How to Lead a Sustainable Business with Alannah Weston

Join Alannah Weston, Chairman of Selfridges Group, for the third series of How to Lead a Sustainable Business (https://www.selfridges.com/GB/en/features/project-earth/podcast/?cm_re=homepage-_-cat-tile-1-feature-_-podcast) . In this series, Alannah continues her mission to discover how businesses can innovate and transform to put sustainability at their core. The latest IPCC report demonstrates what we all know - there is no time left for incremental progress. This series is all about systems change. What are the big, bold ways we can reimagine our industries? Each week, Alannah speaks to the business pioneers mapping out a greener, fairer future for us all. Upcoming guests include Andy Cato, co-founder of Wildfarmed, Ricardo Bellini, CEO of Chloé, Leslie Johnston, CEO of Laudes Foundation, Anne Pitcher, CEO of Selfridges,  and Emma Dabiri, author, academic, and broadcaster. How to Lead a Sustainable Business is brought to you by Selfridges Group and Intelligence Squared. If you enjoy this series please take a moment to rate and review us on Apple Podcasts.

S3 Ep7: Emma Dabiri, author, academic and broadcaster, on Reinventing Stories Around Race

Alannah Weston, Chairman of Selfridges Group, speaks to leaders who are driving systems change to reinvent their sectors for a future that is regenerative and just.   This week is a special episode: rather than exploring an economic sector, Alannah looks at the possibility of rethinking race in conversation with Emma Dabiri.   Emma is an academic, broadcaster and author of two highly acclaimed books on the subject: Don’t Touch My Hair and What White People Can Do Next: From Allyship to Coalition. She offers a clear-thinking analysis of the construction of race and how through coalition and solidarity we might dismantle this system and build one that benefits both people and planet.   How to Lead a Sustainable Business is brought to you by Selfridges Group and Intelligence Squared. If you enjoy this episode, please take a moment to rate and review us wherever you get your podcasts.

07-21
28:17

S3 Ep6: Tessa Clarke, Co-Founder and CEO of OLIO on Reinventing Food Waste

Alannah Weston, Chairman of Selfridges Group, speaks to business leaders who are reinventing their sectors for a sustainable and just future. This episode explores the shocking world of food waste. More than a third of the world’s food is thrown away and in the developed world, half of food waste takes place at home. Tessa Clarke, CEO of OLIO, an app that redistributes food that would otherwise be wasted, discusses how her business galvanised 50,000 volunteers to tackle waste, and the ways in which society needs to re-think its relationship with food if we are to win the race to net zero. How to Lead a Sustainable Business is brought to you by Selfridges Group and Intelligence Squared. If you enjoy this episode, please take a moment to rate and review us wherever you get your podcasts.

06-16
26:24

S3 Ep5: Christian Benimana, MASS Design Group, on Reinventing Architecture

Alannah Weston, Chairman of Selfridges Group, speaks to business leaders who are reinventing their sectors for a sustainable and just future. In this episode, she is joined by Christian Benimana, Senior Principal and Managing Director of MASS Design Group in Rwanda. Its mission is to research, build, and advocate for architecture that promotes justice and human dignity. MASS believes that architecture has a critical role to play in supporting communities to confront history, shape new narratives, collectively heal and project new possibilities for the future.  Christian introduces a new concept of beauty, one that moves beyond the aesthetic and only really blossoms when it brings social and environmental value to communities.  How to Lead a Sustainable Business is brought to you by Selfridges Group and Intelligence Squared. If you enjoy this episode, please take a moment to rate and review us wherever you get your podcasts.

06-06
26:10

S3 Ep4: Leslie Johnston, CEO Laudes Foundation, on Reinventing Philanthropy

Alannah Weston, Chairman of Selfridges Group, speaks to leaders who are driving transformational change towards sustainable industry. In this episode, Alannah is joined by Leslie Johnston, CEO of the Laudes Foundation, which catalyses systems change in the worlds of fashion, finance and the built environment, towards a new economy that values all people and nature. Leslie discusses the twin motivators of fear and inspiration when trying to change mindsets, and explains why the second is the more effective tool. She talks about the complexity of changing systems but outlines that it is possible to make a climate-positive transition without leaving behind the people whose livelihoods rely on systems which are currently damaging our planet. How to Lead a Sustainable Business is brought to you by Selfridges Group and Intelligence Squared. If you enjoy this episode, please take a moment to rate and review us wherever you get your podcasts.

