S2 Episode 15: Building trust and collaboration towards a sustainable fishing industry, with Nadia Laabs of SafetyNet Technologies

This is my latest conversation with a business in the 2021 cohort of the ‘AI for Social Impact Programme’ – which is a partnership between Social Tech Trust and Microsoft for Startups. who are supporting purpose driven ventures using technology to make a positive impact on people’s lives. 

I’m back in the Sustainability zone this week, with my guest business impacting no less than 5 of the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals. The focus is on Precision Fishing, which uses technology and data to target the right fish and encourage a far more sustainable commercial fishing ecosystem. Catching too many fish and the wrong fish, as well as other marine life, has massively depleted fish stocks and ultimately given the global fishing industry something of a bad name. But given that 20% of the world population relies on fish as its primary protein source, the lack of sustainability is a problem that really needs to be fixed. 

My guest today is Nadia Laabs, co-founder and COO of SafetyNet Technologies, a London-based impact venture which designs and builds devices to increase the selectivity of commercial fishing practices, making the industry more sustainable. Their solutions are trusted and valued within the fishing industry and play a key role in enabling Precision Fishing.  

They are using a data-driven approach to help the fishing industry fish responsibly whilst reducing waste across the supply chain. 

Nadia is a mechanical engineer by background, who has been involved in social impact initiatives throughout her career. She started out with Proctor & Gamble in the US before coming to Europe to study for an MBA at Insead in 2013. She joined SafetyNet in their very early days five years ago, and has been COO for the last two years alongside CEO Dan and CTO Aran.