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Business is an unlikely hero: a force for good working to solve society's most pressing challenges, while boosting bottom line. This is social purpose at work. And it's a dynamic journey. Purpose 360 is a masterclass in unlocking the power of social purpose to ignite business and social impact. Host Carol Cone brings decades of social impact expertise and a 360-degree view of integrating social purpose into an organization into unfiltered conversations that illuminate today's big challenges and bigger ideas.
Carol Cone:
I'm Carol Cone and welcome to Purpose 360, the podcast that unlocks the power of purpose to ignite business and social impact.
As we begin the new year, climate challenges around the globe are immense, almost seemingly too large to address. Yet there is hope as young social impact activists and climate leaders are taking on these challenges in very individual ways. Our next two shows showcase four incredible One Young World ambassadors who recently attended COP 28. They will share their personal commitments to advancing climate solutions through their foundations and their organizations. You will hear about their life journeys and their confident, dynamic voices that they bring to their overall work, as well as you'll hear about their unique experiences and point of view of COP 28. They'll share perhaps for the first time in 28 COP gatherings that youth voices and ideas are beginning to be taken seriously as part of the solution, not just voices in protest to climate devastation.
But before we dive into their experiences in Dubai, let's explore the transformative journey of being a One Young World ambassador. One Young World is a global community of over 17,000 of the brightest young talents from every country and sector working collaboratively to accelerate social impact. As ambassadors, they're part of a unique network that spans every industry and includes activists, humanitarians, world and business leaders, thought leaders, entrepreneurs, politicians, and innovators. What unites them all is a shared desire to make the world better through ethical, empathetic leadership. They believe that every challenge has a solution, and with bold and courageous action, they're actively working to make their shared vision a reality.
These are four deeply committed and powerful young women in our next two episodes. Their journeys are illuminating and inspiring to the climate work of young and old. Our collective future critically depends on them. So let's get started. These will be some of our best podcasts of the year. Trust me.
Joining me is an Enkhuun Byambadorj and she is co-founder and director of operations at Breathe Mongolia. And then, also joining us is Anna Staley-Radiere, and she's director of climate transparency at the World Business Council for Sustainable Development, or as those of us who know the organization, WBCSD. So welcome to Purpose 360. So where we'd like to begin is ask both Enkhuun and Anna, a brief introduction of your background because your backgrounds are extraordinary. So we'll start with you Enkhuun.
Enkhuun Byambadorj:
Thank you so much for having me. So my name is Enkhuun. I'm from Mongolia, but I grew up in the States and Mongolia. And, as you mentioned, I lead an organization called Breathe Mongolia Cleaner Coalition. It's a nonprofit based in Mongolia, but also registered in the United States. And our main objective is to empower communities, people, and organizations to have the resources to eradicate air pollution in Mongolia. And air pollution in Mongolia is a very complex society-wide issue. It's been found that air pollution levels, especially in the winter, exceed WHO safe levels by 27 to 35 times. And, in my home city, 1 in 10 deaths are attributable to air pollution. So it's a really, really huge issue. And, how we're trying to tackle it is a really community rooted framework to transform the systems, the sectors, and the policies, and the actors that are needed to bring about clean air.
And what we do really in the day-to-day falls into three rounds of operations. The first is, we raise awareness and we educate the public, so that they have the resources about the science and the policies to first protect themselves now and over their life course so we can prevent disease, but also so they can be at the forefront of policy change and accountability seeking. The second realm of operations is we build coalitions, cross sectoral and multilevel coalitions of organizations and actors who work together. And then, the third thing that we do is we tackle air pollution as a really cross-cutting issue with synergies with climate change, driving [inaudible 00:03:36] condition, strengthening the health system, et cetera.
Carol Cone:
Great. That's amazing. And how long have you been doing this?
Enkhuun Byambadorj:
So I've been doing this for about five years now. But our organization has been established officially for about four years now.
Carol Cone:
Terrific. Okay, great. Thank you. Anna, please give a little introduction to your background.
