Diane Amancic

In a nutshell, tell us about yourself.

I’m happy that my work is in line with my lifestyle. To me, reducing the impacts of climate change goes beyond the work we do, it’s also a way of life. I’m a firm believer that everyone can make a positive impact on the environment and other people. Changing what we consume makes a great difference, although I regret that being able to make this choice is a privilege

What are your loves?

I’m a simple woman: my partner, my dog and my garden!

What are your hates?

Chewing/eating noises, and people who bite their forks when they are eating. I felt relieved to find out I wasn’t the only one, and there’s even a word for it – “misophonia”!

Who or what do you most admire?

Nature’s capacity to adapt to a changing environment, and its strength. Standing next to a big tree and thinking that it came out of a seed is still mind-boggling to me.

What drives you to do this kind of work?

I wouldn’t want to be the person who sits around and does nothing when a situation can still be helped.

Name three things on your bucket list.

• Drive from Cairo to Cape Town
• Build our house extension and take the house off the grid
• Grow a 20-foot tall sunflower (current record: 15)

If you were world leader, what’s the first thing you would change?

I think I’d make gardening and cooking classes compulsory in all schools, from an early age. In the western world, I feel that many people are completely disconnected to what they eat and how it grows/how it is produced, and I think that connection is essential. I can’t quite understand that some people do not know how to cut an onion, or how pineapples grow.