AJ&Smart Guides Mastermind Workshop in Berlin.

There’s an uncomfortable truth I’ve come to believe after years as a sustainability consultant: deep subject matter expertise, on its own, changes almost nothing.

I say this as someone who built her reputation on it. I was the subject matter expert – the person who could explain Scope 3 emissions, food systems sustainability, and carbon literacy in my sleep. And what I learned, slowly and then all at once, is that knowing the right answer is not the same as getting an organisation to act on it. A brilliant strategy sitting in a slide deck nobody opens is worth exactly nothing.

That realisation is what reshaped my entire business.

Tools and resources used during the AJ&Smart Guides Mastermind Workshop in Berlin.

The lesson Berlin made obvious

Last week I was in Berlin for a Guides Mastermind – a gathering of facilitators and business owners – which spilled over into UXcamp, spontaneous co-facilitation, and some of the most creatively energising conversations I’ve had in years. One theme kept surfacing, and it wasn’t about sustainability at all. It was about the value of learning “adjacent” skills: the capabilities that aren’t obviously core to your industry, but that quietly make you ten times more effective inside it.

For me, those adjacent skills have become the actual product.

A few years ago I took up AJ&Smart’s Workshopper Master programme. On paper, facilitation has nothing to do with food sustainability. In practice, it’s the missing link between knowing what should happen and making it happen. I turned that training into our Strategy Sprint – a structured process where I get a client’s whole team in one room and we design, or finally commit to, their sustainability plan together.

Guides Mastermind Workshop at the AJ&Smart head office in Berlin. Presentation Credit: Dee Scarano.

Why clients actually pay for this

Here’s what I’ve found organisations really want. Not more reports. Not another expert telling them what they already suspect. They want results – and results come from aligned teams making structured decisions together.

When a leadership team makes those decisions in a single focused session, it saves enormous time and money. It kills the circular meetings, the “let’s revisit this next quarter,” the slow death by calendar. And with something like sustainability, that matters even more, because sustainability is fundamentally about change. Most of the work isn’t technical at all. It’s getting people to do the thing they already agreed to do – often a commitment made at senior level that nobody quite knows how to translate into everyday company culture.

That translation gap is where I now live. And the tools I use to close it are almost entirely adjacent skills I went out of my way to learn:

• Behavioural science, to design interventions and initiatives that actually shift how people act, not just what they say.
• Design thinking and innovation tools, to turn vague pledges into concrete, workable plans – including inside our Carbon Literacy training.
• Facilitation, to help sustainability leads in large corporates design a food strategy with their entire team, so the plan has ownership baked in from day one.

The East German Ampelmännchen was designed in 1961 by traffic psychologist Margaret Mälzer. Its playful walking pose made it more memorable than West German signals, and it has since become a beloved cultural icon.

The real takeaway for consultants

If you’re an expert in your field, your knowledge is your foundation – but it is not your edge. Your edge is your ability to translate that knowledge into action inside someone else’s organisation. The most valuable thing I ever did for my business was stop trying to be a deeper expert and start becoming a better translator.

Expertise gets you in the room. Adjacent skills are what make anything actually happen once you’re there.

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Our community came together online to explore how animal welfare and responsible sourcing can help build more sustainable and resilient food systems.

Animal welfare is no longer a niche sustainability topic.

Across the food industry, it is becoming increasingly connected to consumer trust, responsible sourcing, ESG reporting, investor expectations, and long-term business resilience. From retailers and food manufacturers to hospitality groups and caterers, more organisations are exploring how animal welfare fits into their sustainability strategies.

At our June Future Green Members Monthly Meetup, Dawn Neo, Director of Corporate Engagement at Global Food Partners, provided practical insights into how food, retail, and hospitality companies across Asia are advancing cage-free egg sourcing and strengthening animal welfare commitments. Heidi also reflected on the evolution of animal welfare frameworks and why supporting animal welfare is becoming an essential part of building sustainable, resilient food systems.

Why Animal Welfare Matters More Than Ever

Animal welfare influences much more than farm practices.

It is increasingly linked to responsible sourcing, food security, biodiversity, supply chain resilience, and ESG performance. 

As Heidi explained:

From the Five Freedoms to the Five Domains

Many organisations are familiar with the Five Freedoms framework, which focuses on reducing suffering through freedom from hunger, discomfort, pain, fear, and the ability to express natural behaviours.

Today, leading organisations are increasingly adopting the Five Domains Model, which goes further by recognising animals as sentient beings capable of positive experiences as well as negative ones.

The Five Domains consider:

• Nutrition
• Environment
• Health
• Behaviour
• Mental State

This shift moves the conversation beyond simply avoiding suffering towards creating conditions where animals can experience wellbeing and live “a life worth living.”

The Five Domains of Animal Welfare and their role in building better food systems. (Source: Modern Poultry)

Why Cage-Free Eggs Have Become a Global Priority

One of the most visible animal welfare issues is the use of conventional cages for laying hens.

Dawn explained that more than 2,000 companies globally have committed to sourcing 100% cage-free eggs within defined timelines, with many targeting 2025–2030. These commitments span hospitality groups, retailers, food manufacturers, and caterers around the world.

Importantly, the momentum is growing across Asia.

Companies such as Minor International, Dairy Farm, SaladStop!, Lotus’s, and Super Indo have all taken steps toward cage-free sourcing, while retailers across the region are expanding cage-free product availability.

As Dawn shared:

Cage-free farming supports better animal welfare outcomes. (Source: Global Food Partners)

What Does Cage-Free Actually Mean?

Cage-free does not simply mean removing cages.

