PORTFOLIO
VENTURES AND OTHER LEADERSHIP ROLES
FEATURED IN
Entrepreneurship
Building empowering platforms to amplify ideas, inspire and enable action, and foster connection
Valeria is on a mission to enable everyone to live well, dream big, and participate in building a better world. Her entrepreneurial work especially focuses on inspiring and empowering people and facilitating the deep transformations, conversations, and connections needed to promote healing, thriving, and living well and happily on a healthy planet.
Currently in transition after co-founding two social enterprises that became benchmarks in their respective industries within two years of launch, Valeria is dedicating her time to supporting ambitious projects and preparing to start a new global venture to democratize dreaming of and engaging in change-making.
Previously, Valeria envisioned and co-founded the award-winning social enterprise Venezia Autentica (VA) to fight against the displacement of Venice's local population by transforming tourism into a driver of inclusive and regenerative holistic development. VA has been recognized by experts and awards in tourism and economic transformation as a pioneering initiative and innovative new practice. Through a combination of social innovation, community-centric storytelling, and a digital platform connecting customers and community-based enterprises, VA has reached millions of people worldwide and accelerated the adoption of new behaviors, products, and mindsets in tourism in Venice while redirecting millions of euros to the local community and heritage.
Building on her experience in Venice, where the symptoms of the real impact of tourism are the most severe, Valeria started Overtourism Solution, VA's dissemination arm. Through advocacy and knowledge-sharing, OTS has helped advance new practices, policies, mindsets, and patterns in tourism management worldwide. It has also informed new policies in the area of the social economy and proximity economy at the European level.
Before leveraging tourism to empower local communities and economies and help preserve and regenerate local heritages, Valeria co-started and established The Humming Tree (THT). THT was a Bangalore-based leading cultural incubator, performance, and community space that became a national benchmark within a year of operation by providing a platform and market access for social and cultural projects and conversations, as well as a safe space for marginalized communities.
Valeria stepped down from THT to pursue other entrepreneurial projects. THT went on to exist for six strong years until changes in policies forced all establishments providing live performances out of business.
Her past early-stage projects include Enkephalos (e-mental health) and Tribe (economic empowerment).
Additionaly, since 2014, Valeria has been running a small industry-agnostic consulting, advising and education practice focused on supporting creative and purpose-driven entrepreneurs and leaders. Find her services here.
"We desperately need your voice."
"The team and you have built one of the best brands and communities in the country! "
Other Ventures
Between establishing her two industry-pioneering ventures, Valeria conceptualised, developed, and tested two additional startup concepts. These projects centred on enhancing Brain Health & Wellness and addressing Barriers to Entrepreneurship. They shared similar goals: to reinvent their user journey and experience by harnessing digital technologies to empower stakeholders, and amplify compelling narratives to reshape outdated mindsets. In both projects, the aim was to create a human-driven tech-enabled, interconnected ecosystem that would benefit all relevant stakeholders and reconfigure resources and power.
Despite comprehensive planning, research, modeling and promising traction, Valeria discontinued her investment in these projects to prioritise the establishment of VA due to the urgency of the social need. She has since been drawning upon the knowledge, models, and experience gained from the early stages of "Enkephalos" and "Tribe" in her subsequent venture-building and advisory work.
Boards, committees and other leadership roles
Mobilising knowledge and energies to transform systems
Valeria supports the transformation of sectors and industries by co-organizing and -promoting leading ecosystem-building events. Additionally, she actively participates in policy-shaping and forward-thinking conversations that foster innovation.
Ecosystem-Building and Policy Engagements
Current and recent areas of engagements inlude: Energy Transition (EUSEW, European Commission), Industrial Transformation (Tourism, Social Economy and Proximity Economy, European Commission), AI and Social Economy (Social Good Accelerator Think Tank), Social Innovation (Catalyst 2030)
Past areas of engagement: Healthcare Innovation (Health Tech Forum), Scientific Literacy and Education (Student Association for Scientific Popularisation, Plume!), Creative Economy (Construkt Festival), Eldercare
Making Innovation and Entrepreneurship more inclusive of diverse voices
Valeria helps make the path to entrepreneurship and innovation more inclusive. She serves as a strategic advisor and sits on the committees and boards of ambitious organizations that aim to support entrepreneurs of all kinds working for the common good.
