The 2013 MPP graduate is recognised for her contributions to tackling biomass and wasteful resource use through entrepreneurial initiatives.
The Hertie School is proud to announce Karina Campos, 2013 graduate of the Master of Public Policy programme, as the recipient of the 2026 Alumni Achievement Award. With an entrepreneurial career spanning food security, sustainable materials and community‑centred innovation, Campos has built solutions that demonstrate how targeted, scalable ideas can address urgent environmental and social challenges.
“Karina Campos’s work is an inspiring example of how our alumni are driving positive change in the world. We are proud to see a Hertie School graduate leading innovative solutions for sustainability – a challenge of global importance,” says Axel Baisch, Managing Director of the Hertie School. “Her achievements remind us of the impact and purpose our community stands for.”
For Campos, receiving the Alumni Achievement Award is both energising and grounding: “It reconnects me with the hope and ambition I felt as a student. Hertie made me believe I could change the world.”
A path shaped by early conviction
Campos traces her vocation for environmental protection back to childhood. Growing up in Buenos Aires, she vividly remembers an early school assignment in which she read a letter from a North American Indigenous chief – one that emphasised the responsibility humans have toward the land. The message resonated so deeply that it became a touchstone for her future decisions. “Since then, I was a little environmentalist,” she says. “All my choices – studies, career, projects – were my way of responding to that early call.”
Seeking a global perspective after her first job at the Inter-American Development Bank, Campos chose the Hertie School to strengthen her analytical skills and gain experience in an international environment. A DAAD scholarship enabled her to join the MPP, where she developed systemic thinking, stakeholder awareness and a strategic mindset that would later prove essential to her entrepreneurial journey.
Nilus: Tackling food waste and affordability
Campos’s first major entrepreneurial venture, Nilus, began in 2016 as a tech‑enabled solution to food waste. “Our aim was to create the Uber of food rescue,” says Campos.
What started as a platform connecting surplus food suppliers with community organisations soon evolved into a direct‑to‑consumer model offering affordable groceries in underserved neighbourhoods. Nilus expanded from Argentina to Mexico, with pilots in Peru and Ecuador. Over time, the company delivered 10 million kilogrammes of food, reduced grocery costs by an average of 21 per cent, and reached more than 650,000 people.
Bioplastix: Biotechnology for a more sustainable materials economy
Six years after co-managing Nilus, Campos decided it was time to switch gears and try her hand as a CEO. In 2024, she co‑founded Bioplastix, a biotechnology company developing biodegradable, bio‑based plastic alternatives through engineered microorganisms. Bringing in biochemists and synthetic biology experts, Bioplastix has approached sugar mills to embed bioprocesses into their existing infrastructure, enabling cost‑efficient, climate‑friendly material production. The company has already developed its first innovative copolymer and is preparing to install its first demo plant in Mexico this year.
Reflecting on her journey, Campos encourages current students to remain persistent in pursuit of their goals: “Impact is a marathon. The world needs people who keep going, even when the path becomes difficult.”
Christian Flachsland: “Campos’s work charts practical pathways toward a more equitable and sustainable future”
Christian Flachsland, Professor of Climate Action and Director of the Centre for Sustainability at the Hertie School, commends Campos on her exemplary achievements: “Karina Campos exemplifies how purposeful innovation can help transform communities and industries alike. By bridging engineering, entrepreneurship and social impact, she charts practical pathways toward a more equitable and sustainable future.”
Award ceremony at the 2026 Hertie School Alumni Reunion
"Hertie School alumni are creating real change across sectors and continents – and this award is our way of celebrating that," says Nena Grceva, Director of Alumni Affairs. “The Alumni Achievement Award recognises individuals whose work embodies what we stand for: public service, innovation and leadership. We love sharing their stories with the wider community.”
Each year, the Alumni Achievement Award honours alumni whose impact and commitment exemplify the Hertie School's mission. This year's recipient will be celebrated on 8 May at the opening of the 2026 Hertie School Alumni Reunion.
Contact
- Nena Grceva, Director Alumni Affairs