An Interview With Monica Sanders
Be flexible and willing to adapt your vision for change. It’s important to have clearly defined objectives and to make sure everyone is on the same page; but if you get too granular, you restrict yourself from exploring new opportunities.
According to the University of Colorado, “Those who are most affected and have the fewest resources to adapt to climate change are also the least responsible for the greenhouse gas emissions — both globally and within the United States.” Promoting climate justice is an incredibly important environmental responsibility that is slowly becoming more and more recognized. In this interview series, we are talking to leaders who are helping to promote sustainability and climate justice. As part of this series, we had the pleasure of interviewing Lisa Hawkes.
Lisa Hawkes is Global Sustainability Senior Manager at Unilever. In 2015, she helped create TRANSFORM — an impact accelerator led by Unilever, the UK’s Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, and EY, that supports visionary enterprises across Africa, Asia and beyond. She now leads TRANSFORM’s work in the areas of livelihoods and health, as well as partnering with local teams on TRANSFORM’s work in Africa. Lisa has worked for Unilever for over a decade in various sustainability roles across research and development, supply chain and within the Global Sustainability Function.
Thank you so much for doing this with us! Before we dig in, our readers would like to get to know you a bit. Can you tell us a bit about how you grew up?
I grew up in the UK with my parents and brother. I had what some might call a ‘normal’ upbringing, and it wasn’t until I started travelling that I began to really grasp how fortunate I was. It became clear that my childhood, with easy access to healthcare, education, and life’s basic necessities, was not necessarily the norm. And this sparked a fire in me to do something about it.
From a young age, I’d also been interested in chemistry. What drew me to the field was the way you can learn from action — the ability to try new things and if it fails, hypothesizing why, and then trying again with a new approach. This inspired me to eventually train as a chemist.
Although I have since hung up my lab coat as a chemist, I continue to take both passions — a drive to help people and my experimental mindset — into all that I do today.
Everyone has a cataclysmic moment or marker in their life which propels them to take certain actions, a “why”. What is your why?
I joined Unilever on a graduate management scheme and worked in an experimental team looking at new business models. My first job was to see if the adoption of clean cooking stoves in Kenya could be improved by associating the stoves with one of Unilever’s well-known local nutrition brands, and distributed though the company’s channels. We hoped that in doing so, the stoves could utilise the brand’s credibility and gain trust among consumers.
While bumping down dusty roads in Nairobi, distributing the first vanload of stoves and sitting with women who used the stoves and loved them, I fell in love with this way of working — using the resources of a big company like Unilever to solve global challenges and help people. I’ve worked with social entrepreneurs — individuals on-the-ground that use innovative solutions to help people and planet — ever since.
You are currently leading an organization that is making a difference for our planet. Can you tell us a bit about what you and your organization are trying to change?
I created TRANSFORM, an impact accelerator led by Unilever, the UK’s Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, and EY. We provide a combination of grant funding and technical assistance from people at Unilever and EY, to innovative impact enterprises in Africa, Asia and beyond. Since 2015, we’ve supported more than 100 entrepreneurs and researchers in 17 countries and helped them to positively impact the lives of more than 15 million people.
TRANSFORM supports impactful SMEs to generate and scale innovative solutions. This can be anything from creating refill and recycling models to aid the transition to a waste-free world, to testing new approaches for regenerative agriculture, to growing businesses that provide healthcare advice to consumers or livelihoods to shopkeepers and young people.
Embracing the chemist mentality, the TRANSFORM model is intentionally flexible and experimental. We give enterprises the space to take calculated risks and improve their businesses, without strict objectives that could potentially set them up for failure. I think this is what makes TRANSFORM really stand out.
Video to be embedded, if possible: https://vimeo.com/857813440/6cf21dea97
Can you share the most interesting story that happened to you since you began leading your company or organization?
All of the enterprises in TRANSFORM’s network do such brilliant work. The best part of my job is visiting these enterprises and seeing the positive impact they have on people’s lives.
One memory that stands out for me is when I worked with Saraplast in 2018. Saraplast converts old buses into beautiful, static public toilets in India. These buses — painted pink from top to bottom, are connected to existing sewer and water lines, and powered by solar energy. They have given women and girls a safe and hygienic place to use the toilet when out and about.
