During a recent panel discussion featuring the winner and runners up of the 2025 Wilkes Climate Launch Prize, which highlights top global ideas for combating climate change, three startup leaders gave three lessons on resiliency.
- Work in Something You’re Passionate About
For Björn Söderberg, co-founder of Build up Nepal and the winner of the Wilkes Climate Launch Prize, the number one thing about staying resilient during tough times in one’s career is doing something that you’re really passionate about. He said that if someone is not, they can’t get through all those challenges.
“You have to have that deep passion from inside,” Söderberg said. “That this is something that you need to be personally able to care about. If this is something I want to do to make some quick bucks, then it’s not going to cut it when things get hard.”
- Turn Crisis Into Action
When the 2015 Nepal earthquake left 800,000 homes destroyed, Söderberg didn’t just rebuild — he reimagined housing. By teaching villagers to make eco-friendly bricks, his team has built 12,000 safe homes and 125 schools.
“We don’t build houses. We teach people to build houses,” Söderberg said.
- Find Humor in the Hard Days
Startups are roller coasters. Margaret Lumley, cofounder and CEO of Roca Water, admitted there are moments when giving up seems easier. Her tactic? Lean on her team and laugh.
“We just have to find a way to laugh about it,” she said. “You just get through it. You find the ridiculousness in this situation that you’ve been thrust into.”
- Grit Beats Glamour
For Jean Louwrens, co-founder of De Novo Foodlabs, the path to scaling new food technologies isn’t glamorous. It’s discipline, persistence, and small wins that add up.
“It’s also about building the discipline and having that grit to work, even when you don’t feel like working,” he said. “Just immersing yourself back into the work and trying to find solutions.”
Together, their stories show that resilience isn’t about avoiding setbacks. It’s about finding passion, laughter, and grit strong enough to carry you forward.
At the U, resilience fuels innovation, and for founders here, resources are just a click away.
To learn more about the Wilkes Climate Launch Prize winner and runners up, click here.