Anna Stanley-Radi�re:
Thank you so much for having me, Carol. And it's great to also get to know Enkhuun a little bit better. It sounds incredible what you're doing on the ground in Mongolia, and I'm really looking forward to hearing more about that. I'm Anna. I'm based in Paris. I'm British by background. And, I have a bit of a wild history. I used to be an intellectual property lawyer. I used to be a consultant. But I found my way into sustainability a couple of years ago, really starting in the ocean space and then making my way into climate. I now co-lead the climate work at the World Business Council for Sustainable Development, which is really all about... And that's also the red thread in my history. It's really all about how you can create systems change through collaboration. So I love to bring people together. I love to be strategic about how we can tackle some cutting edge topics and how we can really accelerate what business is doing to advance around climate.
Carol Cone:
Super. That's great. I would love to know from both of you, what was that spark that got you really passionate about social impact? So, Enkhuun?
Enkhuun Byambadorj:
Yeah. So, I think the first time that I got really... Or, I saw someone really passionate about social impact was, I was really lucky to meet a great social activist and advocate and I was in the 11th grade. Her name is [inaudible 00:05:32], and she's also one of the co-founders of my organization. And so, that was the first time that I saw really passion in someone. But, the point where social impact became, not an option, but a necessity was when a very close family member was affected by air pollution, and the confusion, and frustration, and disappointment, and anger that follows, and that ignited me researching and learning more and trying to... Because otherwise, you're just hopeless. And so, trying to channel that negative experience into positivity was something that really sparked something about social impact.
Anna Stanley-Radi�re:
So, from an early age, sustainability has been part of my life. But it was really quite late on actually when I was already in my early-30s when I was already working as a consultant, I traveled to Bali and I remember going to the beach and on the way I saw people tipping rubbish into the river that led down to the ocean. And when I got to the beach, the beach was covered in plastic rubbish.
So that was really my in into this topic was around that plastic pollution and seeing what it actually does and what it does to the oceans. And, when you start digging into the topic much as Enkhuun said, once you start digging into the topic, you discover more and more things that interest you. And when you start doing more on sustainability and getting interested in working on it, it doesn't stop there. It goes to food, and how you consume, and how you live, and how you work. And so, it's almost a snowball. And, coming together at that time was more or less the same time actually that I was introduced to the One Young World community. Together with different people from McKinsey, we went to the One Young World summit in London. And just to see that you're not alone on that journey, there are others who really have that same sense of, "I can make a difference. I can make a change." Was incredibly motivating and really made me get even more into this space.
Carol Cone:
That's terrific. And that's a great segue, Anna, into a little bit about One Young World. I'm curious about both of you, how long you have been involved with it as an ambassador, is it an formal, informal role? So just share with me your experiences with One Young World. It's an amazing organization.
Anna Stanley-Radi�re:
Being an ambassador basically just means that you've gone through the One Young World, not just, but it means that you've gone to one of the One Young World summits, and you've experienced what it means to come together with other change makers who really want to make a difference and you're really driven to take that change into the world and have that impact yourself.
Carol Cone:
Okay.
Anna Stanley-Radi�re:
They really create a sense of community, but it's very action focused, and I've really appreciated that ability to draw the strength out of that community of people who want to make a change.
Carol Cone:
That's great, to draw the strength out of the community. So, Enkhuun, how about your engagement with One Young World?
Enkhuun Byambadorj:
My One Young World engagement started in 2022. So, last year I attended the summit in Manchester. And, becoming a part of the community was literally a turning point for both me and my organization, because One Young World hosts this challenge called Lead 2030 Challenge. And it's basically a competition for change makers supported by different companies. And, the one that I competed for was for SDG3 Health and Wellbeing supported by AstraZeneca. And, we won that challenge. And, at the time, it was the largest grant that we had ever received. And it enabled us to implement the first really on the ground projects, the largest project we had ever implemented. And then, attending the summit and meeting all the inspiring people, I think, allowed me to dream bigger of what I could do, and what my organization could do, and the potential that there was for both connection to work together for collaboration.
Over the past year that I've been an ambassador, I've continually gotten incredible support in terms of connecting me to opportunities, connecting me to people who are attending the same events like COP, and then even nominating me for other things that I might be eligible for. And so, it's a really big network. But at the same time, everyone's experience is so personalized and there's so much connection and connectivity that happens.
