Linda Cruse is a leading sustainability and motivational speaker renowned for her transformative work in some of the world’s most disaster-affected regions. As the founder of Be The Change: Business Leaders On The Frontline, Linda has built a global reputation for uniting business leaders and communities to create sustainable change. With decades of hands-on humanitarian experience, she is regularly invited to speak at corporate and leadership events where her compelling stories and unique approach to problem-solving inspire audiences to act with purpose and compassion.
Linda’s journey into humanitarian work began more than 20 years ago, sparked by a life-altering event that led her to reassess everything she owned and valued. Choosing a path of service, she sold all her possessions and began travelling the globe with just one suitcase. Her early career was shaped by direct involvement in crisis zones – whether supporting communities after earthquakes in Pakistan, typhoons in the Philippines, or tsunamis across Asia. Through these experiences, she developed a unique philosophy centred on empowering local people rather than offering handouts, and this approach became the foundation of her future work.
In recent years, Linda has continued to influence on a global scale. She has authored two impactful books: “Marmalade and Machine Guns”, detailing her twelve-year journey through 16 countries, and “Leading on the Frontline”, which distils leadership lessons from the most remote and challenging environments. She currently serves as a senior fellow and entrepreneur in residence at the University of Canterbury in New Zealand. Linda’s initiatives, such as the Race4Good programme, challenge young leaders to tackle real-world problems with meaningful, lasting impact. Her contributions have earned her prestigious accolades, including a Lifetime Achievement Award from Redmaids’ High School in the UK and a Humanitarian Award from the WIFTS Foundation in the USA.
Linda is hired as a speaker not only for her exceptional storytelling but also for her proven ability to turn vision into action in the most difficult circumstances. She brings authenticity, courage, and a deep understanding of both leadership and sustainability, earning admiration from figures like Prince Charles, the Dalai Lama, and Sir Richard Branson. Her talks ignite change and leave audiences motivated to lead with empathy, resilience, and responsibility.
