Venturing Women podcast

29:50

Nadine Mezher was eager to spearhead change in habits and attitudes to handling money in the MENA region (Middle East and North Africa). She wanted to democratise access to investing and make it available to not only the ultra rich. Nadine co-founded Sarwa, a platform for investment and personal finance. In 2022, Forbes recognised Nadine among 20 women behind Middle Eastern tech brands. A fashion professional and owner of her own design house in the past, Nadine unpacks the concept of growth mindset in business and private life. Topics we discuss: Anticipating shifts in consumer behaviour early and being ahead of the curve Converting setbacks and struggles into fuel for growth The art and science of branding and performance marketing: what really makes customers love your product Team management: Pivoting the career trajectory of your people to unlock their potential Adaptability that comes from facing hardships like political instability or war About Nadine Mezher (guest): Nadine co-founded Sarwa , a one-stop platform for investment and personal finance, after years of consultancy and executive roles in growth strategies for government entities as well as multi-national corporates. She comes from a multi-disciplinary background with over 18 years of experience in growth strategies across industries and geographies. Nadine is an award-winning regular speaker on global platforms on topics of business ownership and hacking growth, Fintech, and women in the workforce. Nadine is based in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. About Darya Kamkalova (host): Darya is a data industry professional, a startup mentor, and a speaker. She is committed to narrowing the gender investment gap for female founders and diverse teams. Darya is based in Berlin, Germany. Venturing Women website: https://www.venturingwomen.org/ Follow us on social media: Instagram - LinkedIn Disclaimer: No information in this podcast episode should be considered as an investment advice.…

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#34: Out of natural habitat as a founder - Alina Bassi 33:27

2 years ago33:27

33:27

How do you launch an innovative business in uncharted territories? Alina Bassi realised she could apply principles of coffee waste management to recycle textiles into… plastics. A chemical engineer, she launched Kleiderly in a foreign country, with no language skills, and out of network. She masterfully addresses challenges of two industries simultaneously: textile waste management and plastics manufacturing. Main topics: Is it a good idea to donate used clothes? Think like an engineer: use materials in an unconventional sense The most beneficial thing to do for an out-of-natural-habitat founder From a fear of failure to ‘Wow, I could do that. So what else can I do?’ What if you’re pitching and your potential investor is yawning? About Alina Bassi (guest): Alina Bassi is a chemical engineer turned impact entrepreneur, with a passion for creating a more sustainable and equitable future. After 7 years in the biofuels and waste recycling space, she co-founded Kleiderly, a textile recycling startup. She is an impact investor and the co-founder of Founderland - a non-profit that supports women of colour to raise investment. She was on the Forbes 30 under 30 list in 2020, and has been featured in Vogue, Wired, and Germany’s Shark Tank. She is an Obama Leader, TEDx speaker and advisor to over 50+ women-led startups. About Darya Kamkalova (host): Darya is a data industry professional, a startup mentor, and a speaker. She is committed to narrowing the gender investment gap for female founders and diverse teams. Darya is based in Berlin, Germany. Venturing Women website: https://www.venturingwomen.org/ Follow us on social media: Instagram - LinkedIn…

Venturing Women

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#33: Gender investment gap: Its origin, impact and ways to bridge it - Lucy Chow, Vera Futorjanski, Medea Nocentini, Katie Wachsberger 25:57

2 years ago25:57

25:57

All-women startup teams receive less than 3% of the venture capital globally whilst male-led startups collect 89% of it. And as if this statistics wasn’t depressing enough, the trend is negative. It’s getting worse every year. Venture capital investors share their views on the reasons behind such disparity. What are its consequences? What are we as a society missing out if this gap perpetuates? And how can we possibly bridge it? About guests: Lucy Chow is the General Partner at the World Business Angels Investment Forum and a member of the steering committee of the movement 2022 Female Angels . Lucy has been recently recognized by Arabian Business as one of 50 Inspiring Female Business Leaders 2022. Katie Wachsberger is the Co-Founder of DANA Global , an Abu Dhabi based venture builder and investment platform for women-led startups in desert tech, including agritech, foodtech, renewable energy, water solutions, and circular economy. Medea Nocentini is Senior Partner at Global Ventures , an international venture capital firm. She is also the Founder of Companies Creating Change (C3) , a UAE-based social enterprise helping impact-driven entrepreneurs in the Middle East and Africa to unlock their growth potential and maximize their positive impact on the community. Vera Futorjanski is the CEO & Founder of Veritas Ventures , a global strategic advisory firm. She is also an investor at Launch Africa Ventures. Vera is on the steering committee of the 2022 Female Angels. She is a serial entrepreneur and is currently building a community for female leaders. About Darya Kamkalova (host): Darya is a data industry professional, a startup mentor, a co-founder of Manifest Taproom (a craft beer bar in Berlin), and a speaker. She is committed to narrowing the gender investment gap for female founders and diverse teams. Darya is based in Berlin, Germany. About this episode: This episode was recorded at the Women’s Empowerment Convention organised by the Women’s Empowerment Council . WE Council is dedicated to empowering women to achieve their goals, ambitions, and dreams. The event took place in the Dubai Opera on March 8, 2023. The next Women's Empowerment Convention will take place on November 11-12 in Dubai . Venturing Women website: https://www.venturingwomen.org/ Follow us on social media: Instagram - LinkedIn…

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#32: Building a FemTech, don’t look too passionate about it - Fatoumata Ly 26:44

