Cookies, Community & a $1B Vision: Jennifer Belmont on Legacy Giving this Wills Month
It’s Wills Month, and we couldn’t think of a better guest than Jennifer Belmont - CEO of the 45South Community Foundation who quite literally brought her famous cookies (yes, cookies 🍪) to the podcast with Paddy.Jennifer shares how she’s redefined philanthropy in Queenstown, scaling from a DIY startup to a regional force with billion-dollar ambitions. At the heart of her message this month? Legacy giving. Even a simple 10% gift in your will can create generational impact without taking away from your family’s future.From Impact100’s $200k community power move to youth philanthropy (the “gateway drug to giving”), Jennifer shows how generosity, big or small, becomes a legacy. This Wills Month, she’s here to remind us: your story can live on, one thoughtful decision at a time.
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Reimagining Home: Culture & Creativity with Vic Crockford
In this episode, Vic Crockford, director of Heft Communications and founder of the Coalition to End Women's Homelessness, shares her journey across sectors, from community advocacy to cultural leadership. She unpacks the often-overlooked crisis of women’s homelessness in Aotearoa, where more than 57,000 women live in severe housing deprivation with wāhine Māori most affected.Vic introduces the Papatuanuku paradigm, a Māori-led housing toolkit grounded in Te ao Māori values, and urges for gender analysis to be built into policy from the start. Her work bridges housing, culture, and creativity - including supporting over 65 creative spaces through Arts Access Aotearoa.With deep roots in Queenstown and a love for the mountains, Vic brings both personal perspective and national impact. From couch surfing to community art, she challenges us to rethink what "home" really means and where creativity can belong.
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Loops & Legacy: Willy on Queenstown’s Trail Future
What do trails really mean for Queenstown? Spoiler: it’s way bigger than bikes.In this episode of The Mountain Club Podcast, Clare sits down with Mark “Willy” Williams, CEO of Queenstown Trails Trust. From epic loops like the Coronet Track to the idea of Queenstown becoming the poster child for smart, sustainable town planning, Willy breaks down how trails fuel not just adventure but transport, conservation, community and connection.Expect talk of ski mornings, bike afternoons, predator traps, bridges that need to be built yesterday, and why Queenstown could be a global case study in doing growth right. This one’s not just for the lycra crowd, it’s for anyone who cares about the future of where we live and play.
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From Queenstown to the World: Alex Worker's Vision for Sustainable Food Innovation
In this episode, Alex Worker shares his remarkable journey from a global upbringing to becoming a driving force in New Zealand’s food tech revolution. Speaking from Queenstown, Alex opens up about balancing family life with entrepreneurial grit, shares insights from his time at Fonterra and Impossible Foods, and dives into his current ventures: Lilo Desserts (with a Pop Up coming to Mountain Club soon) and Nutrition from Water (NXW). He explores how New Zealand’s natural strengths and international reputation can lead the charge in sustainable nutrition and innovative food tech, especially through licensing and non-traditional export models. Alex also touches on geopolitics, Mountain Club's role in fostering connection, and his work with Future Food Aotearoa to support globally ambitious startups.
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Balancing Hustle & Healing: Krystle O'Neil on Confidence, Flow & Rewiring the Mind
In this episode of the Mountain Club Podcast, Clare sits down with Krystle O'Neil, founder of Nourish Our Minds, to explore the journey from burnout to balance. Krystle shares her personal wake-up call from stress-related illness, her transformative experience with NLP and timeline therapy, and her mission to help ambitious people break free from people-pleasing and perfectionism.We dive into the power of the subconscious mind, the dance between masculine and feminine energy, and why success without self-love can leave us feeling empty. Whether you're chasing career goals or seeking more flow in life, this conversation is full of insights on how to reconnect with your true self, sidestep burnout, and redefine success on your own terms.
Conversations with industry leading minds, business extraordinaries, creative thinkers and valued members of Mountain Club. Empowering business, commercial and community growth, we are here to discover what drives our members to connect. Jointly hosted by Paddy Kluts and Clare Irons, we're here to do cool sh!t with cool people.
New Zealand