Podcast Episode 11 is out: Alice Mazzola from The Body Shop

Podcast

By Lukas on 12 Apr 2023

We all know The Body Shop’s fantastic products, but did you know about their long history of activism? Campaigning for change across issues as diverse as animal testing, climate justice, domestic violence, and even human rights abuses in the Niger Delta, The Body Shop doesn’t shy away from standing up for what’s right. Alice Mazzola is Global Head of Activism for The Body Shop. In this interview, she discusses:

How her parents encouraged discussion around political and social issues
Her educational background in Middle Eastern studies and Arabic
Rethinking activism at The Body Shop – recognising the different ‘styles’ of change-maker
How campaigns require a broad range of skills and strengths
Her feeling of becoming less radical with age but how her young team keep her connected to radical ideas
The Youth Collective – a 12 person board of under 30s acting as an advisory panel to the company
The role of a Head of Activism
A guiding principle of ‘talk about what’s not being talked about right now’
The Body Shop’s playbook for activism
‘Be Seen, Be Heard’, their latest campaign focussed on getting young people more engaged in politics
How the campaign has lowered the voting age from 21 to 18 in Malaysia
The value in not taking the easy road
How The Body Shop engages customers in their activism work through their stores and colleagues
Should every company have an activism department?
Her advice to businesses starting on their journey to being a force for good
How she wants to see the return of kind debate across society
Why she’s never been on Twitter
Why we should all join a debating club