The IKEA Foundation Podcast

IKEA Foundation

Listen in on conversations with the IKEA Foundation team and guests from the world of philanthropy, climate change, renewable energy and sustainable development on a wide range of issues and challenges we face today. If your approach to problem solving is to ask the question ‘what if’, this podcast is made for you. Produced by the IKEA Foundation communications team. read less
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Episodes

Episode #8 Alexander Betts and Ola Rosling
Dec 17 2020
Episode #8 Alexander Betts and Ola Rosling
Episode Introduction Alexander Betts, Professor of Forced Migration and International Affairs at the University of Oxford, and Ola Rosling, CEO of Gapminder, discuss what (almost) everybody gets wrong about refugees in this episode hosted by IKEA Foundation CEO Per Heggenes.  There are a lot of misconceptions about refugees, especially around their intentions and why they leave their homes, belongings and loved ones to venture into the unknown. Do you think you know your facts about refugees? Learn more from two interesting and knowledgeable guests who shine a light on some of the issues faced by the world’s 26 million refugees. Guests Bio  Ola Rosling is President and Co-Founder of Gapminder Foundation, which he founded together with his wife and his father. Since 1999, Ola has led the development of the Trendalyzer software, which was acquired by Google in 2007. At Google Ola and his team delivered the Motion Chart as part of Google Spreadsheets. As Product Manager for Google Public Data, Ola then helped democratise access to public statistics by developing the infrastructure needed to make official statistics part of Google Search results. Ola and Anna went back to Gapminder in 2011 to develop free teaching materials for a fact-based worldview. In 2014, Ola coined the term “Factfulness”, which Gapminder is now promoting to make education about Sustainable Development less ideological and more fact-based. Together with Anna and Hans, Ola wrote Factfulness, a book launched in April 2018.  Twitter handle: @OlaRosling Alexander Betts is Professor of Forced Migration and International Affairs, William Golding Senior Fellow in Politics at Brasenose College, and Associate Head of the Social Sciences Division, at the University of Oxford. He served as Director of the Refugee Studies Centre between 2014 and 2017. His research focuses on the politics and economics of refugee assistance. He is co-author, with Paul Collier, of Refuge: Transforming a Broken Refugee System (Penguin Allen Lane), which was named by the Economist as one of the “Best Books of 2017”. He is a World Economic Forum Young Global Leader and was named by Foreign Policy magazine in the top 100 global thinkers of 2016. His TED talks have been viewed by over 3 million people, and he has written for the New York Times, the Guardian, and the Washington Post. He has previously worked for UNHCR and serves as a Councillor on the World Refugee Council. Twitter handle: @alexander_betts Mentioned in this episode  To learn more: Factfulness book launched in April 2018. https://www.gapminder.org/factfulness-book/ To know more about Gapminder:  www.gapminder.org   To know more about Oxford University:  https://www.rsc.ox.ac.uk/publications  Show credits  Host: Altaf Makhiawala, Strategic Communicator, IKEA Foundation Executive Producer: Truus Huisman, Chief Communication Officer  Researcher: Blanche van de Stolpe, Strategic Communicator, IKEA Foundation An Andy Clark Media Production for the IKEA Foundation  Want to contact the show? Reach out at wehearyou@ikeafoundation.org FACEBOOK | TWITTER | LINKEDIN | INSTAGRAM Learn more about IKEA Foundation:
Episode #7 Barri Shorey
Dec 10 2020
Episode #7 Barri Shorey
Episode Introduction In this episode, Barri Shorey from International Rescue Committee, discusses not only the current challenges refugees face around the world, but the often overlooked long-term economic impacts of how the COVID-19 pandemic affects refugees differently with IKEA Foundation Chief Executive Officer, Per Heggenes. The question we will discuss will be: What’s life like for a refugee caught in the global COVID pandemic – now, and in the future?  Guests Bio  Barri Shorey is the Senior Director of the Economic Recovery and Development Unit of the International Rescue Committee, which works to ensure that people whose lives and livelihoods have been shattered by conflict or disaster have their most basic survival needs met and have the assets and income to prosper. She manages a team of 30 people supporting quality implementation, research and evidence building, and strategy development of the IRC’s global cash and livelihoods programming. Twitter handle: @BarriShorey  Mentioned in this episode To get questions that have been asked during this session https://ikeafoundation.org/ask-an-expert-with-barri-shorey/ To know more about International Rescue Committee (IRC) partnership with IKEA Foundation:  https://ikeafoundation.org/story/world-refugee-day-2020/ To know more about International Rescue Committee (IRC) call to action:  https://www.rescue.org/article/refugees-and-their-new-communities-thriving-together Show credits Host: Altaf Makhiawala Executive Producer: Truus Huisman Researcher: Blanche van de Stolpe An Andy Clark Media Production for the IKEA Foundation Want to contact the show? Reach out at wehearyou@ikeafoundation.org FACEBOOK | TWITTER | LINKEDIN | INSTAGRAM Learn more about IKEA Foundation: www.ikeafoundation.org  Programming Note:  This conversation was recorded as part of the Ask An Expert series livestreamed online on June 11, 2020. This is an edited and produced version of the conversation for this podcast.  YouTube link to the original video conversation.
