We are building more sustainable communities with a small but dedicated team. In this rubric, we give each member of our team the chance to introduce themselves to you. This week, it is Florent's turn, our Sustainability expert and Senior Business Analyst.
Although you can find short introductions of our team members on the “About us” page, we thought it was about time for you to get to know us a bit better. Last time, Sara told you all about her life. This week, Florent will take you along on his journey at Byewaste, sharing his vision on sustainability and our company.
Hi there! Who are you? Tell us something about yourself!
Hi! My name is Florent, I’m 32 years old and I’m working at Byewaste as a Senior Business Analyst. I live in Amsterdam, a city that I love for its cultural heritage, melting-pot atmosphere and great offer in terms of restaurants, museums and music festivals.
In general, I spend my free time biking, playing squash and drinking beer with friends and family.
What do you do at Byewaste?
I am in charge of building partnerships with external stakeholders to structure our offer and our operations in order to scale up.
When looking for partners, my background in sustainability consulting helps me to select players with similar values as us: business and sustainability must be correlated. This is a strong requirement at Byewaste. In other words, I try to make sure that our business approach is, and stays, sustainable.
How did you end up at Byewaste?
I discovered Byewaste when I saw that the company was ranked number 1 in a Dutch article about promising start-ups to follow in waste prevention. I got in touch with Tommaso via LinkedIn and a few weeks later I started working for Byewaste!
Why did you want to work for the company?
I was immediately seduced after meeting Tommaso and Francisco for the first time.
I really like the concept: it addresses modern issues by providing a state-of-the-art solution. Our concept is highly innovative, we do not work with waste but with products. That way, we ensure a very high quality ratio of the products that we collect and are able to give them a second chance.
What do you like most about your job?
I am not a salesman per se, but when it comes to topics like lifespan extension via repairing or reusing, you can count on me! It’s “easy” to sell a solution which I strongly believe in, a solution that is key to raising citizen’s awareness on these issues.
It brings me pleasure to see the reactions that we get from potential partners, I am happy to take part in designing the future of the company with my colleagues. I like that Byewaste, as a start-up company, is adaptable and agile to the market.
And what do you like least about it?
The uncertainty with which the market will respond to our offer and the time it will take to benefit from our current efforts can be frustrating. But on the other hand, it teaches us to be patient and work one step at a time.
Why do you think that people should start recycling and reusing more?
It is simply not a choice. We as Western people have a tremendous impact on our planet. We need to reduce our negative social, societal and environmental impacts.
To do this, reducing consumption is the most impactful action we can take. Then, reusing and repairing are a priority before recycling, which is the best option when the product cannot be recovered in any other way.
What is the nicest item that you have ever thrifted?
A pair of speakers that I bought on Marktplaats. I really enjoy listening to my favourite music with these speakers, as their quality is remarkable!
When would you have especially benefited from a service like Byewaste yourself?
Actually, that would have been today! I have a few electronic items lying around waiting to be brought to a thrift shop and I keep postponing it due to a lack of time. Meanwhile, they are really blocking my hallway. It would be great if someone could just pick them up! Unfortunately, Byewaste is not available yet in Amsterdam, but I’m eagerly awaiting its launch.
How are you contributing to a more sustainable future in your personal life?
Well, I am on a journey to become as resilient as possible while living in a city like Amsterdam.
So, I stopped flying in Europe a few years ago (I now take the train instead) and I am very near stopping it altogether. I eat little meat, once a week on average. I buy food at Boeren en Buren – an intermediary platform linking local farmers (20km around on average) and citizens. I shop consumer goods the least I can and only second-hand – except for the underwear of course!
I also drive less than 1,500km a year. Besides that, I put the thermostat on 19 degrees all year round and I subscribed to a green energy provider. I opened a bank account at a bank that makes investments in sustainability its top priority. I vote for people taking social justice and environmental issues seriously.
All in all, I try to reduce my footprint as much as I can to be compliant with the objective of 2tons/year/citizen as written in the Paris agreement.
Which sustainable habit would you like to apply in your daily life?
My next big step will be to install a dry toilet at home. Water pollution is a drastic issue that I want to tackle, at least on my own scale.
