Dr. Sourav Roy is a sustainability thought leader and advocate, a published author, catalytic philanthropist and speaker. He is the co-founder and CEO of Centre for Big Synergy (CBS), a civil society organisation of the United Nations Department of Social and Economic Affairs. CBS is a not-for-profit global facilitator furthering the UN's Sustainable Development Goals. Since 2018, CBS has touched over 9M lives in over 120 countries and donated over £1M worth of time and expertise. Sourav has held senior positions within higher education, cutting-edge pharmaceutical research and development, strategy consulting and the third sector. Sourav's research at King's College London led to the discovery of promising new molecules that are currently in development for the treatment of Alzheimer's disease.
1) Which place or city or country do you most feel at home in?Home is wherever my loved ones and friends are - doesn't matter where it is.
2) What are your proudest achievements?I feel fortunate to have lived up to my parent's expectations, accomplished the academic ranks, distinctions, and prestigious scholarships; to have contributed to cutting-edge research in developing potential treatments for Alzheimer's disease; and most significantly, to have inspired millions to act on the UN's Global Goals.
3) What inspires you?Those truly extraordinary individuals who are 'planting trees they will never sit under'. If we all acted like them and addressed the major challenges faced by our society or the world at large, without any expectations of recognition or praise, we would live in a different world.
4) What has been biggest obstacle in your career?Every obstacle eventually turned out to be a good teacher for me, and there have been many. But the most impactful so far had been illnesses of family members, the last economic recession, and the COVID pandemic.
5) Who has been the biggest influence on your career to date?It is my parents, my grandmother, a couple of teachers from University and surely my wife. They acted as examples, showed me the right path, and still are the best sounding boards for me.
6) What is the best aspect about your current role?Climate change is the biggest challenge faced by us. Through my work at CBS, I am able to inform, inspire and involve governments, civic society, and private organisations to create a sustainable planet for us and generations to come. This is a sheer privilege.
7) And the worst?The worst part is to combat individual and organisational complacency to act with urgency in combating climate change. I wish the civic society realises that people running the governments and businesses are amongst them, and it is 'everyone's business' to influence them to implement sustainable changes.
8) What are your long-term goals?Over 85% of the civic society is unaware of the UN's Global Goals or their significance for their own lives, let alone take urgent action to address the challenges. Engaging the civic society to act towards meeting the 2030 Agenda will be our ongoing effort.
9) If you were Prime Minister, what one aspect would you change?I would want to change how the NHS is funded and managed. Paradoxically, it has become Britain's national pride and shame. Without an immediate evolution of the NHS to meet the needs of the changing times, this world-revered organisation will cease to exist.
10) If you were marooned on a desert island, which historical figure would you like to spend your time with and why?
It would have to be one of my most admired polymaths, Leonardo Da Vinci. I would want to find out what innovations he may be able to offer to combat climate change and the other major issues faced by us, and hopefully also find a way out of the island!