05-26
26:34

S3 Ep3: Riccardo Bellini, CEO of Chloé, on Reinventing Fashion

Alannah Weston, Chairman of Selfridges Group, speaks to leaders who are driving transformational change towards sustainable industry. In this episode, Alannah is joined by the person behind the first B-Corp certified luxury fashion house, Riccardo Bellini, CEO of Chloé. Riccardo lifts the lid on how to turn positive intention into concrete reality, with insight into how Chloé overhauled its supply chain to move away from PVC and champion low-impact regenerative raw materials, and to work with partners that have a transformation social impact on the group at the heart of Chloé’s purpose - women. How to Lead a Sustainable Business is brought to you by Selfridges Group and Intelligence Squared. If you enjoyed this episode, please take a moment to rate and review us wherever you get your podcasts.

05-05
25:39

S3 Ep2: Anne Pitcher, Managing Director of Selfridges Group, on Reinventing Retail

Alannah Weston, Chairman of Selfridges Group, speaks to leaders who are driving transformational change. In this episode, Alannah is joined by her friend colleague and long-time collaborator, Anne Pitcher, Managing Director of Selfridges Group. They share their experiences of the company’s sustainability journey from fur to fish, from Project Ocean to Project Earth. Anne reflects on what it takes to embed a vision and purpose deep inside an organisation, and how the most powerful partnerships are not always the ones you expect. How to Lead a Sustainable Business is brought to you by Selfridges Group and Intelligence Squared. If you enjoy this episode, please take a moment to rate and review us on Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

04-28
28:45

S3 Ep1: Andy Cato on Reinventing Farming

Back for a third series, Alannah Weston, Chairman of Selfridges Group, speaks to inspiring leaders driving transformational systems change to put sustainability at the heart of their businesses. In this episode, Alannah is joined by Andy Cato, co-founder of Wildfarmed. Andy is a Grammy-nominated musician, one half of the incredible Groove Armada. In 2006, he read an article about the dire state of industrial food production, which ended with the line “If you don’t like the system, don’t depend on it.” Andy sold his music rights, bought a farm, and has spent his life since finding a more restorative and sustainable way of growing food. Together, they discuss how following natural systems for soil health leads to abundance and how it can transform our ailing agricultural system. How to Lead a Sustainable Business is brought to you by Selfridges Group and Intelligence Squared. If you enjoy this episode, please take a moment to rate and review us on Apple Podcasts.

04-21
28:20

S2 Ep11: Henry Dimbleby on COP26 and the Importance of Food in Sustainability

In this COP26 Special, Alannah is joined by Henry Dimbleby. Henry spent time as a journalist, cook and management consultant, before co-founding the healthy fast-food restaurant chain, Leon. He created the Sustainable Restaurants Association and London Union, a network of some of London’s largest street food markets. His philanthropic work includes campaigning tirelessly for healthy meals for school children, and he set up the Hackney School of Food. Most recently Henry was appointed lead non-executive board member at the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA), where he has led the National Food Strategy, publishing a ground-breaking review of the UK food system in 2020. Together they reflect on the Glasgow summit and discuss the role of government in combating the climate crisis.

11-19
20:04

S2 Ep10: Andrew Waugh on Sustainable Design and the Future of Architecture

Alannah Weston, Chairman of Selfridges Group, speaks to inspiring leaders at the forefront of sustainability and business to find out what it takes to lead change and how businesses can put sustainability at their core.  In this episode, Alannah is joined by Andrew Waugh, a founding partner of Waugh Thistleton Architects. He has designed award winning schemes from synagogues to social housing and is one of the world experts on timber construction. They discuss the merits of wood for human and environmental reasons and how it can transform the entire system of building. Together they consider whether steel and cement are the fossil fuels of the future.  How To Lead a Sustainable Business is brought to you by Selfridges Group and Intelligence Squared. If you enjoyed this episode please take a moment to rate and review us on Apple Podcasts. 

10-12
21:10

S2 Ep9: Safia Qureshi, CEO of CLUBZERO, on Coffee Cups and Plastic Packaging

Alannah Weston, Chairman of Selfridges Group, speaks to inspiring leaders at the forefront of sustainability and business to find out what it takes to lead change and how businesses can put sustainability at their core.  In this episode Alannah is joined by Safia Qureshi, founder and CEO of CLUBZERO, an award-winning returnable packaging system for food and beverage brands globally. Safia is an architect, designer and innovator who decided to take on the redesign of one of the most challenging aspects of the food service industry system: the lowly single use coffee cup. She speaks to Alannah about disrupting single use plastics, the role of legislation in regulating packaging and the challenges women in leadership positions face.   How To Lead a Sustainable Business is brought to you by Selfridges Group and Intelligence Squared. If you enjoyed this episode please take a moment to rate and review us on Apple Podcasts.  

