The Inspiration Sessions: Wempy Dyocta Koto meets John Bird MBE

The Inspiration Sessions Global Production: wempy.koto@wardourandoxford.com twitter.com/wempydyoctakoto The Inspiration Sessions is a global celebration of entrepreneurship, journeying into the stories, lives and wisdom of the world's most admired entrepreneurs. At The Saint Georges Hotel in Central London, Wempy Dyocta Koto meets John Bird. John Bird MBE Founder and Editor in Chief, The BIg Issue John Bird is the United Kingdom's most prominent social entrepreneur. Angered by the increasing number of homeless people in London, John protested by founding The Big Issue in 1991, with the financial support of Gordon Roddick -- husband of the late Dame Annita Roddick and Founder of The Body Shop. As a magazine purchased and sold for profit by homeless people, the impact of John's work has transcended the streets of London, and provided a critical lifeline for the homeless in Australia, Japan, South Korea, Namibia, Kenya, Taiwan, South Africa, Malawi and Ireland. Born into poverty and serving time in prison, Wempy Dyocta Koto talks to John about his troubled childhood, teen and adult years. With bold honesty, John recalls his technicoloured life of no regrets, and the shifts wish nudged him to later serve and view homelessness as an opportunity to solve. Wempy and John skim the surface, and a few times dive into aspects of his life and the practicalities and academics of social entrepreneurship. John's United Nation Scroll of Honour and his inspiring speeches at New York, Downing Street and Buckingham Palace are well synchronised with the Queen's bestowment of his Member of the British Empire title. However, John refers to himself as a "thief, prison inmate, artist and poet". Add "who saved lives, renewed hope and change the world" to that sentence, and you'll get a clearer idea of the man Wempy meets. twitter.com/johnbirdswords Wempy Dyocta Koto Chief Executive Officer, Wardour and Oxford Fortune magazine named Wempy Dyocta Koto as one of the world's trailblazers and "master of global business", for leading and engineering the success of some of the world's most famous brands. Wempy is the award-winning Chief Executive Officer of Wardour and Oxford, a global business development agency helping entrepreneurs and Fortune 1000 companies launch their businesses internationally. Wempy has led global teams to launch products and services for American Express, Sony, Nokia, Citigroup, Samsung, SAP, LG Electronics, Palm, Lenovo, BP and Microsoft. Commencing his career at American Express in Australia, Wempy worked for leading communications companies including Young & Rubicam, OgilvyOne WorldWide and Wunderman. Wempy rose to become the Regional Account Director across Europe, Middle East and Africa at the world's largest marketing network, and Global Business Director based in the United States for an award-winning agency with clients including Sony and adidas. Beyond Wardour and Oxford, Wempy serves as Chairman and advisor at over 20 companies across the U.S, China, UK, Indonesia, The Philippines, Egypt, Australia and Singapore. In addition to hosting "The Inspiration Sessions", Wempy features as a judge on Indonesia's most prominent nationally televised entrepreneurship shows, writes for business publications, and guest speaks at universities and conferences. In 2013, Wempy was awarded the prestigious "Asia Pacific Entrepreneurship Award", which places him in the company of some of the world's most celebrated entrepreneurs. He is also ranked as the world's 120th most social CEO by the United Nations award-winning North American communications agency Strategic Objectives. Wempy is the only Indonesian CEO to be featured on this list that is led by Oprah Winfrey, Richard Branson, Donald J. Trump, Rupert Murdoch, Warren Buffett, Tony Fernandes and Marissa Meyer. Wempy also serves as an international advisor for the Association of Southeast Asian Nations - ASEAN, is Vice Chairman of Entrepreneurship at Indonesia's Chamber of Commerce and is the Strategy Director for the 2013 APEC SMEE Summit. APEC is Asia Pacific's most important economic forum, bringing together President Obama of the United States, President Xi of China, President Putin of Russia, Prime Minister Abbott of Australia, Prime Minister Abe of Japan and the 21 Pacific Rim Presidents, Prime Ministers and Ministers, Chairs and Chief Executive Officers to the island of Bali in Indonesia. Wempy holds a Bachelor of Arts in Communications from the University of Technology, Sydney and a Master of International Studies degree from the Faculty of Economics at the University of Sydney. Born in Indonesia, raised in Australia and formerly based in Singapore, Hong Kong, London and San Francisco, "The Inspiration Sessions" is Wempy's personal journey of asking, learning and sharing. "The Inspiration Sessions: United Kingdom" is proudly presented by Lime&Tonic, the world's social concierge. limeandtonic.com theinspirationsessions.com