Delivering Hope & Opportunity in Bangkok | Annie Dieselberg, Nightlight International
In this interview of Entrepreneurs For Good, I speak with Annie Dieselberg, founder of Nightlight International in Bangkok, about her work to build an organization that has helped more than 150 women leave Bangkok's sex trade through job training, counseling, and empowerment programs.
Through this discussion, we speak a lot about complexity of the challenges that she must address as part of this process, how that shapes her organization, and the importance of having a strong leadership team that can help deliver on the vision.
About #EntrepreneursForGood Series:
Through this series, we speak with Asia based entrepreneurs whose mission it is to bring solutions to the environmental, social, and economic challenges that are faced within the region to learn more about their vision, the opportunities they see, and challenges that they have had to overcome.
It is a series that we hope will not only engage and inspire you, but catalyze you and your organizations into action. To identify a challenge that is tangible, and build a business model (profit or non) that brings a solution to the market
About Annie:
Annie Dieselberg is the CEO and co-founder of NightLight International. Annie has a passion to see women and children freed from the sexual exploitation of prostitution and trafficking, and to see the global church and community working together to free, heal, and restore all who have been broken and wounded through the sex trade. Spending her formative years growing up in Congo, Belgium, Thailand, and India, Annie developed a heart for the marginalized and a passion against injustice.
Annie and her husband Jeff, were sent by International Ministries to Bangkok in 1994 where Annie assisted the director of a local Compassion International project doing visitations in slum communities and volunteered at Rahab Ministry doing bar outreach among women in prostitution.
NightLight was founded in 2005 with the purpose of providing holistic alternative employment to women at risk or escaping sexual exploitation. NightLight Design, the jewelry business has employed over 160 Thai women since 2005. NightLight Foundation works to prevent, intervene, rescue, and rehabilitate women and children from sexual exploitation and trafficking.
Annie is a love revolutionary determined to see the dark places where sexual exploitation takes women and children captive, transformed into places of hope, freedom, and opportunity.
Follow :
NightLight Foundation: https://www.nightlightinternational.com
Personal Website: https://anniedieselberg.com
Twitter: https://twitter.com/annie4nl
About Rich:
Driven by the belief that change begins with a single step, Richard Brubaker has spent the last 15 years in Asia working to engage, inspire, and equip those around him to take their first step. Acting as a catalyst to driving sustainability, Brubaker works with government, corporate, academic and non-profit stakeholders to bring together knowledge, teams, and tools that develop and execute their business case for sustainability.
Follow Rich
Website: http://www.richbrubaker.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/rich.brubaker
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/richbrubaker
Instagram: https://instagram.com/richbrubaker
Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/richbrubaker
Contact Rich
[email protected]
Investing & Incubating in Water Startups | Maarten Ter Keurst, Pureterra Ventures
With fewer issues more important in the area of sustainability than water, on this episode of Entrepreneurs For Good I sat down with Maarten Ter Keurst from Pureterra Ventures in Shanghai to talk about the work of his fund to identify and incubate water startups.
Identifying, and executing investments aside, where I think this interview will be of particular interest to entrepreneurs is the work that that they do to help entrepreneurs commercialize their idea through supporting the development of leadership and business skills. A challenge he says "entrepreneurs" face as the move from the lab to the market.
About #EntrepreneursForGood Series:
Through this series, we speak with Asia based entrepreneurs whose mission it is to bring solutions to the environmental, social, and economic challenges that are faced within the region to learn more about their vision, the opportunities they see, and challenges that they have had to overcome.
It is a series that we hope will not only engage and inspire you, but catalyze you and your organizations into action. To identify a challenge that is tangible, and build a business model (profit or non) that brings a solution to the market
About: Maarten
Maarten has consulted foreign SMEs in the water sector on market entry strategy in China for 5 years and has worked for CHC’s investment arm since 2015. He is an expert in deal structuring, managing Chinese networks, partner selection and has an intimate knowledge of the Chinese water technology sector. He holds a MSc in Economics from Tilburg University
Follow :
PureTerra Ventures: https://pureterra.com/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/maartenterkeurst/
About Rich:
Driven by the belief that change begins with a single step, Richard Brubaker has spent the last 15 years in Asia working to engage, inspire, and equip those around him to take their first step. Acting as a catalyst to driving sustainability, Brubaker works with government, corporate, academic and non-profit stakeholders to bring together knowledge, teams, and tools that develop and execute their business case for sustainability.
