Policy Innovation Podcast (Nathan Lawes)

Tinesh Chhaya, Founder & CEO of Decipher Cyber, discusses why:

1. Governments should prioritise e-safety policies, and
2. Companies should add the role of Chief Information Security Officer (CISO) to the C-Suite

Follow Tinesh on LinkedIn and check out Decipher Cyber here.

Listen to Navjot Sawhney, Founder & CEO of the Washing Machine Project, discuss their policy ideas for bridging innovation and humanitarianism.

This includes:

• Increasing funds for innovative international development projects
• Increasing R&D tax credits for startups and small businesses (not just for multinationals)

Listen to Dan Etenberg, Founder & CEO of LIA Aerospace, discuss why green policies in space are becoming increasingly important.

Abisola Oladapo, Co-Founder & CEO of Agnes Health, discusses why we need to share best practices around maternal health and adapt it to nations/countries, so that pregnant women around the world can improve their physical and mental health.

Today's guest is Sir Graham Watson, former President of the Alliance of Liberal Democrats in Europe (ALDE) and Member of the European Parliament (MEP) for the South West of England and Gibraltar (1994-2014).

In this episode, Graham discusses how the United Kingdom and European Union can innovate policy in key areas - such as health, data, and an emerging Asia - and even shares some tips for continuous learning.

Other key takeaways include:
- Most Asian countries look to the United States, rather than Europe, as the model
 - The EU has to get together as a federal state if it wants to compete
- The EU wants to work closely with the UK but they’re not going to force it
- You can never invest too much in scientific research

Follow Sir Graham on Twitter and check out the episode with Sundeep Waslekar here.

Today's guests are entrepreneurs Mandy Nyarko MBE and Gosbert Chagula MBE, Co-Founders of Startup Discovery School.

In this episode, Mandy and Gos discuss the importance of social mobility, why the "Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic" (BAME) acronym is unnecessary, and what governments and investors can do to overcome bias and empower people who are currently underserved.

Learn more about Startup Discover School and check out their Instagram here.

Some terminology:

• "Incubator" - where startup founders develop and test their business ideas
• "Accelerator" - where founders grow their customer base and prepare for scaling up
• "ERDF" - European Regional Development Fund
• "SEIS" - Seed Enterprise Investment Scheme 
• "EIS" - Enterprise Investment Scheme

Listen to the episode with Pippa Gawley, Founder of Zero Carbon Capital, who was later introduced to the podcast by Gos.

Today's guest is Sundeep Waslekar, President of the Strategic Foresight Group and Author of The Blue Peace: Rethinking Middle East Water.
 
In this episode, Sundeep discusses why countries engaged in water cooperation do not go to war, how West Africa leads the world in water collaboration, and that even the world’s greatest leaders are unable to deliver because they operate with tunnel vision.

The key takeaway, therefore, is to look at the world in a more holistic way and to understand that although change is (currently) driven by nation-states, they have to take into account the wishes of individuals and respond to them - we can all play our part!
 
Sundeep was introduced to the podcast by Sir Graham Watson in a previous episode, which you can listen to here, and introduced the former Prime Minister of Guinea, Kabiné Komara, to the podcast in a later episode, which you can listen to here. 

Today's guest is Bin (William) Xu, Head of Digital Innovation Labs at Pfizer in China and South East Asia.
 
In this episode, Bin Xu shares why innovation in finance can help to improve access to healthcare, why people working in legacy (or old school) industries should think more like an entrepreneur, and how China needs to "up its game" in terms of respecting nurses and doctors.

Bin Xu and Nathan met through the Young China Watchers (YCW), a community engaging with the most pressing issues related to the rise of China. Learn more about YCW and connect with Bin Xu on LinkedIn here.

Today's guest is Stephanie Jensen-Cormier, a biodiversity advocate living in Costa Rica.

