Ricki Hersburgh of Plastic Oceans Australasia

Executive with a Cause with Tammy Ven Dange

In this episode of Executive with a Cause, host Tammy Ven Dange chats with Ricki Hersburgh, Executive Director of Plastic Oceans Australasia.

Fuelled by data, research and their resulting facts, Ricki Hersburgh is on a mission to drive behavioural change in plastic use.

With an in-house Technical Advisory Panel and public education team, Plastic Oceans Australasia has been able to pair research with delivery. In this episode, we discuss how they focus on understanding the drivers of consumer behaviour, so they can effectively intervene and reduce the use of plastics. We also discuss the value of collaboration between organisations and how this can effectively fill capability and knowledge gaps when resources are limited.

As a scientifically based organisation, data collection and its use are also highlighted to understand the ‘what and why?’ in analysing plastic pollution and contribute to the ‘how’ in addressing the problem. Furthermore, we hear how Ricki attracts volunteers for their Technical Advisory Panel and how leaders should follow the ‘what’s in it for them?’ principle to help retain volunteers.

Finally, you can get involved in the cause with ‘Picnics Unwrapped’ - an initiative to host a plastic-free picnic and raise funds in September. Or do you have a great story on tackling a plastic-related problem? Entries are now open for the Oceans in Motion film festival, with categories available for primary to tertiary-aged students and members of the boating community in Australia or New Zealand.

Thank you for listening to the Executive with a Cause podcast. Don’t forget to follow us on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you listen to podcasts.

IT in Plain English

Single sign-on (SSO) can improve both user experience and IT security by reducing the number of passwords to manage. In this week’s segment, Tammy discusses where you may have utilised this feature and how you can implement it for your organisation.

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Links & Resources

• Connect with Ricki on Linkedin
• Visit the Plastic Oceans Australasia