Anna Stanley-Radi�re:
I think both me and Enkhuun have a very different background and also very different work that we do. And, one of the things that One Young World is incredibly good at is connecting across the different types of impact that people are having. So, I was able to support actually on the social side somebody from India with mentorship based on all the business background I have. So, making those connections an understanding how all of us are different and how the sum of all the parts makes up something really special, I think that's where One Young World is really, really good at.
Carol Cone:
And how do they do that? Because I think there's a learning here for other organizations. I work with so many other organizations. Sustainable Brands comes to mind or Net Impact as others. But what's their secret sauce, if you don't mind sharing?
Anna Stanley-Radi�re:
I think get them early. I think, when young leaders are coming through the developing phases of their careers, I think that's the real good point to come in and really connect them to those who have a little bit more experience in certain things. But then also valuing that diversity. And, all of us are so different. I mean, if you look at the ambassadors, you're not going to find identical profiles. Every time I meet an ambassador, we'll have a lot in common because we care about having an impact, but that's where it ends usually, which is really good, because it means that there's that diversity in thought and the diversity in perspective.
Enkhuun Byambadorj:
Yeah, I completely agree with Anna. I think it's that embrace of the diversity of what it means to be a leader. I think when I was younger there was a certain archetype of a leader that I saw and I didn't see that in myself. But what they mean by leaders is not only innovators in technology, but also, policy entrepreneurs, and norm entrepreneurs, and people who can bring different ideas together to come up with new ideas. And I think it's about creating that space where people can go beyond a networking, "Hello, this is my name. And this is my name card." But, getting into a point of really creating together, and brainstorming together, and coming up with new ideas together. And they do that in such a short amount of time with a summit. And then, they can keep us engaged afterwards. I think that's the secret sauce.
Carol Cone:
That's great. That is a secret sauce. It's not a one-off. You're truly coming into a community. Let's pivot to COP 28. You were just recently there. And so, I would love to know your experiences. I mean, it was massive. And so, I'd love to hear from both of you, how did you really focus and make sure that your voice was heard within the appropriate groups?
Anna Stanley-Radi�re:
COP was massive. I think, I didn't have that much trouble in terms of making my voice heard. I work a lot on supply chain emissions transparency, trying to get companies to understand the impact they're having in their value chains. So, it's quite a hot topic at the moment. And obviously, working in a business community, it's not so difficult getting the opportunity to exchange with the right people. I think what I really regretted was I couldn't go beyond my little bubble, because there was so much on at the same time. So I was overwhelmed by the amount of different opportunities, and many things that I wanted to listen to, and I wanted to go to expand what I do, and expand my understanding of this whole space, and how the different bits fit together.
It was exhausting, I'm not going to lie. But it was also exhilarating in the sense that I feel like this COP was the first COP where I really felt like there was a lot of progress being made on the ground. And I don't mean this in terms of the outcomes of the negotiations, but more in terms of what we were doing, and who we were bringing together, and how we were all coming together in the business community, and the palpable sense of change, and that we're really willing to go the extra mile going forward. So, for me it was a really positive experience, but yeah, it was absolutely exhausting and I don't think we can continue the way we did this year.
Carol Cone:
And I'm just curious, you said there was a palpable sense of change. What did that feel like?
Anna Stanley-Radi�re:
I think it's the fact that everyone's like, "This is ridiculous. This is a trade fair. This is not why a COP was set up. This is not why business shows up to COP." How can we be in a place where we can really understand what's happening and bring different voices together and make sure everyone can hear those voices as well, rather than start quoting these pockets? And I had a lot of discussions with people about is the COP process as it is fit for purpose? How does business show up to COP? How can business support policy makers? Do policy makers even understand the struggles that business leaders face and vice versa? So, there was a lot of discussion on the fringes of it. Obviously, the media also discussed a lot what was wrong or not wrong with the COP. But, that was that palpable sense of change. The reason I say that is because a lot of us got together in the sidelines and were saying, "Okay, what has to change? We cannot continue like this. We cannot have 200,000 people next year. It's just not what COP is there for."
Carol Cone:
That's very, very profound. Enkhuun?