2 years ago26:44

26:44

Many businesses start with the future founders trying to solve an issue they face personally. FemTech startups (female technology) are no exception. Here, however, many areas are emotionally loaded and wrapped into layers of taboos. Fatoumata Ly shares how her own story of trying to conceive evolved into addressing the centuries-old issue countless women face. Fatoumata is now building Ninti, a company that provides digital solutions for personalised care around sexual and reproductive health. Topics we discuss: Raising awareness around reproductive health and breaking taboos in the workplace. Are employers ready? And employees? How to convert horrible customer stories about pain, loss or trauma into a company vision and a product, and keep building despite own heartbreaking circumstances How much vulnerability and authenticity a founder can afford How can passion be treated differently based on who is displaying it. Is it a strength or a weakness? Does everyone have the luxury to just… be? About Fatoumata Ly (guest): Fatoumata Ly is a Franco-Guinean entrepreneur, currently a co-founder of Ninti, a company that provides digital solutions for personalised care around sexual and reproductive health. She is also a member of the board of directors of SISTA, a French NGO that focuses on reducing the funding gap between male and female entrepreneurs. Fatoumata is committed to putting women at the centre of the healthcare and entrepreneurship system. She actively works to reduce gender inequalities in the areas of reproductive health and entrepreneurship, with a soft spot for emerging markets. About Darya Kamkalova (host): Darya is a data industry professional, a startup mentor, and a speaker. She is committed to narrowing the gender investment gap for female founders and diverse teams. Darya is based in Berlin, Germany. Venturing Women website: https://www.venturingwomen.org/ Follow us on social media: Instagram - LinkedIn…

Venturing Women

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#31: What is your weapon of choice to drive change? - Jacqueline van den Ende 30:42

2 years ago30:42

30:42

‘Be the change you want to see in the world’ sounds like a fulfilling life motto. But how do you put it into practice? How do you leave a positive mark in the world and enjoy the ride along the way? Ultimately, we all have just one life to experiment with. Jacqueline van den Ende aims to unlock 1 billion dollars of capital to help power climate solutions. That’s a big dent in the world to make! Jacqueline is a founder turned investor turned founder, twice over. A true adventurer, she moved to the Philippines to launch a startup, then ran a team of 500 as a CEO. Now, she is building Carbon Equity, the world’s first impact investing platform. Topics we discuss: Why Jacqueline is building an impact investment platform to channel more money to sustainable startups. Why investing in startups moves the needle whilst investing on stock exchange does not How to find what uniquely positions you for driving change The only difference Jacqueline-the-investor saw between herself and founders who sent her pitch decks Fundraising technique ‘Ask Don’t Tell’, or how to create FOMO among investors We recorded this episode at the Impact Shakers Summit in Brussels, in May 2023, the first European startup event focusing on inclusive entrepreneurship and impact. Impact Shakers is an impact entrepreneurship ecosystem tackling complex societal challenges through inclusive entrepreneurship. About Jacqueline van den Ende: Jacqueline van den Ende is co-founder of Amsterdam-based climate fintech company Carbon Equity . Carbon Equity is a climate venture capital and private equity fund investing fintech platform. Carbon Equity was founded with the mission to unlock retail capital at scale to power breakthrough climate technologies whilst enabling more equitable ownership. Jacqueline brings a unique perspective as a founder turned investor turned founder, twice over. She worked at HAL Investments and at Peak Capital. The other half of her career she spent building and leading companies, including De Kleine Consultant, online real estate marketplace Lamudi (backed by Rocket Internet) and fintech scale-up TrueMoney (backed by Ant Financial). About Darya Kamkalova: Darya is a data industry professional, a startup mentor, and a speaker. She is committed to narrowing the gender investment gap for female founders and diverse teams. Darya is based in Berlin, Germany.…

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#30: Will ChatGPT be your next career coach? - Darja Gutnick 32:58

2 years ago32:58

32:58

Can you become a better leader in 2 min a day? Yes according to Darja Gutnick, Co-Founder & CEO of Bunch, an AI leadership coach. Darja also shares her own story of how losing key people on her team and going through a split-up with her co-founder made her better leader. Topics we discuss: How can data help you to answer the deepest question about yourself? How technology and AI tools specifically can and cannot support our growth and career development. Micro-learning. Can you rely on ChatGPT and similar tools while creating content? Is it good for a leader to be a good problem solver? What do you do if your startup feels like a sinking ship? About Darja Gutnick: Darja Gutnick is Co-Founder & CEO at Bunch . She is a serial entrepreneur and maker, pushing the boundaries of her field with an ambitious vision to bring the power of a coach to every professional in the world. Darja is a passionate product builder, organisational psychologist, leadership coach, and 2x founder. She has helped over 100k professionals to upskill their leadership & career skills. She is specifically passionate about recommendation engines and AI powered approaches, and has led the important product and go-to-market iterations that have defined Bunch’s journey and success so far. About Darya Kamkalova: Darya is a data industry professional, a startup mentor, and a speaker. She is committed to narrowing the gender investment gap for female founders and diverse teams. Darya is based in Berlin, Germany. Venturing Women website: https://www.venturingwomen.org/ Follow us on social media: Instagram - LinkedIn…

Venturing Women

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#29: Are you building just a perk or a sticky product? - Leonie Ellerbrock, Viktoria Lindner 24:46

2 years ago24:46

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Mental health and marketplaces - both are hot topics! Isn’t it a great idea to build a marketplace for mental health services? Viktoria Lindner and Leonie Ellerbrock, co-founders of Mindsurance, share a story of launching such a marketplace and then walking away from this model. Topics we discuss: What’s the difference between building a perk (a nice-to-have) and a sticky product that delivers true value Weaknesses of marketplaces as a business model How investors can make a difference in your startup journey and what to look out for while choosing yours Founder mindset necessary to build a venture-backed startup About Viktoria Lindner (guest): Viktoria is CEO & Co-Founder of Mindsurance , a digital mental healthcare platform that connects employees with therapists, coaches and digital mental health tools. Viktoria is a serial founder with more than 6 years of experience in the HR Tech space. She studied clinical psychology and founded her first startup DIMPACT in 2018 which she bootstrapped to a 7-figure revenue. In 2021, she started Mindsurance with a mission to remove the barriers to mental health care for employees. About Leonie Ellerbrock (guest): Leonie is COO & Co-Founder of Mindsurance . Leonie is a Berliner and joined the local startup ecosystem by 2011. She led teams in business development and operations, and has a deep interest in the MedTech area. Leonie holds a B.Sc . in Psychology and Business. About Darya Kamkalova (host): Darya is a data industry professional, a startup mentor, and a speaker. She is committed to narrowing the gender investment gap for female founders and diverse teams. Darya is based in Berlin, Germany. Venturing Women website: https://www.venturingwomen.org/ Follow us on social media: Instagram - LinkedIn…