The goal is to give hens the opportunity to express natural behaviours such as:

• Nesting
• Perching
• Foraging
• Dust bathing

Dawn explained how hens naturally seek private nesting spaces, scratch and forage for food, perch at night, and dust bathe to maintain feather health. Cage-free systems are designed to allow these behaviours, helping improve both physical and behavioural welfare outcomes.

However, she also noted an important point:

Cage-free systems allow hens to express natural behaviours such as foraging, nesting, dustbathing, and perching—key elements of good animal welfare. (Source: Global Food Partners)

Turning Commitments into Action

One of the biggest challenges companies face is not deciding to improve animal welfare—it is figuring out how to implement it.

Global Food Partners works directly with food businesses, retailers, hospitality groups, and producers across Asia to help bridge that gap. Their work includes:

• Supplier engagement and training
• Producer support and farm transitions
• Development of cage-free roadmaps and cost reduction strategies
• Industry education
• Building local supply chains

Dawn shared examples from organisations including Compass Group, Best Western, Super Indo, Lagardère Travel Retail, and IKEA, demonstrating how businesses are moving from commitments to measurable implementation.

The Cost Question

One of the most common questions raised during the session was cost.

While cage-free eggs typically cost more to produce, Dawn explained that the overall impact on many hospitality operations is often smaller than businesses initially expect.

Research and industry experience suggest cage-free systems may cost approximately 20–36% more in mature markets in the US or EU , but the price gap is higher in some emerging markets in Asia. However, for some food businesses, the overall business impact can be relatively modest if  eggs are only one small component of their broader food operations.

The discussion also highlighted opportunities to offset costs through:

• Reducing food waste
• Improving operational efficiency
• Diversifying protein sources
• Smarter procurement strategies

Growing availability of cage-free eggs in supermarkets across Asia. (Source: Global Food Partners)

The Connection Between Animal Welfare and Food Waste

An unexpected connection emerged during the discussion.

At our previous meetup on food waste with Winnow Solutions, participants learned that scrambled eggs were one of the largest sources of breakfast buffet waste in many hotel operations.

This sparked an important reflection: if eggs remain such an important part of our food system, being a low cost source of protein for many, businesses should think not only about how they are sourced, but also how they are valued and wasted.

Animal welfare and food waste may seem like separate topics, but both challenge us to build food systems that are more responsible, efficient, and respectful of resources.

Key Takeaways

🥚 Animal welfare is becoming an increasingly important part of ESG and sustainability strategies.

🌱 Cage-free sourcing is gaining momentum across Asia, driven by businesses, investors, retailers, and consumers.

🐔 The Five Domains Model is helping organisations move beyond reducing suffering towards supporting positive animal wellbeing.

🤝 Supplier engagement and collaboration are critical to implementing meaningful animal welfare improvements.

📉 Reducing food waste and improving sourcing practices can work together to create more resilient and responsible food systems.

💬 Audience Insights and Q&A

Q1: Why are companies choosing to adopt cage-free egg commitments?

A: Dawn explained that motivations vary. For some businesses, animal welfare aligns with their company values and sustainability goals. Others are responding to investor expectations, ESG reporting requirements, consumer demand, or responsible sourcing commitments.

Q2: What are the biggest challenges when transitioning to cage-free eggs?

A: Common barriers include supply availability, higher costs, limited access to cage-free egg products such as liquid eggs, supplier readiness, and existing procurement contracts. Global Food Partners helps companies navigate these challenges by working directly with both buyers and producers.

Q3: Does switching to cage-free eggs significantly increase costs?

A: Dawn shared that cage-free eggs typically cost around 20–36% more at production level in mature markets such as the US and EU, but the price gap is higher in some emerging markets in Asia. However, for some food businesses, the overall business impact can be relatively modest if eggs are one small component of their broader food operations. Some organisations offset costs through food waste reduction and more efficient menu planning.

Heidi Spurrell, CEO of Future Green interviewing Rebecca Stacey, Schools Coordinator at The Carbon Literacy Project

Why Carbon Literacy Could Be One of the Most Important Skills We Teach the Next Generation

What if every student left school not only understanding climate change, but also feeling confident, empowered, and equipped to take meaningful action?

That’s the vision Rebecca Stacey, Schools Coordinator at The Carbon Literacy Project, shared on an episode of the Future Bites Podcast with Heidi Spurrell. Rebecca’s mission is simple but powerful: help schools embed carbon literacy into everyday learning so that sustainability becomes part of school culture, not just a one-off lesson.

As climate change continues to shape the future our young people will inherit, carbon literacy is rapidly becoming a foundational life skill.

🎧 Listen and watch our full podcast interview here.

What Is Carbon Literacy?

Carbon Literacy is more than understanding climate science.

It is the awareness of the carbon impacts of our everyday actions and the ability and motivation to reduce emissions at an individual, community, and organisational level. Rebecca describes it as a practical, action-focused approach that leaves people feeling empowered rather than overwhelmed.

Unlike many climate education initiatives, Carbon Literacy doesn’t stop at raising awareness. It helps participants understand:

• The science behind climate change
• The impacts already being felt today
• Climate justice and global inequalities
• Practical actions individuals and organisations can take
• How to influence others and create wider change

Most importantly, it turns knowledge into action.

Why Schools Need Carbon Literacy

Rebecca spent over 20 years as a teacher before joining The Carbon Literacy Project. During her time in schools, she noticed a growing disconnect.

Students were asking questions about climate change, sustainability, and the future, but schools often lacked the confidence, training, or resources to answer them effectively.

At the same time, young people were becoming increasingly concerned about environmental issues.

Carbon literacy helps bridge that gap by providing educators with the knowledge and confidence to have meaningful conversations about climate change while giving students practical ways to contribute to solutions.

As Rebecca explains, the goal isn’t to replace existing curriculum content. Instead, carbon literacy acts as a catalyst that helps schools connect sustainability across subjects, operations, and community engagement.