Follow Rich
Website: http://www.richbrubaker.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/rich.brubaker
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/richbrubaker
Instagram: https://instagram.com/richbrubaker
Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/richbrubaker
Contact Rich
[email protected]
Hydroponic Rooftop Farming in Bangkok | Tong Horsuwan, Bangsai Agricultural
In this episode of Entrepreneurs For Good, I speak with Tong Horsuwan about his work to build, and operate, more than 20 rooftop farms in Bangkok.
Easily one of the most exciting conversations I have had to date, this 25 millennial has not only set up more than 20 rooftop farms, he has also built an APP that monitors his farms, but also begun the process of building robots that will help harvest the crops!
It has been a process of trial and error, but where he has not only found a business model, and strong customer base, but where he is now developing process and technologies that will help him take the business to the next level.
About #EntrepreneursForGood Series:
Through this series, we speak with Asia based entrepreneurs whose mission it is to bring solutions to the environmental, social, and economic challenges that are faced within the region to learn more about their vision, the opportunities they see, and challenges that they have had to overcome.
It is a series that we hope will not only engage and inspire you, but catalyze you and your organizations into action. To identify a challenge that is tangible, and build a business model (profit or non) that brings a solution to the market
About Tong:
Tong trained in urban farming under his father, Makavan Horsuwan, a well-known innovator in the development of hydroponic growth tables and trays, a technology which allows for simple modular expansion per space available.
About Rich:
Driven by the belief that change begins with a single step, Richard Brubaker has spent the last 15 years in Asia working to engage, inspire, and equip those around him to take their first step. Acting as a catalyst to driving sustainability, Brubaker works with government, corporate, academic and non-profit stakeholders to bring together knowledge, teams, and tools that develop and execute their business case for sustainability.
Follow Rich
Website: http://www.richbrubaker.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/rich.brubaker
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/richbrubaker
Instagram: https://instagram.com/richbrubaker
Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/richbrubaker
Contact Rich
[email protected]
Keeping a Positive Mindset | Eric Swinton, V Cycle
In this episode of Entrepreneurs For Good, I speak with Eric Swinton, founder of V Cycle, about building V Cycle, an organization whose mission is to rid the world of plastic and the progress he has made over the last year with the launch of his 10 ton challenge.
A challenge that is engaging a number of communities on the issues of plastic waste, while at the same time, bringing additional income for a number of elderly recylcers.
While fulfilling, the progress hasn't come easy, and in this interview we not only talk about the challenges of building V Cycle, but how he is able to maintain his emotional balance through the ups and downs.
About #EntrepreneursForGood Series:
Through this series, we speak with Asia based entrepreneurs whose mission it is to bring solutions to the environmental, social, and economic challenges that are faced within the region to learn more about their vision, the opportunities they see, and challenges that they have had to overcome.
It is a series that we hope will not only engage and inspire you, but catalyze you and your organizations into action. To identify a challenge that is tangible, and build a business model (profit or non) that brings a solution to the market
About Eric:
Eric is the founder of V Cycle, a social enterprise that is tackling Hong Kong’s environmental issues on both an ecological and human level. V cycle provides environmental education to schools, businesses, and the general public on plastic reduction and responsible recycling. At the same time, V Cycle collects different types of plastic waste in Hong Kong and repurpose them into high- value products, while creating job opportunities and caring for elderly waste pickers and adults with special needs.
Follow :
About Rich:
Driven by the belief that change begins with a single step, Richard Brubaker has spent the last 15 years in Asia working to engage, inspire, and equip those around him to take their first step. Acting as a catalyst to driving sustainability, Brubaker works with government, corporate, academic and non-profit stakeholders to bring together knowledge, teams, and tools that develop and execute their business case for sustainability.
Follow Rich
Website: http://www.richbrubaker.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/rich.brubaker
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/richbrubaker
Instagram: https://instagram.com/richbrubaker
Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/richbrubaker
Contact Rich
[email protected]