Entrepreneur. Explorer. Founder and Chief Upp! of Upp! UpCycling Plastic, co- founder and director of UPPACT the Unwaste Company. Supporting communities, cities and companies to close their plastic waste loop. Expert on circular plastics and developing regional circular ecosystems that work. Special Envoy Holland Circular Hotspot and TEDx speaker. Currently setting up a 1st UPP! Circular Plastic Factory in Surabaya, Indonesia and working on the 1st factory to process difficult-to-recycle mixed plastic and textile waste into robust and 100% recyclable construction materials in the Netherlands (UPPACT). A test & demo line has been realized in the Eemshaven – NL. Professional experience: • Director Dutch Trade Promotion Office in Vietnam (1994-1997) • Commercial management/Business Development at Shell Downstream in Vietnam, UK and West-Africa (1997-2007); • Country Manager Benelux at Valvoline/Ashland, NL (2013-2014) • Director at Lankhorst Engineered Products, Sneek, NL (2014-2017) • Founder/Chief Upp! Of Upp! UpCycling Plastic BV, NL (2017-current) • Co-founder/director of UPPACT BV in Eemshaven-NL (2021-current) Education: • MSc in Human Geography, RUG, the Netherlands (1991)