Portrait No. 001
Johanna Behm
Co-Founder & CEO
Envire
I grew up in Finland in a sustainability oriented culture, but ended up working in one of the most wasteful industries in the world, which is the global event industry, driving 10% of global carbon emissions. As a global event planner, I was walking through a convention floor during tear down of a 40,000 person conference and felt ache in my heart when seeing literally tons of waste piled in same containers without sorting and doors held wide open while AC was overworking. I felt incredibly anxious and sad and afterwards decided I had to be the change I so desperately wanted to see.
In her words
“It was first hard to be taken seriously as a young immigrant founder, but I'm now rubbing shoulders with Billie Eilish's mother, World Bank executives, and all the A-players from the live events industry who are all backing my mission.”
Chapter I
The toughest challenges you've faced as a founder.
My challenges started event before founding Envire. I applied for 200 jobs and got rejected from 199, before one of the employers agreed to sponsor my visa. I grew my career into six figure income while being granted 80% of the marketing budget before founding Envire. It was first hard to be taken seriously as a young immigrant founder, but I'm now rubbing shoulders with Billie Eilish's mother, World Bank executives, and all the A-players from the live events industry who are all backing my mission.
Chapter II
Your vision.
We need live events to drive global peace, trade, and networks, but we can do them better. The future live events industry is not just be carbon neutral, but becoming the global highway for pollenating climate solutions across industries, while reducing costs and improving working conditions across the whole value chain behind events.
Chapter III
The impact you want to leave behind — for your industry, your community, and the women who come next.
I want to see live events industry operate in a regenerative, circular, and socially responsible way. Sustainability is baked in the day-to-day operations and no one even remembers any other way that zero waste and net zero carbon. For all other immigrant female founders out there, I want you to feel that you belong in the room, that your ideas matter, and I want you to turn your perceived disadvantages into unstoppable power for creating a more just world that can also support life for generations to come.