Weaam Bassiouni has played a fundamental role in creating our pitch deck for Acumino’s other venture portfolio, Hydrogenera. She has a strong passion for climate action, studying a Bachelor of Global Studies and majoring in Environment and Sustainable Development. She is a multi-lingual expert, studying French, Spanish and Mandarin with a special interest in eco-friendly fashion.
My care for the environment and climate started in high school when my French teacher taught us a module on sustainability, in French. This was probably the first time I had ever come across the subject, and her passion for it made me want to further pursue it in university. Just this time actually in English, where I could probably comprehend a bit more! From then on, I had dabbled with a few things in this environmental journey. I have experimented for example with sewing, thrifting and doing a ‘no buy clothes’ year’ in 2019. There is definitely a long way to go though and starting somewhere is better than nothing at all.
Fashion and clothing is a passion of mine and something I enjoy researching. We, the youth, play a very crucial role in this industry. The global fashion industry is a major contributor to the climate crisis, producing more emissions than the shipping and aviation industries combined!
With the rise of TikTok, and the well-known fashion hauls all over social media, we have driven the demand for fast fashion, even more. Making the fashion industry, and its supply chain, the planet’s third-largest polluter (after food and construction). One way to offset these emissions is with recycled and reclaimed fibres. Another action we can take is to simply reduce how much clothes we buy, focusing more on quality, and longevity. We need to start embracing the slow fashion philosophy.
Taking care of what you are given or have, is a value I am sure we have all grown up with. When it comes to the environment however we seem to forget that it, too, is something gifted to us. I want my kids to be able to breathe fresh air, appreciate the intricate ecosystems and play in the perfectly crafted environment and nature. The future of the planet is on the line. As the earth heats up, ecosystems across the globe are being affected. Whether that be people, animals, or plant systems. Unless we all start looking at our habits and actions, it will only get worse.
The CAVI internship came to my awareness through my university lecturers. I had joined to learn more about climate action and how to help businesses also make a difference and do their part by providing a climate action plan. As we near four weeks into this internship, I can say I have learnt much more than I had imagined. Everything from how to build a start-up, offsetting carbon emissions and so much more. What Negative is trying to do is actually very interesting and unique. The idea of looking at where you were based over the years and calculating your emissions to date, so to hopefully offset them and then go negative, is very exciting! I think it will be quite intriguing to see and learn how each person compares and how different regions can make a big difference.
English 
French 
German 
Spanish 
Chinese 
Portuguese