Episode #6 Willy Foote and Katie Naeve
Dec 2 2020
Episode #6 Willy Foote and Katie Naeve
Episode IntroductionWomen farmers in rural communities are responsible for feeding much of the world, but they often don’t get enough to eat themselves. They struggle to access financial support that would help them earn a decent income—and the pandemic is making this situation even worse. In this episode, we discuss how the COVID-19 crisis is impacting women in rural communities and how we can support them to become the leaders and food producers our world needs. Willy Foote and Katie Naeve of Root Capital discuss this with Nico Janssen, Programme Manager for our Agricultural Livelihoods Portfolio. Guest Bio Willy Foote is the Founder and CEO of Root Capital, a nonprofit that offers credit and financial advice to small agricultural businesses, especially women, so that they can build profitable and climate smart livelihoods. Foote is a Skoll Entrepreneur and an Ashoka Global Fellow. He was named a Young Global Leader by the World Economic Forum in 2008, one of Forbes’ “Impact 30” in 2011, and was a 2012 Henry Crown Fellow of the Aspen Institute. Katie Naeve is the Director of Impact and Partnerships at Root Capital. She works on developing and growing strategic partnerships that present opportunities for Root Capital to scale growth and impact. Previously, she conducted evaluations of a number of international development projects around the globe with Harvard’s Center for International Development and Mathematica Policy Research. She has also worked in Colombia with children affected by armed conflict. Mentioned in this episode:To know more about the IKEA Foundation’s partnership with Root Capital, read this story: https://ikeafoundation.org/story/how-root-capital-and-the-ikea-foundation-are-building-the-resilience-of-smallholder-farmers-in-east-africa/Show credits:Host: Altaf MakhiawalaExecutive Producer: Truus HuismanResearcher: Lotika MehtaAn Andy Clark Media Production for the IKEA FoundationWant to contact the show? Reach out at wehearyou@ikeafoundation.orgFACEBOOK | TWITTER | LINKEDIN | INSTAGRAMLearn more about the IKEA Foundation: www.ikeafoundation.orgProgramming Note:This conversation was recorded as part of the Ask An Expert series livestreamed online on 7 May 2020. This is an edited version of the conversation for the podcast.  Youtube link to the original video conversation.