Venturing Women

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#28: Build an ideal team of investors and treat this as an alliance - Sonia Weymuller 29:16

2 years ago29:16

29:16

Can FOMO (fear of missing out) be a market opportunity? Sonia Weymuller realised many people were seeking ways to invest into tech startups and be a part of the startup buzz. Yet, there was no platform in the MENA region to do so. Sonia Weymuller is a Co-Founder and General Partner of VentureSouq (VSQ), a MENA-based venture capital firm, and Partner Lead for the VSQ Conscious Collective, its global impact-focused investment and educational platform. Topics we cover: building a venture capital firm like a startup, why relationships between investors and founders are like marriage, how to build an ideal capital table and treat your investors like a team of allies, why investors should create a safe space for founders to be open and vulnerable, how to make a choice between building a lifestyle business and a venture-backed startup. About Sonia Weymuller: Sonia Weymuller is a Co-Founder and General Partner of VentureSouq (VSQ), a MENA-based venture capital firm, and Partner Lead for the VSQ Conscious Collective, its global impact-focused investment and educational platform. She is driven by a mission to support founders harnessing the power of technology to address tangible societal, economic, and environmental challenges. Sonia is an advisor to Village Capital’s Sustainability MENA Program and jury member for the Cartier Women’s Initiative. She is also a board member for the Middle East Venture Capital Association, and a Kauffman Fellow. About Darya Kamkalova: Darya is a data industry professional, a startup mentor, and a speaker. She is committed to narrowing the gender investment gap for female founders and diverse teams. Darya is based in Berlin, Germany. Venturing Women website: https://www.venturingwomen.org/ Follow us on social media: Instagram - LinkedIn…

Venturing Women

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#27: Hardware business: building products and teams that survive any storm (or flood) - Polina Mikhaylova 24:20

2 years ago24:20

24:20

Polina Mikhaylova co-founded KNOT, a micromobility company, in 2015, long before shared scooters came into vogue. Terms like ‘free-floating’ or ‘swappable batteries’ didn’t exist yet. Polina is a true enthusiast of docking stations. Can they be the future of shared micromobility? Topics: Users in big cities are spoiled with easy access to shared scooters and bikes which comes at a cost of safety and environmental impact. How can mobility companies and cities change user behaviour in favour of docking stations? Why outsourcing can be totally disastrous for a hardware company. How to validate ideas and build prototypes for hardware solutions. The magic triad ‘software-electronics-hardware’. Where do you start? How to conquer foreign markets with a small team How to build technology that can survive a flood (2 meters under water!) About Polina Mikhaylova: Polina Mikhaylova is a co-founder of KNOT , provider of sharing and charging infrastructure for micromobility, bikes and scooters, with a presence in 10 countries. She is also an active member of a local startup community in the city of Strasbourg with a passion for non-ordinary events and cooperation between French and German founders. In her previous life, she was a project manager for scale-up European environmental projects thanks to a strong financial background. About Darya Kamkalova (host): Darya is a data industry professional, a startup mentor, a co-founder of Manifest Taproom (a craft beer bar in Berlin), and a speaker. She is committed to narrowing the gender investment gap for female founders and diverse teams. Darya is based in Berlin, Germany. About Irina Vakatova (co-host): Irina is a product professional with background in operational excellence. She works at TIER Mobility, e-scooter and e-bike sharing operator striving to make cities more livable and transportation more sustainable. Venturing Women website: https://www.venturingwomen.org/ Follow us on social media: Instagram - LinkedIn…

Venturing Women

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#26: One year of podcasting, or how giving up on a designer bag can help female founders - Katia Yakovleva, Bettine Schmitz 29:23

2 years ago29:23

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This is a joint episode with the Female Business Angel Podcast hosted by Katia Yakovleva and Bettine Schmitz. We launched our shows more or less at the same time, one year ago. Darya, Bettine and Katia talk about one year of podcasting, their learnings, angel investing and the outlook for female founders. About Katia Yakovleva Katia is a Berlin-based entrepreneur currently working on her next venture. Previously, she had spent more than a decade at Spotify and co-founded a web3 analytics startup. She is an active angel investor and - a mentor at Techstars and other startup accelerators. About Bettine Schmitz Bettine is a believer in the unharnessed potential of female founders. To this end she set up Auxxo - an investment company focusing on female entrepreneurs. Prior to that, she accelerated nearly 100 companies at Axel Springer Plug and play and has made nearly 20 angel investments. About Darya Kamkalova: Darya is a data industry professional, a startup mentor, a co-founder of Manifest Taproom (a craft beer bar in Berlin), and a speaker. She is committed to narrowing the gender investment gap for female founders and diverse teams. Darya is based in Berlin, Germany. Venturing Women website: https://www.venturingwomen.org/ Follow us on social media: Instagram - LinkedIn Female Business Angels Podcast on social media: Instagram - LinkedIn…

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#25: How technology helps investors in search of startups - Penny Schiffer 26:31

2 years ago26:31

26:31

Imagine you are invited to give a talk at Stanford about your work as an investor. Excited, you board a plane to cross the Atlantic. And a conversation with a seat neighbour on that flight changes your whole life trajectory. You are now adamant about building your own business. That’s exactly what happened to Penny Schiffer, CEO & Co-Founder of Raized.ai . After 10 years in venture capital, Penny decided to launch a startup to make this industry more intelligent. A psychology major, she had to ‘go back to the roots’ and re-discover her technical background. Topics we cover: What if your employees tell you, ‘You’ll never understand how it works, don’t even try?’ If you’re a founder, what should you know about how investors and algorithms assess your startup? What should you do or avoid doing to increase your chances for a successful fundraising round? Will machines replace humans in the investing process? And finally, how algorithms can increase chances for underrepresented founders? About Penny Schiffer: Penny is on a mission to transform startup investment with artificial intelligence, to make it more efficient and fair, and generate higher returns. Before Penny launched Raized.ai , she worked in corporate innovation and as a strategy consultant at Accenture. Penny got into programming at the age of ten but only made the step into the tech industry later. She was awarded “Seed 10 - the Best of Europe's Female Early-Stage Investors” by Business Insider in 2022. Penny is based in Zurich, Switzerland. About Darya Kamkalova: Darya is a data industry professional, a startup mentor, a co-founder of Manifest Taproom (a craft beer bar in Berlin), and a speaker. She is committed to narrowing the gender investment gap for female founders and diverse teams. Darya is based in Berlin, Germany.…

