ESG Matters @ Ashurst Podcast

Makers, host Elena Lambros sits down with John Mellowes, the chief engineer and co-founder of BioCarbon , an innovative Australian company that is turning low-value biomass streams into high-value carbon renewal products through advanced manufacturing. In this episode, John discusses the importance of decarbonising the steel industry, which is responsible for 7-9% of the world's CO2 emissions, and...

The tables are turned in this season one wrap-up episode of Game Changers and Transition Makers, with new series co-host Lorraine Johnston, Partner in our global finance regulatory practice, interviews Ashurst Risk Advisory Partner Elena Lambros about her key takeaways from the first 13 episodes of the series. In this episode, you will hear snippets of the inspiring stories that have shaped season...

Sam Marks and his colleagues at Setmetrics collaborate with building owners, service providers and engineers to reimagine existing buildings to make them more energy-efficient. Using technology such as digital twins and simulation tools, Setmetrics finds creative ways to unlock new capabilities and productivity, achieve sustainability goals and maximise return on investment. A self-professed "envi...

Head of First Nations Strategy and Advisory Trent Wallace welcomes Tony Morris, who leads Ashurst Risk Advisory's work health and safety (WHS) and psychosocial risk capability, to learn more about psychosocial risks in the workplace and the unique challenges First Nations employees face. This episode delves into the definition and impact of psychosocial risks in the workplace and how psychosocial...

Xylo Systems CEO Camille Goldstone-Henry is a startup founder with a difference. With a vast knowledge of the natural world, Camille combined her data analysis skills and commercial acumen to create a platform to help corporations understand their biodiversity impact. In this eye-opening episode of our Game Changers and Transition Makers mini-series, Camille shares her remarkable journey with Ashu...

Partnering with supply chains, reimagining consumer packaging, and extending producer responsibility. All these issues – and more – are brought to life in this episode, where we hear from Raegan Kelly, Head of Product at Better For All . Raegan and her colleagues are tackling plastic pollution head-on by manufacturing bio-based cups in California. In this podcast, she talks with Ashurst’s Elena La...

Host Elena Lambros is joined by Robert de Burgh-Day, an innovative entrepreneur who transitioned from a diverse background into founding and becoming the CEO of Brightspace. Brightspace enhances building efficiency with an AI-driven HVAC ecosystem that optimises energy use and improves air quality for commercial applications. Robert's diverse experiences in business, initially as an electrician, p...

Mark Bjornsgaard and his co-founder saw an opportunity to turn waste into wealth. "What's that tub of massage oil in a home-brew bucket?" asked a day one investor. "It's free heat," was the reply that marked the beginning of an energy revolution. In this compelling discussion, Elena Lambros uncovers how Mark's venture capital experience and a chance to impress a major utility company led to the bi...

Elena Lambros learns how Nikhil Chouguley's early experience in the Himalayas deeply influenced his path towards creating Sustopia, an ecosystem of blockchain, AI, and eventually quantum computing which are increasingly being harnessed to navigate financial investments to facilitate sustainable decision making. In this wide-ranging conversation Nikhil discusses how we are on the cusp of a 'Green I...

There’s nothing ordinary about the events that Chris Pensa creates for corporate clients , and his personal story is nothing short of extraordinary. In this episode, Ashurst’s Elena Lambros hears how this former competitive figure skater carved out a career that combines creativity and sustainability in numerous ways. Chris takes us back to 2005 and his early career at Sotheby’s, where he became t...

In this episode, Cameron McKenzie talks about the power of innovation in pursuing sustainability and his journey from construction to creating ASPIRE, a platform that is empowering over 3,500 businesses to reuse and recycle over two million tonnes of resources. Cameron discusses the concept of a circular economy and how ASPIRE’s algorithm promotes a sustainable, waste-free environment and the sign...

Join Elena Lambros in a captivating discussion with Magnus Drewelies, the visionary founder of CEEZER, as they explore negative emissions, transforming the carbon credit market while advancing the sustainability agenda. Discover the challenges and triumphs faced by Magnus as he articulates the origin story of CEEZER, business expansion, and strategic focus areas. The conversation ventures into the...

Elena Lambros, our ESG and Sustainability Partner, delves into the heart of corporate sustainability with Sarah Downie the CEO of the Shared Value Project. Introduced by Harvard’s Michael Porter and Mark Kramer in 2011, shared value is a concept that can have an impactful role in today’s corporate world. In this episode, guest Sarah Downie delves into the concept and how companies social and envir...

