Consumer Goods Warriors: Julia Collins and Kayalin Akens-Irby

2022-08-03

Julia Collins, Founder and CEO of Planet FWD and Kayalin Akens-Irby, Head of Growth, Planet FWD talk to Karla about tackling climate change by decarbonising the consumer goods space. Julia Collins is the first black woman to found a “Unicorn” status tech company. She has more than a decade of experience leading food operations and food technology companies. A serial entrepreneur, Julia discovered food was her calling as a young girl in San Francisco where it was the epicentre of her community. Julia leads Plan...

Julia Collins, Founder and CEO of Planet FWD and Kayalin Akens-Irby, Head of Growth, Planet FWD talk to Karla about tackling climate change by decarbonising the consumer goods space.

Julia Collins is the first black woman to found a “Unicorn” status tech company. She has more than a decade of experience leading food operations and food technology companies. A serial entrepreneur, Julia discovered food was her calling as a young girl in San Francisco where it was the epicentre of her community. Julia leads Planet FWD, the leading carbon management platform for consumer companies, that’s making it easier to bring climate-friendly products to market. Empowering the next generation of sustainable brands through its proprietary software, Planet FWD’s platform reduces the cost and complexity of creating sustainable and carbon neutral products. The platform provides food, fashion and beauty brands with the tools to understand, reduce and neutralise their carbon footprint, and get on a path to net zero emissions. The platform is inspired by Planet FWD’s own snack brand, Moonshot, which launched in 2020 as the first climate-friendly snack brand.

Kayalin Akens-Irby is an impact-oriented strategist who has spent her career working with investors and companies to improve business operations and capitalise on new opportunities within an evolving market which increasingly values transparency, sustainability, and business ethics. Kayalin is currently Head of Growth at Planet FWD, the leading carbon management platform for consumer companies to tackle climate change. She also serves as a Board Member for the Upcycled Food Association and a Climate Fellow for Amasia VC.

Follow Julia: Instagram - @JuliaECollins | Twitter - @JuliaCollins

Follow Kayalin: Instagram - @kayasoleia | Twitter - @KayalinSoleia

More about the Warrior Women Network can be found here: www.warriorwomennetwork.com

This podcast is made in partnership with Zinc VC and produced by Bird Lime Media.

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