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#24: Should founders sacrifice their private life and relationships? - Jenny Holmström 19:48

2 years ago19:48

19:48

If you launch your own business, just forget about having a life. It’s only work, no play. And your friends and family will need to accept it. This notion is particularly popular in the startup world but how much truth is in it? We asked Jenny Holmström, CEO and Co-Founder of Coupleness, an app helping couples to develop healthy habits for happy relationships. Jenny and Darya examine why maintaining healthy relationships is a key success factor for entrepreneurs, how couples can navigate the challenges of early-stage venture building: what can go wrong and how to prevent such pitfalls, and Jenny’s own story of prioritising work to the detriment of her family life which brought her to building Coupleness. About Jenny Holmström: Jenny has worked for the United Nations as well as large corporations, and co-founded a child rights organization. She is an award-winning communicator, always striving to make a positive social impact. Coupleness is an app for couples with a mission to make it easy and mainstream to invest in your relationship. About Darya Kamkalova: Darya is a data industry professional, a startup mentor, a co-founder of Manifest Taproom (a craft beer bar in Berlin), and a speaker. She is committed to narrowing the gender investment gap for female founders and diverse teams. Darya is based in Berlin, Germany. Venturing Women website: https://www.venturingwomen.org/ Follow us on social media: Instagram - LinkedIn…

Venturing Women

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#23: Train the change muscle - Karen K. Burns 30:18

2 years ago30:18

30:18

Her first job was as a saxophone player. Later, she worked on producing Star Wars and Fast & Furious in the Abu Dhabi desert - and absolutely hated it. Now an established IT professional, Karen Burns is the CEO & Co-Founder at Fyma, a computer vision company enabling data-driven urban planning. Karen knows best what change is, on personal and professional levels. She and her co-founder launched Fyma right before the pandemic hit, only to see cities deserted. We discuss how change starts deep inside us, why it is important to embrace and steer it and how to make decisions based on limited information. Finally, we examine how data and data-powered software will change urban space and our lives as urban dwellers. If you liked this episode, share it with at least one friend! About Karen K. Burns: Karen is the Co-Founder and CEO at Fyma , a computer vision SaaS platform that turns cameras into predictive sensors. She has 16+ years prior experience in IT and business development roles and she has lived and worked in the UK, South Africa and the Middle East, both in private and public sector organisations in management positions. Karen is based in Estonia. About Darya Kamkalova: Darya is a data industry professional, a startup mentor, a co-founder of Manifest Taproom (a craft beer bar in Berlin), and a speaker. She is committed to narrowing the gender investment gap for female founders and diverse teams. Darya is based in Berlin, Germany. Venturing Women website: https://www.venturingwomen.org/ Follow us on social media: Instagram - LinkedIn…

Venturing Women

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#22: Business angels’ wings and money for startups - Rita Vilas-Boas 26:09

2 years ago26:09

26:09

9 out of 10 startups die, and the first years of any startup existence are the most challenging to navigate. This is where business angels can offer invaluable support to founders along with so much needed capital. Rita Vilas-Boas is a marketing professional, entrepreneur and angel investor focusing on consumer-centric startups. She is particularly interested in impact and women-led startups. In the last 20 years, she held top-tier roles at major global brands like Procter & Gamble and Coca-Cola as well as family businesses. Rita shares a moving story of fear, flight and growth that brought her to work and live in 7 countries across 3 continents. Topics that we cover in this episode: Who are angel investors? Which role do they play? How do you find an angel? How can founders and business angels build a mutually beneficial relationship? Which pitfalls should they avoid? Related episodes: Angel investment #3: Debunking the elitist image of startup investment – Svenja Lassen Venture Capital #17: Who should or should not raise venture capital? And how? - Gesa Miczaika More about Rita Vilas-Boas: Rita is Limited Partner founder at Shilling - community-driven venture capital fund. She is also the founding member of the first Classic Liberal Party In Portugal. Born and raised in Porto, Portugal, Rita holds a bachelor degree in biotechnology and a post-graduation degree in bioethics. Rita is based in Lisbon, Portugal. About Darya Kamkalova: Darya is a data industry professional, a startup mentor, a co-founder of Manifest Taproom (a craft beer bar in Berlin), and a speaker. She is committed to narrowing the gender investment gap for female founders and diverse teams. Darya is based in Berlin, Germany. Venturing Women website: https://www.venturingwomen.org/ Follow us on social media: Instagram - LinkedIn…

Venturing Women

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#21: New habits for a new life chapter - Vanessa Westphal 29:23

2 years ago29:23

29:23

What do you do if after 10 years of a successful corporate career, you feel the need for a big change? Can you make a career pivot, start in a new area and still be credible? Your track record may have helped you to get that new job or a promotion. And the same track record may hold you back from making a leap of faith into building your own business or starting anything new. Vanessa Westphal is COO and Co-Founder of Choosy , a personalised meal planning and grocery shopping assistant that makes forming healthy and sustainable eating habits effortless. After 10 years at Siemens, Vanessa decided to dedicate herself to her true passion: nutrition. We talk about how new habits and tools can support the transition from an employee to a founder and how important it is to tame your brain. Vanessa also shares her views on how technology will change the way we eat. About Vanessa Westphal: Vanessa joined Siemens 10 years ago as an electrical engineer to then switch to management consulting and lead a corporate incubator. She got excited about building something new from scratch and then seeing other people use it and benefit from it. With Choosy, Vanessa tackles one of our biggest and yet most underestimated challenges we face as humans: How we decide what we eat. About Darya Kamkalova: Darya is a data industry professional, a startup mentor, a co-founder of Manifest Taproom (a craft beer bar in Berlin), and a speaker. She is committed to narrowing the gender investment gap for female founders and diverse teams. Darya is based in Berlin, Germany. Venturing Women website: https://www.venturingwomen.org/ Follow us on social media: Instagram - LinkedIn…

