Inspiring people

Alice Bah Kuhnke has a passion for social justice and a unique ability to encourage others to do likewise. Now she works as a CSR and Environmental Manager at the company ÅF.

Annika Carlsson-Kanyama is a professor who has done research on human consumption related to climate change. An important part of her research is the importance of gender in relation to climate change.

Arne Naess was the Norwegian philosopher, environmentalist and mountain climber who studied the field of learning that can only be observed. He coined the concept of ‘Ecosophy – the wisdom of nature's housekeeping’.

Bruce Sterling is a science fiction writer who wants to actively steer developments in a certain direction through the creation of future scenarios. Sterling co-founded the popular blog Worldchanging.

Buckminster Fuller was an architect and designer, and it was his life’s mission to test the limits of what an ordinary person could do to improve the situation of humanity. His most famous innovation is the aerodynamic car.

Günter is an economist as well as a multifaceted entrepreneur who founded the first ecological factory in the world - Ecover.

Janine is a writer and innovation consultant who inspires people to imitate nature’s design processes in a conscious and sustainable way. She is one of the pioneers within the field of biomimicry.

Jennifer Leonard is a qualified journalist and she is often acknowledged for her creative ways of communicating what she wants to convey. She currently works as a project manager at the multi-disciplinary design company IDEO.

John Thackara is a philosopher and ‘company provoker’ and he does not use design in the conventional way. He designs events, projects and organizations and is best known for his work with the Doors of Perception.

Manfred Max-Neef is an economist from Chile who is famous for turning well-established social norms upside down, while at the same time creating alternative routes for development.

Matilda Tham is a fashion designer and professor who is one of the leading environmental campaigners in the fashion industry. She has added a fourth dimension to what, in the sustainability context, is usually called the ‘triple-bottom-line’.

Niels Peter Flint is a Danish architect who was the initiator of the eco-design collective O2 Global Network. He has spent the past 25 years working with design in various ways, with the aim of encouraging sustainable lifestyles.

Oren Lyons is a professor and Native American chief, internationally renowned as a representative for American indigenous wisdom. Lyons is a much sought-after adviser in leadership and sustainable development.

Victor Papanek is probably most famous for criticizing the role of the design profession in society. That said, he was also one of the first who could see the potential of design in the development of socially and ecologically responsible products.