A Global first: Harrow Shenzhen Students Become Carbon Literate with Future Green.

Climate Education That Goes Beyond the Classroom

One of the most compelling aspects of Carbon Literacy for Schools is that it isn’t limited to teachers.

The programme is designed to engage:

• Teachers
• School leaders
• Governors
• Support staff
• Parent groups
• Wider school communities

Rebecca emphasises that sustainability cannot sit with one enthusiastic teacher alone. Lasting change happens when the whole school community understands the challenge and feels empowered to contribute.

This whole-school approach creates a culture where sustainability becomes everyone’s responsibility.

The Power of Action: Carbon Literacy Pledges

A unique feature of Carbon Literacy training is the pledge system.

Every participant makes meaningful commitments that are reviewed as part of the certification process. These pledges must be realistic, measurable, and create genuine impact.

Rebecca shared several examples from schools:

Student Pledges

• Walking or cycling to school more often
• Reducing waste and single-use items
• Encouraging family members to adopt sustainable habits

Group Pledges

• Creating a Climate Café for discussion and action
• Measuring and reducing the school’s carbon footprint
• Building stronger links with the local community on sustainability initiatives

These aren’t theoretical exercises. They are practical actions that help students and staff see that they can make a difference.

Previous Future Green Carbon Literacy Training content for Harrow Shenzhen.

From Climate Anxiety to Climate Action

Many young people are worried about the future.

Research that we discussed during the podcast highlighted that climate concerns are widespread among students, yet many feel powerless to influence outcomes.

This is where carbon literacy makes a difference.

Rather than focusing solely on problems, the programme emphasises solutions, agency, and optimism. Participants leave understanding not only the scale of the challenge but also the opportunities available to create positive change.

As Rebecca noted, one of the most effective ways to tackle climate anxiety is through action.

What Does Success Look Like?

Schools across the UK are already seeing results.

Some have created wildflower meadows, improved biodiversity, and transformed unused spaces into learning environments. Others have investigated energy efficiency, explored renewable energy options, or launched student-led sustainability projects.

The common theme?

Success happens when schools work collectively and give students a voice in shaping solutions.

Rebecca’s Vision: Every Child Leaving School Carbon Literate

When asked about the future, Rebecca’s answer was clear:

Every child should leave school carbon literate.

It’s an ambitious goal, but one that reflects the growing importance of climate education worldwide.

By equipping educators first, schools can create a ripple effect that reaches students, families, communities, and future workplaces.

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Carbon Literacy Project Lightening Decision Jam Workshop at Autotrader Head Office London. Photo credit: Otto Mendelsson

Last week I found myself back in central London, facilitating a workshop at Autotrader’s offices in Covent Garden, London.

The last time I regularly worked in this part of London, I was a university student working as a part-time retail assistant. Fast forward a couple of decades and I’m now standing in a boardroom talking about climate action, organisational change, and facilitation.

Life has a funny way of coming full circle.

The workshop brought together twelve participants from a wonderfully mixed group of backgrounds: Carbon Literacy trainers, sustainability professionals, local authority representatives, educators, consultants, and members of the AJ&Smart facilitation community.

Lightening Decision Jam workshop. Photo credit: Otto Mendelsson

The challenge we explored was one that I hear repeatedly from organisations:

How do we turn Carbon Literacy pledges into real organisational change?

Because here’s the reality.

Most Carbon Literacy programmes do a brilliant job of increasing awareness. People leave motivated. They understand the urgency. They want to do something.

Certificates are awarded.

Pledges are made.

And then six months later…

Nothing much has happened.

The motivation fades. Pledges get buried under competing priorities. Sustainability becomes another item on an already overloaded to-do list.

The question I wanted to explore was whether facilitation could help bridge that gap between commitment and implementation.

Starting the day with icebreakers to create psychological safety. Photo credit: Otto Mendelsson

Which Hat Are You Wearing?

One of the most interesting conversations during the workshop centred around a simple question:

Which hat are you wearing?

As Carbon Literacy trainers, we spend much of our time wearing the trainer hat.

We’re sharing information. Teaching. Explaining. Building awareness. Helping people understand climate science, carbon emissions, and the role they can play in creating change.

At this stage, information is essential.

But something shifts when we reach the pledge stage. At that point, people usually don’t need more information. They already know. They understand the challenge and they want to contribute.

What they need is help navigating the messy reality of implementation.

Questions start to emerge:

• Who owns this action?
• How do we get leadership buy-in?
• What happens when sustainability clashes with commercial priorities?
• How do we create accountability?
• What can I actually influence?

This is where the facilitator hat becomes essential.

LDJ facilitation workshop exercises.

Facilitation isn’t about providing answers.

It’s about holding the space for people to surface challenges, explore barriers, make decisions, and uncover solutions together.

As facilitators, our role shifts from teaching people what to think towards helping them work out what to do.

Carbon Literacy helps people understand why change is needed.

Facilitation helps people figure out how to make that change happen.

And I believe that distinction is often missing from many sustainability programmes.

Participants taking part in ‘quiet time’ to allow ideas and thoughts to flow. Photo credit: Otto Mendelsson

Exploring Why Pledges Get Stuck

To investigate this challenge, I ran a condensed version of Lightning Decision Jam (LDJ), one of my favourite facilitation methods, originally developed by AJ&Smart and adapted through my own sustainability work.

The Diamond of Participatory Decision Making – Sam Kaner et al / Graphic adapted from AJ&Smart.

Normally I’d run a full implementation workshop over around three hours, but for this session we compressed it into ninety minutes.

