Natalia Quintana: Kindness, Sustainability, and Leadership Rooted in Humanity
Natalia Quintana was educated in political science and transitioned into compliance. She is currently in Berlin developing an app to help women find sustainable fashion choices. Her vision combines technology, ethics, and environmental care. Her compliance background informs how she thinks about transparent data, honesty, and ethics in business.
Originally from Colombia, Natalia lived in the United States for 20 years before moving to Germany five years ago. Living across cultures shaped how she views human connection. Reflecting on cultural differences, she said, “in California people are so nice and chill, but in the long term, maybe not as reliable.” In Germany, she observed, “when you break through that barrier here and get used the directness, you notice people are there for you, and that's a very nice thing to discover.”
Her interest in sustainability is tied to urgency. She noted that “two months ago, we reached Earth Overshoot Day, and we are now using the resources of future generations.” For her, this reality connects directly to raising her children and thinking about the future they will inherit. On July 24, 2025 Earth Overshoot Day marked the date when humanity’s demand for ecological resources in a given year exceeds what Earth can regenerate, indicating that humanity is using nature 1.8 times faster than ecosystems can regenerate. It is calculated by the Global Footprint Network, highlighting our consumption of resources and accumulation of waste.
Her understanding of kindness in leadership comes from lived experience. During pregnancy, she became very ill. “I was very sick. Just was constantly throwing up, and I was worried about not being able to do my job.” She described how her manager responded: “my manager was extremely kind to me and supportive during this time. And I was very grateful for that. When I went back to work, I immediately felt like I wanted to give back and I wanted to perform more.”
She has also seen the opposite. Speaking about power dynamics, she said, “I really like the famous quote ‘give a person power, and you'll know their true character.’ Oftentimes you see that people use those power roles to take advantage of others, maybe from their own traumas.”
Motherhood has deepened her perspective on leadership. “If I treated my leadership with them from the closed perspective that they’re just children that don’t know anything, I feel I would be hindering their development.” Instead, she prefers listening, negotiation, and helping her children think critically.
“The best jobs that I have ever had have been with leaders that were kind and empathic. I felt I could give my all to them.”
Natalia Quintana is a founder whose work connects sustainability, transparency, and human-centered leadership. Through her venture and her values, she is working toward a future where responsibility extends from how we shop to how we lead. Keep an eye out for more interviews.
If this conversation resonates and you are thinking about how kindness shows up in your own leadership, you can learn more about my executive coaching work at Hypatia Leadership.
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