205: Regulating the Future: Innovation, AI, and Global Tech Power
What does it mean to innovate with principle in a world of complexity, volatility, and accelerating change? This week, I spoke with Anu Bradford, Professor of Law, Director of European Legal Studies Center, Columbia Law School. As part of our Nordic Visionaries series, Anu brings a timely and thought-provoking perspective on the intersection of innovation, regulation, and sustainability. Known globally for her work on EU law and digital regulation, and as the author of The Brussels Effect and Digital Empires, Anu offers an insider’s view on how the Nordics and Europe are navigating the fast-evolving tech landscape. Together, they explore the mounting pressure on companies to adapt to shifting political and economic forces while staying true to their foundational values. From EU regulation and AI governance to geopolitical realignment and sustainability commitments, the conversation tackles the opportunities and tradeoffs innovators must grapple with today. Anu also highlights the need for disruptive innovation that improves lives, not just profits, and calls attention to the power of Nordic leadership to set global examples through clear values, pragmatism, and social trust. Whether you are a tech founder, policymaker, or corporate leader, this episode challenges you to consider what you build and why you make it. So, how do we define meaningful innovation at this moment? And what kind of future are we shaping when we choose to balance progress with principle? Join the conversation and share your thoughts.
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36:03
204: How Nordic Data Centers Supercharging New Energy Source to Power AI
This week I was thrilled to speak with Peder Naerboe, Founder and Owner of Bulk Infrastructure, for my Nordic Visionaries series. I’ve known about data centers for years, but Peder totally reframed them for me as “power refineries,” where Norway’s abundant clean energy can be converted into digital form right at the source. By placing data hubs next to renewable power generation like hydropower, Peder sees a future where we cut out the inefficiencies of long-distance energy transport. It’s not just an innovative way to go greener; it might actually be more profitable, too. In our conversation, Peder shared how his background in shipping led him toward industrial real estate and eventually into building sustainable infrastructure. He talked about constructing not only traditional logistics centers but also robust fiber networks that connect rural regions with major tech hubs. One story that really caught my attention is how people in Labrador are repurposing heat from data centers and crypto mining rigs to warm local buildings. I never imagined data-driven devices fueling greenhouses in subarctic climates, but that’s precisely the kind of out-of-the-box thinking Peder encourages. Beyond the tech details, I loved hearing about the deeper Nordic ethos. According to Peder, a strong sense of responsibility to future generations is woven into daily life in Norway—and all across the Nordic countries. It’s not just a marketing slogan; it shapes the decisions people make, from personal routines to national policy. He believes that if more organizations and innovators around the world aligned profitability with sustainability, we’d see a much faster transition to cleaner energy and more efficient systems. If you’re curious about how to marry environmental goals with profitable outcomes or if you’re just looking to see how data center “refineries” might help reinvent the way we power our digital lives—this episode is a must-listen. Peder’s passion and practical insight blew my mind. I hope it inspires you to explore new ways we can all push the boundaries of innovation while protecting our planet for generations to come.
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39:28
203: How TOMRA is Rethinking the Reduce, Reuse, Recycle Paradigm
What will it take to move beyond the traditional recycling conversation and into a future where circularity is a business imperative, not just a sustainability slogan? In this episode of Nordic Visionaries, I speak with Tove Andersen, President and CEO of TOMRA, a company founded in Norway that has been working on circular economy solutions for over 50 years. With operations in over 100 countries, TOMRA's mission focuses on resource optimization. From reverse vending machines that reward consumers for returning bottles and cans to advanced sorting technologies that help car manufacturers reclaim high-quality aluminum, TOMRA is helping to build the infrastructure for a closed-loop system that works at scale. Tove shares how her background in physics and her 24-year leadership career in global agriculture positioned her to see sustainability and profitability as deeply intertwined. She also explains how TOMRA is collaborating with governments and manufacturers to make circular systems commercially viable and scalable and why timing, transparency, and incentives matter more than ever. What stands out is the reminder that sustainability isn’t just an environmental issue. It is a design challenge, a policy challenge, and above all, an innovation opportunity. From redefining product end-of-life to rethinking local waste infrastructure, Tove offers a compelling vision for turning waste into a resource and circularity into a driver of growth. Is your business truly part of the solution, or are you waiting for regulation to catch up? Let us know what you think. What’s the next right step for companies aiming to build a more sustainable future?