The principles behind the method are deceptively simple:

• Structured, time-boxed activities
• Thinking individually before group discussion (“together alone”)
• Visualising ideas rather than relying on conversation alone
• Prioritising actions and assigning accountability

Rather than jumping straight into solutions, we began with a Sailboat exercise to explore what is helping sustainability move forward and what is holding it back.

The positives were encouraging.

Participants shared examples of leadership commitment, growing sustainability teams, increased awareness, and employees who genuinely want to contribute.

Lightning Decision Jam Activity. Photo credit: Otto Mendelsson

The challenges, however, were strikingly familiar.

• Sustainability isn’t seen as a business priority when pressures increase.
• Ownership is unclear.
• Resources are limited.
• Staff feel powerless to influence decisions.
• Sustainability gets added to existing workloads.
• Meetings generate discussion but not decisions.
• Long-term benefits struggle to compete with short-term costs.
• Leadership commitment doesn’t always translate into action.

Categorising barriers to progress. Photo credit: Otto Mendelsson

From Problems to Possibilities

Once the barriers were visible, we shifted into solution mode using “How Might We” questions.

Some of the questions generated included:

• How might we ensure leaders prioritise sustainability over convenience?
• How might we empower people to take meaningful action?
• How might we improve decision-making processes around sustainability?

‘How Might We’ Activity. Photo credit: Otto Mendelsson

Using an Impact versus Effort Matrix, participants prioritised the solutions most likely to create change.

What I found fascinating was that the strongest ideas weren’t technical sustainability interventions.

They focused on people.

Leadership.

Accountability.

Decision-making.

Ownership.

Creating space for participation.

The conversation reinforced something I’ve observed repeatedly over the years:

Most sustainability challenges are not information problems. They’re implementation problems.

Impact versus Effort Matrix activity. Photo credit: Otto Mendelsson

Why Facilitation Belongs in Sustainability

This workshop reminded me why I care so deeply about facilitation.

I’ve spent years working across sustainability, innovation, food systems, and organisational change, and I keep seeing the same pattern.

People care.

People want to help.

People understand the issues.

Yet progress often stalls because organisations haven’t created the conditions for action.

That’s where facilitation comes in.

A good facilitator helps groups move beyond discussion.

Beyond information sharing.

Beyond good intentions.

Towards decisions, ownership, and action.

Carbon Literacy training lays the foundation.

Facilitation helps build the bridge.

For organisations that have already invested in Carbon Literacy but feel frustrated by a lack of progress on pledges, facilitation may be the missing piece.

That, ultimately, is what this workshop was about: not simply increasing Carbon Literacy, but creating the conditions for climate action to take root and grow.

[Left] Ending the day with drinks and networking. [Right] Heidi and Otto from CLP outside Autotrader’s head office in London.

A Few Personal Highlights

The trip wasn’t all workshops and sticky notes.

While in London I also visited IMA, the beautiful vegan restaurant founded by Jessica, who previously interned with us.

Lunch at IMA with Jessica and friends and family.

Anyone who has worked in hospitality knows just how tough that industry can be. Seeing Jessica build something so thoughtful, values-led, and successful was genuinely inspiring. It reminded me that meaningful work often takes years of persistence behind the scenes before anyone notices the results.

Vegan dishes at IMA.

The week also coincided with my son completing his first year at university.

As any parent will understand, those milestones have a habit of making you pause and reflect.

Both experiences felt strangely connected to the workshop itself.

Whether we’re building a business, completing a degree, changing an organisation, or driving sustainability initiatives, meaningful progress rarely happens because of one big moment.

It happens because people keep showing up.

One decision.

One conversation.

One action at a time.

And that’s ultimately what this workshop was about.

Not simply increasing Carbon Literacy.

But creating the conditions for climate action to take root and grow.

Books That Continue to Influence My Facilitation Work

Many of the methods I use draw inspiration from thinkers who have shaped the facilitation and systems thinking world, including:

• Good Strategy Bad Strategy – Richard P. Rumelt
• The Power of Moments – Chip Heath and Dan Heath
  
• The Lean Startup – Eric Ries
• Managing Transitions – William Bridges
• Sprint – Braden Kowitz, Jake Knapp and John Zeratsky
• The Art of Gathering – Priya Parker

Recommended facilitation and workshop books.

These books continue to influence how I design workshops that help people move from discussion into meaningful action.

Final Thoughts

Reflecting on the workshop, I was reminded that creating change is rarely about having more information. More often, it’s about creating the right conditions for people to turn good intentions into meaningful action.

Carbon Literacy helps people understand the challenge. Facilitation helps them navigate the path forward.

If we want sustainability pledges to become lasting organisational change, we need to move beyond awareness alone and invest in the conversations, decisions, and accountability that make action possible. Because real progress doesn’t happen through a single workshop or certificate—it happens when people are empowered to take the next step, and then the one after that.

If you’re curious to learn the three core workshop recipes that I use, I’ll be running a training session in the coming weeks. 

I’ll be sharing more soon, but in the meantime, download my top 10 tips for facilitation.

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Guides Mastermind Meetup in Berlin

Last week, I found myself in Berlin for the first time. What started as a Guides Mastermind (facilitation for business owners) meetup somehow turned into an unexpected UXcamp adventure, spontaneous co-facilitation, deep conversations about entrepreneurship, and one of the most creatively energising weeks I’ve had in a long time.

As a mum, business owner, facilitator, wife, and someone constantly juggling a thousand moving pieces, four nights away felt genuinely restorative. Not just physically, but mentally. It gave me space to think again.

And honestly, I didn’t realise how much I needed that.

The Biggest Lesson: Document What’s Real

One of the biggest themes that kept coming up throughout the week was this idea of capturing what’s real.

Not creating polished “thought leadership.”
Not manufacturing content for the algorithm.
Just documenting the work, the conversations, the messy middle, and the moments that actually happen.