Episode #5 Sarah Klassen and Jon Stone
Nov 26 2020
Episode #5 Sarah Klassen and Jon Stone
Sarah Klassen from Start Network and Jon Stone from the Risk-informed Early Action Partnership Secretariat (REAP), discuss how early action could help prevent the spread of COVID-19 in vulnerable communities, in this interview with Patricia Atkinson, IKEA Foundation Chief Programme Officer. You’ll hear more about preparedness and examples from the field. Sarah and Jon explain how local actors are leading the way in responding to the pandemic and look at how climate change is severely impacting people in remote parts of the world.  Guests Bio  Sarah Klassen is a Crisis Anticipation Technical Advisor with Start Network, supporting humanitarian agencies to act in anticipation of crises. Her goal is to help put projects in place on the ground to mitigate escalating risks before a disaster occurs. Previously, Sarah worked with World Vision in a humanitarian context analysis team. She project managed context analyses and scenario planning in places such as Democratic Republic of the Congo, Central African Republic, Afghanistan and Mali. Before this, Sarah worked in humanitarian policy and advocacy roles with a focus on child protection in emergencies.  Twitter handle: @sarahWVUK  Jon Stone is passionate about enabling the poor to reduce losses and suffering from disasters. He is seconded from the UK Government Department for International Development to the Red Cross to be the Head of the Risk-informed Early Action Partnership Secretariat. This aims to make 1 billion people safer from climate extremes and disasters by 2025.  Twitter handle: @EarlyActionREAP Mentioned in this episode To get questions that have been asked during this session: https://ikeafoundation.org/ask-an-expert-with-sarah-klassen-and-jon-stone/ To know more about Start Network’s partnership with IKEA Foundation:  https://ikeafoundation.org/story/start-network-rapid-funds-covid-19-response/ To know more about Start Network’s call to action:  https://startnetwork.org/news-and-blogs/why-we-need-anticipatory-approach-humanitarian-crises-and-covid-19 To learn more about Risk-informed Early Action Partnership (REAP): http://www.globalresiliencepartnership.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/REAP-two-pager-230819.pdf  Show credits Host: Altaf Makhiawala, Strategic Communicator, IKEA Foundation Executive Producer: Truus Huisman, Chief Communication Officer  Researcher: Blanche van de Stolpe, Strategic Communicator, IKEA Foundation An Andy Clark Media Production for the IKEA Foundation Want to contact the show? Reach out at wehearyou@ikeafoundation.org FACEBOOK | TWITTER | LINKEDIN | INSTAGRAM Learn more about IKEA Foundation: www.ikeafoundation.org  Programming Note:   This conversation was recorded as part of the Ask An Expert series livestreamed online on 30 April 2020. This is an edited and produced version of the conversation for this podcast.
Episode #4 Jane Burston
Nov 19 2020
Episode #4 Jane Burston
Episode Introduction Everyone has the right to breathe clean air. Yet, every year, the health of millions of people is threatened by air pollution. So what needs to happen to ensure all people enjoy clean air, blue skies and better health? Jane Burston, Executive Director of the Clean Air Fund, speaks with Liz McKeon, our Climate Action Portfolio Lead, about the economic impact of air pollution and clean air solutions. Guest Bio  Jane Burston runs the Clean Air Fund, a global re-granting institution funding projects to improve air quality. Previously she worked as Head of Climate and Energy Science in the UK Government, responsible for the UK greenhouse gas inventory and a £45m science programme. She managed a team of 150 scientists working in air quality, greenhouse gas measurement and renewable energy. Jane has been named as a ‘Young Global Leader’ of the World Economic Forum, as one of the ‘40 under 40 European Young Leaders’ by Friends of Europe and is a previous UK Social Entrepreneur of the year. Mentioned in this episode: The economic impact of air pollution: Jane Burston, Executive Director at the Clean Air Fund, and Rain Newton-Smith, Chief Economist at the Confederation of British Industry (CBI), have shown that you can indeed put a price on clean air. See report: https://www.cleanairfund.org/blog-post/can-we-put-a-price-on-clean-air-yes-we-can/     To know more about Clean Air Fund’s partnership with IKEA Foundation:  https://ikeafoundation.org/story/making-clean-air-a-human-right/ https://ikeafoundation.org/story/with-an-eye-on-children-the-ikea-foundation-is-stepping-up-its-work-on-climate-change/ https://ikeafoundation.org/story/clean-air-healthier-lives/ Show credits: Host: Altaf Makhiawala, Strategic Communicator, IKEA Foundation Executive Producer: Truus Huisman, Chief Communication Officer  Researcher: Indra Heerkens, Strategic Communicator, IKEA Foundation An Andy Clark Media Production for the IKEA Foundation Programming Note:  This conversation was recorded as part of the Ask An Expert series livestreamed online on 10 September 2020. This is an edited and produced version of the conversation for this podcast. YouTube link to the original video conversation.  Want to contact the show? Reach out at wehearyou@ikeafoundation.org FACEBOOK | TWITTER | LINKEDIN | INSTAGRAM Learn more about IKEA Foundation: www.ikeafoundation.org
