Thomas Kolster

Keynote Speaker

Thomas Kolster's Biography

Thomas Kolster is a frontrunner and one of the most recognised thinkers globally where marketing, business and sustainability meet. Kolster has written two books Goodvertising (Thames & Hudson 2012) and The Hero Trap (Taylor and Francis, 2020). With his first book Kolster popularised the term Goodvertising  to describe advertising delivering positive environmental or societal benefits. With his second book he forewarned about a post-purpose market, where people don’t buy your values or your “why”, but rather who you can help them become. He continuously challenges the status-quo with his vocal, and often provocative, views on values, purpose, and leadership. Kolster is an international keynote speaker who has featured in over 80 countries for companies like Meta, adidas, P&G, and IKEA, to conferences like TEDx, SWSW and Advertising Week. As the founder of the Goodvertising Agency, he advises Fortune 500 companies, start-ups, non-profits and governments on more creative strategic approaches to brand and business impact. His pen rarely rests as he writes for the likes of The Guardian, Ad Age, and Adweek. Monthly, Kolster joins Adage's podcast Purpose Hits and Misses taking a critical look at global purpose campaigns. Together with climate solutions platform, We don't have time, he runs a streaming show called Climate Punk, where he interviews diverse people in the climate space.

Thomas continues to drive industry change through his active participation in leading forums, such as The International Advertising Association’s Sustainability Council, D&AD’s Impact Council and Act Responsible. He helps to promote best practice as go-to judge of top award shows such as Cannes Lions and D&AD. Thomas is also an eager entrepreneur and has launched impact platforms such as Projector, WhereGoodGrows and ImpactPimp because his belief is simple: Change begins with you!

Keynote Descriptions

The Case for Sustainability and Creative Excellence 

People are growing increasingly tired of brands empty talk, they’re demanding action. We’ll explore why sustainability matters in brand marketing and how to respond using creativity as a driver and a competitive advantage.  

Brand Strategy, Purpose and Integrating ESG Factors  

Purpose is increasingly challenged and it’s becoming demanding to integrate and activate ESG factors. We’ll explore different strategies for activating purpose as well as integrating ESG factors into a brand or across a brand portfolio.  

Activating ESG and Delivering Impact 

It’s difficult to find the right balance between the two different disciplines; sustainability and advertising. We’ll explore how to communicate and activate your sustainability story and make sure your campaigns or initiatives deliver on impact. 

Creativity as a Driver of Sustainability Excellence 

As sustainability is becoming commonplace, creativity is the single most important tool. We’ll explore through award-winning work and hands-on exercises how to make your sustainability campaigns or initiatives win over hearts and inspire action. 

The Hero Trap and a new post-purpose mindset 

Most brands or leaders didn’t become irrelevant because they forgot their why, but because they forgot who they were there for. You have to ask different questions, if you as a brand of leader want to enable people’s personal transformation and move them from intention to action. Life is one long continuous journey towards realizing ourselves and as a brand or leader one valuable contribution is to show people the way.

Training and workshop programs

Up the positive change! for your agency or marketing department

Our specialised format targeted at improving the positive creative output, the organisation’s motivation and understanding of sustainability and purpose targeted at agencies or marketing departments.

Goodvertising and Creativity for good

Improve your creative output for positive change and become better at cutting through the noise and create tangible impact. Great for agencies and marketing departments.

Find a meaningful role to play as a brand

Unlock meaningful marketing growth and find your meaningful role to play as a brand with our proprietary Arrow tool.

Sustainability communication

Learn how to get sustainability communication right. Great for agencies and marketing departments.

Create empowering, meaningful and people-centric marketing

Across the whole marketing mix from products to pricing you’ll learn how to turn people into active participants with our proprietary Wheel tool.

How to create people-powered and activist campaigns

Learn how to turn people into activists for your campaign using our proprietary Transformative Platform tool and its 8 levers.

Positive Behaviour Change

Learn how to create positive behaviour change with our proprietary 13 Levers for Behaviour Change

Meaningful/sustainable leadership

Learn how to create a meaningful and sustainable leadership for your brand or organisation.