The No Nonsense Sustainability Podcast

Lenders hide behind bureaucracy. Developers hide behind budgets. Advocates hide behind ideals. In a multi-billion-dollar world of ESG, sustainability, and mega-infrastructure, we have built a massive, expensive fortress of paperwork while real-world impacts get left behind. Welcome to Season 2 of The No Nonsense Sustainability Podcast, hosted by frontline E&S practitioner and author Ildiko Alm...

Is the energy transition truly "just," or are we just swapping one set of problems for another? This week, Ildiko is joined by Adele Tharani, Social Sustainability Manager at Ørsted. As the world’s leading offshore wind developer, Ørsted is at the front lines of the "Renewable Dream"—but Adele argues that the dream only works if it's built on a foundation of social sustainability. In this episode,...

Is it really "meaningful engagement" if you don’t even know who your stakeholders actually are? In this episode of The No Nonsense Sustainability Podcast , Ildiko Almasi Simsic sits down with international expert Paul Lawrence to strip away the corporate jargon surrounding stakeholder relations. Paul brings decades of experience working in remote villages and project-affected communities - far rem...

Is the EU’s sustainability reporting wave a masterstroke or a bureaucratic monster? In this episode, we’re joined by Robert Adamczyk, Head of the Energy Sector Team at the EBRD and a key architect behind the EFRAG technical standards. Robert has spent two decades moving the needle on heavy industry and ESG frameworks, but today, he’s putting the jargon aside to give us the real story. We dive deep...

In this episode of The No Nonsense Sustainability Podcast , Ildiko speaks with Dr. Margerita Topalli from the Bank of Albania about what it really takes to build a green financial system from the ground up. Albania is setting out to develop its first Green Taxonomy by 2027 - a foundational step toward creating a market for green bonds in a country that has never had one. This is not about theory....

In this episode of The No Nonsense Sustainability Podcast , Ildiko sits down with Stuart Trow , Bloomberg columnist and author of Young, Poor and Totally Screwed , to unpack a question that rarely gets asked in sustainability circles: who is actually paying for the transition? With over 35 years in financial markets, Stuart argues that the modern economic system has quietly stacked the deck agains...

A candid conversation with Victoria Marquez-Mees, EBRD’s first Chief Accountability Officer, about accountability in development finance. We discuss the IPAM process, mediation vs investigation, evidence for decision making, collaboration with E&S teams, and the shared goal of delivering projects responsibly. Listen and join the conversation by sharing your experiences or reflections on accoun...

A conversation with Nikola Nikacevic, co-founder of EON+ and creator of the Envigo platform, exploring how environmental and social impact assessments are evolving in a digital world. The discussion covers the limits of traditional ESIA approaches, the role of technology in improving transparency and usability, and what innovation could mean for the future of sustainability practice. A thoughtful...

Is your corporate wellbeing strategy actually working, or is it just "wellness theater"? In this episode, we sit down with award-winning wellbeing expert Emily Warren to strip away the fluff surrounding the "S" in ESG. We dive deep into: The Burnout Epidemic: Why it’s more than just a "personal problem." Ownership: Determining where employee responsibility ends and employer duty of care begins. Wh...

Environmental and social safeguards did not start as box-ticking exercises. They were created in response to protest, public outrage, and real damage caused by development projects financed by international institutions. In this solo episode of The T No Nonsense Sustainability , I break down how safeguard standards at International Financial Institutions came to be, the projects and protests that...

IFI Watch – A No Nonsense Sustainability Miniseries Every two weeks, we check in on what our favourite international financial institutions (IFIs) are up to - what’s being funded, where, and why it matters. From climate resilience projects in small island states to massive infrastructure investments, we break down the latest disclosures and unpack what they really mean for communities, investors,...

What does social impact really mean in practice, beyond the buzzwords? In this episode of the No Nonsense Sustainability Podcast, I’m joined by Andrea Kanaris, founder of All Things Social Impact. Andrea works at the intersection of theory and practice, supporting early career professionals navigating the social impact space. We talk about how social impact is taught versus how it actually works o...