The buses are situated in various locations, like in parks or near bus stops. It was wonderful to see the spectrum of people who benefitted from them; people ranging from school children changing out of uniforms to play in the park, to policewomen who otherwise struggled to find toilets while on duty. It really reinforced to me that toilets are not only a human right, but essential for mobility. The lack of spaces for women to breastfeed their children, aid with menstrual cycles, use the toilet and freshen up — showed me just how essential these spaces are to the participation of women in society.
None of us can be successful without some help along the way. Did you have mentors or cheerleaders who helped you to succeed? Can you tell us a story about their influence?
Firstly, no big collaboration is ever developed by one person alone, so it’s important I mention the others at Unilever that I created TRANSFORM with, specifically Richard Wright and Clive Allison, and the rest of the fantastic team at Unilever that I work with on it.
Secondly, a significant reason for TRANSFORM’s success is because of our fantastic networks in-country. We recognize that it’s the local people that have the knowledge and insights on what works best within their region.
Last year, a real highlight for me was the opportunity to work more closely with my Unilever peers in East Africa, where we sourced new impact enterprises alongside local EY and FCDO teams. We received over 1,500 applications and I’m confident we wouldn’t have found even a fraction of these enterprises without their help. In particular, I would like to give a shout out to my colleagues at Unilever in East Africa, Brian Amani and Joseph Sunday!
Thank you for that. Let’s now move to the central part of our discussion. Let’s start with a basic definition of terms so that everyone is on the same page. What does climate justice mean to you? How do we operationalize it?
Climate justice is understanding that climate change will impact all of us, but that some of us will be impacted more than others.
Two experiences bring this home to me. The first is that for years I’ve been visiting low-income communities in Africa and Asia. The people I meet there often talk about climate change, especially those with farming interests or with family in the villages. Weather is everyone’s business, and this brings it to the forefront of people’s minds.
Secondly, I have a three-year-old daughter. Despite her best efforts, she’s not yet making decisions about her life or future and so has done nothing to create the situation she will inherit as she grows up. Future generations and the people I’ve met in low-income urban communities in Mumbai or Nairobi are the people that I think of when asked about climate justice.
Science is telling us that we have 7–10 years to make critical decisions about climate change. What are three things you or your organization are doing to help?
- Developing circular systems for resource efficiency: Some of my favorite TRANSFORM projects are experimenting with reducing packaging through refill models. TRANSFORM works with entrepreneurs across Africa and Asia on this topic. One fantastic example is Alner in Indonesia, who are trialing a new refill scheme with Unilever’s Sunlight, Wipol and Rinso brands. They aim to reach 25,000 low-income customers and to cut 100,000 tons of packaging waste by the end of 2024, while proving a replicable model for reuse in general trade. Having a partner like Unilever involved in the pilot means that it has the potential to scale quickly.
- Creating essential services — like water and sanitation — that are resilient to climate change: Extreme weather events disrupt and destroy infrastructure, exacerbating already precarious situations. However, some systems are more resilient than others to these events. We’ve worked with Loowatt, creator of an innovative, waterless and circular economy toilet system that flushes waste into removable containers for communities without access to sewers, in both Madagascar and South Africa. Waste is collected and processed into biogas and fertilizer. This innovation is not only serving low-income customers today, but can also be used through droughts where water is scarce and will not contaminate the environment should there be a flood.
- Testing approaches for regenerative agriculture and protecting nature: TRANSFORM is fortunate to be able to use Unilever’s value chain as a test bed for innovations. For instance, we’re working with Unilever’s shea butter provider Savannah Fruits to centralize the processing of shea nuts in co-operatives (rather than having the crop processed at home) so as to reduce overall water use, carbon emissions and deforestation from wood as fuel.
Are there three things the community, society, or politicians can do to help you in your mission?
- I believe that no single individual or organization has the power to solve the world’s challenges alone, so collaboration is at the core of what we do at TRANSFORM. It is an opportunity to leverage one another’s strengths to amplify the work of impact enterprises. One way to help is to join us — we are always open to partnering with other businesses.