10-05
24:37

S2 Ep8: Jesper Brodin, CEO of IKEA, on Furniture, Sustainable Consumption and the Circular Economy

Alannah Weston, Chairman of Selfridges Group, speaks to inspiring leaders at the forefront of sustainability and business to find out what it takes to lead change and how businesses can put sustainability at their core.  In this episode Alannah is joined by Jesper Brodin, CEO of IKEA and its parent company Ingka Group, the world’s largest home furnishing retailer. IKEA welcomes over 700 million visitors to their stores and 3.6 billion visits to their website every year. Jesper’s career with IKEA spans over 25 years and he speaks to Alannah about IKEA’s vision, the importance of scaling businesses to build a sustainable economy and the relationship between sustainability and affordability.  How To Lead a Sustainable Business is brought to you by Selfridges Group and Intelligence Squared. If you enjoyed this episode please take a moment to rate and review us on Apple Podcasts.  

09-28
24:00

S2 Ep7: Sally Jewell, President Obama’s Secretary of the Interior, on the Role of Government and Thoughtful Regulation

Alannah Weston, Chairman of Selfridges Group, speaks to inspiring leaders at the forefront of sustainability and business to find out what it takes to lead change and how businesses can put sustainability at their core.  In this episode Alannah is joined by Sally Jewell, a business executive who was appointed by President Barack Obama to serve as the 51st United States Secretary of the Interior. She was previously the CEO of Recreational Equipment Inc. and interim CEO of the Nature Conservancy. They speak about the relationship between government and business, the challenges of regulation regulating industries and working together to find solutions.  How To Lead a Sustainable Business is brought to you by Selfridges Group and Intelligence Squared. If you enjoyed this episode please take a moment to rate and review us on Apple Podcasts.  

09-21
27:13

S2 Ep6: Charlie Burrell, Founder of Knepp Wildland, on Rewilding and Regenerative Farming

Alannah Weston, Chairman of Selfridges Group, speaks to inspiring leaders at the forefront of sustainability and business to find out what it takes to lead change and how businesses can put sustainability at their core.  In this episode Alannah is joined by Charlie Burrell, a conservationist and founder of Knepp Wildland, the first large-scale lowland rewilding project in England. He transformed his family’s 3,500 acre estate from being a dairy and arable farm into a rewilding project which now has its own ecosystem boasting the largest concentrations of nightingales in the UK and the biggest breeding population of rare purple emperor butterflies. They speak about disrupting the agriculture industry, stakeholder management, regenerative farming and how land can be reinvented through biodiversity. How To Lead a Sustainable Business is brought to you by Selfridges Group and Intelligence Squared. If you enjoyed this episode please take a moment to rate and review us on Apple Podcasts. 

09-14
28:02

S2 Ep5: Dame Vivian Hunt, Senior Partner at McKinsey, on Stakeholder Capitalism and the Value of a Diverse Workforce

Alannah Weston, Chairman of Selfridges Group, speaks to inspiring leaders at the forefront of sustainability and business to find out what it takes to lead change and how businesses can put sustainability at their core. In this episode Alannah is joined by Dame Vivian Hunt, a senior partner at the global management consultancy firm McKinsey & Company. She served as managing partner of McKinsey’s UK and Ireland offices from 2013-2020 and is a thought leader on productivity, leadership and diversity. She was previously named as one of the top ten “most influential black people in Britain” by the Powerlist Foundation, and The Financial Times identified her “one of the 30 most influential people in the City of London”. She speaks to Alannah about the importance of businesses being open to innovation, stakeholder capitalism and the value of a diverse workforce. How To Lead a Sustainable Business is brought to you by Selfridges Group and Intelligence Squared. If you enjoyed this episode please take a moment to rate and review us on Apple Podcasts.

