“Dream Mad. Dream Crazy.” That’s the radical, unorthodox mindset that Inder Poonaji brings to sustainability and leadership.
What Inder urges works, including in corporates. He knows because he is Director of ESG and Sustainability at Modulaire, where he leads on sustainability in 23 countries.
Inder’s philosophy is simple: give people unlimited permission to imagine and take almost infinite risks with ideas. Radical ideas cost nothing.
“When you let people’s imagination run, they can do things where they’re not limited.”
He believes that innovation starts when boundaries fall away, when leaders replace fear of mistakes with courageous thinking.
“Perfection is the enemy of progress.”
At Modulaire, Inder is putting these ideas into action through circular design and systems thinking.
“Design in sustainability, design out waste.”
He has a favourite description: “Loops within loops, keeping things going round and round.”
For Inder, progress also depends on working together.
“It needs a coalition. It needs collaboration, and it needs a joint vision.”
And he’s clear about what achieves the mindset shift needed for real change:
“Dreaming mad, dreaming crazy — we know that if you can think beyond boundaries and look at the idea of possibilities, we can do some great things.”
His optimism is grounded in action, imagination and ultimately ground breaking results.
“We need a revolution of ideas.”
How to achieve that? “If you aim for the stars, you’ll touch the moon along the way.”
“One of the best words I’ve ever come across in management speak is courageous.”
Why does Inder say that? “This is the golden opportunity, the golden generation that can really make change.”
This 22 minute conversation with Nik Gowing is a call to be bold, to move fast, to collaborate widely, and imagine freely.
Dreaming mad and dreaming crazy has already been shown to create a better world. So follows Inder’s advice. And try it.
Inder Poonaji
Inder Poonaji is a bold sustainability leader known for pushing organisations to think beyond limits and turn radical ideas into practical, scalable action. As Director of ESG and Sustainability at Modulaire, he leads sustainability strategy across 23 countries, proving that brave thinking and ambitious design can deliver real results.
With a philosophy centred on imagination, circular design, and eliminating waste, Inder challenges traditional boundaries and empowers teams to innovate without fear. His approach blends vision, practicality, and collaboration, helping leaders unlock new possibilities and accelerate meaningful progress in a rapidly changing world.
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