At the Guides Mastermind, we talked a lot about content marketing, entrepreneurship, and how authenticity is becoming more valuable precisely because AI-generated content is everywhere. The advice that stayed with me most was simple: Document reality.

The working sessions.
The coffee chats.
The facilitation prep on the train.
The experiments.
The mistakes.
The behind-the-scenes moments.

At AJ&Smart Head Office in Berlin Photo Credit: Dr Andrew Greenland

Why I Bought a Camera in Hong Kong

Ironically, this lesson hit me because of something that happened earlier this year in Hong Kong.

Back in February, I ran a three-day live cooking demo at a large scale sports event that focused on sustainable chefs. Initially, I only hired a videographer for two of the days because I assumed the final day “wasn’t important enough in terms of the brief.” But when we looked at the final storytelling and content flow, we realised it would feel incomplete without that last day documented.

So I made a spontaneous decision and bought a DJI Pocket 3 camera.

Honestly? Best investment ever.

The funny thing is, most people watching the final edited videos would never know which footage came from a professional videographer and which came from a small camera sitting at the front of the stage.

That completely shifted how I think about content.

You do not need perfect conditions to start documenting your work.
You just need consistency.

And with AI tools improving so quickly, one piece of real content can now become dozens of future assets, blogs, clips, newsletters, workshops, reflections, social posts. The bottleneck is no longer production quality.

The Magic of Spontaneous Collaboration

But beyond the business lessons, Berlin reminded me about something deeper too: the value of creative spontaneity.

One of the highlights of the trip was unexpectedly co-facilitating with Dee Scarano and Lukas Sveceny at UXcamp. We literally designed the workshop pitch and facilitation structure on the commute there.

No overplanning.
No perfectionism.
Just trust, collaboration, and emergence.

And somehow… It worked beautifully. That’s what happens when you bring together facilitators with over 10,000 hours combined experience.

That experience reminded me why I love facilitation so much. Some of the best ideas don’t emerge from rigid planning. They emerge from people building together in real time.

Networking and Brainstorming at UXcamp Berlin

Morning Pages and the Power of Reflection

One exercise we did especially stayed with me.

One morning we started with 15 minutes of uninterrupted stream-of-consciousness writing. No editing. No stopping. Just writing whatever came up.

One of the the prompts I will remember was:

Simple. But surprisingly emotional.

It created space for clarity in a way I hadn’t expected.

And maybe that’s the lesson I’m bringing home from Berlin:

Sometimes we don’t need more strategy.
Sometimes we just need more space to hear ourselves think again.

As facilitators, consultants, and sustainability professionals, we often feel pressure to appear fully figured out. But the conversations that mattered most last week were the vulnerable ones. The honest reflections about burnout, priorities, career transitions, creativity, and figuring things out as we go.

And honestly, that felt refreshing.

‘We’re obsessed with helping teams work better together’ – Elke Calewaert Photo Credit: Elke Calewaert

The Small Moments I’ll Remember Most

here were also smaller moments I loved:

• Visiting the AJ&Smart offices for the first time
• Getting professional photos taken
• Seeing the Berlin Wall in person
• Falling in love with an absurdly expensive coffee grinder
• Having long conversations about workshops, entrepreneurship, and human behaviour
• A reminder of the importance of learning ‘adjacent’ skills that are not obviously core to our industry
• Being reminded how much good design shapes how we think and feel

Sometimes it’s these seemingly ordinary moments that stay with us the longest.

And now for a very special announcement…

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Our community coming together online to explore how reducing food waste can create smarter, more efficient, and more resilient food businesses.

What if the biggest opportunity to improve profits, reduce emissions, and future-proof food businesses was hiding inside the bin?

That was one of the biggest takeaways from our May Future Green Members Monthly Meetup, where sustainability leaders, hospitality professionals, consultants, chefs, and food businesses came together online to explore one urgent topic: reducing food loss and waste.

This month’s session featured David Jackson, Director of Marketing and Public Affairs at Winnow, a company helping commercial kitchens use AI to better understand and reduce food waste globally.

And David opened the conversation with a line nobody on the call will forget:

Strange? Maybe.

Necessary? Absolutely.

Because behind every discarded croissant, tray of scrambled eggs, or untouched buffet item lies a hidden operational cost many kitchens still fail to measure.

Turning food waste data into smarter kitchen decisions. (Source: Winnow)

Food Waste Is Bigger Than Most Businesses Realise

Around one-third to 40% of all food globally is never eaten, while food waste contributes significantly to greenhouse gas emissions through methane released in landfill.

But one of the strongest takeaways from the session was that waste reduction is not simply about “being greener.” It is also about protecting margins in a time of rising food costs and supply chain pressures.

David shared that many commercial kitchens unknowingly waste between 4% to 15% of purchased food, with some operations wasting even more.

For hospitality businesses already facing inflation and operational pressure, that is a major hidden cost.

Making food waste visible, measurable, and preventable. (Source: Winnow)

Why Measurement Changes Everything

A recurring word throughout our Future Green Meetup was visibility. As Heidi highlighted during the session, when waste is not measured, it remains invisible.

This is where Winnow’s AI system comes in. Their technology combines cameras, weighing scales, and computer vision AI to identify food being discarded in real time.

The goal is not to create more work for chefs. In fact, the process is designed to be almost effortless for kitchen teams. Staff simply dispose of food as normal while the system automatically records what is being wasted, how much it weighs, and its associated cost.

This data then helps kitchens identify patterns:

• Which menu items are consistently overproduced
• Which ingredients are being spoiled
• Which dishes customers leave unfinished
• Where operational changes can quickly reduce waste

The discussion reinforced something many businesses overlook: prevention is far more impactful than simply diverting waste from landfill.