In this episode, Elena Lambros, Ashurst’s Risk Sustainability and Climate Change partner, sits down with Christiaan Jordaan, founder and CEO of Sicona, a battery materials technology and manufacturing company. Christiaan shares his journey in founding Sicona, a company dedicated to increasing access to high-performance, cost-effective battery materials. He speaks about how this technology revoluti...

Discover how social analytics is shaping the communities of tomorrow with Elena Lambros, Head of Ashurst's Risk Sustainability and Climate Change practice and Neighbourlytics CEO and Founder Jessica Christiansen-Franks. This Game Changers and Transition Makers episode delves into Neighbourlytics' transformative technology and its positive impact on town planning. Jessica shares how social analytic...

Four female professionals of South Asian heritage share stories of their family, their upbringing, and their careers in the UK. Along the way, they discuss the battles fought and won, and take an unflinching look at the challenges still ahead. Ashurst PR Manager Varsha Patel leads a discussion about the past, present and future for people of South Asian Heritage in the United Kingdom. As the episo...

Is it possible to transform financial markets to reward organisations for positive impacts on people and planet? Absolutely, explains filmmaker and social entrepreneur Rupert Pearce. To conclude Ashurst’s 30 For Net Zero 30 podcast series, we’ve saved one of the best for last. Our final special guest is Rupert Pearce, who is seeking to rewire the financial markets to reward organisations for posit...

In this episode, Jeff Ovens, Managing Director UK, Europe and Middle East a Fulcrum BioEnergy joins Global Sustainability/ESG Partner Anna-Marie Slot. Fulcrum BioEnergy is a clean energy company pioneering the creation of renewable drop-in sustainable aviation fuel from landfill waste. Jeff talks about his interest in the aviation sector with a focus on sustainable fuel for the last decade, the pr...

In this episode, Ashurst's Global Sustainability/ESG Partner Anna-Marie Slot is joined by James Harayda, skipper and team principal at the Gentoo Sailing team. James is the youngest skipper currently entered in the next Vendee Globe race, and in November, 2024 will become the youngest competitor to embark from France on this 25,000 nautical mile solo nonstop round the world yacht race. Not only is...

Ashurst First Nations Lead, Trent Wallace, turns the tables and interviews one of Australia's most distinguished and respected journalists, Kerry O'Brien, to discuss Kerry's allyship origins, his new book co-authored with Thomas Mayo, "The Voice to Parliament Handbook: All the Detail You Need", and the media's role in mitigating risk to First Nations societies. In this special Let's Yarn episode,...

Ashurst First Nations Lead Trent Wallace continues his yarn with advocate and trailblazer The Honourable Judge Dina Yehia SC. They discuss high-profile cases, diversity in law, and a refreshing new approach to sentencing. In the second part of this illuminating podcast interview, Justice Dina Yehia SC reflects on her practice in the Supreme Court, which included murder and terrorism trials. In 201...

Ashurst First Nations Lead Trent Wallace yarns with advocate and trailblazer, Justice Dina Yehia, where they discover they share a similar rebellious streak. In this episode, Justice Dina Yehia reflects on her life and times working in Australia’s criminal justice system and being an advocate for First Nations justice. In conversation with Ashurst First Nations Lead Trent Wallace, Justice Yehia ex...

In the first episode of our new series on ESG Matters@Ashurst, David Katz, Founder and Chairman at Plastic Bank, an internationally recognised solution to ocean plastic joins Global Sustainability/ESG Partner Anna-Marie Slot. One garbage truck full of plastic enters the ocean every minute and if plastic waste continues, by 2050 there will be more plastic in the ocean than fish. David is one of the...

In this episode, Ndiarka Mbodji, Founder & CEO of Kowry Energy a Berlin-based sustainability driven decentralised energy service provider to independent energy suppliers in Sub-Saharan Africa, joins Global Sustainability/ESG Partner Anna-Marie Slot. Ndiarka talks about how and why Kowry Energy was founded, the global shift she has seen in Energy Transition due to the insurge in climate related...

Ashurst First Nations Adviser and proud Wongaibon and Palawa man, Trent Wallace, shares a timely yarn with Bridget Cama from the Uluru Dialogue about the upcoming Voice referendum. In this episode, you will hear Bridget talk with passionate about the work she's doing around the upcoming Voice. The yarn covers the work that has gone into the Voice, the challenges Bridget has faced and the reason wh...