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#20: Be a leader worth working for - Kate Hofman 30:26

3 years ago30:26

30:26

How do you build an indoor farming company to produce delicious salads at scale and make the food system more sustainable? You may need to start with a greenhouse on top of a shipping container as an MVP. Then raise >100mln of euros of external funding. But most importantly, you’ll need to create a company culture based on values that aren't just some words on your website. Kate Hofman is Founder and Brand Director of GrowUp Farms , an indoor farming company helping to build a more sustainable food system in the UK. Kate and I talk about being a leader worth working for, hiring and building teams, and walking away from the initial company identity. She also shares her experiences of pitching to investors while pregnant and building a business while raising a child. More about Kate Hofman: GrowUp Farms was founded in 2013. Kate is passionate about making delicious and sustainable food more affordable and about business as a force for social and environmental change. She's a fellow of Barclays Unreasonable Impact and sits on the WWF Farming Advisory Board. She lives in London, UK with her family, their dog and 11 stick insects. About Darya Kamkalova (host): Darya is a data industry professional, a startup mentor, a co-founder of Manifest Taproom (a craft beer bar in Berlin), and a speaker. She is committed to narrowing the gender investment gap for female founders and diverse teams. Darya is based in Berlin, Germany. Venturing Women website: https://www.venturingwomen.org/ Follow us on social media: Instagram - LinkedIn…

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#19: Building a launchpad for women of colour founders - Stephanie von Behr 26:51

3 years ago26:51

26:51

Less than 0.5% of venture capital goes to women of colour founders. Is it a pipeline problem rooted in a lack of such founders? Perhaps, women of colour simply do not dare to build high-growth businesses? Stephanie von Behr , Co-Founder and Managing Director of Founderland , debunks these myths. She is focused on increasing visibility, creating community, and getting more women of colour founders funded. We talk about what allyship truly means and why it matters, how disadvantages can become opportunities and what it takes to create a robust and flourishing community. Stephanie tells the story of building Founderland with simple tools like surveys and match-making keeping founders’ needs at the heart of every step and decision. About Stephanie von Behr: Stephanie has been working with startups for over a decade building community, as a 3x founder, operator, consultant, and mentor. As the Managing Director of Founderland, she is on a mission to disrupt the status quo and challenge systems of power across the entrepreneurial ecosystem. Founderland is an NGO that supports women founders based in Europe who’ve faced obstacles tied to their ethnicity/race in their business journeys. Founderland brings founders, allies and investors together to get more diverse, sustainable and scalable businesses funded. About Darya Kamkalova: Darya is a data industry professional, a startup mentor, a co-founder of Manifest Taproom (a craft beer bar in Berlin), and a speaker. She is based in Berlin, Germany. Venturing Women website: https://www.venturingwomen.org/ Follow us on social media: Instagram - LinkedIn…

Venturing Women

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#18: What founders can learn from an outsider-turned-investor - Maria Dramalioti-Taylor 28:02

3 years ago28:02

28:02

Founders and investors alike should be excellent signal processors. But what if you are navigating an environment that your ‘sensors’ are not attuned to? You can adjust those sensors and blaze a trail. You can transform your drawbacks into unfair competitive advantages. A woman, a foreigner, and an engineer, Maria Dramalioti-Taylor shares her story of breaking into the venture capital industry. Maria is the founding partner of Beacon Capital , a London venture capital firm. About Maria Dramalioti-Taylor: Maria has led numerous investment rounds syndicating with angels, micro funds and large VCs across Europe and the US creating $900m+ in enterprise value. As an investor, she works with founders to build global, category-defining businesses. She is on the board of several portfolio companies and serves on the Chairs in Emerging Technologies Committee and the Enterprise Committee of The Royal Academy of Engineering . About Darya Kamkalova (host): Darya is a data industry professional, a startup mentor, a co-founder of Manifest Taproom (a craft beer bar in Berlin), and a speaker. She is based in Berlin, Germany. Venturing Women website: https://www.venturingwomen.org/ Follow us on social media: Instagram - LinkedIn…

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#17: Who should or should not raise venture capital? And how? - Gesa Miczaika 29:13

3 years ago29:13

29:13

Despite the glamorous image of venture capital, it’s not a funding source that fits all. Who should and who absolutely should not raise venture capital to finance their business? How can you make the fundraising process less painful? And finally, is there a way for an outsider to break into the VC industry? Dr. Gesa Miczaika offers straight-forward and deep answers to these questions. Gesa is the founding partner at Auxxo Female Catalyst Fund , a venture capital firm co-investing in startups with at least one female founder in Europe. People and organisations mentioned in the episode: Judith Dada, general partner at La Famiglia VC Anu Duggal, founding partner at Female Founders Fund Gloria Baeuerlein, angel investor and VC Julia Dous, founder and CEO at Grow Diverse More about Dr. Gesa Miczaika: Gesa is the Deputy President of the German Startups Association and a member of the "Young Digital Economy" Advisory Board to the Minister of Economic Affairs and Energy in Germany. An experienced business angel, Gesa co-founded Evangelistas, a network of female business angels with more than 190 members in Germany. Gesa is based in Berlin, Germany. About Darya Kamkalova (host): Darya is a data industry professional, a startup mentor, a co-founder of Manifest Taproom (a craft beer bar in Berlin), and a speaker. She is based in Berlin, Germany. Venturing Women website: https://www.venturingwomen.org/ Follow us: Instagram - LinkedIn…

Venturing Women

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#16: Profit vs Mission: Can you truly pursue both? - Adriana Luna-Diaz 29:03

