BLYDE WAKE-UP CALLS

The past years have laid bare many truths about our current model of capitalism — the severe income inequality and the belief that improving human lives and taking care of the environment are expendable for better profit margins. The changemakers in the growing Certified B Corporation community are demanding an end to the myth that profits must come at the expense of purpose, and environmental and social care. It’s time to wake up, it’s time for action.

At Blyde we believe in questioning the status quo. We believe in the power of the collective, in taking a stand and inspiring people by showing what can and must be changed. In our weekly Wake Up Calls, Blyde stirs up hunger for positive change. We listen to several B Corp voices who talk about their call to action for companies around the globe today. By letting people from different perspectives and businesses speak, we would like to underline the important role of business in this decade of action. ‘On stage’ today: changemaker Mariah Mansvelt Beck CO-Founder of Yoni – a company that offers organic cotton tampons, pads and liners free from plastic, chemicals and shame.

What was your wake-up call for contributing to a better world?

Ever since I was little I remember wanting to contribute to a better world. This has always been a driving force within me. It was a rude awakening when I realized, as a teenager, that not all people share this aim. Personally, creating a better world started with figuring out in which way I could best contribute. Knowing my own strengths helped me to choose my path, which has also developed and changed as the years go by.

What is your call to action for companies around the globe?

Nowadays, many people are at their most powerful in their professional lives. Unfortunately, we often keep our lives compartmentalized –  separating our social, spiritual and professional lives. This allows for honest and caring people to be in business with the sole aim to make profit. I hope everyone will start to integrate their social and spiritual lives into their professional lives – especially business leaders. To do so, we should bring to work the way we aim to treat our loved ones, as well as the understanding we have of our interconnectedness to the environment and the people further away from us. Instead of profits, these motivations should lead our professional decisions. I believe this perspective will inevitably lead to change. Businesses will be more and more geared towards making positive impact – working on the environmental and social challenges we face.