The Breakfast Buffet Challenge

According to Winnow’s data, buffets are often one of the most wasteful areas within hospitality because kitchens prepare large volumes of food before knowing exact guest demand.

And surprisingly, one of the biggest waste items across hotels?

Scrambled eggs.

David shared a case study from a Marriott hotel in London where Winnow identified excessive waste from breakfast service. By introducing smaller batch cooking and live cooking stations during peak hours, the hotel significantly reduced wasted eggs.

Another standout example came from Hilton hotels in the UAE.

After measuring food waste across breakfast operations, Hilton achieved a reduction of more than 60% in food waste per guest served within just a few months.

What impressed us most was not just the technology itself, but the mindset shift behind it.

The conversation was not about blame. It was about creating visibility so teams could improve together.

David also shared a strong Asia-Pacific example involving Mandarin Oriental Hong Kong. According to Winnow’s data, the hotel achieved an overall food waste reduction of more than 70%, saving over 21,000 meals annually and reducing costs by more than HK$300,000. It showed that food waste reduction is not only possible at scale, but can also deliver measurable operational and financial results locally. 

AI-powered food waste tracking helping kitchens identify exactly what is being wasted and where prevention can start. (Source: Winnow)

AI Is Useful, But People Drive the Change

While AI was a major theme throughout the session, David repeatedly emphasised something important:

Winnow supports kitchens with food waste coaching, operational training, and culinary guidance alongside its technology platform. Chefs receive insights into overproduction, spoilage, trim waste, and guest behavior, allowing them to adjust menus and prep methods over time.

One example that sparked a lot of discussion was a hotel reducing melon waste simply by sourcing smaller fruit and adjusting slicing techniques.

Another involved analysing unfinished pastries left on guests’ plates. Hilton discovered guests rarely finished full-sized croissants, so they reduced portion sizes and lowered waste without compromising the guest experience.

It was a reminder that sustainability is often less about grand innovation and more about operational awareness.

🎉 Engaging the Community

The session wrapped up with an interactive Kahoot quiz, where participants tested their knowledge on food waste, buffet operations, waste prevention, and sustainable kitchen practices.

Congratulations to Eddie Pang from East Hotel for topping the leader board and winning an exclusive consultation from Winnow. 

Moments like these brought an engaging and interactive energy to the session through shared learning and conversation.

🌍 Why This Conversation Matters

At Future Green, we often talk about systems thinking and practical sustainability.

This meetup reflected both.

What stood out most was how achievable many of these changes actually are once businesses begin measuring waste consistently.

Because ultimately, waste that is invisible is very difficult to reduce.

And whether through AI tools, manual audits, or simple kitchen tracking systems, measurement creates awareness and awareness creates action.

💬 Audience Insights and Q&A

The live Q&A brought valuable operational insights from hospitality and food service professionals across the Future Green community.

💬 Q: Are businesses focusing too much on diversion instead of prevention when it comes to food waste?
A: David explained that while recycling and diversion from landfill are important, prevention should always be the priority. Once food is wasted, valuable resources such as ingredients, labor, water, and energy have already been lost.

💬 Q: Why should businesses invest in a solution like Winnow instead of simply tracking food waste manually on paper?
A: David explained that it depends on the business’s objectives. Manual audits using paper and scales can still help teams understand what is happening operationally. However, for businesses managing margin pressure, sustainability targets, or larger operations, a solution like Winnow can automate measurement, provide deeper operational insights, and support more effective long-term waste reduction.

💬 Q: Do kitchens resist food waste tracking technology or changing operational habits?
A: David shared that change management is an important part of the process. Winnow focuses on making waste tracking simple and non-disruptive for kitchen teams, while helping chefs understand the operational and financial value behind the data.

AST: The Eco-Conscious Kitchen: Designing Menus that Align with UN Sustainable Development Goals webinar with Rhea Vitto Tabora (Co-Founder of AST), Anna Lees (Culinova Consulting) and Chef Sandy Keung (TABLE).

Last week, I was invited to join Rhea Vitto Tabora, Co-Founder of the Asia Sustainable Travel (AST), for The Eco-Conscious Kitchen: Designing Menus that Align with UN Sustainable Development Goals webinar.

Together with Anna Lees (Culinova Consulting) and Chef Sandy Keung (TABLE), we explored what it really takes to design menus that balance sustainability with flavor, profitability, and guest experience.

With over 100 attendees from hotel groups across the globe, it was an engaging session packed with practical insights, and a strong reminder that sustainability in foodservice is no longer a future ambition, but a present-day responsibility.

What emerged was a clear message. Sustainable kitchens are not built through grand gestures, but through smarter, more intentional decisions.

Rethinking what drives impact

One of the biggest misconceptions in hospitality is where impact actually comes from. Many operators focus heavily on local sourcing, assuming it is the most sustainable choice.

But as Anna Lees put it:

While local sourcing plays an important role in supporting communities, the real environmental impact lies in what is on the plate. Ingredient choice, particularly reducing high-impact proteins like beef, can dramatically shift a menu’s footprint.

As we heard and illustrated this with a powerful example, replacing beef with plant-based alternatives like tempeh can reduce emissions by up to 30 times, with significant water savings as well.

For operators, this reframes the conversation. Sustainability is not just about sourcing closer. It is about choosing better.

AST: The Eco-Conscious Kitchen: Designing Menus that Align with UN Sustainable Development Goals webinar

The hidden challenges inside the kitchen

For many foodservice providers, the challenge is not willingness, but execution.

It was worth highlighting that one of the biggest barriers is visibility.

Without clear supply chain data, it becomes difficult to establish a carbon baseline or make informed decisions. Yet, measuring impact is not as complex as many believe. With just a few key data points such as portion size, country of origin, and production method, kitchens can begin to understand their footprint.

