malaysia (2000), and her Bachelor’s degree in Economics from International Islamic University, Malaysia (1993).

Pandharpur, Maharashtra, India

Fulbright-Nehru Student Researcher | University of Virginia '22 Aspiring Leaver who aims to give back more than what he’s taken.  Studying human choices and consumption, their consequences for material and moral well-being, and ultimately our relationship with The Earth. Exploring sustainable development through ecological and Buddhist economics lenses.    

England

Hi, my name is Erin Andrea Craske. I am a transformational business and leadership success coach, mentor, trainer, and educator. I work with positive-impact-driven companies and ethical leaders who want to build profitable businesses with less effort.  Often, I meet individuals who are overwhelmed by all the different things that go into being a good leader and running an ethical business. And quite often, the reason they have so many challenges is that they focus on the symptoms of the situation rather than the root cause, prioritising 'how-tos' over 'whys'.  The symptoms may come in various shapes and forms, from motivation and leadership confidence to relationships, productivity, decision-making, organisational performance, perception, resilience to external factors, limited resources, scaling impact, or mere stress.  It's like an ocean, where tranquillity reigns beneath surface-raging storms. Continuously addressing surface problems demands considerable effort, while tackling the root cause once and for all results in an effortless journey.  In business, this translates to strategy; in leadership - to self-concept; in life - to personal freedom; and in profitability - to holistic and mindful business growth.  So, aiming to make the world a better place, I empower ethical businesses and conscious business owners to live, lead, and create effortlessly, be their best selves, and achieve success on their own terms by embracing authenticity, following their own rules, elevating mindset, and mastering their state of mind.  I invite them to step into Effortlessness. PERSONAL On a more personal note, I love alternative rock, the arts, and art history. I passionately advocate for mental health awareness, personal freedom, and the pursuit of effortlessness in business and life. My hobbies are neatly split into two distinct categories: those that nurture my mental well-being through mindful activities such as painting, sketching, drawing, photography, and videography and those that stimulate my mind through personal growth in psychology and philosophy. SUSTAINABILITY To me, sustainability revolves around people. They shape our society, often prioritising egos over ethics, leading to personal and collective misery, and harming our environment in the process. I firmly believe that to achieve global sustainability, we must first uplift humanity. Awakening human consciousness marks the initial step toward preserving our planet. The WorldGBC's health and wellbeing framework includes six principles for cultivating a robust sustainable built environment: undertaking climate action, prioritising comfort, fostering harmony with nature, safeguarding health (including mental well-being), encouraging positive behaviour, and creating social value. I view my role in sustainability as centred on raising awareness and actively advocating for, as well as contributing to, the latter four principles.

Portland, Oregon, United States

I am part of Measure Meant, we are a team that helps organizations understand their environmental impacts, plan for climate change, and develop social and environmental sustainability strategies. I have been doing this work for four years now and have increasingly felt like the work I've been doing is perhaps more distraction than meaningful change making (though there have been glimmers in our work).  

West Sussex, England, United Kingdom

I am retired having spent 40 years in the electronics industry holding roles as Engineering director and Business manager. I have 4 children and four grandchildren whose future I worry about, as our economic system and disregard for our environment is leading us to a future that is projected to be far inferior to the one I have experienced. I have been actively involved in the climate issue for the last 7/8  years presenting talks and workshops and I am co-founder of  the climate resilience  centre Worthing.

Stockholm, Sweden

I want to catalyse action for companies and individuals. Currently working at the company South Pole as a consultant in Environmental Impact Accounting. I'm active in the organisation Climate Fresk since four years, and through which I've facilitated around 40 workshops and held a few trainings. In my free time I develop www.reconnect.earth together with my partner. Even though climate issues lie closest to my heart and even though I've been active in the environmental space since 2008, I increasingly learn about social issues, realising that we need to make sure the transition to a future is  by design.

Chicago, Illinois, United States

In May 2025 we launched ChiDEC - Chicagoland Doughnut Economics Coalition, http://chidec.org.  Search DEAL for chidec to see our DEAL organization profile.  We are organized into four working groups: Data, Grassroots, Business, and Local Government.  Creating a Chicago Data Portrait is a top priority project for us.

I am 60 yo neurosurgeon from Iceland and work at the university Hospital Landspitali. I’ married, a father of four children and have two grandchildren. I have always had a strong interest in social issues, particularly in relation to equality, education, healthcare, and human rights. I have a genuine desire to make a positive impact in my local community.

Seoul, South Korea

I'm Dr. Benjamin, a systems thinking educator and researcher based in Korea, serving on the Leadership Team of the Pre-College Education SIG within the international System Dynamics Society. I served as President of the Korean System Dynamics Society for four years (2017-2020) and have been the President of System Leadership Institute since 2017.  Currently, I'm actively working as a World Climate Ambassador appointed by Climate Interactive (https://bit.ly/3H6IBnQ), facilitating climate change education through systems thinking approaches. Through my climate education work, I've come to believe that addressing climate challenges fundamentally requires a systemic perspective on economics. This is what brings me to the DEAL Community—I'm eager to learn how doughnut economics can complement and enhance systems thinking methodologies in education. I'm excited to contribute my experience in systems thinking education and leverage the K-12 educational networks I've developed over the past decade in Korea. I believe there's tremendous potential to adapt and spread DEAL educational programs through these established channels, helping Korean students understand the interconnections between economic systems and planetary wellbeing. I look forward to learning from this community's innovative approaches and exploring how we can integrate systemic and regenerative economic thinking in educational contexts.      

Ipoh's experience with Doughnut Economics, in four languages (EN, ES, FR, PT-BR)

Nanaimo's experience with Doughnut Economics, in four languages (EN, ES, FR, PT-BR)

Glasgow's experience with Doughnut Economics, in four languages (EN, ES, FR, PT-BR)

Cornwall's experience with Doughnut Economics, in four languages (EN, ES, FR, PT-BR)

Grenoble's experience with Doughnut Economics, in four languages (EN, ES, FR, PT-BR)

Monastir, Tunisia

Monastir, Tunisia