Keynote Talks to Unleash Performance
Insights from Stress-Testing Cross-Cultural Collaboration
How Shared Vision can Turn Cultural Differences into a Performance Superpower
What happens when a Danish consultant and a Chinese soldier, who hardly know each other and have no rowing experience, set out to row 3,000 miles across the Atlantic Ocean together to test the limits of Sino-Western collaboration?
Quite a lot of action and drama — but not least, the birth of the YANTU Attitude of succeeding together.
In this energizing keynote, Christian Havrehed shows how a shared vision can transform cultural differences from friction into fuel. Drawing on his extraordinary expeditions and leadership experience, Christian offers practical tools for building joint vision across borders, aligning diverse teams, and leading with purpose.
Whether you’re navigating global partnerships, leading multicultural teams, or simply seeking a fresh perspective on collaboration, this talk will open your mind and inspire bold action.
What the Audience Will Learn
- How to turn differences into strategic advantages through shared vision
- A practical method for deriving joint vision across cultures, diverse teams, and partnerships
- The YANTU Attitude: a mindset for leading with purpose, resilience, and mutual understanding
- Real-world insights from extreme expeditions that translate into leadership lessons
- How to foster trust, alignment, and performance in international collaborations
Dare to Do! Unlocking Potential Through Risk Taking
The greatest risk is to risk nothing
What’s holding you back? In this energizing keynote, Christian Havrehed invites teams and leaders to break free from the comfort zone and take bold action. With lessons from rowing across the Atlantic with a Chinese soldier he hardly knew, running the Pyrenees alone, retracing ancient maritime routes to re-write world history, and pushing the Chinese government to change, Christian shows how daring to act, even when the outcome is uncertain, is the key to unlocking true potential.
This talk is designed to ignite courage, spark innovation, and build a mindset of resilience. Whether you’re leading change, launching new initiatives, or developing future leaders, this is your call to Dare to Do!
What the Audience Will Learn
- How to assess risk
- How to be comfortable with risk
- Why avoiding risk limits growth
- Real-world examples of bold decisions leading to success
- Tools for building a culture of courageous thinking and action
Saving the Planet – We Can All Do Something
It’s Only a Drop in the Ocean, But the Ocean Is Many Drops
Christian Havrehed combines bold adventure with purpose-driven impact, aligning his expeditions with the UN Sustainable Development Goals—not for optics, but for substance. In a world fatigued by greenwashing and ESG box-ticking, Christian is the antidote.
From organizing beach cleanups while rowing around Denmark for Clean Seas, launching a multinational’s CSR program in China, being an Eyesea Ambassador, and collecting microplastics in the East China Sea, to running the Pyrenees to fund a lifeboat for Mozambique, rowing with UK Marines for mental health, and being featured at COP27 as part of the Global Canal Rowing Action—his message is clear: we can all do something.
This keynote challenges organizations to move beyond ESG reporting and embrace sustainability as a lived value—energizing teams, strengthening brand purpose, and leaving a legacy.
“If you think you’re too small to make a difference, try sleeping with a mosquito in the room.”
What the Audience Will Learn
- How bold personal action can inspire corporate sustainability
- How to align purpose-driven initiatives with the UN SDGs
- How citizen science can engage employees and communities
- How to embed sustainability into company culture, storytelling, and strategy
