Mimi Wu

Since the time of the interview, Mimi has been involved as a board member for EcoPost Ltd, an advisor and consultant of GREENMANTRA Technologies, an advisor for Savia Ventures, and a mentor for Cycle Momentum.

 

My career path: After finishing undergrad, I furthered my education in the Batten School while working as a research assistant at USAID. Graduating from Batten, I took on a consulting position at World Bank. From there I held many consulting and management positions in various industries (public health, policy, microfinance, product, education, etc.), and eventually decided to start my own company: Myanmar Recycles.

Becoming the founder and CEO of a successful, impactful company: In 2017, I opened a plastic recycling factory in Myanmar - a country I had no prior connection with - and have been working to recycle plastic film with a focus on post-consumer plastic waste. In 2020, Myanmar Recycles was selected as one of eight global companies to pilot the world's first plastics credit scheme. This pilot program allows corporations reliant on plastic packaging to buy credits generated by plastic recycling and collection companies. Behind this are leading carbon offset standard Verra (formerly VCS); non-profit BVRio founded by Pedro Moura Costa, perhaps a familiar name from his development of the first carbon offset verification standard and his global leadership on GHG emissions reduction; notable corporate companies, such as Tetra Pak and Nestle; and advisors including Conservation International, South Pole, and McKinsey.org.

Tip for current students:

  • Seek out varied work experiences at different organizations, both at home and abroad. The reality of working in an emerging country is that there will be many challenges you never anticipated, but living abroad will build and strengthen your resourcefulness and expand your understanding of humanity’s interconnectedness, challenges, and collective strength.

 

Infomation taken from Batten's Alum in Action interview with Mimi.