The Climate Pivot Interview

It’s never too late to start (a conversation with Aude Grasset)

If we are to avert climate catastrophe, we will need many more leaders in Sustainability. We interviewed Aude on her fascinating 30-year journey towards a dream career focused on sustainability for businesses and the environment.

Q: How would you describe your current work?

A: What I do is multi-faceted. I am primarily a sustainability consultant – mainly to SMEs, services companies and plastic manufacturers. I also work in the education field. I teach 2 courses at Université Paris Dauphine – PSL (London campus) including a climate change module for first-year students which I complement with practical projects.?Climate change can be scary, so I encourage practical solutions and action, which gives students hope for the future. I also teach an executive MBA course on sustainability leadership to top executives across a range of industries. Sustainability only became top of mind recently within companies, so knowledge tends to be patchy. It is important to change the mindset and to embed sustainability thinking through all departments of an organisation.

Finally, I also work as an assessor for the University of Cambridge Institute for Sustainability Leadership (CISL)’s online programmes. This helps me stay connected with people and developments in the field and to contribute to disseminating the skills necessary to help reach the objectives of the Paris Agreement.

Q: That sounds like a lot!

A: Yes, it is! But it is also a pleasure. It’s great to be able to do something you believe in. ?When you feel passion for a topic, you just can’t stop!

Q: Tell us how you shifted your career. What prompted that pivot?

A: I grew up in Montpellier in the south of France where we are used to being outdoors. I remember sailing, hiking and exploring caves in the back country. Nature has always been close to my heart. As a child, I used to help an old farmer round up sheep during the Summer holidays in the Pyrenees. He noticed that the weather was changing and was very concerned. He told me he used to be able to predict the weather very accurately several days ahead but not anymore. That had an impact on me.

I wanted a career focused on the environment but could not find many opportunities after graduating. I also valued creativity and fun, and so decided to work in advertising. While this can be a fun career, over the years I started to have doubts. I realised I was in the business of creating artificial desires. A key moment in the 90s was when I was asked to work on the advertising campaigns of a global cigarette company, which I declined. I was seen as being uncooperative rather than having principles, so I soon had to look for another job.

I then shifted my career to design. The environment was nicer, but I was still in the business of getting people to buy more stuff. I remember working with a global pet food company and attending focus-group discussions. We were testing whether to add parsley to dog biscuits so they would have fresher breath. “There must be more important stuff in life than this”, I thought. It became clearer - I had to do something I really believed in, something to do with the environment. The main obstacle was how to go about it.

Q: What sparked your passion for the environment?

A: I think it’s the direct contact I had with nature as a child and my father sensitising me to the beauty of small things, down to the smallest daisy. ?I also remember seeing quarries a few kilometres from Montpellier – and watching machines eat away at the hills. There were trees and animals up there – and suddenly the hills were replaced by a flat dead space. I found that deeply shocking. I also remember watching Commandant Cousteau’s films about the ocean, disappearing species, and how humans were destroying the environment.

Q: Was there a pivotal moment that helped you shift your career?

A: Yes – it happened in 2018. Before completing a post-graduate degree at the University of Cambridge Institute for Sustainability Leadership (CISL), what changed my life was taking the CISL’s online course in Business Sustainability Management.?I had known about this course for a few years but hesitated to take it. It involved working with a company–most participants worked for global banks or international packaged goods and pharmaceuticals organisations. I really questioned whether I was the right candidate for this – I had been working part-time and away from the mainstream corporate world for over a decade to raise my 3 children.?Luckily, I had the full support of my husband to go for it. ?I called the CISL, and they explained I did not have to be a corporate employee to be on the programme, and that I could work with a company as an external consultant.

Coincidently, I met the chairman of an international plastics manufacturing company. We had the most unusual-but captivating-discussion about the role of plastics in our modern lives and the issue of plastic waste. He could not believe that I was interested in plastics but I was! (laughs). ?Growing up by the sea, I am sensitive to the issue of ocean plastic, so I decided to ask him if I could work on his company as part of my Cambridge course.

Sustainability was not part of regular business language then, and although the Chairman was initially skeptical about my suggestion, he was also a very pragmatic man. The association with Cambridge was probably a reassurance that the programme would be “about business” and orientated towards positive actions which could benefit his company, as well as the environment. The programme would also cost him nothing, apart from a bit of time to share information with me, as well as to comment on my answers to the demanding Cambridge questions and assignments.

Q: He sounded a bit reluctant. Was it tricky winning him over?

A: Not at all! Within 2 weeks, the company’s chairman was totally onboard. He actually enjoyed our intense discussions and reviewing my assignments. ?He could see how sustainability measures, such as decreasing manufacturing waste, increasing recycling, improving product circularity and reducing carbon emissions could help his company become more resilient and contribute positively to the bottom line. After the 8-week Cambridge course, he asked me to continue working with them as a sustainability consultant and he invited me to join his newly created sustainability task force. With his support, the learnings from the Cambridge course, and everyone’s hard work, we were able to positively transform all the divisions of the plastics company and to decrease their impact on the environment.

Q: What about your work in education? How did that come about?

A: Université Paris Dauphine-PSL opened a campus in London in 2014. ?As a Dauphine graduate, I checked out their curriculum online which brought back a lot of memories of what I had studied all those years ago. I wrote to them explaining that as an Alumni, I was excited about their new campus. ?I also told them I thought there was one important topic missing which has a growing importance in today’s business world: Sustainability. I got an almost immediate response inviting me over for a chat. I now teach a Climate Change course to their ?year 1 London students and a Sustainability Leadership course to the newly launched Dauphine London eMBA programme.?

It is a job I enjoy a lot. Making students realise the implications of climate change on business and giving them the desire to do something about it is very satisfying. The more they know, the more they are likely to take action that will make a positive difference for the future of humanity and the planet.

Q: Final question – what advice do you have for our readers?

A: Go for it and don’t look back. If this is your calling, you will make it happen. Get the training you need and never stop learning. Meet like-minded people and work hard, something will come up.

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We left the conversation feeling inspired by Aude. She never gave up on her passion for the environment and was able to seize opportunities to shift her career and help clients and students spark positive change.

Dear readers – we would love to know: What opportunities do you see to drive positive impact?