Social
Entrepreneur,
Innovator &
Systems Designer
Redesigning systems for a more regenerative future.
Mariko is an award-winning entrepreneur, adviser, and speaker who helps people redesign systems for a more circular and regenerative future in creative and practical ways. She co-founded Social Innovation Japan and mymizu, a free water refill app that uses refilling as an entry point to wider citizen action.
Drawing on her experience building mission-driven initiatives from the ground up, Mariko works with global brands, governments, startups, and other changemakers through talks, workshops, and advisory support to help them develop more effective approaches to systems change and social and environmental impact. She has also served as a Council Member of the World Economic Forum’s Global Future Council on Japan and as a guest adviser to Japan’s Ministry of the Environment.
Mariko’s work has received multiple awards in Japan and internationally, including Business Insider Japan’s “Beyond Millennials” Award and the iF World Design Guide Social Impact Prize. She is a regular contributor on local and national radio, and her interviews have been featured in media including Forbes, Nikkei, BBC, and VOGUE.
Activities
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Social Innovation Japan
Co-founder/Representative Director of an award winning organisation focused on growing the population of individuals tackling social and environmental issues. Flagship activities include:
Creating and supporting new social ventures
Community building (organising events, building networks)
Movement building (information dissemination, collaboration, mechanism building)
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mymizu
A multiple-award winning, flagship project of Social Innovation Japan. Transforming the sustainability space in Japan by launching Japan’s first free water refill app and platform, leveraging technology and storytelling to bring together community and collaboration with world-leading businesses and governments to shift from disposable to reusable.
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Coach / Advisor
Experienced in supporting major global corporations, local governments and the Ministry of the Environment in Japan in designing initiatives to innovate with a focus on sustainability. Areas of expertise:
Circular innovation
Systems change
Cross-sector partnerships for sustainability
Zero to One for sustainable innovation
Sustainability related business opportunities in Japan
Employee engagement / internal & external communications around sustainability
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World Economic Forum
Council Member for the World Economic Forum’s Global Future Council on Japan during its term 2020-2022. Joined a group of leading experts, business leaders and the Minister of Environment to create a strategy for the realisation of a Circular Economy in Japan.
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According to a poll conducted by the Ministry of the Environment in 2019, 89% of respondents said they were concerned about plastic waste. McTier has been one of the key players in creating this positive shift in environmental awareness.
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Speaking Engagements
Japan Times Sustainability Roundtable
A deep dive into systems change and innovation for sustainability.
Kashiwanoha Innovation Fes 2021
Design & Innovation to solve Environmental Challenges. A conversation with Michiaki Matsushima, Editor-in-Chief of WIRED Japan
Circular plastics: Japan & The Netherlands
Discover best practices for collaboration between Japan and the Netherlands to scale up circular solutions in the plastics value chain.
TEDxOtemachi: 3 Lessons to Build a Social Movement
In the face of the climate crisis, it’s easy to feel overwhelmed. So how do we engage people en masse to create the critical mass we need for change? (Japanese)
Areas of Expertise
How to build a Social Venture
Circular System Design
Systems Thinking
Social Entrepreneurship
Community Engagement for Sustainability
Social Impact
Strategic Design for Sustainability
Cross-Sector Collaboration
Innovation for Sustainability
Let’s work together
For consulting, coaching, speaking engagement and media enquiries, please use the contact form linked below!