Hilda N. Liswani is a sustainability leader with a focus on
inclusive innovation. She has more than 10 years of experience
working with policymakers, venture capitalists, corporations, and
academics to develop, communicate, and implement sustainability
strategies. Notable organizations include EPFL, the EU, the
Mastercard Foundation, and Siemens. Through her organization
WeBloom, she is passionate about diversity and inclusion to
transform tech ecosystems around the world. She has been awarded
the Queen's Young Leaders Award and honored as a Forbes 30 under
30. And as a Global Shaper for the World Economic Forum, she is
part of a community of change makers. She believes that
innovation can only reach its full potential if it involves
everyone.
Heidi: Hilda, you are the Executive Director of
WeBloom, a non-profit organization based in Zurich. What is your
vision for this organization and how did WeBloom come about?
Hilda: Our vision at WeBloom is pretty bold and
ambitious. We want to transform global tech ecosystems around the
world and make them more inclusive. We want them to reflect the
society they claim to serve. All these products and services from
tech companies designed to help us, the consumers. We want them
to reflect society as a whole.
The reason WeBloom was created is because in the processes of
tech development, tech investment, in all the different areas of
the tech industry, there's just not enough inclusion of women and
men or cultural minorities. And that's a really critical problem
because tech impacts all of our lives.
Heidi: There is a connection between diversity,
inclusion and sustainability that is obvious to some people but
less so to others.
Hilda: The relationship between diversity and
sustainability? These seem like two very different issues, but
they are connected: Most sustainability solutions are actually
developed by women. On the investor side, among retail investors,
women tend to be more interested in supporting sustainability
projects. So they are the main drivers of sustainability. And,
most sustainability startups are founded by women. If women
develop most sustainability solutions and at the same time do not
have access to the right funding, this means that many
sustainability solutions do not come to market
Heidi: What do you think are the consequences of
not addressing these issues?
Hilda: According to McKinsey, we will lose 26%
of GDP if we don't integrate all women into the economy. And at
the end of last year, the Linnean Report was published: a series
of studies found that many female executives are currently
leaving their jobs because they cannot reconcile them with their
values.
And on a human level? If women are not able to participate, what
does that mean for our society? What does that mean for the
younger generation? How are women perceived on a daily basis? How
do they experience their daily lives? So there are consequences
on both the macro and micro levels.
https://www.webloomglobal.com
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