Chloé Mikolajczak is an activist consultant aiming to make sustainability the norm — She is the Founder of environmental education NGO The Green Seeds Project and the coordinator of Fashion Revolution Belgium, the Belgian branch of the international movement aiming for a more ethically and environmentally sustainable fashion industry.

She has a Masters of Environmental Science and Management .

Greatest inspirations or influences?

I am in awe of the work done on the ground by environmental defenders. Indigenous leaders, activists, people who regularly put their life on the line to protect their land and their environment and I'm so glad to see that the media is finally taking an interest in these incredible eco warriors. I also really like the work of the Canadian writer Naomi Klein and intellectual Noam Chomsky who also provides incredibly interesting insights ons system change and what that could look like.

What is the cause the motivates you most?

I'm passionate about sustainability and environmental justice. While the future can seem very dark and gloomy, I can't even consider not fighting for a world that would be more respectful of nature and people. I put all my energy in this cause but I'm also a firm advocate for animal rights because as Joaquin Phoenix said in his Oscar acceptance speech, it's not different fights, it's one big fight against injustice.

Challenges of what you do?

So many! Between policy makers that only vote for popular measures to be reelected to the lack of awareness from the general public to CEOs and shareholders only focusing on short term profit rather than the big picture, fighting for a more lovable planet is definitely not an easy task. But there's more and more of us and I'm convinced change is coming very soon.

Career highlight so far?

I love what I do so it's not easy to pick one. I'm going to go for 2.

• As an activist, might have been when we pressured the G7 in 2015 to commit to focusing their development efforts on women and girls a crucial group if we want to achieve sustainability but also the most vulnerable to climate change.

• As an educator, it's every day that I go to a "disadvantaged" school here in Brussels to talk about sustainability and the youth are not only interested, they want to learn more and be able to fight a system not just be more zero waste or eat less meat!

A dream project for you?

I dream a lot... But the two things I would love to do which are completely disconnected from each other are 1 create a platform that would allow people to understand more policy making process and be able to influence them on a regular basis (no more votes happening behind the scenes!). The second one would be to live on a permaculture farm close to the ocean, surrounded by rescue animals and organizing workshops to reconnect people with nature. It really reflects the conflict in me!

Favourite websites or social media handles?

I love Mary Robinson's podcast about women in the field of climate change: Mothers of Invention.

My friend @hollyrose.eco educates on regenerative agriculture which is absolutely fascinating and @jamie_s_margolin is such an inspiration when it comes to climate justice.

Anything else?

If you're able to, join the fight against climate breakdown (such as joining a local Extinction Rebellion group for instance) and vote for people who care about the longer term sustainability of our environment and society. Individual efforts are great but if we're serious about this issue, we need system change and this can only come through the development and implementation of policies that will make sustainability a priority.

interview daniela selva