We are excited to announce the jury for the MAD-award 2019.
Giulietta Marani – Program manager at ICTU and Digicampus
Giulietta Marani helps organizations reinvent the way they work, collaborate, share information and knowledge. Exploring necessary frameworks and ecosystems. Gaining insight in innovative and technological developments and their impact. She works as a program manager at ICTU and Digicampus and is a former founder and board-member of the Public Leadership Foundation. Shebelieves organizations and their co-workers can only reinvent themselves if they pursue exchange of both talent and knowledge. Taking responsibility to Make A Difference. Outside of their own comfort zone. Getting inspired by others. Like the MAD stories.
Nienke Bos – Policy advisor at the Ministry of Justice an Safety
Let me introduce myself, 
My name is Ariane, I am 26 years old and today I start my internship at the Public Leadership Foundation.
I grew up as the daughter of an entrepreneur. I often got the question “Are you going to take over the families business?”. All the conversations at the dinner table involving topics such as tactics, money and profit made me realize that the private sector didn’t inspire me. I got more intrigued by the public sector instead. How can we make a difference for the whole society in a non-profit way. That’s when I decided to start my bachelor in Public Administration. After finishing my BA I wanted to specialize more in public sector management. During my masters I learned more about public leadership and the difference it can make. The curiosity about public leadership made me decide to do more research the on topic and actually write my Master Thesis about the effects of Public Leadership. Now I’ve come to a point in my research where I want to combine theory and practice, so I can experience the difference public leadership can make and use that as input for my research.
In the upcoming months I will be involved in organizing the MAD-event 2019 and other activities of the Public Leadership Foundation.
I am very motivated to start this public leadership journey!
Over the last five years, we have encountered many initiatives that give meaning to the term MAD leadership. We have seen individuals and organisations taking initiative – big and small – to make a difference! During the last four editions of our annual MAD event, we brought together those initiatives in order to inspire and learn from each other. At #MAD2019, we are planning to take it a step further! For the first time in the history of the Public Leadership Foundation, the MAD award will be given to an initiative the makes a difference through EPIC leadership.
Our good friend and former chair Rune Todnem By was invited by TEDx, to share his view on the public leadership needed to improve society. What followed was powerful speech, in which he intertwines a personal story with a broader call for MAD leadership. Against the background of the environmental crisis, Rune calls for a shift in the way perceive leadership. It’s time to take responsibility and go EPICally MAD!
Last month, we talked to Merijn Tinga. Merijn is also known as the Plastic Soup Surfer. He raises awareness around plastic pollution in Europe using his surfboard as a weapon. He also created the Pick up 10 app (pickup10.org) to activate others to pick up and photograph litter in their environment. We asked him about how he started this initiative, the activities he is organizing and future plans.
How did you start this adventure?
I am a biologist and an artist. I was always concerned with societal themes as an artist. Then I decided that I wanted to surf a long tour and I wanted to make a statement with the plastic that I would find on the beaches. So that’s what I did: I started an expedition the raise awareness for the plastic soup that we all together create. From the plastic that i find, I make surfboards. The surfboards are the message and I exhibit them.
What is your mission?
The most important to me is to make a difference. With my activities, I am influencing policymakers and I am making society aware of a big problem we have right now. My campaigns are on the one hand focussed on raising awareness among the masses, but also on very concrete steps we could to in order to improve the situation like deposit money.
One of the most important things about my campaigns is the call to action. I started a petition in order to expand deposit money in the Netherlands on plastic products. Furthermore, when I made my tour on my surfboard, I also visited CEOs of big companies. Currently we are making a documentary about plastic to raise awareness.
What is your impact so far?
The most important is the plastic soup surfer petition for the expansion of the deposit money on pet bottles. That petition ended up in the parliament and that created a lot of visibility for my message and the foundation.
We also went with a team to candy producing companies to talk to them about their consumption of plastic. Together we accelerated the process of finding alternatives for plastic wrappings of candy. We are taking small steps in order to make a big difference.
You said we, do you have a community surrounding you?
I am in a team with two volunteers. They are responsible for the program. I am the spokesman of the organization. Our organization is a foundation and exists because of donations, so we do depend on a community supporting us. Furthermore, I am in touch with different policy advisors. I met them through my activities.
What can others do to help you?
People can always make donations or use the pick up 10 app in order to overcome future littering. And try to reduce your own plastic consumption. Take your own mug to your work and take your own bag when you go shopping.
Do you have some advise for others that want to make a difference?
Think big, but start with really small steps. This way you allow yourself to build up your success. Success starts where others stop. Push on and search for small success. From there you are able to build up slowly and you are able to grow further and develop yourself. That is after all what you can do fastest: developing.