3 years ago29:03

29:03

‘I am on a mission to make organic food mainstream, accessible to everyone regardless of their income level.’ While doing so, Adriana Luna-Diaz is building a profitable bootstrapped business based on the principles of holacracy (decentralised management model). Adriana is co-founder and director of Tierra de Monte, a Mexico-based AgriTech company. Forbes Magazine named Adriana among the 100 most powerful women in Mexico in 2021. Tierra de Monte creates products that improve soil fertility, protect crops and foster biodiversity. With a team of 9 and a large network of partners, the company has been operating in Mexico, Guatemala, Peru and Ecuador since 2015. Some of the topics we explore: How bootstrapping forces founders to be creative and efficient Why there are no teams at Tierra de Monte, only ‘cells’ Why every employee should serve customers (even an accountant!) How agriculture can be a source of well-being instead of causing poverty and violence About Adriana Luna-Diaz: Adriana is co-founder and director of Tierra de Monte , a company that strives to regenerate soil and boost its fertility. Adriana is a laureate of the Cartier Women’s Initiative 2020. Forbes Magazine named her among the 100 most powerful women in Mexico in 2021. HER GLOBAL IMPACT Magazine selected Adriana as one of the Global Catalysts. She is a biologist by profession and holds a Master's degree in socio-environmental business administration. Adriana is based in Mexico. About Darya Kamkalova: Darya is podcaster, a data industry professional, a startup mentor, a co-founder of Manifest Taproom (a craft beer bar in Berlin), and a speaker. Her experience in the data industry spans 10 years, five continents and such domains as data monetisation & acquisition, data product development, strategic partnerships as well as data marketplace business operations. Darya has been driving or supporting various projects empowering women since 2013. She is based in Berlin, Germany. Venturing Women website: https://www.venturingwomen.org/ Follow us on social media: Instagram - LinkedIn…

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#15: The music industry, selling the company to SoundCloud, and the unflashy side of the CEO role - Hazel Savage 33:24

3 years ago33:24

33:24

The way we listen to and create music has been undergoing a massive change with the rise of technology. To discuss this change and what it feels like to build and sell a business, I invited Hazel Savage. A music industry veteran, she co-founded Musiio, a music technology company, in 2018 in Singapore. In spring 2022, Hazel and her co-founder Aron Pettersson sold Musiio to SoundCloud. Prior to that, Hazel was an early Shazam employee and worked at major music companies like Pandora and HMV (British music retailer). With 15 years experience in the music industry, Hazel is a true music-tech lifer. Some of the topics we explore: Do we need machines to write music? Creative vs. descriptive artificial intelligence. What will be the next big innovation in the music industry? How will the creator economy evolve? Calculating risks before leaping into entrepreneurship. Building a company with Entrepreneur First , talent incubator. Secret ingredient for raising venture capital pre-seed and pre-revenue. Is it really that cool to be a CEO? And how does it feel to build a business and then sell it? About Hazel Savage: With 15 years experience in the music industry, Hazel is a music-tech lifer, guitarist and Co-Founder and CEO at Musiio . She started her music-tech journey as an early employee at Shazam and spent time understanding the pain points of the industry at Pandora, Universal and H-M-V. In 2018, she co-founded music technology company Musiio. It was acquired by SoundCloud in 2022 to bolster the music platform’s discovery capabilities. Hazel moved across to take a leadership role as Vice President of Music Intelligence at SoundCloud. Hazel is based in the UK. About Darya Kamkalova: Darya wears many hats: she is podcaster, a data industry professional, a startup mentor, a co-founder of Manifest Taproom (a craft beer bar in Berlin), and a speaker. Her experience in the data industry spans 10 years, five continents and such domains as data monetisation & acquisition, data product development, strategic partnerships as well as data marketplace business operations. Darya has been driving or supporting various projects empowering women since 2013. She is based in Berlin, Germany.…

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#14: Dresses for real women, fast and slow fashion, Turkish bazaars - Ani Bagdasaryan 31:10

3 years ago31:10

31:10

‘Retail is dead’ proclaimed many media during the pandemic. We were all locked up in our homes and in terms of clothing, mostly needed sweatpants and pajamas. Yet, Ani Bagdasaryan opened a brick-and-mortar store in Berlin in 2021 to build up on the online success of her fashion brand. Some of the topics we explore: Career pivot: from a marketeer to a fashion brand owner. A mixture of analysis, passion, and values. Fashion design process: getting inspired by real women and their needs. Adventurous search for manufacturing facilities in Armenia and for fabrics in Turkey. The rise of fast fashion and its negative impact on the environment as well as people wearing such clothes. Three aspects of sustainable fashion. About Ani Bagdasaryan: Ani Bagdasaryan is the founder of AYANI , a fair and sustainable fashion brand based in Berlin. Observing the largely underserved women’s work wear market, she decided to launch a female fashion brand. AYANI solves the everyday question of "what to wear" to the office and beyond. Here style, comfort and elegance come together. Ani produces all collections in Armenia, the home country of her parents, with the goal of creating jobs for local women. About Darya Kamkalova: Darya wears many hats: she is a podcaster, a data industry professional, a startup mentor, a co-founder of Manifest Taproom (a craft beer bar in Berlin), and a speaker. Her experience in the data industry spans 10 years, five continents and such domains as data monetisation & acquisition, data product development, strategic partnerships as well as data marketplace business operations. Darya has been driving or supporting various projects empowering women since 2013. She is based in Berlin, Germany. Venturing Women website: https://www.venturingwomen.org/ Follow us on social media: Instagram - LinkedIn…

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Bonus episode - 1000 downloads 3:18

3 years ago3:18

3:18

We are celebrating a great milestone - the first 1000 downloads in 51 countries. Talk to us! Let us know what do you like the most about Venturing Women. What are your favourite episodes? Why are you following our podcast? What would you like to hear in the future? I’m dying to learn more about you. Drop us a line on Instagram or on LinkedIn or reach out to me personally . In this episodes, you can hear voices of my team, too. Leave a review on Spotify or Apple Podcasts or rate this show to help other listeners discover it. Thank you!…