BOARD, COMMITtEES AND ADVISORY Engagements
Current engagements include:
UNSDSN Youth (Youth Social Entrepreneurship), Empower’her (Women Social Entrepreneurship), Ashoka Impact Transfer (Social Entrepreneurship for Inclusion), Catalyst 2030 (Frontline Social innovation)
There is no doubt that Valeria is one of the most remarkable members of Catalyst 2030! Her proactivity, positive leadership and incredible capacity to build teams and facilitate them to achieve their goals, just makes her a role model for this global network of social entrepreneurs! It is a real pleasure to work with Valeria, her ability to connect with people, make them feel included and heard and get the best of each one of them is just inspiring. Her level of commitment is outstanding, and she has the great capacity to be involved in multiple initiatives of the network and successfully help them achieve their objectives. Looking forward to keep working closely with Valeria! We are really lucky to have her as a Catalyst 2030 member, her contribution to this network has been impressive!
About Valeria
An interdisciplinary leader and social innovator
Valeria Duflot is a multicultural interdisciplinary leader and entrepreneur passionate about transforming our social and economic systems. With a track record of successfully identifying social problems and turning bold visions into reality, Valeria rapidly establishes human-centered solutions and organizations that empower communities on limited resources. She is a tech and media-savvy entrepreneur, adept at leveraging data, storytelling, experiences, platforms and community-driven systems thinking, integrated with behavior science, to drive results and enable impactful change. Valeria is a clear, attentive, and empathetic communicator, a talent enabler, serving as an advocate, educator, and advisor to diverse audiences, delivering engaging and inspiring learning and leadership experiences both remotely and in person.
Valeria Track Record
Valeria is a practitioner. The advice and insights she shares are grounded in experiences and a commitment to staying at the forefront of rapid change.
Her track record includes: two community-based social enterprises that became leaders in their respective niches within their first two years of operation, inspiring new practices and mindsets around the world; brands that inspired trust and engaged stakeholders from consumers to institutional partners to top-tier media; physical and digital platforms that delighted consumers and users while providing market access to creative entrepreneurs and redirected millions of euros towards a more local, sustainable, and social economy; hundreds of events and experiences that connected people to themselves and each other, making it to Rolling Stone and the cover story of National Geographic; engaging campaigns and stories that reached a distributed global audience of over 100 million; countless hours spent sharing knowledge and building capabilities to enable public policies, business practices, and organizational strategies that can deliver transformative change; consulting and advising for MSMEs to Fortune 500s; numerous collaborations and trusted relationships with leaders from grassroots to leading international organizations; and regular appearances in print and broadcast media, as well as on stages around the world.
More importantly, she made more mistakes than she can count, built more diverse and meaningful friendships than she would have ever thought possible, and learnt the power of fearlessly being our most authentic selves, finding courage in our vulnerabilities and relationships to unlock our purpose, embrace our true selves and step into our true power, both as people and as leaders.
More about Valeria
Valeria is an audacious advocate for change and innovation, dedicated to advancing equitable and compassionate systems that prioritize well-being, human potential, and the environment. Drawing inspiration from her lived experience as a multicultural trauma survivor living with a disabling disease, her transformative work spans co-founding pioneering social enterprises, consulting for Fortune 50 companies, and engaging with international initiatives to inspire dreams, foster trust, and drive change in a rapidly evolving world.
Valeria's areas of expertise
Valeria Duflot is a versatile, future-forward innovator with expertise in social entrepreneurship, system transformation, human-centric approaches, and the convergence of tech, behavior, and communications. Her work fosters empathy, trust, and understanding while pushing the boundaries of the ordinary, showcasing a unique skill set that blends creativity, strategic thinking, and evidence-based approaches to unlock potential and enable impactful change.
Contact Valeria
Get In Touch Anytime!
When you engage Valeria's services for speaking, workshops, advising, training, or on-demand leadership roles, you can anticipate an experience tailored to your needs and that inspires and empowers you and your stakeholders. Leveraging her diverse expertise, she excels in engaging audiences, sharing practical insights, and cultivating an environment that nurtures collaboration, drives results, and fosters growth. Partner with Valeria to unlock collective and individual potential and achieve outstanding results. Get in touch today to discuss how she can support you and your project.