Monoceros: The Future of My Life

Why I Started Monoceros - And What the Name Means to Me

In 2022, I made a decision that fundamentally shifted the direction of my career: I went back to school.

After working across a wide range of industries, from particle and nuclear physics to defence and government infrastructure, from marine technology and environmental remediation to education and scientific diving, I found myself asking deeper questions about impact and purpose. While I’m proud of everything I’ve built and led, there were too many moments where I felt disconnected from the kind of long-term change I wanted to contribute to.

I wasn’t just looking for the next chapter. I wanted to reorient my work around solving some of the world’s most urgent challenges; not by managing symptoms, but by reimagining systems themselves. I wanted to explore how biomimicry - nature’s blueprint for innovation - could be applied to ecosystem recovery in a way that was rooted in circularity (practices that aim to reduce waste and maximize resource use) and sustainability (the ability to meet present needs without compromising the ability of future generations to meet theirs) rather than linear, extractive models.

One book that deeply influenced my thinking was The Future of Life by E.O. Wilson (2002). What struck me the most was his assertion that until the global economy fully integrates with environmental sustainability, we’ll continue to see catastrophic biodiversity loss and the degradation of human and environmental health. That message stayed with me and is something I've witnessed first hand, over and over, across this entire planet: from toxic debris lying at the bottom of the ocean, to the brownfields left behind from oil and gas exploration, and in this last year alone, a personal connection to areas devastated from climate events like drought, flash flooding and hurricanes.

West Texas, USA (April 2024): abandoned oil wells as far as you can see are commonly known as brownfields, where reuse of the area may be complicated by the presence or potential presence of hazardous substances left over from industrial practices.

I captured my thinking in a paper exploring biomimicry as a tool for innovation in the remediation of aquatic ecosystems being overwhelmed by invasive species. That paper supported my admission to MIT’s Professional Education program, where I completed my Chief Sustainability Officer Certificate, a milestone that marked the beginning of something much bigger.

In 2023, that “something” became Monoceros Strategies Inc.

Monoceros isn’t just a company. It’s a platform for forward-thinking collaboration; a place to incubate and scale nature-inspired solutions that are grounded in science and built for long-term impact. It’s where I bring together my technical background, leadership experience, and deep curiosity about what’s possible when we stop compromising on environmental integrity.

Alongside an inspiring team of diverse thinkers and doers, we’re building a global network to deliver regenerative, credible, and scalable solutions. We don't just design programs, we verify the integrity of sustainability investments, ensuring they protect land, air, and sea for future generations.

But why the name Monoceros?

Monoceros is Latin for “unicorn.” Not the tech-world variety akin to a start-up cliché, but the celestial constellation, faint and often overlooked, that crosses the night sky with quiet persistence. It’s also the scientific name for the narwhal, the so-called “unicorn of the sea,” a creature that adapts to extremes and reminds us that nature often holds the most extraordinary answers.

The name has personal meaning, too. I’ve been called a unicorn more than once, by friends, colleagues, and, truthfully, even my therapist, because of the eclectic and unconventional path I’ve taken. In that spirit, Monoceros represents rare vision, resilience, and the ability to navigate complexity with purpose.

Our logo reflects this: a narwhal marked with the stars of the Monoceros constellation on its back; a symbol of interconnection between nature and human progress. It’s a visual reminder of our commitment to innovation, adaptability, and the systems thinking required to drive meaningful, sustainable change.

This is the work that finally brings it all together for me: purposeful, grounded, and urgently needed.

I’m proud to introduce Monoceros to the world, and even more excited about the momentum we’re building. Please follow us on Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn as we prepare to launch our first spin-out: a tangible step towards scaling the impact of regenerative innovation.