Since September 1, she enriches the team at Salacia Solutions. Christel Donker, 24 years old, is the new Sustainability Expert. Just before the summer, she graduated in Industrial Ecology from TU Delft and Leiden University. We ask her if she always had a focus on sustainability. “I was always aware that we need to live more sustainably, but it wasn’t top of mind,” Christel opens the conversation. “It wasn’t until my bachelor’s that the spark struck. I could choose four directions to specialize in and sustainability seemed the most interesting. I didn’t regret that choice, I got inspired and couldn’t wait to put what I learned into practice!”
From WhatsApp to a first interview
The study association Christel was a member of had its own WhatsApp group. “There, a job posting was shared from Salacia Solutions. I recognized myself in the position and grabbed the phone. Soon I was allowed to come for an interview here in Rotterdam. After that it went very quickly, Salacia doesn’t waste any time. A second interview followed and here I am,” she says, laughing.
No fuss in Rotterdam
“You know what’s so nice?”, Christel continues. “My first impression of Salacia was already top-notch, with their ‘Don’t talk, take action’ mentality. And the international, very diverse team also appealed to me a lot. But what I really enjoy is that I can make a concrete contribution to sustainability here. Just putting everything I’ve learned into practice immediately, in a very hands-on way. I don’t have anything to do with the fuzzy stuff that sustainability is often surrounded by. If we would only talk about it, that wouldn’t get us anywhere. Here, we and the customer all put effort in to make things happen. This is what I was looking for, this is what makes me happy.”
Making a difference together
Christel notes that Salacia can really make a difference for companies. “It’s just nice for companies to be able to work with a party that knows their way around. In my role as ESG expert, I go along to clients and do research. A great moment for me is the start-up phase with a new client. Together we determine what data is important and in what format it needs to be for further processing. We always have two team members of Salacia working with a client, who become the permanent points of contact. That works very efficiently.” For Christel and her colleagues, sometimes it really is going on an adventure, as it turns out. “The great thing is that companies can be so vastly different when you look at the specific sector they are in. For us, that means a lot of research, a lot of reading up, a lot of asking questions and developing an understanding of the challenges the clients face.”
In conclusion, Christel says, “I am enjoying my work tremendously at the moment and have no specific long-term goals. I enjoy working here, I already feel at home. I will see what comes my way and make choices as I go. So with an open mind and seeing everything as a learning process.”