Enkhuun Byambadorj:
Actually, it was my first COP. So, it was very, very overwhelming. I think it was truly weighing opportunity cost literally every single minute, because there are up to five events plus happening at the same time and you're interested in three of them. For me, the way that I participated was I was actually a youth negotiator. So, I'm part of civil society in my day-to-day, but I was involved in a program called the Climate Youth Negotiator Program, which is a program to train the next generation of negotiators basically. So, the people who are in the decision-making spaces who have a voice at the decision making table, and it's a really great program that was brought into Mongolia through United Nations Association of Mongolia, and with the support of the Mongolia Ministry of Environmental Tourism.
In my case, I got training for six to seven months, and then I attended my first COP, first and foremost, as a party, so a party delegate, so as someone representing the state. And then, second of course, representing my organization as a civil society, and then also, as a climate activist.
And sometimes, these were really conflicting hats to wear, because there's certain things that you can and can't say as someone with a party badge, because you have to represent your state and your state stances. But there are certain things that I want to say and I want to be vocal about as a representative to society and as an advocate. And so, I think, trying to juggle those, I had to really think, and restate, and see which role am I playing right now? And a lot of the time, there's the main negotiations and that's where I was acting as a party, and then there were the side events that I got to speak at. And, in those side events I mostly participated as a representative of my organization.
Anna Stanley-Radi�re:
I can so empathize with those different hats and that sense of, "What can I say from an organization perspective, versus what do I feel myself?" And how do you show up in different forum? Yeah. I think it's spot on at some of the challenges that you face at a COP.
Carol Cone:
And I think you said that on the sidelines that there was progress being made that maybe you had the opportunity to be more authentic and that you could say the things that you wanted to say, versus being in the more formal settings. Was that an experience that you had?
Anna Stanley-Radi�re:
I think, for me, it's not so much about not being your authentic self. I always try to be my authentic self. I think it's more about understanding different circumstances and also understanding the precarious nature in which we find ourselves at these COPs.
Carol Cone:
Enkhuun, do you want to add to that?
Enkhuun Byambadorj:
Yeah, I actually want to circle back to the point that Anna raised about the conversations that were happening from the business and private sectors and the fringes. And I think, that those are actually very important conversations, because one thing that really struck me was the divide between what was happening in the negotiation rooms and then what was happening in the rest of the blue zone, or the zone that's closed off in the side events. And then, the green zone, which is the even broader zone that's open to the public. And, the zone that's open to the public really was a trade fair. I wasn't able to participate as much, because I was in the negotiations at the time. But in the small amount of time that I was, there was no really connection to what was happening in the decision making spaces. But then, in those spaces, there's so much innovation that's being presented, there's so many solutions that are being presented, and that was not taken account in the other space in the decision making space as well. So I think, drawing those lines would be very important and a good conversation starter.
Anna Stanley-Radi�re:
And I think one of the best events I actually went to in the Hall of Cup was hosted by Cemune, the Center for Multilateral Negotiations, where they brought together some of the negotiators and some senior political leaders like Patricia Espinoza or Norbert Garrison from Germany and others together with business leaders. And to really talk about the two sides of the coin, what's working, what's not working, how can you help each other? And, I was talking about that palatable sense of change, that to me, was incredible, to be in that room and to hear, yeah, just that realization that maybe we really just don't understand so much that struggles that the other side are facing, and how can you actually move that forward? So, that was one of the first times I've come across that happening. But, as Enkhuun said, I think there is a lot of that that needs to happen much more in order to make the COPs really valuable in the progress that they're making.
Carol Cone:
Let's talk about the elephant in the room about where COP was held. And, obviously, in the oil rich Middle East, and Dubai, and there was a lot of controversy in the media about should it really be there? How did it feel when you were on the ground? Did it feel controversial? Did it feel breakthrough?
Anna Stanley-Radi�re:
I think it's a really complex question. I mean, the COP process, it's a process. It doesn't land in an oil and gas company selected per se, in the sense that it has to go to certain region and then within the region there's a decision about where it's held, right? So, I think that's part of that official process. There were big discussions in Glasgow whether oil and gas companies should be included or excluded from some of the panels and the discussions.
And I think at the end of the day, I know that... Well, we all know there needs to be big change in the way that the systems operate, but we're not going to make that change if we exclude these types of organizations. You have to talk to them. You have to find a way to support them in their transition and to also understand where they're at. Because, at the end of the day, I mean, I definitely offer the phase out of fossil fuel, don't get me wrong, but there's also a transition that needs to be put in place which needs to be just. There are people who work in those jobs. There's a lot of dependency. I mean, the amount of subsidies that goes into oil and gas space, it's not like we're going to switch off the lights from one day to the next. It's just not realistic.
