Danielle: Thanks for having me, Spiffy! Indigenous people have the highest rates of poverty in the US, the lowest college graduation rates, and the highest rates of “deaths of despair”—meaning deaths from suicide, drug use, and alcohol abuse. Without healing the underlying pain in our communities, these statistics will continue. But to heal the suffering, people need self-sufficiency. They need to be able to pay their bills, and they need good jobs to do that. So that’s where we started: jobs. Natives Rising is a 501c3 nonprofit where we help Indigenous people get good jobs in tech, graduate college with tech degrees, and become entrepreneurs. We offer a holistic approach where we provide emotional support and wellbeing coaching to help heal trauma and self-limiting beliefs.
Daniel: Thanks for having me, Spiffy! Helen Ventures, as the CVC fund of Helen Oy, the Finnish energy company, is working to supercharge innovative energy tech in Europe through minority investments in Seed, Series A, and Series B funding rounds of startups solving problems in the renewable energy transition. We accelerate the growth of early and growth stage companies through our energy market insights and by collaborating with our customers and industry experts.
Laura: Thanks for having me, Spiffy! Many companies want to make sustainable products and packaging, but they don't actually have easy access to all the data it takes to make those things. Typically, this information, commonly known as specifications, is scattered across different teams and companies. We help companies manage this information in one place so they can ensure products and packaging are made right, every time. Having this data also enables them to easily report on sustainability and make more sustainable products.
