Today we meet Isabel Coleto, founding partner of Talantia, a company specialized in environmental solutions, with which we have a close and long-standing relationship. Talantia was born thanks to the union of four senior consultants who are leaders in the sector (Isabel Coleto, Pedro Verzier, Regina Rodríguez and Fernando Temprano). In 2017 they started their project at our headquarters in Atocha, and later decide to move to our headquarters AbascalIt is in Abascal where the group experiences its greatest development and growth.
What motivated you to start Talantia? What difficulties did you encounter in reconciling the different points of view of the four partners?
It's something we owed to ourselves. We had been working for others for a long time and we were thirsty for freedom, to do something different. After a long time and a successful professional career, we wanted to do something together. We are four partners and we all get along very well, despite having different points of view. So far, we have managed to reach a consensus, a single final decision. The truth is that it hasn't been something that has cost us much; before being partners, we are friends.
Could you give us a summary of your professional career?
I started in a medium-sized company that was dedicated to hydrogeology and water research in Spain, and that little by little began to get involved in pollution issues. I was in this company for quite a long time, until a moment came when the situation became unsustainable. Then I changed and went to a company that, over time, was bought by other larger companies, due to the globalization process that we all know. Finally, it was bought by a giant multinational. Three of the partners reached that last acquisition in positions of responsibility, but the philosophy was no longer the same, so we saw the moment to take the leap into entrepreneurship.
Pedro, the project's driving force, is now retired. Can we say that you are in charge?
Well, Regina and I are the ones in charge. Regina takes care of the headquarters in Bilbao, and I'm in Madrid. Pedro, despite being retired, is still very much a force to be reckoned with... (laughs).
Pedro has often told me that he would have loved to experience the moment of such exceptional change that we are experiencing right now, 30 years younger. What do you think?
Starting a business is not a bed of roses, far from it. It is something very complicated and difficult, although it has the good side of making you be yourself and choose where you want to go. I am absolutely delighted with the change and I am happy.
Many people consider doing what you have done, taking the plunge and starting a business. Talking to Pedro, he told me that he had never imagined how complicated it was to start a business. From your point of view, what are the biggest obstacles that one encounters when starting a business?
There are many administrative hurdles (registrations, permits, notaries, security audits, etc.), obviously financial ones (credits, etc.), and of course, the cornerstone, the staff. It is very difficult to find people who want to get out of their seats, so we have had problems recruiting talent. In addition, it is also difficult to identify people who fit into the machinery and culture of the company, into the philosophy.
In a society that is changing so much and new generations that value things so differently than we do, how do you manage to motivate your staff and make them participate in the project?
I would like to know that myself (laughs). Every person is totally different. There is nothing standard, nothing written down, because each person is a world, but the only recipe I have is to spend time with people. I think that is the only way for us all to go in the same boat and in the same direction.
What sets Talantia apart from the competition? What are you most proud of?
We are dedicated to a “heavier” environment, tougher, more complex and industrial. It is not the environment of the little birds. We go to the landfills, we make a diagnosis, we see the state in which it is, we clean the soil, the water, the air, etc. We have two clear references in our field: the quality and innovationWe are very proud to invest our resources in new and innovative technologies, which we believe can be very interesting and can help us move forward.
Let's talk a little about the water shortage that we are suffering, for example, in Melilla.
Well, it is clear that this is going to be a major challenge in the future. There will not be enough water, neither in sufficient quantity nor quality, to supply the whole world in the future, so there is no other option than this: clean it and reuse it. There is no other possibility. You cannot simply throw away dirty water, contaminating rivers, aquifers and seas, you have to do it in another way. Water is going to be a scarce commodity and difficult to preserve in quality, so it is very important to be aware of this. Right now we are involved in some projects that are focused on the regeneration and cleaning of water. There are many places (South Africa, the East, etc.) that need to be recycled now, urgently. In fact, there are already many people who drink recycled water. In the same way that there are many people in the Spanish east who are drinking desalinated water, there are also people who drink water after it has been recycled. There are also places where drinking water is separated from waste water…the idea of flushing toilets with drinking water is something that cannot be maintained. There are many things that are being done and we also want to do our bit.
We expect EU funding to be available for environmental projects. What are your forecasts for the sector and what growth forecast do you foresee for Talantia in this context?
I don't know to what extent these funds will actually reach private companies, for me it is a mystery and I don't have high expectations. I think that the market will go in another direction and will become dynamic in another way, I could be wrong.