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37:49
202: How Nordic Capitalism Prioritizes Profit and Climate for A More
What if the key to creating a more sustainable future lies not in reinventing capitalism entirely, but in looking at how it already works elsewhere? In this episode of Nordic Visionaries, a special series inside the Innovation Storytellers Show, we welcome Dr. Robert Strand, Executive Director of the Nordic Center at UC Berkeley and Associate Professor at the Copenhagen Business School. With one foot firmly planted in American academia and the other deeply connected to Nordic thought leadership, Robert offers a compelling comparison between American and Nordic models of capitalism highlighting how the Nordics are approaching profit, climate responsibility, and long-term societal well-being. Drawing on his research, leadership courses, and real-world corporate experience, Robert shares why many of the assumptions embedded in American business culture deserve to be challenged. He explains why sustainable capitalism is desirable and necessary and how it can be built on models already in practice across Denmark, Norway, Sweden, and Finland. Whether it’s universal childcare, patient capital, stakeholder-driven innovation, or strong democratic institutions, Robert walks us through the policies and cultural mindsets that allow Nordic companies to be both competitive and conscientious. We also explore how sustainability can drive innovation and how American business leaders might need to rethink their relationship with speed, growth, and quarterly returns. Robert calls for a shift in leadership priorities, urging executives to act as advocates for society as much as for their bottom line. From planetary boundaries to AI, from corporate structures to childcare, this conversation challenges long-held ideas about what makes capitalism work. Can we borrow from Nordic approaches to shape a more resilient and just economy? And are American businesses ready to reimagine their role in a changing world? Tune in and share your thoughts.
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54:19
201: How Global Hackathons are Accelerating Sustainable Tech
This week I was delighted to sit down with Ann Molin, CEO & Secretary General of Hack for Earth, for an in-depth conversation on how citizen-led innovation can tackle global challenges. Ann, a psychologist by training, first fell in love with hackathons while working on the Swedish Government’s Hack for Sweden initiative, where she realized that bringing people together to solve open-data challenges could spark powerful, real-world solutions in record time. During our conversation, Ann explained how the Hack for Earth foundation evolved from this initial passion, scaling up to engage over 25,000 participants across 125 countries in building tools aligned with the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals. She emphasized that these events aren’t just about brainstorming; they’re about bolstering projects after the hackathon ends. Ann’s key insight was that sustainable innovation demands an ongoing acceleration program—complete with the leadership support and psychological safety needed for meaningful impact. We also discussed the Nordic countries’ tremendous success in both innovation and sustainability. Ann pointed out how a strong social framework, combined with a flat organizational culture, empowers individuals to take risks without fear of failure. She described the critical role of storytelling in uniting groups around environmental goals, noting that the most memorable ideas emerge when empathy, narrative, and relationships intertwine. One of my favorite takeaways was Ann’s passionate stance on action trumping endless research. While reading and learning have their place, she believes we can’t just wait around if we want to drive change. If you’re curious about the psychology behind hackathons, the importance of genuine follow-through, or how the Nordic approach to collaboration might help solve today’s toughest challenges, you won’t want to miss our conversation. Let me know what you think!
Did you ever wonder how an innovation got to its finish line? How innovators saw the future, made a product, and created change – in our world and in their companies? I did. Innovation Storytellers invites changemakers to describe how they created their innovation and just as important – THE STORIES – that made us fall in love with them. Come learn how great innovations need great stories to make them move around the world and how to become a better storyteller in the process.
I’m Susan Lindner, the Innovation Storyteller. But I wasn’t always. I’ve been a wannabe revolutionary, an epidemiologist at the CDC and an AIDS educator in the brothels of Thailand helping to turn former sex workers into entrepreneurs. Trained as an anthropologist and the Founder of Emerging Media, I’ve spent the last twenty years working with innovators from 60+ countries. Ranging from cutting edge startups to Fortune 100 companies like GE, Corning, Citi, Olayan, and nine foreign governments, helping their leaders to tell their stories and teaching them how to become incredible advocates for their innovations.
Great innovation stories make change possible. They let us step into a future we can’t see yet. I started this podcast to shine a light on our generation of great innovators, to learn how they brought their innovation to life and the stories they told to bring them to the world.
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