Design Declares Australia

Chairperson

RENY®

We are in the business of creative exploration, pioneering transformation for organisations & brands focused on designing better outcomes for humanity.

Co-Founder / Managing Partner

Co-Founder / Design Director

Surfrider Foundation Australia

Advisory Board Member

Chumpy Pullin Foundation

Member Board of Directors

Skin Check Champions

Advisory Board

ELECTRIC ⚡️

Partner

Eon Labs

Mr Simple - Sidelife

mwah. making work absolutely human

Luxottica Group

General Manager Wholesale

Oakley Asia Pacific

General Manager - Arnette Sunglasses ANZ

Sales Director

CEO / Partner @ RENY®Studio | B Corp

As a co-founder and managing partner at Reny ®, I have the amazing opportunity to help transform companies through Orbital Design (picking up where Human-Centred Design left off, giving Mother Nature a seat at the design table, leading to social and climate impact). 

I am an award-winning writer for my publication Uncluttered White Spaces (2009-16), and my new book, Lessons in Creativity, will be available in all good bookstores from May 2025 through Wiley Publishing.

As a certified B Corp, we design creative solutions, products, and brands that impact the community, climate, and humanities.

I have experience working with driven leaders, obsessive designers, genius engineers, demanding CEOs, ambitious CMOs, hard-driving founders, eager investors, observant writers, precise technologists, insightful artists, visionary directors, gifted misfits, hopeful students and passionate up-and-comers.

Client/Project experience: Patagonia, Google, K-Mart, Canon, Nike, Adidas, American Apparel, Dolce & Gabbana, Ray-Ban, Chanel, Prada, City of Sydney, City of Melbourne, Tourism Australia, Cancer Council, Heart Foundation, Mr Simple, Herschel, ProBuild, Stone Island, CP Company, Boxfresh, Giro, Oakley, Electric, Luxottica, Bank of SA, Westpac Bank, St George Bank, Australia Post, Land Rover, Boody, Re-Design, Vandal, Warner, Carryology, IMG.

I have advised senior executives and boards and worked with some of the world's most important brands. I currently serve as Chair for Design Declares, the advisory board for the Surfrider Foundation, and I was the founding board member for The Chumpy Pullin Foundation. 

My insights and writing have been featured in Fast Company, ABC, Inc. Magazine, and other prominent publications, earning me recognition as an awarded writer. My new book, Lessons in Creativity, will be available in May 2025.

I frequently speak on the value of Orbital Design (For Impact), creativity, and technology through platforms like TEDx and Vivid Sydney. I was also invited to speak at Parliament House with the Prime Minister and government officials on the role of creativity and design in shifting our future.

Ben Rennie

Michele’s clarity and interpretations of our thinking has certainly helped me reform my own clarity on our talk. I love how Michele broke this down in the best possible way. I will be printing this off and putting it on my wall as a reference.

I always try to remind people when I am presenting on a stage to an audience, I am not there as a success story (quite the opposite actually), I am there to remind them how hard it is, that it’s always hard and that getting comfortable with the idea of hard is where we find our creativity, in the space where fear and curiosity exist together.

Thanks Michele. Love this.

Founder at Reny® | Chair at Design Declares AUS | Author of Lessons in Creativity |

Creative Technologist • Entrepreneur • Science Communicator • Host and producer of STEAM Powered and NepoPod

My notes from How to Kick the Shit Out of Plan B with Ben Rennie and Miff Rennie at SXSW Sydney. Great perspectives on their personal journeys when Plan A goes out the window.

Some similarities here with Maggie Jackson's session on uncertainty, my notes here: https://lnkd.in/dZD3nSJ4

It also reminded me of Tim Minchin's "Play It Safe" created for the Sydney Opera House 50th Anniversary, check it out: https://lnkd.in/dpjTyBRc which he spoke about in his panel with Suzie Miller, Josh Niland, and Jonathan Kneebone at SXSW Sydney last year (brilliant session).

#sxswsydney2025

How to Kick the Shit Out of Plan B

Mario Hernandez

Turning LinkedIn into a Fundraising Engine for Nonprofits | Keynote Speaker | Investor | Husband & Father | 2 Exits |

I spent years building and scaling companies, raising investment, and developing partnerships across different industries. What I learned is that growth always comes down to one thing: relationships.

When I started working with nonprofits, I noticed something that changed my direction. Many organizations were approaching corporate partnerships as sponsorship requests rather than co-created impact. The conversation was transactional, so the funding was short term.

So now I help nonprofits secure meaningful corporate partnerships and long term funding through a relationship first strategy. I also train nonprofit consultants who want to deliver this framework with their clients.

My work at Impact Circle focuses on:
• Building partnership pipelines that are based on alignment, not pitching
• Training nonprofit teams to lead high trust conversations with corporate partners
• Helping consultants grow their visibility and revenue using a value first approach

I still build companies that create impact. I am developing Givly, an AI powered platform designed to help nonprofits increase grant success by giving teams a research and writing co pilot that understands their goals.