Episode #2 Jessy Tolkan & Jessie Macneil-Brown
Nov 5 2020
Episode #2 Jessy Tolkan & Jessie Macneil-Brown
Episode Introduction Engaging with other people has radically changed this year due to lockdowns and other measures that limit social interactions. But how can we continue to build a climate movement when people can’t meet in person? Are there things we will want to keep doing after the pandemic ends? We will try to answer these questions in a conversation hosted by our own Liz McKeon with Jessy Tolkan from Purpose Climate Lab and Jessie MacNeil-Brown from Ingka Group/IKEA.  Guest Bio  Jessy Tolkan is a Partner at Purpose, a mission-driven agency that builds and supports social movements around the globe to address the world’s most pressing issues. In her role as Chief Campaigns Officer, she also leads the Purpose Climate Lab, an effort to build the ambition of just climate solutions across India, Brazil, Kenya, Europe and the United States.  With an eye towards ensuring a more sustainable planet and more participatory democracy, Jessy has spent the last 17 years as an activist and movement leader working to build progressive change in the United States.   Jessie Macneil-Brown is the Campaigns Unit Manager at Ingka Group. Jessie has over 10 years’ experience in campaigns, public affairs, marketing and communications in international organisations. She has experience in leading global campaigns at Amnesty International and most recently as the Head of Global Activism at The Body Shop, where she led the company’s most successful campaigns. A passionate feminist, Jessie believes that the most exciting and innovative forms of activism come from the grassroots level. She is proud to support the Global Fund for Women as a UK board member and was a founding member of the Women’s Equality Party in the UK.   Mentioned in this episode: IKEA’s campaign #togetherwithkindness https://www.youtube.com/watch?reload=9&v=bCMDfvuuN4o  To know more about Purpose Climate Lab’s partnership with IKEA Foundation:  https://ikeafoundation.org/story/investing-in-clean-air-can-protect-our-health-and-the-planet/  https://ikeafoundation.org/story/hitch-a-ride-to-a-clean-energy-future-with-the-new-american-road-trip/ Show credits: Host: Altaf Makhiawala, Strategic Communicator, IKEA Foundation Executive Producer: Truus Huisman, Chief Communication Officer  Researcher: Indra Heerkens, Strategic Communicator, IKEA Foundation An Andy Clark Media Production for the IKEA Foundation Programming Note:  This conversation was recorded as part of the Ask An Expert series livestreamed online on 22 April 2020. This is an edited and produced version of the conversation for this podcast.  YouTube Link to the original video conversation.   Want to contact the show? Reach out at wehearyou@ikeafoundation.org FACEBOOK | TWITTER | LINKEDIN | INSTAGRAM Learn more about IKEA Foundation: www.ikeafoundation.org
Episode #1 Jacqueline Novogratz
Oct 30 2020
Episode #1 Jacqueline Novogratz
Episode Introduction  In this episode, Founder and CEO of Acumen, Jacqueline Novogratz discusses leadership practices in times of uncertainty with IKEA Foundation CEO, Per Heggenes. You’ll get practical insights into how anyone can stand up and make positive social change on some of the big issues of our times.   Guest Bio  Jacqueline Novogratz is the New York Times best-selling author of The Blue Sweater and Manifesto for a Moral Revolution. She founded Acumen in 2001 with the idea of investing philanthropic patient capital in entrepreneurs seeking to solve the toughest issues of poverty. As a pioneer of impact investing, Acumen and its investments have brought critical services like healthcare, education and clean energy to hundreds of millions people on low incomes. Jacqueline has been named one of the Top 100 Global Thinkers by Foreign Policy, one of the 25 Smartest People of the Decade by the Daily Beast, and one of the world’s 100 Greatest Living Business Minds by Forbes, which also honored her with the Forbes 400 Lifetime Achievement Award for Social Entrepreneurship. In addition to her work with Acumen, she is a sought-after speaker and sits on a number of philanthropic boards. Twitter handle: @jnovogratz Mentioned in this episode: Link to Jacqueline’s latest book: https://acumen.org/moralrevolution/ To know more about Acumen’s partnership with the IKEA Foundation: https://acumen.org/blog/acumen-partners-with-ikea-foundation-to-bring-power-to-the-worlds-poor/ To know more about Acumen’s energy work: https://acumenideas.com/energy/home Show credits: Host: Altaf Makhiawala, Strategic Communicator, IKEA Foundation Executive Producer: Truus Huisman, Chief Communication Officer  Researcher: Altaf Makhiawala  An Andy Clark Media Production for the IKEA Foundation Want to contact the show? Reach out at wehearyou@ikeafoundation.org  FACEBOOK | TWITTER | LINKEDIN | INSTAGRAM Learn more about the IKEA Foundation: www.ikeafoundation.org  Programming Note:  This conversation was recorded as part of the Ask An Expert series livestreamed online on 30 July 2020. This is an edited and produced version of the conversation for this podcast.  Youtube link to the original video conversation.