Kathy approaches life with an optimistic view and a deep appreciation of the natural world. Image credit: Chris Oze. When a startup is in its infancy, it’s a case of all hands to the pump. The edges between roles are fuzzy, there are plenty of “doing this for the first time” moments, and life experience can be every bit as valuable as professional experience. Test, fail, learn, try again. Kathy Izumi, Chief Operating Officer for Aspiring Materials, knows this very well. She has seen Aspiring...

In the popular Minecraft game, creativity and resilience comes from the crafting table, not the mine. Image credit: One of the author's daughter's many Minecraft worlds. Critical minerals are top of mind for governments around the world today. ‘Critical’ for the function they provide in this age of electrification and AI, these minerals are also critical for another, more strategic reason: few nations can transform these raw mineral resources into value-add, industry-ready materials. If the...

Sewage treatment ponds on the outskirts of Blenheim in the Nelson region. Image credit: iStock Wastewater treatment is an essential but unseen urban service, often one we take for granted, unless something goes wrong. Yet wastewater treatment also has unseen environmental impacts, contributing to greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and the acidification of the ocean. As the urban footprint grows, so too will the environmental harm footprint, and the compliance costs associated with trying to...