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#13: Investing in African women, detrimental copy-and-paste approach, curl classification - Lelemba Phiri 32:50

3 years ago32:50

32:50

What is Africa’s biggest treasure? Many believe it's the continent's natural resources. But what if it's Africans themselves? Specifically, African women. The backbone of the African economy, African women are the most entrepreneurial in the world. It’s statistically proven. In this episode, I am speaking with Lelemba Phiri, gender-lens angel investor and operating partner for Enygma Ventures Fund, based in Cape Town, South Africa. Lelemba shares her unconventional path to the venture capital world as well as her thoughts on possibilities to unleash the potential of African women. Some of the topics we explore: From being a cog in the corporate world to building a venture fund and making an impact. The quickest route to as many no’s as possible; overcoming the ‘you have no track record’ barrier. Copy-and-paste approach that blocks access to finance for African women. African women as the backbone of the African economy and a source of untapped potential. Investment vs. aid. About Lelemba Phiri: Lelemba Phiri is an award winning educator, writer, keynote speaker and gender-lens angel investor. She is the Principal at the Africa Trust Group that takes a holistic approach to investing in women by investing in both the woman entrepreneur and the enterprise. Lelemba is also the Operating Partner for the US-based Enygma Ventures Fund that is focused on investing in women entrepreneurs. Moreover, she is also a shareholder and the current board chair for Zoona Zambia , an African mobile payments business and a shareholder at Africa Trust Academy, a coaching and consulting company focused on leadership and entrepreneurship development and financial literacy. Lelemba is based in Cape Town, South Africa. About Darya Kamkalova: Darya wears many hats: she is podcaster, a data industry professional, a startup mentor, a co-founder of Manifest Taproom (a craft beer bar in Berlin), and a speaker. Her experience in the data industry spans 10 years, five continents and such domains as data monetisation & acquisition, data product development, strategic partnerships as well as data marketplace business operations. Darya has been driving or supporting various projects empowering women since 2013. She is based in Berlin, Germany. Venturing Women website: https://www.venturingwomen.org/ Follow us on social media: Instagram - LinkedIn - Facebook - Telegram…

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#12: Equity, portfolio careers, quotas for VCs - Naïma Camara 28:55

3 years ago28:55

28:55

Equity and company shares are usually far off the radar of the general public. Equity seems to be a term from the glamorous world of the startup founders and investment managers in ties and Bentley cars. Yet, things are changing. I sat down with Naïma Camara, CEO & Founder of Ownership, to discuss the evolving role of equity. Dynamic equity not only allows founders to attract talent even when capital is scarce. It can also help employees and contributors to build a portfolio of assets. Moreover, dynamic equity may also bring remarkable and much needed change to the whole entrepreneurial landscape. How? Keep on listening. Some of the topics we explore: How you, I and anyone else can earn shares in a startup. Portfolio careers. Part-time startup founders: science fiction or reality? Equity: much more than just an incentive for employees, much more than just access to talent for underrepresented founders. Hiring teams in early stages of company building. Quotas as a tool to drive more capital to fund BIPOC founders. About Naïma Camara: Naïma is the CEO & Founder of Ownership. Ownership is an app to allow founders to pay for talent using equity. Naïma has a master’s degree in US History & Politics from University College London. She believes her grounding in history and knowledge of the systems of power that govern society allows her to thrive within teams working towards a social good to deploy tech that can achieve realistic positive change. Naïma is based in London. About Darya Kamkalova: Darya wears many hats: she is podcaster, a data industry professional, a startup mentor, a co-founder of Manifest Taproom (a craft beer bar in Berlin), and a speaker. Her experience in the data industry spans 10 years, five continents and such domains as data monetisation & acquisition, data product development, strategic partnerships as well as data marketplace business operations. Darya has been driving or supporting various projects empowering women since 2013. She is based in Berlin.…

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#11: AI tackling sexual harassment in the workplace - Eleanor Manley 29:51

3 years ago29:51

29:51

Despite the advancements of the #MeToo movement, we are still far away from eradicating sexual harassment. Dependent on the type of incident recorded, half of women in the EU have experienced at least one form of sexual harassment. In the US, about 80% of women and 40% of men have faced it in their lifetime. Only around 10% of incidents get reported which indicates, targets do not feel safe to do so. In this episode, I’m talking to Eleanor Manley, co-founder of Metta Space, a B2B tech solution for workplace misconduct reporting and resolution. Some of the topics that we cover: Why do we need technology in general and artificial intelligence specifically to tackle sexual harassment? How does Metta Space collect data for their Natural Language Processing algorithms and addresse possible bias in the data? Spoiler: it involves Reddit! Which is more likely: being falsely accused of murder or sexual harassment? Different views of individuals on what constitutes sexual harassment. Negative impact of sexual harassment on businesses. Investors’ reaction to a product linked to such a sensitive issue. About Eleanor Manley: Eleanor is the co-founder of Metta Space , a B2B tech solution for workplace misconduct reporting and resolution focused on gender equality and inclusion. Passionate about data science, Eleanor firmly believes that machine learning applications can have broader, positive repercussions on gender equality. About Darya Kamkalova: Darya wears many hats: she is podcaster, a data industry professional, a startup mentor, a co-founder of Manifest Taproom (a craft beer bar in Berlin), and a speaker. Darya's experience in the data industry spans 10 years, five continents and such domains as data monetisation & acquisition, data product development, strategic partnerships as well as data marketplace business operations. She has been driving or supporting various projects empowering women since 2013. She is based in Berlin. Venturing Women website: https://www.venturingwomen.org/ Follow us on social media: Instagram - LinkedIn - Facebook - Telegram…

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#10: Remote work, employees’ happiness and forsaking a venture round - Sarah Hawley 31:43