So, finding a way to constructively bring that to the dialogue, I think that's what I see as incredibly important. I was quite hesitant going into COP, I'm going to be quite honest. I was really hesitant about it. But, our CEO, we had a separate meeting just before the COP with bringing some of the business leaders together. And what he said to us in the run-up to that, he said, "We're here to showcase the solutions, and to showcase what's being done, and to showcase that it's possible to change." And I think that's exactly the right messaging.
Yes, you could see the oil fields and the factories or whatever you call them, the big towers as you're sitting in the metro going home at night. And it was slightly surreal. But at the end of the day, we have to transform away from these systems. So they have to be part of the story's, as simple as that.
Carol Cone:
And, did you get a sense that the pace, the urgency is truly being embraced and that is why this COP seemed to be different where you had more voices at the table? Maybe, maybe not. Maybe, maybe not. That's right.
Enkhuun Byambadorj:
So, in the last plenary, where all the parties were gathered and all the big final decision texts were being adopted, there was a woman when the first global stock outcome was adopted. And so, this is the text that's telling us where we're at in terms of whether we'll be able to achieve that 1.5 degree goal of warming, of keeping limiting warming to global warming to 2 degrees. And, the outcome of the text was first celebrated in plenary. There was a big round of applause. And, I think that was because of the fact that we were able to reach consensus. Because at that point, the COP had been extended by 24 hours, 24 plus hours even.
And then, followed by that roaring applause was an intervention given by the AOSIS chair, the Alliance of Small Island States, and the negotiating group for small island states. And I just want to read a quote of what the chair of AOSIS said, and she said, "We have made an incremental advancement over business as usual, when what we really needed is an exponential step change in our actions and support."
And I think that just captures it. That, yes, it was progress, but it was not enough of the progress that we need to really be fighting for the most vulnerable groups and the most vulnerable nations. And I think what I found really stark was that right after that intervention, the way that the rest of the proceeded was a disregard of that statement, really, the way that the presidency hosted the rest of the plenary was calling everything transformational and calling everything a big change. And that's what I mean by that they have a lot of power reframing. And, a lot of what was said by the youth constituency, the constituency for women and gender, and all of the more advocacy groups was disregarded in that messaging. And I think, we need to be listening to those voices too.
Anna Stanley-Radi�re:
And I think maybe just to build on that, I mean, it's historic, for the first time we have the inclusion of fossil fuel related in a COP outcome, right? I mean, that is a historic moment. We're 30 years too late, but it's a historic moment. But just to put some figures behind what Enkhuun's saying there, there was a pledging around 700 million U.S. dollars for loss and damages. And we know that developing countries need around, or at least, 400 billion. Now, somebody on one of the WhatsApp groups that I'm in was circulating quite a fun figure and said, "The top 10 football players globally in the world make that loss and damage fund money of 700 billion in a year." I mean, it's nothing, right? And then, just not to even think about those subsidies for fossil fuel companies or the profits that fossil fuel companies make.
So, everything needs to be put into perspective. I think in that sense, yes, we can be optimistic, and it's great to see the outcome, and there is a powerful sense of change. But in a way, I'm not a negative person, it's not too little, too late, but it is something that there was definitely room for bereavement going upwards.
Carol Cone:
Very, very well stated. This has been a marvelous conversation. And we can continue, but I'd just love to turn it back over to you, because I'm sure that there are points that you'd like to make that we haven't covered. So Anna, can I start with you?
Anna Stanley-Radi�re:
I'd like to highlight two things that I did that really had a, I guess, profound sense of an impact on me. So, I did a panel hosted by One Young World with Paul Polman and a couple of other people where we spoke about leadership and what it means to be a leader in today's time. And what I said in that panel, and something that I mean very strongly is that, in a way, I don't like the word leadership, because it implies that there are certain people who have capabilities that others don't. And I guess, just to the people who are listening, each one of us can be a leader, no matter the age, no matter what you do in life, no matter where you live. And I think that's what One Young World really encourages, that platform of diversity.
