September 17, 2026
Nearly a decade ago, my now husband and I travelled to Borneo, an island home to a stunning (and tragically disappearing) ancient and biodiverse rainforest. After an extraordinary journey, we made it to Sipadan to follow the footsteps of legendary diver Cousteau who famously described the Malaysian oceanic island as: “an untouched piece of art.”
In all honesty, I was a beginner diver, quite nervous about either being eaten by a shark (no matter how important for the coral reefs) or being swept away in a strong down current. Nonetheless, every single of the dives was impressive, with this one piece of coral still grafted in my memory.
Coming out of a place described as the Turtle Cove I saw this gigantic purple Gorgonian Sea Fan. Somehow, the beauty of the coral and intensity of the purple made me unable to move away from it, being in total awe. For the allowed time I was simply mesmerized and ever since, this image has stayed with me and has been a stark reminder for me how deeply I want to contribute to preserve the beauty of the natural world.
Fast forward ten years, and the sea fan is an anchor to the start of Coral Compass, a company from which I hope to help professionals and organizations navigate the transition toward a more sustainable economy.
Spiritually, sea fans symbolize flexibility and resilience, interconnected community, balanced receiving and a deep perspective.
With Coral Compass, I aspire to help organizations build flexibility and resilience amid a myriad of challenges – from ESG regulation to real climate impact. Coral itself is a lesson in collective action: thousands of tiny, cooperating polyps living as one organism. I want to bring that same multidisciplinary, collaborative strength to the work. Like sea fans positioned perpendicular to the current, I want to face what’s at stake head-on, honest about both positive and negative effects, rather than looking away. And finally, Coral Compass will always return to the broader picture, reflecting on intentions rather than getting lost in the complexity of the sustainability landscape.
From today onwards, Coral Compass is available to help your organisation grow into the next phase of your sustainability journey. In a next series of articles, we will reflect more deeply on science, climate psychology, and lessons from over 10 years working as a sustainability specialist in consulting and the financial sector.