3 years ago31:43

31:43

The pandemic seemed to have made remote work a common place. It even felt like the world would never be the same again. Yet, some companies including tech giants like Google announced returning their workforce back to offices. Others introduce a hybrid mode that requires presence in the office a few days a week. Remote work, inevitable for many in times of crisis, turned out to be hard to embrace when this crisis dissipated. Why? And how can we truly reap its benefits? I discuss this topic with Sarah Hawley, CEO and Founder of Growmotely, a platform connecting companies with remote-first professionals. Sarah shares her story of turning her company remote in 2014 when most of the world would find this a bizarre idea. For her, it was a courageous step to freedom, to being the creator of her own destiny. Topics we explore: Fears that leaders have around remote work and how we can overcome them and start building a high-performing distributed team. How employees’ happiness translates into business results. How remote work can help humanity to break all sorts of barriers and fight unconscious bias. How raising venture capital can be a terrible energy drain for a founder that yields no financial results but leads to experimentation and exploration of alternative funding mechanisms. About Sarah Hawley: Sarah Hawley is the CEO and Founder of Growmotely , the world's first end-to-end platform that facilitates conscious companies in hiring equally-conscious remote professionals - of all nationalities - into long-term remote jobs. Driven by her passion for the freedom that remote work provides professionals and companies alike, she is trailblazing the space - as a thought leader and creator - where remote work, conscious leadership, and personal and professional growth intersect. Before Growmotely, she started and successfully sold multiple companies for seven-figure sums. Sarah is mother to 1-year-old Luka, and author of the book ' Conscious Leadership: a Journey from Ego to Heart '. Sarah is based in Austin (Texas), USA. About Darya Kamkalova: Darya wears many hats: she is podcaster, a data industry professional, a startup mentor, a co-founder of Manifest Taproom (a craft beer bar in Berlin), and a speaker. Her experience in the data industry spans 10 years, five continents and such domains as data monetisation & acquisition, data product development, strategic partnerships as well as data marketplace business operations. Darya has been driving or supporting various projects empowering women since 2013. She is based in Berlin. Venturing Women website: https://www.venturingwomen.org/ Follow us on social media: Instagram - LinkedIn - Facebook - Telegram Please rate our podcast or leave us a review in your podcast app!…

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#9: Fighting misinformation and quitting jobs in the pandemic to build a company - Jenny Romano 31:26

3 years ago31:26

31:26

Our decision making heavily depends on the information we consume. Should I get vaccinated or not? Is climate change real or a hoax? Is quinoa as healthy as advertised (seriously, is it)? With time, our worldview crystallises and it seems nearly impossible to break free from our personal echo chambers that often offer so much comfort. Jenny Romano, co-founder and CEO of The Newsrooms, elaborates how AI can help to fight misinformation, promote plurality and bring people of polar opinions to a common ground. Jenny is on a mission to build a community of news readers that do not insult each other. That's an ambitious goal! Topics we discuss: How can we assess the trustworthiness of information we consume? Can AI and technology in general be neutral? Leaving well-paid jobs at Google and LinkedIn amidst the pandemic to found a company. A mindset shift to ‘I don't know how to do this, and I am okay with it.’ About Jenny Romano: Jenny is co-founder and CEO of The Newsroom , a startup on a mission to fight misinformation and promote plurality online. She and her co-founder Pedro Pamplona Henriques spent years discussing journalism and misinformation. In December 2020 - with the pandemic in full sway - they decided that it was time to act. That's when The Newsroom was born to revolutionise news reading through bite-sized news, historical context and diversity of thought. Jenny is based in Lisbon. About Darya Kamkalova: Darya wears many hats: she is podcaster, a data industry professional, a startup mentor, a co-founder of Manifest Taproom (a craft beer bar in Berlin), and a speaker. Her experience in the data industry spans 10 years, five continents and such domains as data monetisation & acquisition, data product development, strategic partnerships as well as data marketplace business operations. Darya has been driving or supporting various projects empowering women since 2013. She is based in Berlin. Venturing Women website: https://www.venturingwomen.org/ Follow us on social media: Instagram - LinkedIn - Facebook - Telegram…

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#8: Steaks derived from wood, competition with the petrochemical industry, CEO turned CTO - Florence Gschwend 27:53

3 years ago27:53

27:53

Can we go cold turkey and move away from the crude oil dependence? Will we one day start making food from non-food grade sources like cellulose? How about pasta with a wood-derived Bolognese sauce? Yucky or yummy? Together with Florence Gschwend, co-founder and CTO of Lixea, I’m looking into how biochemistry may help solve the problems of food scarcity and accelerate transition of our civilisation to zero waste. Topics we explore: Why is it so hard to develop new sustainable technologies competing with the petrochemical industry? What makes it difficult to move away from oil dependence? How can we capture value locked in waste wood and agricultural residues like rice straw instead of simply burning them? Is switching roles from a CTO to CEO a demotion? Why did Florence do that? Public funding plays a significant role in financing innovative technologies whilst venture capital often shies away from them. Why is this the case? And how can the governments make high-risk investments into brand new technologies more attractive for the VC firms? About Florence Gschwend: Florence Gschwend is co-founder and CTO of Lixea . During her PhD at the Chemical Engineering Department at Imperial College London , she co-invented a process which uses an environmentally friendly solvent to treat waste woody biomass. This process separates different components in wood and agricultural residues. These components, in turn, can then be used to produce new chemicals and materials, shifting our reliance away from petroleum. Florence is based in London. About Darya Kamkalova: Darya wears many hats: she is podcaster, a data industry professional, a co-founder of Manifest Taproom (a craft beer bar in Berlin), startup evaluator and mentor, an investor, and a speaker. Her experience in the data industry spans 10 years, five continents and such domains as data monetisation & acquisition, data product development, strategic partnerships as well as data marketplace business operations. Darya has been driving or supporting various projects empowering women since 2013. She is based in Berlin. Venturing Women website: https://www.venturingwomen.org/ Follow us on social media: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/venturingwomen/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/venturingwomen/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/venturingwomen Telegram: https://t.me/venturingwomen…

Venturing Women

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#7: Wastewater, climate change and funding the unfundable - Orianna Bretschger 29:43

3 years ago29:43