May our future be green, empowered and mission-driven
FemGems’ driving mission every day, with each and every podcast episode, blog article and social media post, is making visible real and relate-able role models in female entrepreneurship. This singular focus aims to address a critical and often forgotten issue: the lack of a robust support network that aids and mentors women entrepreneurs worldwide. Our determined team is striving to connect and empower women as a means to promote gender diversity and inclusion in the workplace, at home and across all industries, one relationship and partnership at a time. So, of course when Grace Accelerator invited us to their Demo Day, we wanted to be there to support their efforts to boost female entrepreneurship in person.
Twenty participants took part in the Grace Accelerator Summer Camp in Berlin late August. After two and a half weeks of brainstorming, business development, team building and mentorship, each founder pitched their startup idea at Demo Day. These are a few impactful interviews with four participants right after they debuted their creative solutions to a packed room. Get to listen to them discuss their ideas, influences and experiences at the startup camp with FemGems founder Dora on our special FemGems Podcast Grace Series.
Catriona McLaughlin, our FemGem26 is a global citizen with Scottish roots who has specifically chosen Berlin to found, and grow her own sustainable company. With more than twenty years experience in journalism, media production, publishing, digital innovation and brand strategy, this thinker has her eyes firmly set on the future. Striving to develop new work concepts around organization, productivity and happiness, her first order of business is improving the air we breathe.
“What you do makes a difference, and you have to decide what kind of difference you want to make.” ~ Jane Goodall
In this succinct, but impactful interview you might be surprised to learn of a well-documented health issue that affects more women than men. BRI, or Building Related Illness, with symptoms such as cough, chest tightness, fever and muscle aches, are a result of tighter buildings, as a means to be more energy efficient, but which don’t allow for enough outside air ventilation. This leads to an accumulation of indoor air pollutants that actually triggers physical discomfort and low energy, but Catriona’s mission to improve the quality of work and home life is uncomplicated and effective.
PlanT is the startup idea that Catriona developed during her time at Grace Accelerator’s camp. When looking for a cost-effective and eco-friendly solution, essentially ‘free open source software’, well-developed over millions of years, plants were obviously central. By understanding the challenges of changing behaviors, but by remaining focused on finding creative ways to help the planet and ourselves in simple, sustainable ways, she is driven to make a difference. PlanT is Catriona’s mission in creating an independent modular system of plant units for indoor spaces. Plants, in addition to being an air purification system, otherwise known as phytoremediation, also trigger a biophilic response known to increase productivity by up to 15%. NASA has compiled a list of air-purifying plants as part of their Clean Air Study that you can read about here.
“I think the special thing about women is that they’re mission-driven. Women want purpose. That’s why they found companies.”
This purpose-driven desire to make a difference to the world is influenced heavily of Catriona’s awareness of the changes and developments shaped by increased automation, AI and machine learning. We’re going to see a marked shift in how we work and these future changes are going to rely on soft skills characteristic for women.
“The skills we’ll need in the near future are female skills: connecting to people, empathy, listening, being able to handle human resources, management of people…creativity, connecting different parts, and also thinking strategically, which women are very good at.”
She also points out another promising shift in the way female investors, much like female social entrepreneurs, are more attracted to companies that are purpose and mission driven. These female investors are not only interested in ‘unicorns’ that scale quickly but rather want to support thoughtful people who really think about ways to change the world.
Jacqueline Novogratz, Founder of Acumen Fund, an impact investing firm, is one of the most well-respected individuals in the social entrepreneurship universe said herself,
“My dream is to find individuals who take financial resources and convert them into changing the world in the most positive ways.”
This all leads to a very promising conclusion that despite limitations we might feel we have financially, in experience or skill, need not be the reason to not go after something we truly want, following our intuition and using our gifts to make a lasting difference for our planet and future.
Our FemGem27 is Carina Hadar whose research for her thesis as an aerospace engineer turned into the discrete pain-solution for menstrual cramps suffered by more than 400 million people worldwide. Taking the stage to deliver her pitch in a fitted skirt, it was impossible to tell that she was wearing a hot water bottle to-go underneath!
Nayca is revolutionary in that it has taken two things in existence already and found a new innovative way for them to work together. A discovery that was found while working with a particular substance in the research lab, she realized that she could make a soothing heat-heart that would allow women to comfortably and securely move throughout their tasks for the day with the heat-heart underneath their clothing.
“There is a vitality, a life force, that is translated to you into action, and because there is only one of you in all time, this expression is unique. And if you block it, it will never exist through any other medium, and will be lost.” ~ Martha Graham
A topic that is often obscured by stigma, shame and ignorance was challenging in the beginning to detail with Carina’s future and current co-founder — her own father. A special working relationship born from being like-minded ‘sparring’ partners has made their partnership effective, allowing the innovative solution that Nayca offers to grow and develop over the past year despite Carina simultaneously working full time as a consultant.