In this episode, Stephanie discusses why we need to understand the urgency of reducing our emissions because it threatens our survival as a specifies. In addition, Steph explains why:

1. government-funded projects need to embed top-notch environmental, social and corporate governance into projects e.g. China’s Belt and Road Initiative
2. we as consumers should choose to eat a mostly plant-based diet, buy reusable diapers/nappies, and rent toys for our kids (not necessarily in that order)
3. governments should stop subsidising the meat industry and reprioritise spending on education and sustainability (like Costa Rica did after demilitarisation)

Check out Global Witness and connect with Stephanie on LinkedIn here.

Today's guest is Amit Mishra, Founder of ID8VC, Policy Adviser to the Indian Government, and ex-Country Head of F6S and Sansan.

In this episode, Amit explores:

• the appeal of the Indian market and Tier 2 cities, including as a place to build a Proof of Concept (PoC)
• the uptick in activity for the AgriTech, medical, education, e-commerce and electric vehicle (EV) sectors since COVID-19
• why change is both the biggest challenge and opportunity
• the importance of being a conscious citizen and responsible employer

Check out F6S and connect with Amit on LinkedIn.

Today’s guest is Pippa Gawley, Founder and Director of Zero Carbon Capital. 

In this episode, Pippa explores why lithium is becoming the new gasoline, the cultural differences between UK and US venture capital, and making a healthy financial return because of purpose (not in spite of it).

In addition, Pippa discusses why:

• Governments should implement legally binding targets for every year up to 2050 (to hold current governments to account and not just future ones)
• Carbon emissions need to be priced more accurately
• Deep-tech startup founders need to keep the faith
• Innovate UK and Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) grants are helping scientific and deep-tech companies to innovate over longer time horizons
• The UK’s Enterprise Investment Scheme (EIS) is compelling tax relief for investors

Learn more about Zero Carbon Capital and connect with Pippa on LinkedIn, who was introduced to the podcast by Gosbert Chagula in a previous episode.

Today's guests are local councillors Humaira Ali and Graham Howe, representing Southwark and Wokingham in the UK.

In this episode, Humaira and Graham explore what a council is, what councils do, and how we can improve the system through policy innovation - including whether or not we even need political parties in the first place.

Follow Humaira on Twitter and connect with Graham on LinkedIn.

Terminology:

• Ward - the administrative area of a borough that elects (and is represented by) a councillor (or councillors)
• Statutory instrument - delegated legislative power
• Canvassing - directly engaging with local residents
• Politicking - partisan or politically-driven activity

Today's guest is Kabiné Komara, an Adviser, Author, and former Prime Minister of Guinea.

In this episode, key topics discussed include:

• Why climate change and access to jobs are two of our biggest shared issues globally
• Good governance is one of the biggest challenges facing Africa
• We need to better manage and share resources, especially water - otherwise there is angriness and conflict
• Conflicts over water in Nigeria and Syria led to deaths, demonstrations and mass migration
• Water sharing between countries brings about peace!
• Budgets need to reflect the priority and size of problems
• Seeing young people around the world coming together to find solutions is a source of hope, but it needs to be sustained and protected

Kabiné Komara was introduced to the podcast by Sundeep Waslekar, who was interviewed in an earlier episode, which you can check out here.

Today's guest is Esther O'Callaghan OBE, Co-Founder & CEO of hundo Ltd, an innovative careers platform connecting Gen Z talent to leading employers.

In this episode, Esther explains why you need paid work to lift yourself out of poverty and how you can’t do that without access to opportunities - which is why hundo is helping young people to access employment and learning opportunities.

In fact, they’ve raised $2 million to help them scale-up their impact and utilise the 'metaverse". 

Listen to their story and follow Esther on LinkedIn and/or Twitter.

Listen to Emma and Natalie, Co-Founders of Dear Bump, talk about their ideas for innovating policy to help pregnant women in the workplace.

Check out their website here.

Gemma Guilera, Co-Founder & Director of Moving Beans, suggests city councils, waste facility managers, and big industries come together to build a common budget, overseen by an executive body, to be responsible for driving sustainability forward. Promisingly, she says as long as we breathe we can solve issues!

In addition, Nawful Raj, Founder of Yū Pods, believes we need to reduce consumption, eliminate the use of non-recyclable and micro-plastics, and fund more non-tech-based companies (to solve environmental issues).

Check out Moving Beans here and Yū Pods here.