09-07
29:17

S2 Ep4: Sir Dave Lewis, Chair of WWF and former Tesco CEO on Leading Change and Reducing Waste

Alannah Weston, Chairman of Selfridges Group, speaks to inspiring leaders at the forefront of sustainability and business to find out what it takes to lead change and how businesses can put sustainability at their core.  In this episode Alannah is joined by Sir Dave Lewis, Chair of the leading conservation charity, World Wildlife Fund for Nature. Dave worked at Unilever for nearly 30 years before becoming CEO of Tesco where he led the company’s turnaround at the same time as embedding sustainability into its strategy. He tells Alannah how he led transformational change in Tesco, the importance of partnering with NGOs and other key stakeholders, and why ‘followership’ is just as important as leadership.  How To Lead a Sustainable Business is brought to you by Selfridges Group and Intelligence Squared. If you enjoyed this episode please take a moment to rate and review us on Apple Podcasts.

08-31
19:50

S2 Ep3: Victoria Prew, Founder of Hurr, on Fashion and the Rental Revolution

Alannah Weston, Chairman of Selfridges Group, speaks to inspiring leaders at the forefront of sustainability and business to find out what it takes to lead change and how businesses can put sustainability at their core.  In this episode, Alannah is joined by Victoria Prew, CEO of Hurr - the UK’s first peer to peer fashion rental platform. Her business has been described as the ‘Airbnb of fashion’ by Forbes magazine. They discuss the rental revolution, a guilt-free approach to shopping and how Victoria is disrupting the fashion system by bringing the circular economy to life for customers through tech innovation. How To Lead a Sustainable Business is brought to you by Selfridges Group and Intelligence Squared. If you enjoyed this episode please take a moment to rate and review us on Apple Podcasts.

08-24
20:05

S2 Ep2: Dale Vince, Founder of Ecotricity on Green Energy, Vegan Football and Sky Diamonds

Alannah Weston, Chairman of Selfridge Group, speaks to inspiring leaders at the forefront of sustainability and business to find out what it takes to lead change and how businesses can put sustainability at their core.  In this episode Alannah is joined by Dale Vince, founder of Ecotricity, the world’s first green energy company. 25 years ago, the concept of ‘green energy’ didn’t exist. Starting with one windmill, he  kick-started the disruption of the fossil fuel industry. Dale shares his journey from New Age traveller to eco-entrepreneur and U.N. Climate Change Champion. He tells Alannah how he took Forest Green Rovers’ Football Club vegan and his next ambition to mine diamonds from the sky. How To Lead a Sustainable Business is brought to you by Selfridges Group and Intelligence Squared. If you enjoyed this episode please take a moment to rate and review us on Apple Podcasts. 

08-17
22:36

S2 Ep1: Alannah Weston, Chairman of Selfridges Group, in conversation with Manveen Rana

In this special edition of the podcast, the tables are turned on our host as she is put in the hot seat. Alannah Weston, Chairman of Selfridges Group, is interviewed by The Times journalist and broadcaster Manveen Rana. In this episode, Alannah reflects on the sustainability journey Selfridges Group has been on, the future of fashion, and what she’s looking forward to exploring in Season 2 of the podcast.  How To Lead a Sustainable Business is brought to you by Selfridges Group and Intelligence Squared. If you enjoyed this episode please take a moment to rate and review us on Apple Podcasts. 

08-10
30:16

S2: Trailer - Season 2 Coming Soon

Join Alannah Weston, Chairman of Selfridges Group, for Season 2 of How To Lead a Sustainable Business. In this podcast series, Alannah continues her mission of finding out how businesses can innovate and transform to put sustainability at their core. Each week she will be joined by an inspirational business leader driving change in their field – whether it’s football, fashion, food or furniture. Upcoming guests include Jesper Brodin, CEO of IKEA; Dale Vince, Founder of Ecotricity; Dame Vivian Hunt, Senior Partner at McKinsey; Sir Dave Lewis, Chair of WWF and former CEO of Tesco; and Sally Jewell, President Obama’s Secretary of the Interior. How To Lead a Sustainable Business is brought to you by Selfridges Group and Intelligence Squared. If you enjoy this series please take a moment to rate and review us on Apple Podcasts. 

08-03
01:33

S1 Ep7: Zamzam Ibrahim

How can we expect the leaders of the future to tackle the complex issues we face with an education system trapped in the mindset of the past?   In this episode, Alannah speaks with activist and student politician, Zamzam Ibrahim. Zamzam is the former President of the National Union of Students and currently serves as the President of the charity Students Organising for Sustainability, which was created by the NUS in response to the climate and ecological crisis.  Her campaigns have highlighted that the climate crisis is deeply intertwined with issues of social justice and inequality. And that what is needed, is a fundamental shift in the education system, to give young people the tools and agency they need to fight for a greener, fairer future.

11-16
22:29

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