“Be yourself and talk about it. It sounds so easy, but actually it is easy if you just let it be.”
Being able to take part in Grace Accelerator’s summer camp and discuss and share her ideas with others has really given her the strength and energy to take Nayca to the next level. Add the exciting fact that Nayca also got placed second at Grace Accelerator’s Demo Day, she is thrilled and motivated to take the next steps in scaling her business. Listen to her energetic conversation with Dora following her win and follow Nayca and Carina yourself on social media to stay up-to-date on their heated developments.
Our FemGems28 are a dynamic power duo that met and clicked at Grace Accelerator’s summer camp. Both women knew that they wanted to be part of the climate change solution and help consumers make informed decisions with sustainable environmental and social results.
Taking full advantage of the dynamic group activities that the camp offered, they were able to collaborate and realize their complementary strengths, marking the start of their co-founding relationship for the building of a transparent marketplace — YAJA.
“Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has.” ~ Margaret Mead
Animal rights activist and marketer, Yasmin Ege Tulay and product manager and team believer, Jana Schellog, were immediately drawn to each other’s passions and energy. With a shared understanding and background from previously working in startup environments, both women acknowledged,
“[We] know we want to work for something we believe in. And we’re willing to put in a lot for it.”
YAJA aims to source products and curate a matrix of sustainable factors that will educate and empower the user to make informed consumer decisions. They identified the problem of a missing marketplace that aggregates products that consumers can trust toward efforts of changing their own habits.
“Anything’s possible if you’ve got enough nerve.” ~ J. K. Rowling
Listen to them both speak to Dora after delivering their pitch and anticipate being able to reliably consume with peace if mind!
Our final interview in the Grace Series, FemGem29 is the first place winner of Grace Accelerator’s Demo Day; an accolade even more impressive by the fact that the pitch was done remotely!
Dr. Jutta Merschen is many things: management, product and technology consultant, speaker, co-director, pitch coach, entrepreneur and parent to three young boys. Combine all these skills with a passion for tech and family empowerment as a means to female empowerment and the extraordinary result is - FamilyPunk.
Committed to her personal three axes of professional requirements: passion, growth and setup, Jutta made the decision to pivot her career and give her emerging idea time and opportunity to grow. FamilyPunk is a platform that offers parental support through personal coaching with professionals together with digital learning content.
“I am endlessly fascinated that playing football is considered a training ground for leadership, but raising children isn’t.” ~ Dee Dee Myers
Challenged by the demands of parenting and frustrated by not having access to professionals who she could engage with on difficult and fundamental topics, she wanted to address this personal problem with a competent and convenient solution for other parents worldwide. By guaranteeing access to child and family therapists within a few days, parents are able to book online sessions with trusted professionals as well as sign up for flexible e-learning modules. FamilyPunk therefore aims to empower parents through both mindset and skill development.
With the website now live, Jutta is focused next on finding the perfect co-founder and teammate to prepare the Minimum Viable Product (MVP) and defining their core values and mission. Central to FamilyPunk is their message of family empowerment and addressing the inequity around balancing both a career, personal and family life between each parent.
“We need to have a mindset of, ‘Yeah, anything is possible. Yes, I can do this. There’s no reason I, as a woman, as a mother, can’t do this, can’t try this. I may fail, but I won’t know ’til I start.’ And of course this has to do with role models: do I see other women doing it? But, do I also see men promoting women, doing it?”
Commenting on the powerful experience of being in a startup camp with other women and mentors motivating each other, facing their fears, celebrating their strengths and learning new skills together, Jutta believes startup schools and camps, like Grace Accelerator, are an ideal training ground for developing one’s entrepreneurial mindset.
For true inspiration, don’t miss out on listening to winner Jutta speak candidly about her motivation, insights and transformation.
“We do not need magic to change the world, we carry all the power we need inside ourselves already: we have the power to imagine better.” ~ J.K. Rowling
For more information and research into the staggering difference more women entrepreneurs will make in the world, read the data compiled by Boston Consulting Group.
Grace Accelerator is now building the Grace Digital Founders Campus — a learning app for female entrepreneurs! It gives founders access to all the necessary skills and knowledge to start a company, and it’s exactly what you need if you have an idea or a passion, and don’t know where and how to start. The Digital Founders Campus will guide you through your founder’s journey and provide content tackling specific topics women encounter before or while they’re building their business. Tune in here to learn all about it & support their crowdfunding campaign!
Tune in to these energizing episodes 26 — 29 with Dora and start planning your mission-driven solution!
FemGems features rising female entrepreneurs from all over the world. Read more here and get our MuseLetter!
If you love daily motivation to keep you pumped and on track, you will find it on our Instagram channel.
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