Pittwater Life October 2018 Issue

Life Stories
One in
a million
As the founder and CEO of the movement,
1 Million Women, Natalie Isaacs has
inspired hundreds of thousands of women
to reduce carbon emissions.
Story by Rosamund Burton
Meet flame-haired Natalie Isaacs: Natalie grew up in Brisbane, a couple of “We wanted somewhere that felt like a
she received the 2017 Australian streets from the river, before the family Queenslander and we wanted beach,” she
Geographic’s Conservationist of home was destroyed in the 1974 flood. She says with a smile. Their four children,
the Year Award; 1 Million Women won the was almost 13 years old and remembers Bronte, Jacob, Shea and Isaac all went to
2013 Momentum for Change Award at the going out with her parents and two older Newport Primary and Pittwater High, and
United Nations Framework Convention on brothers to celebrate the week before, Isaac is in Year 11 there now.
Climate Change; and in mid-September because her mother and father had paid “Pittwater has been a beautiful place to
Natalie was one of 22 Climate Trailblazers,
off the house.
bring up all our children, and they have a
and the only Australian, at the Global “We weren’t insured for flooding and deep love of the earth, I believe, because of
Climate Action Summit in San Francisco. lost everything. I don’t think the experience
being here.”
Her book, Every Woman’s Guide to Saving
shaped me,” she reflects, “but it is a Natalie developed three more cosmetic
the Planet, hit the bookshops a few lesson that love is what’s important, not brands for chain stores, which focused on
weeks ago, and I visit her at her home in possessions.”
creating self-confidence in teenage girls.
Newport, where she lives with her husband
After school she moved to London. The Natalie products were high qual-
Murray Hogarth and their youngest Her father suggested that she look for a ity and Australian-made, but these later
son, Isaac. She opens the door dressed in business idea there and bring it back to brands were over-packaged and made
floral pants with a wide leather belt, and Australia. She did courses in aromatherapy, cheaply in China.
a simple green top. With her mane of red beauty and cosmetics, but it was The Body “I sold my soul to the devil,” she admits.
hair, clear complexion and broad smile, Shop that took her interest. While in London
“My obsession was standing in stores
it’s hard to believe this mother of four is in
she watched it grow from one store to watching how much of my product was
her mid-50s – and a grandmother.
seven so home she came with her business taken off the shelves. I didn’t care about
Vibrant oil paintings hang on the walls; idea to create a skincare line. It wasn’t until the quality, just that the product was sold.”
on a long wooden table is a colourful she was in her mid-20s that she made 10 Meanwhile Murray had left journalism
Moroccan tagine pot; and a guitar sits on beauty products and started her cosmetics
and was working at environmental
a chair.
business, which she called Natalie Jane, and company, Ecos Corporation. The company
“The dog has eaten the sofa,” she says then changed to just Natalie.
was also involved in installing free eco
grimacing, as she looks at the ripped
She also met environmental journalist lightbulbs in people’s houses. Because of
fabric and Sancho, the young Labrador and husband-to-be Murray; when he was her sales experience Natalie was asked to
blue heeler cross. “He’s a beautiful dog, so offered a job working on the ABC’s 7.30 help train the light bulb team.
I couldn’t be cross with him.” Sancho and Report in Sydney, Natalie followed him Standing in a room of people celebrating
Roshi, the elderly beagle cavalier, gaze up south, they got married and started their the installation of one million eco light
at her wagging their tails.
family. In early 1993, they moved here. bulbs, she had the epiphany that she could
30 OCTOBER 2018
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