But I think it's really important, and in everything that I've done in my life, the many different areas I've worked in, the golden thread has been working with people and creating collaboration in a strategic way and building things, that's really what I do. So, for a long time, I really struggled with the fact that I'm not an activist. I'm not on the ground out there. And I mean, I do in my private time what I can, but I'm not an activist per se. But it's also not where my strength lies necessarily. It's not where my background lies. I understand business, I've worked with business. So trying to think about where you can really bring your skillset and your knowledge to make a change, I think that's the one thing I wanted to say in terms of anyone listening to this podcast who really is trying to understand their space, or how they fit into this movement.
And I think the other thing is really trying to understand your why. I had the absolute privilege just a couple days after COP to meet Vironi, who's one of the big indigenous leaders from Brazil here in Paris. And, just seeing someone who has so much poise, and so much intelligence, and really fighting for basically what's his livelihood and his home. And, that really made me really reflect back on why I'm working in the space I do. So, I think that for me, trying to find those like-minded people and One Young World provides a platform. We have this great thing called the Hurry Up Club that the three really great leaders last year, Davos, created, that during Copper was supporting each other with let's not give up and we can make a change. And, those things, I think they really give me optimism.
So, yeah, just to say, I think, find what it is that you can contribute, understand your why, and how you're motivated, and what it actually means, the work that you're doing, and find people who are going to support you, and that you can draw energy from, and that you give energy to. Because at the end of the day, there's plenty of us who believe that we can make a change. And if there's enough of us, I think, yeah, we really can make a difference.
Carol Cone:
I love that. That was beautifully said. Thank you. Enkhuun?
Enkhuun Byambadorj:
Yeah, I'd also like to mention two things. And the first thing, one of the biggest things that I got from myself out of this process was the importance of being grounded when participating in something as large, and big, and multilateral. I think that was really important, because especially in the first week, I felt a lost sense of purpose, I guess, because what I do in the day-to-day is a lot grounded. And, while I was in Dubai in this really big conference with tall buildings and surrounded by really impressive people. At the same time, air pollution was absolutely horrible at home. And, there were people poisoned by carbon dioxide. There were people who were dying. And, I was at this big conference doing who knows what with outcomes with that'll come out who knows when, right?
And so, I think having that sense of groundedness is really important and the long-term vision of why we're in this space and why this space matters and bringing those on the ground grassroots realities to these big spaces, but also being able to translate the large outcomes that come out to how they're impacting communities and how they're impacting communities today, but also 10 years down the line, and 20 years down the line, because these are decisions that will impact us many, many years into the future. And so, I think being able to work in this multi-level way to connect those different scales.
And then, the second thing is... I guess, a advice for both myself and other young people who are trying to get involved, especially in the environmental space, is that, to become really, really knowledgeable about the purpose and the impact that you want to make. And what I mean by this is both if it relates to science in some way, become knowledgeable about the science, become knowledgeable about the technology, become knowledgeable about politics, become knowledgeable about on the ground realities, become knowledgeable about what it's actually doing to people. And I think that's the most critical way that we can gain legitimacy and our voices can be heard, especially as young people, because if we're asked something, we can speak to the realities, we can speak to the politics, we can speak to the technical. And I think that expertise, especially in young people is missing. And, that's something that I want to cultivate in myself, and that I also want to encourage other people in doing.
Carol Cone:
Beautifully stated. You both were amazing. I know that you're going to stimulate additional excitement from activists and passionate social change makers, they can make a difference. And that the size of our challenges may seem overwhelming, but when we have individuals such as yourselves, I mean, I have chills. And, congratulations on just bringing your ethos and your passion to life. So, thank you so much for being on Purpose 360. This is one of my favorite shows ever, and I've been doing this for five years, and so you've given a gift to me.
Enkhuun Byambadorj:
Thank you so much.
Anna Stanley-Radi�re:
Thank you, Carol.
Carol Cone:
And this podcast was brought to you by some amazing people, and I'd love to thank them. Ann Hendred Mark and Kristen Kenney at Carol Cone on Purpose. Pete Wright and Andy Nelson, our crack production team at True Story FM. And you, our listener, please rate and rank us because we really want to be as high as possible as one of the top business podcasts available, so that we can continue exploring together the importance and the activation of authentic purpose. Thanks so much for listening.
p360_162 RAW (Completed 12/21/23)
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