Episode 317

Venture to Rome with Carlos Peña

Carlos Peña is a geneticist and entrepreneur, living sometimes in Mexico and sometimes in Texas.

In this interview, Carlos tells the story of deciding to escape the monotony of the jobs he was doing, and apply to work for the United Nations in Rome, Italy. He obtained a position in the Food and Agriculture Organization, learnt a little Italian, and jumped on a flight.

Quickly he realized that he was in a role that expected a high standard of professionality, in contrast to the university roles he’d previously worked. He found many opportunities to increase his communication skills, by learning Italian and by participating more actively in meetings, and by meeting his colleagues over lunch in a more informal setting.

In Food and Agriculture, Carlos could research the policies of many different countries, and see how they were innovating solutions to problems of wastage or food distribution.

Listen to this episode and you will find out what life lessons Carlos learnt in Rome.