122: Dr Elin Haf Davies – Prepare to be Marmite: lessons from ocean adventures

Change Makers: Leadership, Good Business, Ideas and Innovation

Dr Elin Haf Davies is an endurance rower, whose 77-day voyage across the Atlantic was the first in a line of adventures that led to her becoming part of the first all-woman team to row across the Indian Ocean and later, completing a “hat-trick of oceans” by sailing the Pacific.

Through these voyages, Elin has raised over £300,000 for causes close to her heart and has been recognised by the Welsh Assembly for “services to Wales”. But with ever the thirst for adventure, Elin has continued to make a difference after gaining her PhD and going onto a successful career as a scientific researcher and founder of healthcare innovation platform Aparito, which she still leads today.

It’s a long way from her early career, which began as a Premiership rugby prop forward for Alton and London Wasps, when she also competed for five years at international level for Wales A.

In this conversation with Michael, Elin discusses what has inspired her “squiggly career” and what comes next for someone who is always looking for the next great adventure.