A few parts of my journey:
• Built and exited multiple companies
• Raised millions in investment
• Recognized by JA Worldwide for creating meaningful impact
• Reduced over one million single use plastic bottles through sustainable water systems
• International keynote speaker on social impact, partnerships, and purpose driven growth

If you believe relationships are the real engine of funding and partnership success, we are aligned.

Send me a message with the word Impact, and I will share resources we use to help teams grow sustainably.

Let’s build something meaningful.


Co-Founder & CEO

- Rethink Philanthropy. Join the first social media network dedicated to philanthropy, connecting individuals, businesses and non profits with the mission of maximizing impact for our planet. 

- Knobl's innovative campaign event manager turns your favorite everyday activities into tools for recollecting donations. Play Fortnite, listen to music on Spotify, drive your Tesla, or workout with Apple Health and turn all of these activities into philanthropic campaigns. 

- Sign up to start making a difference at http://knobl.one

- Reached $3.5M valuation in 1 year, currently fundraising in SEED round.

Here’s $7,500 worth of LinkedIn training for nonprofits.
For free.
No catch, no upsell:

Just 8 courses that show you exactly how to attract donors, sponsors, and partners on LinkedIn. 

The same system our clients use to raise thousands without cold calling.

All I ask? Tag a nonprofit leader or fundraiser in the comments so they can grow too.

𝗖𝗼𝘂𝗿𝘀𝗲 𝟭: How to Pitch Your Nonprofit

👉 https://lnkd.in/gDJvE8Dg
• Craft a pitch that moves hearts and opens checkbooks
• Use storytelling to make your mission unforgettable
• Borrow my exact pitch templates used by top fundraisers

𝗖𝗼𝘂𝗿𝘀𝗲 𝟮: How to Use LinkedIn to Attract Corporate Donors

👉 https://lnkd.in/gdUKhsXT
• Build a corporate partnership pipeline from scratch
• Turn connections into recurring sponsors
• Learn the message frameworks that win attention and funding

𝗖𝗼𝘂𝗿𝘀𝗲 𝟯: Optimize Your Profile to Become Fundable

👉 https://lnkd.in/gjU8NPKF
• Transform your profile into a magnet for donors and partners
• Use credibility cues that trigger trust
• Get found by decision-makers looking to fund causes like yours

𝗖𝗼𝘂𝗿𝘀𝗲 𝟰: 16-Minute Breakdown of a Nonprofit’s Personal Brand

👉 https://lnkd.in/gcW7rk_h
• Watch a live teardown of a nonprofit leader’s profile
• Learn the quick wins that boost visibility overnight
• Discover how branding drives donations

𝗖𝗼𝘂𝗿𝘀𝗲 𝟱: How to Use LinkedIn’s Search Function

👉 https://lnkd.in/gwUK-bem
• Find hidden corporate donors and aligned partners
• Use advanced filters to locate decision-makers
• Build a warm lead list in minutes

𝗖𝗼𝘂𝗿𝘀𝗲 𝟲: From Zero to 100 Direct Messages

👉 https://lnkd.in/gKepVRau
• Go from invisible to in-demand
• Use my exact outreach scripts that drive replies
• Turn conversations into funding opportunities

𝗖𝗼𝘂𝗿𝘀𝗲 𝟳: Brainstorm Nonprofit Content with AI

👉 https://lnkd.in/gK5297Jw
• Never run out of post ideas again
• Use AI prompts built for nonprofit storytelling
• Spark engagement from donors and sponsors daily

𝗖𝗼𝘂𝗿𝘀𝗲 𝟴: Your Own Nonprofit LinkedIn Content GPT

👉 https://lnkd.in/gpwPJivT
• Generate scroll-stopping posts instantly
• Customize your voice and mission tone
• Create consistent, high-impact content in minutes

Total value: $7,500+
Your investment: $0

Why am I giving this away?

Because too many nonprofits are doing incredible work… but staying invisible.

These are full trainings and the same strategies that helped leaders raise $30,000+ in weeks.

When your mission wins, the world wins.

P.S. Yes, this is real. Yes, it’s free. No, there’s no catch.

I work with nonprofits in high-touch programs, this is how I give back to the sector that gives so much.

With purpose and impact, Mario

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taplio

The Battle

Ben Rennie

Mario Hernandez

Followers

Posts

Engagements

Likes

Performance ScoreBen Rennie's LinkedIn Performance

Performance ScoreMario Hernandez's LinkedIn Performance

Ready to grow your LinkedIn presence?

taplio

The Battle

Ben Rennie

Mario Hernandez

Followers

Posts

Engagements

Likes

Performance Score.css-goub6s{font-size:var(--chakra-fontSizes-md);font-weight:500;color:var(--chakra-colors-gray-600);display:block;margin-top:var(--chakra-space-1);}Ben Rennie's LinkedIn Performance

Performance ScoreMario Hernandez's LinkedIn Performance

Ready to grow your LinkedIn presence?

Performance ScoreBen Rennie's LinkedIn Performance