What does it take to build a global network of millions of people taking action around a cause you care about? The story of Koen Timmers reveals some of the practical ways.

In this case the cause is climate change, the network is teachers and students, and the innovation includes a clever app for building community and measuring impact.

Koen tells how he gradually evolved this work from his humble beginnings in a family of teachers and a curiosity about technology, to a point where his work has been recognised in both the worlds of education (he was a top-ten finalist for the Global Teacher Prize) and climate action (supported by David Attenborough and others).

Today with Jennifer Williams and the team at Take Action Global, Koen Timmers is continuing to build this movement towards even greater scale and impact.

His story will encourage anyone who aspires to achieve great things and who is willing to muster the patience to invest and evolve over years or even decades.

(00:00) Introduction to Koen Timmers

(01:55) THE PAST - My Life and Career Journey

(11:21) Creative artefact

(12:35) THE PRESENT - My Work and Innovation

(30:50) THE FUTURE - Future of Work

(27:07) What's uniquely human?

(33:23) Concluding advice

USEFUL LINKS:

Koen Timmers www.timmers.me

Profile when elected as an Ashoka Fellow: www.ashoka.org/en-be/fellow/koen-timmers

Book - Game Changer: https://a.co/d/egl3ilo

Taking Action Global: www.takeactionglobal.org

Climate Action Project (from TAG): www.climateactionproject.org

EarthProject app for iOS and Android: www.earthproject.org

Climate scientist Shaun Fitzgerald OBE is director of the Centre for Climate Repair at the University of Cambridge (UK), and a former director of the Royal Institution.

As an innovator, Dr Fitzgerald founded and led a company 'Breathing Buildings Ltd', pioneering new ways to ventilate buildings that can halve energy bills.

More recently, responding to worsening climate forecasts and the fear of tipping points, his work has focused on 'climate repair' which includes trials of technologies to brighten clouds, obstruct warm sea currents and even refreeze the arctic.

(00:00) Introduction to Shaun Fitzgerald

(02:48) THE PAST - My life and career journey

(14:57) 'Reduce' - The role of buildings in reducing energy use

(21:49) What have you learned about innovation itself?

(24:49) Creative artefact

(26:15) THE PRESENT - Latest innovations in climate repair: 'Remove' and 'Refreeze'

(35:56) THE FUTURE - Future of work

(37:26) What's uniquely human?

(38:00) Concluding advice

Cover image credit: Katerina Pavlyuchkova on Unsplash.

USEFUL LINKS:

Cambridge centre for climate repair: https://www.climaterepair.cam.ac.uk/refreeze

Refreezing the Arctic (article): https://magazine.alumni.cam.ac.uk/refreezing-the-arctic-working-with-nature-to-buy-us-more-time/

Breathing Buildings (natural and hybrid ventilation systems): https://www.breathingbuildings.com/knowledge/natural-ventilation/

Cambridge Zero (the University's response to the climate crisis): https://www.zero.cam.ac.uk/our-mission

This episode follows the remarkable journey of Admir Masic, a refugee turned influential chemist and materials scientist at MIT.

You'll discover how he and his colleagues are taking an unusual unique approach to sustainability that is transforming one of the construction industry's most notorious materials - concrete - into one that could revolutionise renewable energy storage around the world.

From ancient Rome to modern laboratories, Masic's story is not just about scientific breakthroughs but also about the power of education, resilience, and innovation in facing global challenges.

Tune in for an inspiring tale of how personal adversity doesn't have to be a barrier to talent, and how a passion for learning has contributed to groundbreaking solutions for our planet's future.

(00:00) Introduction to Admir Masic

(03:20) THE PAST - My Life and Career Journey

(17:54) MIT React - programme for talented refugees

(21:12) Creative artefact

(22:23) THE PRESENT - My Work and Innovation

(32:02) THE FUTURE - Future of Work

(34:19) Concluding advice and what's special about humans in a world of AI

MIT Refugee Action Hub (ReACT) and the Emerging Talent Programme: ⁠https://react.mit.edu/⁠

DMAT company innovations including self-healing concrete: https://dmat.co/it/self-healing/

News - Storing electricity in concrete: https://news.mit.edu/2023/mit-engineers-create-supercapacitor-ancient-materials-0731

The Masic Lab at MIT - bio-inspired design: https://www.masicgroup.mit.edu/

Concrete Sustainability Hub (CS-Hub) at MIT: https://cshub.mit.edu/

MIT Dept of Civil and Environmental Engineering: https://cee.mit.edu/