IFI Watch – A No Nonsense Sustainability Miniseries Every two weeks, we check in on what our favourite international financial institutions (IFIs) are up to - what’s being funded, where, and why it matters. From climate resilience projects in small island states to massive infrastructure investments, we break down the latest disclosures and unpack what they really mean for communities, investors,...

This episode takes a clear look at the state of global cooperation. Many of the institutions that shape international policy were built more than 80 years ago and still operate as if the world hasn’t changed. We brought in two people who know the system from the inside to talk about what actually works and what keeps breaking down. Hugh Dugan served as a special advisor to the President of the Uni...

IFI Watch – A No Nonsense Sustainability Miniseries Every two weeks, we check in on what our favourite international financial institutions (IFIs) are up to - what’s being funded, where, and why it matters. From climate resilience projects in small island states to massive infrastructure investments, we break down the latest disclosures and unpack what they really mean for communities, investors,...

Senior Privacy Counsel Danie Strachan joins the show to explain how data protection applies to environmental and social work. The episode covers common legal blind spots, what the law requires, how to design practical data protection systems and new guidance being developed for IA practitioners. A clear and grounded conversation for anyone handling community or project data.

IFI Watch – A No Nonsense Sustainability Miniseries Every two weeks, we check in on what our favourite international financial institutions (IFIs) are up to - what’s being funded, where, and why it matters. From climate resilience projects in small island states to massive infrastructure investments, we break down the latest disclosures and unpack what they really mean for communities, investors,...

Guest: Mehmet Öğütçü - globally recognised expert in energy policy, investment and geopolitics, with senior stints at the IEA and OECD, and extensive advisory experience across government and industry. In this episode we discuss: ✔️ How big-picture energy transition strategy is emerging today ✔️ The practical realities of delivering energy projects -| infrastructure, investment, stakeholders ✔️ Wh...

IFI Watch – A No Nonsense Sustainability Miniseries Every two weeks, we check in on what our favourite international financial institutions (IFIs) are up to - what’s being funded, where, and why it matters. From climate resilience projects in small island states to massive infrastructure investments, we break down the latest disclosures and unpack what they really mean for communities, investors,...

In this episode of The No Nonsense Sustainability Podcast , we sit down with Laura Palmariello, our E&S Solutions Data Protection Officer, to explore the practical realities of managing data protection in the field. From navigating complex regulations to embedding good practices in daily operations, Laura shares insights from our joint journey of understanding each other’s worlds. This isn’t a...

IFI Watch – A No Nonsense Sustainability Miniseries Every two weeks, we check in on what our favourite international financial institutions (IFIs) are up to - what’s being funded, where, and why it matters. From climate resilience projects in small island states to massive infrastructure investments, we break down the latest disclosures and unpack what they really mean for communities, investors,...

Host Ildiko Almasi Simsic talks with Dr. Sérgio Moreira about the emotional challenges of sustainability and social performance work - from managing others’ emotions in consultations to witnessing communities affected by projects. They discuss building resilience, preventing burnout, and the importance of self-care. The episode also highlights SPCircles , a new Community Insights Group initiative...

In this episode of The No Nonsense Sustainability Podcast , host Ildiko Almási Simsic meets Nina Lesikhina from Bankwatch for the first time after years of working on opposite sides of development finance projects. Their conversation explores accountability, personal safety, and investigations, while asking a central question: are IFIs and watchdogs really adversaries, or can they find ways to wor...

Most disasters aren’t natural - they’re systemic failures. In this special episode recorded in Geneva, I’m joined by Dr. David Daou from the UN University. Together we unpack: Why disaster risk reduction (DRR) must go beyond buzzwords How AI can predict hazards but still miss inequality What inclusive AI for resilience actually looks like Why resilience is built long before the disaster hits If yo...

🎙️ This week on The No Nonsense Sustainability Podcast We’ll be diving into Proportion, Prediction and People: The New Skills of E&S with Josh Fothergrill from Fothergill Training & Consulting. From cutting through 65,000-page reports to the future skillset of impact assessors, Josh shares sharp insights on how environmental & social assessments need to evolve. 👉 Watch on YouTube or l...