Background
Mikkel is a visionary leader with high ambitions on behalf of the whole; collaborators, communities, human civilization and ecosystems at large.
Mikkel has been working in the field of sustainable development and systems change for more than fifteen years. He is the initiator, co-founder and founder of numerous sustainability-related start-ups, business collaborations as well as social and political innovation projects - always working to create transformations and improvements that yield systemic value for all stakeholders - including the non-human.
He holds a Master of Science in Strategic Leadership towards Sustainability (MSLS) from Blekinge Institute of Technology. A pioneering and world-leading research and education institution when it comes to strategic sustainable development. Following this program he co-founded The Sustainability Collaborative and joined Emerging Earth. He is also an EMCC-accredited systemic coach and has been in an apprenticeship in philosophical practice during a four-year period inquiring with a master philosopher.
Mikkel has a rare professional range coupling the above training with his education at the design-oriented leadership program of the Kaospilot school. In combination with his broad experience working across sectors in the field of sustainability, this affords him a wide and deep capacity to lead, design and facilitate strategic, organisational and systems transformations - even at the product and business model level. He does so through a combination of unique innovation methods, systemic practices, scientific understanding, strategic outlook, appreciative and philosophical inquiry.
Hundreds of leaders, designers and business students have been inspired and taught by Mikkel through his well-known, carefully developed, evidence-based teachings and programmes. He created the international programme Design for Sustainability in collaboration with Kaospilot for which he is still the program director - every year leading, facilitating and teaching leaders, designers, developers and innovation practitioners around the world how to be part of the solution to the sustainability crisis by design as the world needs in accordance with the science of how nature works.
His professional character
Mikkel is a wise and bold human being holding the dream of an absolute sustainable future high. He is committed to contributing positively to shifting society to a regenerative and healthy mode of existence. He engages and empowers people in the extreme complexity of change at this level; through all stages and processes of the transformation towards real sustainability and beyond. Concerning this journey he describes his stance as that of a hopeful realist or a pragmatic idealist, if you will. Never wavering though.
Mikkel works with great intention as both the sustainability expert, strategic advisor, systemic process consultant, designer, coach and facilitator. He masters all roles and shifts between them fluidly - always responsive - aligned with the clients’ needs and what the moment calls for.
He leads with precise, strategic direction including every detail on the journey insisting on creating systemic value for all stakeholders. Taking strategic design work and process to the next level Mikkel also has a refined ability to comprehend and clearly communicate complexity and difficult concepts which makes the sustainability journey accessible, graspable and workable for the client.
From time to time, Mikkel will also show up as a philosopher, action-researcher, sustainability entrepreneur and poet. In an organisational change context his artistic approach, his eloquence, his sense for beauty and his love for nature make up the magical components and vital ingredients that make the deep and long-term strategic work happen and succeed.
Credentials
Kaospilot 3-year Program Alumni
M.Sc. in Strategic Leadership towards Sustainability (BTH)
Accredited Systemic Coach from the European Mentoring and Coaching Council (EMCC)
Accredited consultant & practitioner of The Natural Step (TNS)
Mikkel Pilgaard
(He / him)
Strategic expert advisor for sustainability & systemic transformative designer
+45 5336 9822
