"Be careful about trying to solve 2050 problems with 2025 technology," says James Mnyupe, former Namibia Senior Economic Advisor and Green Hydrogen Commissioner. Join Sheri Hinish, the Supply Chain Queen®, and co-host James George for Big Idea 9 of the Supply Chain Revolution podcast exploring how clean energy actually powers industrialization in practice.

This episode is part of the 10 Big Ideas to Transform Supply Chains for a Regenerative Future series and reveals the structural choices, systems thinking, and policy frameworks that determine how African nations own the value chains they create in clean industrialization revolution happening now in the global south.

Featuring James Mnyupe, Senior Vice President for Sub-Saharan Africa at ThyssenKrupp Uhde. James brings rare perspective having architected Namibia's green industrialization blueprint from the government side and now scaling the model across 49 African nations through a European industrial platform. His work spans everything from fertilizer and food security to mineral beneficiation, mobilizing fit-for-purpose capital while ensuring African ownership of technology, data, and manufacturing capacity. His TED Talk on economic diplomacy and industrial policy has inspired leaders globally to rethink development partnerships.

Chapters

00:00 - Introduction to Clean Energy and Industrialization

00:15 - Navigating Geopolitical Tensions in Clean Energy

06:45 - Blueprint for African-Led Clean Industrialization

14:19 - Redefining Bankability in African Terms

25:22 - African Sovereignty and Global Partnerships

29:11 - Looking Ahead: The Future of African Industrialization

Connect with the Supply Chain Revolution

Subscribe for the full "10 Big Ideas" series exploring how to transform supply chains for a regenerative future. Follow the Supply Chain Queen on LinkedIn for additional insights and resources.

Join the Supply Chain Queen® and James George with Namuun Purevdorj—a leader who bridges two powerful knowledge systems that together can create transformation neither achieves alone.

Namuun brings an extraordinary blend of experiences: born and raised in Mongolia's deeply communal, nature-centered culture, MIT-trained in supply chain management, and seasoned across consulting, Amazon operations, and retail leadership. As someone who grew up learning that wellbeing depends on the wellbeing of people and nature around you - persevering through -40°C winters and seasonal apprenticeships—she offers a unique lens on building regenerative organizations.

Currently leading the eyewear category at Amazon Retail US, Namuun's journey spans sourcing, supplier development, packaging sustainability, network design, and procurement decarbonization. Throughout her career, she's discovered that Mongolian worldviews of interdependence, stewardship, and dialogue pair naturally with analytical training and technical skills. One helps understand people, relationships, and long-term impact. The other helps design mechanisms and make data-driven decisions.

For anyone feeling the pressure to find perfect AI-powered answers, Namuun's story is permission to progress without perfection, to trust in timely human action, and to see supply chains as living networks.

Key Insights:

• The Bridge Between Worlds: How indigenous wisdom about community resilience and long-term stewardship complements modern capabilities in data, AI, and digital transformation
• Progress Over Perfection: The Mongolian saying "even muddy water can put out fire"—why timely human action matters more than waiting for perfect solutions
• Seasonal Discipline as Systems Thinking: How growing up with nomadic rhythms—spring for growth, fall for preparation, winter for protection—builds natural understanding of adaptive networks
• Building Capability, Not Just Output: Why the most regenerative solutions focus on strengthening people and systems, not just delivering projects
• Co-Creation at Scale: How to build solutions with the people who will own them after implementation—from Amazon's supplier-facing teams to retail operations
• The Interdependence Question: "Who else needs to thrive for this work to succeed?"—a frame that widens perspective and reveals the true system
• Cultural Translation in Corporate Settings: Navigating the tension between communal, nature-based values and P&L-driven global logistics operations
• Resilience as Foundation: How harsh climates and seasonal adaptation build the perseverance required for systems transformation

About Namuun Purevdorj:

Namuun is Category Leader for Eyewear at Amazon Retail US. Previously, she led procurement decarbonization initiatives at Amazon, building tools and training for thousands of supplier-facing teams. Her background spans consulting, logistics, and procurement, an MIT master's in supply chain management, and early career work in international economics.

Connect with the Supply Chain Revolution:

Subscribe for the full "10 Big Ideas" series exploring how to transform supply chains for a regenerative future. Follow the Supply Chain Queen on LinkedIn for additional insights and resources.

Join Sheri Hinish, the Supply Chain Queen®, and co-host James George for Big Idea 7 of the Supply Chain Revolution podcast all about Forest Positive Supply Chains. This episode is part of the 10 Big Ideas to Transform Supply Chains for a Regenerative Future series and explores how global supply chains can evolve from deforestation free compliance to forest positive regeneration.

Featuring Sophie Beckham, Chief Sustainability Officer of International Paper and one of the world’s most respected leaders in forestry and biodiversity stewardship, this conversation reframes forests as living infrastructure that underpins long term business resilience, economic value, and climate stability.

Drawing on decades of experience across forest management, conservation partnerships, and large scale industrial operations, Sophie shares how supply chains that depend on forest systems must move beyond short term optimization toward multi generational regeneration. Forests are not interchangeable inputs. They are place based systems that require trust, data, collaboration, and long horizon thinking.

In this episode, you will learn why deforestation free is only the starting point, how forest positive supply chains actively enhance biodiversity, water quality, and ecosystem health, and why nature must be treated as a core stakeholder rather than an externality. The discussion spans landowner trust, regulatory uncertainty on EUDR, data and GIS enabled transparency, climate volatility, and the role of fiber based packaging in keeping forests standing.

Key themes include how forests function as living infrastructure that cannot be relocated, why regenerative forestry does not require economic tradeoffs, how early data driven interventions create positive outcomes on the ground, and why nature is the silent guarantor of all other forms of capital.

This is not a theoretical sustainability discussion. It is a practical, business grounded exploration of how supply chains can become regeneration catalysts that strengthen operations, protect assets, support communities, and restore biodiversity at scale.

Perfect for supply chain leaders, sustainability and ESG executives, risk and resilience leaders, operations and procurement teams, and anyone responsible for long term sourcing, infrastructure, or climate adaptation strategies.

What You Will Learn

• Supply chains can act as catalysts for forest regeneration.
• The European Deforestation Regulation (EUDR) poses challenges for businesses.
• Technology is essential for bridging gaps in forestry management.
• Understanding the interconnectedness of forest ecosystems is crucial.
• Nature should be viewed as a key stakeholder in supply chains.
• Balancing commercial viability with sustainability is a complex challenge.
• Adapting to climate change is vital for forestry management.
• Consumers play a significant role in promoting sustainable packaging.
• Forests have the potential to contribute to climate change mitigation.
• The future of forestry lies in sustainable and regenerative practices.

Sound Bites

• "We should lean into unsentimental valuation."
• "What can the average consumer do?"
• "How do we deliver sustainable outcomes?"

Chapters

00:00 - Introduction to Supply Chains and Regeneration

02:07 - Understanding the European Deforestation Regulation (EUDR)

06:08 - Technology Bridging Gaps in Forestry Management

09:32 - The Interconnectedness of Forest Ecosystems

12:04 - Nature as a Stakeholder in Supply Chains

15:01 - Balancing Commercial Viability with Sustainability

18:14 - Adapting to Climate Change in Forestry

21:22 - Consumer Responsibility in Sustainable Packaging

25:36 - Looking Ahead: Future of Forestry and Sustainability

Keywords

supply chain, forest regeneration, sustainability, EUDR, technology in forestry, biodiversity, climate change, consumer responsibility, packaging, carbon sequestration