How I Got Here: Mecca’s Sustainability Specialist on using passion to drive positive change
WORDS BY IZZY WIGHT
“Be interested, not interesting.”
Have you ever stalked someone on LinkedIn and wondered how on earth they managed to land that wildly impressive job? While it might look like smooth sailing, there’s no doubt been a heck of a lot of hard work involved in getting there.
So what lessons have been learnt and what skills have proved invaluable in getting them from daydreaming about success to actually being at the top of their industry?
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Welcome to How I Got Here, where we talk to people who are killing it in their respective fields about how they landed their awe-inspiring jobs, exploring the peaks and pits, the failures and the wins, and most importantly the knowledge, advice and practical tips they’ve gleaned along the way.
This week, we’re exploring the career journey of Isabella De Filippis, the Sustainability Specialist at Mecca Brands. Growing up tending to her family’s veggie garden and road tripping down the Victorian coast, Isabella has always felt passionate about ‘the connection between community and environment’. But it wasn’t until studying the topic at university that she became interested in the role of sustainability in a corporate context.
While working in Mecca’s retail operations team, Isabella found opportunities to implement new sustainability initiatives in the business. It’s this natural drive and ever-present willingness to listen and learn that landed her in the inaugural role as the brand’s Sustainability Specialist. Below, she shares her career journey so far.
What do you do and what’s your official job title?
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I’m the Sustainability Specialist at Mecca Brands and I help shape and deliver Mecca’s sustainability program, M-pact. There’s a lot that comes with this – from staying up to date with government legislation on environmental policies such as carbon, packaging, waste and social policies, to collecting data and reporting on the impact of our initiatives and sharing our progress with our team members.
Take us back to when you were first starting out. Did you study to get into your chosen field, or did you start out with an internship/entry-level role and climb the ladder? Tell us the story.
For as long as I can remember, I’ve always been passionate about the connection between community and the environment. Growing up in a large Italian family, we spent a lot of time together outdoors – whether that be in our backyard veggie gardens, local sports club or somewhere down the Victorian coast for our family summer holidays.
I was raised in a family that fosters relationships and respects the outdoors, and that’s where I learnt the importance of community and conserving the environment. So if I ever have a family of my own one day, we can enjoy the same experiences that brought me so much joy as a child.
Throughout high school, I completed all the subjects [related to] being outside, so it was a no-brainer that I wanted to continue studying the environment at university.
I completed a Bachelor of Environment and Society at RMIT University. It wasn’t until then that I really understood the connection between environmental and social sustainability, and how neither of them exists without the other. This led me to be very interested in corporate responsibility and what big businesses should be doing to create sustainable and accessible futures for everyone.
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While I was studying, I was working at Nike. [This is] where I really fell in love with retail and the opportunity the retail industry has for positive impacts on sustainability. Retail is a unique industry that nurtures amazing communities, and that’s when I knew I wanted to combine my love for the industry and passion for sustainability to drive change.
After completing my bachelor’s degree, I wanted a job with an Australian business. I was adamant I wanted to impact my own backyard first, and Mecca was the perfect place to do that. At the time, Mecca didn’t have a sustainability team, so I took an entry-level job in their retail operations team. That’s what really set me up for success! I was able to learn so much about how the retail stores, warehouse and company operated, and I could see so many opportunities for us to have a positive impact.
The beauty of working at Mecca is I was never encouraged to just ‘stay in my lane’. When I was in the retail operations team, I’d work on business cases for sustainability initiatives on the side. Fast forward three years, and I was given the opportunity to be Mecca’s first-ever Sustainability Specialist. Since starting the role, it’s been all systems go. I’ve barely had time to sit back and reflect on the fact that I am right where I wanted to be five years ago!
What challenges/hurdles have you faced getting to where you are now? Can you tell us about one in particular?
The challenge anyone who works in sustainability will face is that people can have different ideas of what sustainability is. We need to be patient and meet people where they’re at, so we can help them understand what we need to do and why.
Being sustainable means we may need to think about things we’ve always done in a different way. This can take time. However, I love solving problems and it’s rewarding when we do find smart solutions that are not only great for our customers but also for the environment and the broader community.
What do you want people to know about your industry/your role?
We want people to have confidence in the information they receive about how sustainable a product or service may be. Whenever you see a sustainability claim, ask yourself ‘How do I know it’s true?’ Is the claim backed by a credible certification or any evidence? If it’s not, reach out to the company and ask for the information you’re looking for.
What’s the best part about your role?
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Being part of the grassroots of sustainability at Mecca is one of, if not the best part of my role. Watching Mecca push the limits has been so exciting and I have loved being part of the evolution of the team. It gets me really excited for what’s to come!
What would surprise people about your role?
It’s equally as technical as it is creative. While most of my day-to-day is technical with packaging specifications, carbon accounting and reporting, it’s important to bring everyone on the journey through compelling storytelling.
What skills have served you well in your industry?
Respecting that everyone has a part to play in having a positive impact has allowed me to be a great listener and digest new information. I’m an introvert, so it comes naturally for me to listen to what everyone else has to say before I speak up. You can learn so much from the people you work with every day.
And of course, I love the hit of serotonin I get when I cross something off my to-do list. I love being organised and I hold myself to account when it comes to meeting, deadlines and managing my workload.
What advice would you give to someone who wants to be in a role like yours one day?
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Be interested, not interesting. When trying to influence, a lot of people focus on being interesting because they want people to see and think the best of them, but influence comes from being genuinely interested in someone and really understanding what they have to say. It is only when you are an attentive and generous listener that you can truly influence change.
What about a practical tip?
Say no to single-use plastic.
Read the rest of the How I Got Here series here.
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