During Speak Up’s conference in Mechelen, we held a talkshow around ‘‘The relation between participation and the climate transition''. This talkshow was recorded as a podcast and is now available to listen to! The talkshow was hosted by Otto Thors and his guests were keynote speaker Teun Gautier, and Speak Up partners Monika Månsson from Malmö (Sweden), Signe Bak Jørgensen from Skive (Denmark) Mark Van der Veken from Mechelen (Belgium). The latter three all shared their experiences with their own climate pilots. Listen to their stories on Souncloud to gain new inspiration if you are interested in participation and climate engagement. Besides, don't forget to share the podcast with your colleagues and friends!
Information about the host and guests
Podcast host: Otto Thors
Otto Thors will be the host of the Speak Up event ‘Lost in Transition?’. He is a Dutch professional with expertise and experience in the areas of digitalization, public service, and organizational change. As a strategic advisor, he supports national, regional and local governments in various societal challenges. As the host of the podcast ‘De Publieke Ruimte’ (‘The Public Space’), he makes complex topics within the government more accessible. With his energetic presence and inspiring delivery, Otto is a well-known speaker and moderator at (inter)national conferences and online events. Otto challenges you in an engaging and thought-provoking way to think differently than usual, act faster than expected, and let go when needed.
Teun Gautier
Teun Gautier is the co-author of Een Wereld van Gemeenschappen (A World of Communities) that he wrote with his partner, well known Dutch citymaker Floor Ziegler. The book shows, with a long list of anecdotes from their work, how active citizens and local communities can become connected and involved in a wide variety of challenges of today. Its holds specific examples of how civil initiatives on climate and energy created strong progress. Teun will share many examples and will explain how the enourmous capacity of citizen-initiatives can help and how much fun it is to work from what is already there, in cities, villages and neughbourhoods.
Monika Månsson (City of Malmö)
Monika Månsson is a project manager at the Environment Department, City of Malmö. She is mainly working on the climate transition, in projects with a focus on knowledge and learning, participatory processes, and behavioural change. She is currently the local lead in two projects co-funded by Interreg NSR: Speak up and DISCO, Digital solutions for climate adaptation. Her background is in communication and journalism.
Signe Bak Jørgensen (Skive)
Signe Bak Jørgensen is a Danish professional with a background in experience economy, focusing on citizen engagement in the green transition. Since 2021, she has been involved in implementing Skive Municipality's Climate Action Plan, emphasizing collaborative and entrepreneurial approaches to sustainability. In her role as project manager at Energy City Skive, the municipality's project and development department, she works to co-create solutions with citizens, fostering value creation and lasting change through active community involvement.
Mark Van der Veken (City of Mechelen)
After obtaining a master's degree in Communication Sciences and Journalism, Mark Van der Veken was active in various sectors: from adventurous nature tourism, healthcare to business consultancy. In a living lab project on participation, he found a professional calling: reaching underexposed audiences and breaking into existing policies. As a political consultant and grants advisor, he helped to design frameworks that create opportunities to stretch the bandwith of involvement. Today, he works within the Strategy Department and Climate Team of the City of Mechelen.