The headquarters of the Biodiversity Foundation of the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and the Environment, in Madrid, today hosted an Emprendeverde Meeting. Under the title “Opportunities to undertake from the blue economy”, entrepreneurs from the Emprendeverde Network have had the opportunity to learn about and deepen the concept of the blue economy and the entrepreneurship opportunities it offers with Gunter Pauli. In addition, seven entrepreneurs have had the opportunity to participate in a micro-mentoring to analyse how to turn their initiative into a successful business following the principles of the blue economy.  

The blue economy is a concept still unknown to many people. How would you explain what it is?
The blue economy is unknown because we don’t care about being known, what matters to us is getting things done. We don’t have a budget for advertising and we’re not interested in likes on social networks. The blue economy is about doing something concrete with what you have. What we lack today is the ability to imagine that something that seems like waste to us is a product that is useful to us for a lot. And it is not only about recycling, it is also about generating added value. But the great change that the blue economy brings is that we integrate everything into one system.
 
Is it possible for the current economic system to be transformed and become 100% sustainable under the postulates of the blue economy?
Change implies a radical transformation. We have to change the model and for this we need entrepreneurs in that line. What we need is a radical transformation, where entrepreneurs are involved, where everyone can contribute something.
 
On several occasions you have spoken of the importance of the role of entrepreneurs in the blue economy. What prospects does the blue economy offer for entrepreneurship and doing it successfully?  
We find people today who have no experience. Students want degrees and master’s degrees only to end up doing nothing. We need people who speak more with their hearts than with their brains, people who feel the need to set in motion a big change. We need enterprising people with heart and determination.
 
What attractions does the blue economy offer to the entrepreneurs of the Emprendeverde Network?
The first is that it has less risk because the raw material of what we work with is almost always free, so there is less risk and fewer costs. Second, if we consider that the blue economy only has to respond to basic needs, you do not have demand problems. You have demand problems if you want to compete to sell certain products, but if you focus on what is really necessary, water, food, energy, housing, health, you are focusing on basic needs, there are no problems. And third, the blue economy responds to what the Earth really needs. The Earth has suffered, for example, from wild mining for many years and the time has come for us to behave like intelligent beings.
 
Is it easy to find investor funding for projects in the blue economy?
I’m not worried about investors. They are the last ones we should talk to. First we have to move with our hearts and consult the people who can support us. The investment comes later. None of my projects were launched thanks to investors.
 
What are the main difficulties that an entrepreneur of the Red emprendeverde may encounter when launching a project in the field of the blue economy?
MBAs (Master in Business Administration) are a problem, because people with that background have been instructed to focus on a certain model and so you can’t appreciate the biodiversity or the sources of feedback. And that is the main problem, that the economy or companies are in the hands of people with that approach. Another problem is ignorance. We complain about the problems. Why don’t we stop complaining and focus on solutions? And the third problem is that scientists do not leave their small plot of science and are not able to establish ties to provide sustainable solutions.
 
Five years ago you ventured the end of globalization. Do you still think so?
I think globalization is over. The TTPI, the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership, is not going to amount to anything, it does not respond to what people need. We have to think about what we really need.
 
What future prospects await the blue economy in the coming years?
The blue economy responds to people with what they need and in terms of happiness. We live in a world that is not easy, so we have to rediscover what happiness is and what it is to do things that have an impact on the common good. We need to see that money can be made with this. The pleasure of gaining something should not be separated from the pleasure of life. One of the rules we have imposed on ourselves is that our projects cannot be translated into an excel sheet, we are forbidden to do that. Who finds happiness in an excel sheet?   Nobody.
 
Any suggestions for the Red emprendeverde and its work for the future?
All entrepreneurial opportunities must be registered. We are taking inventory with the problems. We must forget about problems and focus on opportunities. The important thing about the Network’s work is that they support their entrepreneurs and offer them opportunities for the future, some of which they have surely not seen. Opportunities also collaborating with each other. Networking is important, although the fundamental thing is to do. We need networking not through social networks, but focused on a new economic model.