- Another way to help is simply to consider what issues you are passionate about and seek allies. Having a shared goal or objective can be a very powerful thing. Think about some of the issues that you care about and find those who share those passions, then work together to find solutions. I would encourage others to replicate TRANSFORM’s model.
- Finally, as a society we should do our best to lift up the businesses who are doing good work in this space; those who are putting people and planet at the heart of all they do. There are thousands of fantastic impact, purpose-driven entrepreneurs out there — seek ways to buy from them, partner with them, and raise their profile.
How would you articulate how a business can become more profitable by being more sustainable and more environmentally conscious? Can you share a story or example?
Hasiru Dala Innovations is a circular economy business in India helping to create a waste-free world and transition informal waste workers to green professionals and entrepreneurs. TRANSFORM supported Hasiru Dala Innovations to increase the capacity of its material recovery facilities, including new equipment such as forklifts and training for staff. As a result, the organization increased its capacity by 10 times and secured Guaranteed Fair Trade status from the World Fair Trade Organization (India’s only multi-stream waste management company to do so). During the project, Hasiru Dala Innovations’ team worked with the Unilever team to see if their plastics met the technical specifications for Unilever to use. They did, and as a result their recycled plastic is now used in SunSilk Naturals bottles in India.
Alongside the more obvious environmental value of collecting waste, and the business value of having Fair Trade recycled plastics to sell, there is also strong social value in Hasiru Dala Innovations’ work. Their focus is on creating better lives for informal waste workers through stable jobs and fair wages. They also ensure all their children finish high school. Initiatives like this break the cross-generational pattern and give real opportunities in life.
Hasiru Dala Innovations is a great example that pursuing sustainability does not have to come at the cost of profits. In fact, they can go hand-in-hand.
What are your “5 things I wish someone told me when I first started promoting sustainability and climate justice” and why?
1. Invest in personal relationships — people make things happen. Large multilateral, multi-year partnerships are exciting, but they need to start on a foundation of small organically built partnerships.
2. Be clear about your objectives when pursuing a project to promote sustainability and climate justice. And when working with others, make sure you’ve defined your shared goals and commit to a longer timeframe than you would for traditional business projects.
3. Be flexible and willing to adapt your vision for change. It’s important to have clearly defined objectives and to make sure everyone is on the same page; but if you get too granular, you restrict yourself from exploring new opportunities.
4. Don’t be afraid to start from where you are now — small steps can lead to big results.
5. Don’t lose sight of your ‘why’. For me, my ‘why’ is people. Reflecting on the positive impact that the projects I work on can bring to people, helps to both motivate me and inform my decision-making.
Is there a person in the world, or in the US with whom you would like to have a private breakfast or lunch with, and why? He or she might just see this, especially if we tag them. 🙂
I would have to say the brilliant Jacqueline Novograts, who founded Acumen, a non-profit that helps enterprises in their efforts to tackle global poverty. She has also released a book called ‘The Blue Sweater’, discussing the fact that when you throw things away, there isn’t really an “away”, and we are all connected as a global society.
As Jacqueline and Acumen have similar goals to TRANSFORM, it would be a great opportunity for us to share our knowledge on sustainability and work together to achieve effective ways to promote positive global impact in business.
How can our readers continue to follow your work online?
Readers can either connect with me on LinkedIn or follow TRANSFORM for latest news and updates!
This was very meaningful, thank you so much. We wish you only continued success on your great work!
About the Interviewer: Monica Sanders JD, LL.M, is the founder of “The Undivide Project”, an organization dedicated to creating climate resilience in underserved communities using good tech and the power of the Internet. She holds faculty roles at the Georgetown University Law Center and the Tulane University Disaster Resilience Leadership Academy. Professor Sanders also serves on several UN agency working groups. As an attorney, Monica has held senior roles in all three branches of government, private industry, and nonprofits. In her previous life, she was a journalist for seven years and the recipient of several awards, including an Emmy. Now the New Orleans native spends her time in solidarity with and championing change for those on the frontlines of climate change and digital divestment. Learn more about how to join her at: www.theundivideproject.org
How Lisa Hawkes Of TRANSFORM Is Helping to Promote Sustainability and Climate Justice was originally published in Authority Magazine on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.