Somehow the first part of 2023 has been a bittersweet experience: By leaving the OECD and Paris, unclear if my intention was to come back or not, also meant to say goodbye to the social network I had built there, the easy habits and little day-to-day joys I was accustomed too. Like my local neighbourhood’s zero waste store, my afterwork ginger beers – with or without vodka and the cute cozy restaurants in my neighbourhood that always had a new exciting vegetarian dish to try. At the same time, it meant embarking on this great new adventure of going out into the world again, with only a few things (literally) and being able to discover new places, new people and some new things about myself on the way. I felt more excited than I had in a good while, also about our project to document these travels and to actually spend a good part of it learning about more sustainable and community-based initiatives we had only read about. We did exactly that, a bit more touristing than I had expected but it brought me back to the roots, gave me time to reflect and put some distance between me and the Parisian routines I had got a bit stuck in without realising. Don’t get me wrong, towards month 11, I was ready to go back home, not pack my bag again every few days, sleep in dodgy places or have to meet new people every few days but it felt like so much growth!
Nonetheless, coming back was difficult. I had seen places where people thrived in growing organic food and living community to an extent I had never imagined. In particular the three weeks I had spent in the Chapada Diamantina marked me. Permaculture, committed recycling, the beauty of nature and of slowing down… and all accompanied by living more connected with people and the local community than I had in easily 10 years. It was clear it was not going to be back to Paris for me after all and I wanted to make at least some of these experiences last. My partner had the same notions. So we decided we’d settle in a house we co-owned in Brittany for the foreseeable future and work on making this happen. After a train Odyssee to see as much of our family and friends as possible over the summer of 2024, we also immediately dove into our new project: Learning as much as possible about eco-lieux (community-based living projects working on reduce primary ressource needs through sharing and working together, often with their own vegetable productions, construction work and artisanal workshops) and possibly finding or founding one that fit our needs.
At the same time, it was clear to me that in the way the world kept changing social innovations like these and policies supporting them were needed even more than ever. So I figured, I would combine the two, working hands-on with the many local (rural) social innovation projects on reuse-recycling-upcycling, social cohesion and intergenerational exchange while maintaining as far as possible a foot in the policy world continuing to work with international organisations, NGOs and others in Paris, Brussels and elsewhere to help advance this agenda and build deeper connections to tackle the challenges for tomorrow. I enjoy living rurally and finding new ways to engage and foster my local community – while getting to enjoy some of the most breath-taking coastlines France has to offer.
The time in South America and the Caribbean hasn’t left me unchanged and my enthusiasm for green innovation, eco-forestry and sustainable agriculture is only growing. I have come back full of new ideas and with a renewed sense of purpose to help social innovators thrive. I look forward to exploring these new angles with all of you and to share more here on this new space I have created. For now, thanks for having me back, I am beyond excited to embark on this new endeavour with you!
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