The real challenge lies elsewhere. Time, ownership, and siloed teams often slow progress. Sustainability initiatives fail when procurement, marketing, and operations and other departments are not aligned.

Designing menus that people actually want

Shifting to more sustainable menus is not just a technical exercise. It is a creative and commercial one.

Anna stressed the importance of moving beyond niche thinking.

Plant-forward dishes must be designed for everyone. That means prioritizing flavor, texture, and experience just as much as sustainability. Positioning also matters. A well-crafted dish can fail simply because it is labeled or placed incorrectly on the menu.

Chef Sandy Keung offered a different perspective, showing how sustainability can be embedded naturally into the dining experience. By integrating principles from Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) and seasonal eating, her menus connect sustainability with personal wellbeing.

As she explained,

By linking food choices to health and culture, sustainability becomes more relevant and engaging for guests.

Turning waste into opportunity

Beyond menu design, operational changes can unlock significant impact.

From repurposing food waste into new products to using technology that reduces spoilage, kitchens have opportunities to rethink waste as a resource.

I shared examples of turning fruit trimmings into high-value products like kombucha, transforming waste streams into revenue streams.

The key is making these changes easy for teams to adopt. Behavior change, not just strategy, is what drives real results.

From ideas to action

The webinar closed with a simple but powerful takeaway. Start small.

Focus on one ingredient, one dish, or one process. Test, learn, and build from there. Sustainability does not require perfection. It requires momentum.

Because ultimately, as the session reinforced, a menu is more than just food on a plate. It is a tool that can influence supply chains, shape consumer behavior, and contribute to multiple UN Sustainable Development Goals.

On stage with fellow panellists at the HK Sport & Sustainability Summit 2026: Michael Long (HK Land), Natasha Chawla (Muuse), Jamie Farndale (HK China Rugby) and Martijn Ros (Waste Wise)

Last week, I joined the Hong Kong  Sport & Sustainability Summit 2026 – Rugby for Good as a panellist, alongside a mix of venue operators, sustainability leaders, and event organisers.

The conversations were practical, honest, and at times, a bit confronting. Because while sustainability in sport has come a long way, the gap between ideas and execution is still very real.

Setting the Scene

Hong Kong is moving in the right direction.

We heard how 30 million single-use cutlery sets were avoided in 2024 (info.gov.hk, 2024), and how food waste recovery has increased dramatically in just a few years (epd.gov.hk, 2025). Waste is trending down, and there is a clear push toward carbon neutrality (cnds.gov.hk, 2023).

But when you look at large-scale events like the Hong Kong Rugby Sevens, the reality becomes more complex.

Image Source: Rugby for Good

The Scale of the Challenge

One stat that stuck with us: over 500,000 cups are used at the Sevens each year.

There have been attempts to introduce reusable systems, but return rates have hovered around 75%. That means one in four cups still doesn’t make it back.

Composting was also discussed as a solution, but it comes with its own constraints. It requires the right mix of materials, enough processing capacity, and time. After a large event, that process can take weeks.

The takeaway here was simple. There is no single fix.

What Actually Works

Across the panel, there was strong alignment on one idea. Sustainability needs to be designed into the system from the beginning.

We saw examples of this working globally:

• Reusable systems hitting over 98% return rates when friction is removed
• Venues turning food waste into compost on-site
• Smarter infrastructure like better bin placement and clearer waste streams

But the biggest unlock is not technology. It is behaviour.

Hong Kong Sevens, Image Source: Hong Kong Tourism Board

Designing for Behaviour Change

This came up again and again during the discussion.

If the sustainable option is harder, people will not choose it.

Some of the most effective tactics are surprisingly simple:

• Putting bins where people naturally walk
• Making waste visible through transparent bags
• Removing bins from exits to avoid last-minute dumping
• Using gamification to make participation more engaging

And one point that resonated strongly. Staff behavior matters. If staff are not following the system, fans will not either.

Connecting with industry leaders and changemakers at the HK Sport & Sustainability Summit 🌱

Food Is the Next Big Lever

Another area getting a lot of attention is food.

Food and beverage makes up a significant portion of event emissions, and there is growing interest in solutions like carbon-labeled menus and more flexible, plant-forward options.

What worked well in other markets is starting small. Test in VIP or controlled environments first, then scale once it works.

So What Happens Next?

The discussion wasn’t just about challenges. There were clear, practical next steps:

• Pilot reusable systems in smaller events before scaling
• Introduce carbon labeling in food and beverage
• Use real-time dashboards to track and share impact
• Engage younger audiences through hands-on activities
• Build local partnerships to close the loop, especially around compost

Final Thoughts

Sustainability is no longer about adding initiatives on top of an event. It is about designing the entire system differently.

Sport has the reach to influence millions of people in a very short time. If we get the systems right, the impact goes far beyond the event itself.

Reflections on Sustainable Procurement and Impact at a Global Sports Event

There is a moment in every event production cycle where sustainability either gets built in or bolted on. It rarely announces itself. It happens quietly – in a supplier brief, a spec sheet, a contract clause, months before gates open, long before anyone is thinking about carbon reports or post-event audits.

The organisations that get this right are not the ones with the most ambitious pledges. They are the ones with the most deliberate procurement decisions.

Working on the sustainability programme for LIV Golf Hong Kong 2026 reinforced something I have believed for a long time: the contract is where the sustainability outcome is set. Everything else is consequence.

What the Procurement Stage Actually Decides

When you appoint a fuel supplier, you are making a carbon decision. When you write a catering brief, you are making a food systems decision. When you specify sanitation infrastructure, you are making a water management decision. Most event organisers do not frame it that way — but the outcome is the same whether you frame it or not.