What is clear is that we all have to be aware that something has to be done, since we are destroying the world, right? This situation has no other choice but to generate an economy based on reuse, recycling, sustainability, clean energy... does that affect you directly, right? Is it an opportunity for growth?
Clearly. Although it is not something that we have discovered in this generation, that we have to recycle. We have to go back to many of the uses that were made before. Before, not so much garbage was generated or, at least, not everything was thrown away so easily. In the villages, there was practically no garbage, because between what the pig ate and what was burned... today, however, we are garbage-generating machines. Human beings have always generated a lot of garbage, since the time of the Roman Empire. In fact, many archaeologists live off the dumps of ancient civilizations. I think that we do have to be aware, without being catastrophic (there are many messages of this type being sent), but we do have to be very realistic and, at the same time, get to work and measure our steps well. We cannot consume, consume and consume, and then suddenly put the brakes on because it does not hold. We have to put the mechanisms in motion and measure the steps well. I am a firm believer in the circular economy, that of our grandparents. He has to come back.
What do you think are humanity's greatest environmental challenges?
Right now we are all focused on energy (which is becoming more and more expensive), but water and energy often go hand in hand. Cleaning water is also an energy problem. We tend to compartmentalize everything, but in the end it all ends up being the same thing…and water is going to be a great workhorse.
Another issue would be the extraction of natural resources with the least possible impact. I think we cannot let China bear all the weight in this regard because it is the largest industry in the world, since that would be committing suicide. We are not realising that Europe has a huge challenge. We live in a comfortable and well-off society, and sometimes we take things for granted because we have been there for a long time, but we have to earn it. In Spain, for example, we have many natural resources that we are not exploiting. For example, the collaboration agreements that Morocco has signed with some oil companies, to exploit an oil field that is next to the Canary Islands. The Canary Islands have not even wanted to know what resources they have, they have not even allowed anyone to explore what is there... and in the end, it is going to be exploited by neighbours just a few miles away. We are living in a strange world, aren't we? Because the Canary Islands are a region that also needs economic activity and wealth... and it has it! We also have many mines paralysed by permits, because no permits are being given to exploit mines. There are also many possibilities in the Canary Islands, at the bottom of the sea. We cannot wait for someone from China or, in this case, Morocco, to come and exploit it instead of us.
Our consumption model demands that, right? Nobody thinks it's wrong to go to the gas station and fill up the tank, but we do think it's wrong to see the platforms on the coast, right?
Or having a mobile phone, for example, which requires a lot of material extracted in mining. The Chinese are buying everything right now. You look at the production maps of some metals, and it's not that China is the first, it's the only one. It has cornered everything! And in Spain we have great wealth, the Canary Islands are one, but also in Extremadura, etc. And no activity permits are being issued, they are all paralyzed. And many of them for environmental reasons. Mining, yes, but responsible and non-invasive. The way of life we lead is not sustainable.
How do you see yourself in 10 years and how do you see the world in 20?
(Laughs) In 10 years, I don't know... I'll be retired, right? (Laughs) I don't know, I like my job and in 10 years I hope to be able to continue working. I know that many people are looking forward to retiring and all that, but I'm not, absolutely not.
And the world in 20 years, my head spins (laughs), like the girl in the exorcist (laughs), but I think there will be huge changes. The means of transport, the robots, I don't know... everything is kind of impressive and overwhelming at times, but very exciting too. It will be something big that I wouldn't like to miss... and it will be before 20 years too, that's for sure.
Finally, could you tell us what your experience at INSPIRA has been like? What have you valued most and what other things would you have liked to have that you didn't have?
It has been very good for us to have a place that is already equipped, that we can count on the reception, the photocopier, the cleaning, etc. That we have forgotten about all these things, has been great for us. Being in Inspire, has allowed us to grow in an orderly manner, without worrying about a thousand things that would have taken away time from what was important.
And on the human side, the Inspira team… have you felt supported?
The truth is that you have great people. They are all very helpful and we have never had any problems. You have always been accessible, you can talk to them about anything. If we need to take down a cupboard, the cupboard is taken down, if we need a DINING, well, a room, a video conference, a presentation, hosting a server... in short, for everything we needed, you were always there, giving us great support throughout all these years. You have made our lives much easier, so we also thank you for being so accessible and helpful.
Thank you very much for taking these minutes with us, Isabel. And good luck too. Despite the distance, we are still united.
