Mikkel Larsen

I believe in the possibility of a World where we as citizens live in harmony with the natural world that supports us and treat with respect other sentiment beings. A world that balances the social needs of all citizens with the absolute necessity for us collectively to live within the Planetary Boundaries. This is not the World we live in today and I wish to make a positive contribution professionally and personally to change it. I believe that this a personal and individual responsibility we all have to wrestle with.

I am fortunate now to lead a company with deeply passionate people that want to see change. They know what I know that if we get it right the carbon market can make really make a difference at scale. If we get it wrong though it will do very little. They also know that what we call “co-benefit” is actually as important as the carbon sequestration in projects. We hear this all the time from the project developers we serve. I am a “practical idealist” and know that we need urgent actions to save the worlds carbon sinks whilst we build new ones. And we need to be relentless about getting the right projects to markets and regain trust in the markets. It is because I really do believe in this that I left an most amazing role in an equally amazing bank – DBS.

In my personal life I look for the same balance by living an environmentally conscious life whilst giving back to society through charity and engagement with SMEs. I have developed a personalized “17 SDGs” that works as my road-map. However, living in harmony with the Planetary Boundaries in a cosmopolitan city like Singapore is challenging and despite having adopted a lifestyle of being vegan, not owning a car, using air-condition scarcely etc I still come up short. I keep flying to a minimum and carbon-offset when I do fly. My key passion has always been animal rights and I look to advocate these rights by speech and action whenever I get a chance. I am always interested in meeting people that can inspire me, challenge my perceived barriers for doing better and help me live a more sustainable life.