At LIV Golf HK 2026, we worked to specify sustainability requirements before suppliers were appointed, while leverage still existed and before budgets were locked:

• On energy and logistics: Generators and vehicles ran on a low-carbon fuel blend, specified in the contract. Ground-level logistics was electrified where possible. A third-party consultancy was commissioned to set the carbon measurement methodology before the event, not after, so the eventual figures would be defensible rather than decorative.
• On water: Sensor-enabled technology was specified in the sanitation contract, monitoring usage patterns and reducing unnecessary servicing cycles. Tanked drinking water stations were written into the catering brief, not left to default, which almost always means single-use plastic at scale.
• On waste: Three-bin recycling was required across both front-of-house and back-of-house operations. BOH compliance is the harder problem, it is invisible to attendees and often overlooked in sustainability reporting, but it is where the real volumes are.

None of these outcomes were achieved by asking on the day. They were locked in at the procurement stage, when the ask costs nothing and the outcome is certain.

LIV Golf Hong Kong 2026 event photos

Our community coming together to turn food systems into low-carbon, high-value solutions.

Reducing greenhouse gas emissions is often framed as a large-scale, complex challenge. But for the food and hospitality industry, some of the most impactful solutions are surprisingly practical, and already within reach.

At our April Future Green Members Monthly Meetup, hosted at Tong Chong Kitchen, the conversation focused on how businesses can reduce emissions through better decisions across food systems, operations, and waste management. As a space that brings together food, community, and experimentation, Tong Chong Kitchen provided the ideal setting to explore how sustainable practices can be applied in real-world kitchen environments.

The session featured Tommy Leung, Founder, and Warton Chieng, Director of Business Development at HakkoBako, who shared how innovation in food processing and fermentation can transform waste into opportunity

🌍 Why Food Systems Matter

Food systems contribute around one-third of global greenhouse gas emissions, yet they are often overlooked in mainstream climate discussions.

As highlighted during the session, industries tend to focus on energy, transport, or buildings, while food remains “the elephant in the room”, complex, but unavoidable.

This makes food one of the most immediate and actionable areas for businesses looking to reduce their environmental impact.

🍽️ The Operational Challenge

In cities like Hong Kong, food waste is not just an environmental issue, but an operational one.

Many businesses face the same challenge: managing surplus food can be costly due to logistics, handling, and limited processing options.

This creates a gap between intention and action, where businesses want to reduce waste, but lack practical, scalable solutions.

From food scraps to flavour: fermentation in action, transforming everyday by-products into high-value creations like bread miso.

🧪 Fermentation as a Practical Solution

A key focus of the session was fermentation, not as a niche concept, but as a practical tool for modern kitchens.

By using controlled fermentation processes, food by-products can be stabilised, extended in shelf life, and transformed into entirely new ingredients.

As Warton shared:

This shift allows kitchens to move from disposal to transformation, integrating circular thinking directly into daily operations.

🔄 Rethinking Production and Supply Chains

One example discussed was localising production. Instead of relying on imported ingredients like miso, which involve long supply chains and cold storage, businesses can produce similar products on-site.

This reduces transport emissions, simplifies logistics, and gives businesses greater control over their supply chains.

Bringing ideas to life: exploring fermentation and smarter food systems with Hakko Bako.

💡 Where Innovation Meets Business Value

A defining insight from the session was that sustainability is not a cost center, but rather a powerful driver of margin creation. By applying  fermentation to existing supply chains, businesses can move beyond traditional ‘waste management’ and begin the process of resource recovery.

This shift creates value in four distinct ways:

• Monetising Byproducts: Transforming what was previously disposal overhead into high-margin, proprietary inventory.
• Supply Chain Insulation: Lowering the ‘total cost of ownership’ of ingredients by reducing reliance on volatile external logistics and imported goods.
• Maximising Resource Yield: Extracting greater commercial value from every dollar spent on raw materials.
• Competitive Differentiation: Developing signature, ‘in-house’ products that cannot be commoditised or replicated by competitors.

When we transform modest ingredients into premium assets, we aren’t just solving an environmental problem; we are implementing a smarter, more profitable way to operate in a resource-constrained market.

💬 Audience Insight: The Challenge of Adoption

During the Q&A, an important challenge emerged around adoption, particularly for larger organisations.

Introducing new approaches like fermentation can be difficult due to internal processes, regulatory requirements, and food safety concerns. The novelty of these methods can make QA and compliance teams hesitant.

However, this also presents an opportunity. Kitchens can begin by experimenting on a smaller scale, outside of core operations, to test processes, build confidence, and demonstrate value before wider implementation.

🎉 Engaging the Community

The session wrapped up with an interactive Kahoot quiz, testing participants on key concepts around emissions, food systems, and innovation.

Congratulations to Ced, Yvonne and Veena for topping the leaderboard and winning a Hakko Bako t-shirts.

Moments like these added a fun and engaging layer to the session, reinforcing learning while bringing the community together.

🌱 A Shift in Perspective

Ultimately, the biggest takeaway was not just about technology, but about mindset.

When kitchens begin to see by-products as part of the process rather than waste, new opportunities emerge, for efficiency, creativity, and value creation.

And in that shift, food systems move closer to becoming part of the climate solution.

💚 What’s Next?

 If this conversation on reducing greenhouse gas emissions resonated with you:
🔗 Connect with HakkoBako to learn how upcycling and on-site solutions can help transform food waste into high-value products

👉 Join the Future Green Membership for practical tools, expert insights, and a community driving real change in food and hospitality

📅 Book a discovery call to explore how we can support your sustainability journey

Because reducing emissions isn’t just about impact. It’s about running smarter, more resilient businesses.

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Are you curious about your food’s impact?