My year as a young Sustainability Ambassador at DSM

I joined DSM as an intern in September 2021 – shorty after I’d defended my master’s thesis on sustainable Business models. Like many people of my generation, working in a position that has MEANING is my top priority. So I was looking for a company with values that aligned with my own and a role where I could have an impact. The post of Sustainability Ambassador at PCA, offered the perfect combination.

As the youngest employee in my group, I was motivated, enthusiastic and hopeful when I started my role. But, I was also a little nervous and worried that my vision and approach to sustainability might not be achievable in a business context. I didn’t want to become disillusioned.

Fortunately, since my first working day, it has been clear to me that Sustainability is key for DSM. It’s one of the six values on our Culture Compass, stating in black and white that everything should be done with “purpose.” In all its business units, DSM is creating brighter lives. We are at the service of society - feeding people, healing them, and, in Personal Care, creating wellbeing. With that idea at its foundation, it would make no sense for the company to build on it at our planet’s expense.

Six months after starting as an intern, I was offered the opportunity to continue as a permanent employee – and of course, I wanted to stay, as this is the perfect place to learn. In Sustainability, there’s always more to be done, so as well as being directed by my managers and team, I also have responsibilities on several projects. I have always felt heard, even if I’m not that experienced yet; and this is appreciable.

For over a year now, my focus has been on structuring eco-design. This involves working with different experts on the topic, as well as with the innovation team to define the key criteria for a sustainable ingredient. It isn’t always easy to combine different criteria, for example, a natural ingredient with a low water footprint, or a circular ingredient with a low carbon footprint. All the criteria need to be considered from the very start of an ingredient’s development process, because there are still lots of choices to be made.

My team is also working on “unfolding” sustainability in our current innovations and existing products, by capturing data using tools like Life Cycle Analysis. We’re using this information to improve products, share their sustainability stories, and to explore new opportunities for our future-resilient ingredients. Transparency, built on solid facts is key for us.

If I let my university-self judge, one year on from joining DSM, the hopes I had for my role have been confirmed in several ways:

• Sustainability and Business can work together, in the same team, without compromise or falling into greenwashing. Everything is possible when everyone agrees that arguments should be based on data and science.
• There is collaboration in the industry, and the success of some encourages others to speed up. It’s encouraging to know we’re all moving more or less in the same direction, even if some are going at a faster pace.
• There are allies for sustainability in all departments and in all the regions. For us, the driving force is our group of Sustain’ablers who are helping to spread the sustainability message, embed sustainable practices and leading some key projects.

Ultimately, this is a journey for everyone and the best you can do is have the courage to start the conversation ? to empower and encourage new ways of thinking. Because many people are willing to listen, think about the issues and then adapt.

Overall, my experience so far has been very positive. I can really feel the dynamism around me, I feel supported by great company values, and, whenever I have to explain my job at DSM when someone asks me what I do for a living, I feel proud.