Florence Van Dyke, Executive Director at Canbury, draws inspiration from the Māori concept of harakeke—the flax plant—which symbolizes both resilience and flexibility. She believes that true sustainable change is built on honesty and transparency, even in the messiest moments. Her personal motto echoes this ethos: "Ehara taku toa i te toa takitahi, engari he toa takitini"—"My strength is not that of an individual, but of the collective."

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Her journey into sustainability took a pivotal turn when she left corporate law to co-found Chia Sisters, a move that aligned her work with her values. Florence champions courage and passion in business leadership, urging others to act boldly, even when the path ahead is uncertain.

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In a sector often bogged down by complexity, Florence advocates for simplifying sustainability reporting. She believes businesses should focus less on the technicalities and more on actions that drive real impact. Her passion extends to understanding nature’s metrics, recognizing them as complex but essential to long-term sustainability.

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Florence embraces kaitiakitanga—guardianship—rooted in responsibility, not ownership, of the environment. She encourages others to adopt this worldview, fostering a sustainable approach that’s intergenerational and grounded in reciprocity.

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For Florence, effective stakeholder engagement starts with aligning values. She sees understanding what truly matters to stakeholders—whether it’s market access, investment, or reputation—as key to building meaningful, lasting relationships.

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Florence believes Aotearoa’s unique strength lies in its agility. The country’s size and collaborative spirit make it quick to respond to global sustainability challenges, positioning it as a future leader in climate action.

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Her vision for a sustainable future is simple: to prove that sustainability and profitability are not mutually exclusive. By normalizing data-driven sustainability practices, Florence envisions a world where businesses not only mitigate risks but unlock new opportunities.

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Florence’s advice for today? Start measuring. What gets measured gets managed—and that’s the first step toward creating meaningful change.

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Read Florence's answers to BLOOMING Sustainability and encourage yourself to rethink if you've aligned your passion with purpose.

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BLOOMING  Sustainability Questionnaire

Name: Florence Van Dyke

Company & Title: Canbury Executive Director

Website & LinkedIn Profile: https://www.linkedin.com/in/florence-van-dyke-57aa27b0/

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* Guiding Values | Kaupapa 

If sustainability were a flower blooming in your life, what would it look like? What nurtures it?  

Harakeke – it weaves through my life and my career. It has strong fibre but is also flexible to change as I grow and learn. What nurtures it most is honesty. Transparency in business — even when it's messy — is what builds real change.

 

A quote, personal motto or whakataukī that reflects your vision:  

 “Ehara taku toa i te toa takitahi, engari he toa takitini.”
My strength is not that of an individual, but of the collective.
 

If you could mentor a rising change-maker in Aotearoa, what advice would you share?  

There is no fixed path forward so don’t try to climb the ladder. Start with what matters to you, act with courage, and follow your passions. This is what will motivate you when the going gets tough.

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* Leading Change | Arataki

A key moment in your journey that shaped your path:  
Making the decision to quit corporate law to co-found Chia Sisters with my sister Chloe. I thought that leaving a profession I had worked so hard towards would be difficult but as soon as I’d made the decision, I felt confident in my choice because I knew that I was aligning my mahi with my values.
 

What’s the main challenge you face in driving sustainability within your sector?  
Overcomplication. Sustainability has become too technical and too intimidating. We need to strip it back to action and transparency. Too many companies are spending too much time and money reporting when reporting could be simplified and that resource diverted to action that will make an impact.
 

An area you need more support with:  

I am learning a lot about nature at the moment and am really inspired by the opportunity for businesses and financial institutions to see business risk and opportunity from measuring, reporting and acting on nature metrics. It is a lot more complex than climate.
 

An Indigenous perspective you admire and want people to be mindful of:  
I am mindful of the Māori principle of kaitiakitanga - guardianship. It reframes our relationship with the environment from one of ownership to one of responsibility. It’s intergenerational, relational, and grounded in reciprocity, everything sustainability should be.
 

Your best approach for engaging stakeholders in meaningful dialogue about ESG:  
Know your audience and start with what matters to them. That might be market access, investment, reputation; it doesn’t necessarily need to be about the planet because sustainability shapes so many business risks and opportunities. Use these openings to dig deeper and find values alignment. Facts start the conversation, values sustain it.
 

What do you think is Aotearoa’s superpower in creating a sustainable future?  

Agility. We’re small, we’re trusted, and we can move fast when we collaborate. We’ve led before, from nuclear disarmament to women getting the vote and more recently on climate disclosure. We can lead again, if we choose to.

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​ * Surfing the Green Wave | Kakariki

Books, podcasts, courses or other resources that profoundly shaped your approach to sustainability: ​

• Doughnut Economics by Kate Raworth

• Ministry for the Future by Kim Stanley Robinson

• The Outrage + Optimism podcast

• Aotearoa Circle Strategy docs.
   

If your work could plant one seed of change for the future, what would it be?  

That we prove—again and again—that sustainability and profitability are not at odds. That data on climate and nature becomes something businesses seek out, not shy away from—because it reveals not just risk, but opportunity. The companies that understand and act on this will be the ones that thrive. If we can normalise that mindset, we’ll shift the whole system forward.

 

The leader(s) you endorse for a future edition of Blooming Sustainability: 
 

• Chloe van Dyke, my sister and co-founder at Chia Sisters

• Kate Beddoe, Chief Sustainability & Risk Officer at Silver Fern Farms

• Tim Brown, co-founder of Allbirds

 

* One actionable takeaway for our readers to make a change today for a brighter tomorrow:

Start measuring. It doesn’t have to be perfect, but what gets measured gets noticed, and what gets noticed gets managed. Whether it’s your personal or business carbon footprint, waste, water use, or supply chain risk, visibility is the first step to action, accountability, and most importantly opportunity.