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Tom founded Except Integrated Sustainability in 1999, and directs the company together with Eva Gladek. Except was built from a dream: the dream to create a place where people that are truly commited to sustainable development could work together. A place where they could meet other talented and motivated people and realize their passion using solid scientific knowledge combined with the speed and resolve of creative processes. This place now exists, and Tom is happy to be part of it, and having the honor to direct its future.
Tom has been committed to developing the foundations for a sustainable future from early on in his master studies Industrial Design Engineering at the Delft University of Technology. He continued investigating a systemic approach to sustainable development at the University of Western Australia and in his master studies architecture and planning at Yale University.
He discovered that the knowledge of a single, or even a couple of disciplines is not sufficient to truly engage the issues of sustainability head on, and started work on a theory and working-method for multi-disciplinary collaboration across sectors. Together with Eva Gladek he developed the Symbiosis in Development (SiD) methodology, that lies at the core of Except's structure, approach and toolset, and which continues to be in development.
Tom's background is diverse: from engineering, planning and design studies, working at and running multiple companies, working as a photographer, graphic designer, architect, visualizer, and business strategist, making Tom the swiss army knife of Except. The secret of being able to many different things well, he will tell you, lies in being able to create and manage smart processes, and learning to think in and embrace complex systems.
Tom advises national and regional governements as well as multi national corporations on sustainability strategy. Tom has worked in Australia, Canada, China, the Netherlands and the United States. He has taught in various schools and institutions and publishes articles and a variety of magazines and journals regularly. Tom lectures on congresses and events as a keynote speaker on sustainability, and is available for bookings.
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