Carole Viaene is a creative generalist and a seasoned professional with a journalism/HR/education background and experience in leadership roles in a Blue Economy start-up and venture studio, an OKR strategy consulting company, esteemed institutions such as IESE and Esade Business School, as well as working with Fortune 500 companies and tech giants, demonstrating her transferrable skills, adaptability, and wide-ranging impact.
She’s currently working as a Strategic Partnerships Lead for Open Earth Foundation, and working on her second book around a systemic mindset. She used to worked as a freelance consultant for the Nature Strategies team at The Biodiversity Consultancy, where she helped drive transformative journeys for multinationals and previously spearheaded partnerships at Ocean Ecostructures, a pioneering nature-based solution and climate tech start-up focused on regenerating marine biodiversity through biomimetic micro reefs and reporting/monitoring via ROVs & AI.
Her career is distinguished by global initiatives, including a temporary directorial position at the World Ocean Council. She is also a published author, a nature/biodiversity/sustainability/postgrowth advocate, a public speaker and is fluent in English, French, Dutch, and Spanish (+ working on getting fluent in Catalan, too).
Carole's credentials include an ICF-Certified PCC Coach designation, with over 3,000 hours of coaching experience, underscoring her belief in empathy, ethics, impact, diversity, inclusion, health, and well-being. As an alumni, she also advises/mentors for the Norrsken Impact Accelerator, supporting early-stage companies with a focus on creating positive social and environmental impact.
Her eclectic background enables her to adeptly navigate and quickly comprehend intricate ecosystems, positioning her at the dynamic intersection of business, leadership development, science, technology, innovation, and environmental stewardship.
In her free time, Carole dedicates her time to sports, mentoring women, spending time in nature, sailing, traveling, reading, photography and painting.
● 10+ years of experience, coached +3,000 hours, ICF-Certified PCC Coach
● Guest lecturer, coach & advisor (Executive MBAs) at Esade Business School
● Advisor/Mentor for Norrsken - Impact Accelerator Program
● Mentor for She Changes Climate - Be One Mentorship Program
● Workshops & talks at Esade, IESE, SAP, Veepee, The Soho House, Norrsken Barcelona, The League of Intrapreneurs, Oceanovation Festival
● Experience working with multinationals and Fortune 500 companies
● Published author (2021, Arpa Editores) of a book oriented towards SDG careers
● Followed courses by London Business School, HarvardX, INSEAD, Google and The Civilization Research Institute
● Leadership coaching for Wavveup
●Worked with HR Departments from Fortune 500 Companies in Technology (e.g. VMware, Bloomberg, Amazon, TikTok, HP, Google, Microsoft, etc.)
● Volunteered for over 10 different organizations, including 4 years at The European Youth Parliament
● Mentor at Professional Women's Network Barcelona & European Youth Parliament Mentoring Program
● Bachelor (cum laude) in Education (languages and philosophy)
● Co-founded BROAD, an all-female team participating at the adventurous Mongol Rally, making a documentary based on the United Nations HeForShe Movement
● Member of the Climate Coaching Alliance