Email: mihai@toaderpasti.com / Twitter: @toaderpasti / Facebook: @toaderpasti / LinkedIn: @toaderpasti
Hello
I am Mihai or TP. I believe in social change through smart design—incorporating architecture, design, engineering and sustainability.
For me, it works best to see the world as a map, in space and time, like a riddle that needs to be solved, a puzzle with small and large pieces. I learned to be able to see the big picture and think strategically, to see the small dominos than can amplify change, but I love details, especially the beautiful ones.
I have 10 years of experience in green buildings, renewable energy, sustainability, and education, an amazing rollercoaster of beautiful heights and painful lows, a journey that transformed me along the way. I am an optimist and I love life and people.
Worklife in short:
My time is divided mostly between:
- Cofounder & General Manager :: EFdeN (education & R&D NGO where we design and build sustainable homes. 7 years old, +40 national and international awards)
- Cofounder & Jack of all Trades :: energiaTa (initiative where we created Romania’s first community of energy prosumers and changed the law in 3 years)
- Chairman :: Future Energy Leaders Romania (accelerating transition towards a cleaner, safer and more resilient economy, by empowering the young generation of energy leaders)
- Founder & CEO :: HomeSpace (experimental lab focused on research, design and build projects for reimagining life at home)
But I am also involved in other projects as well:
- Regional Lead, Climate Change and Sustainability – Global Shapers Community | part of World Economic Forum
- Communications & Strategy Committee | World Energy Council
Fellowships: Eisenhower Youth Leaders, Aspen Young Leaders, UNLEASH, Global Youth Climate Network, CXChange, G20 Young Global Changers, and more.
My Story
I am currently living in Bucharest, Romania, but I was born in a small town called Târgu Cărbunești, right after the fall of the communist regime.
My story begins in 2010, when I became one of the first members of PRISPA, the first Romanian team ever to qualify for Solar Decathlon, the most important competition worldwide for solar houses. In the last 8 years, I have participated in 3 editions of this competition, designing and building 3 multi-awarded houses, while also leading the EFdeN team to Versailles 2014 and Dubai 2018.
We won over 40 national and international awards, collectively and individually, gathering a perfect mix of successes and a few failures along the way. I have been a juror on different occasions, moderator several times, had over 100 media appearances and wrote for Forbes and other media outlets.
I love to do meaningful stuff, play the long game and help others. I will always choose adventure and fellowship over boring stuff. I aim to make this world at least a bit better while having a positive impact on environment.
I am the also co-founder and strategist of EnergiaTa, to make household renewable energy production possible in Romania by changing the legislation.
In the past I’ve also worked with the Green Building Council for public consultations and in developing country’s Renovation Strategy.
In 2015 I was invited to COP21, in 2016 in the European Parliament and 2017 to One Planet Summit and in 2018 I attended World Urban Forum – four experiences that have had a profound impact on my life, that made me want to get involved in protecting climate change by changing the built environment.
My dream is to create the perfect homes and perfect living experience, to create affordable houses that are Safe (level 1), Gorgeous (level 2), Sustainable (level 3), Intelligent (level 4) and offer a wonderful User Experience daily (level 5). Today houses usually check only 2 or 3 out of this philosophy.
I have co-chaired the first edition of Eisenhower Fellowships Youth Leaders, where we focused on future of work challenges and I am currently co-chairing FEL – Future Energy Leaders Romania where we are empowering young people to make a change in the energy sector. I am an Aspen Young Leaders 2017 Fellow and Global Shaper.
I have been featured on ‘’Forbes 30 Under 30’’, ‘’100 Faces of Innovation’’, ‘’100 Peoples and Ideas changing Romania’’, ”BIZ Innovation Champions”.I delivered hundreds of presentations, training and mentoring sessions for children, high schoolers, and students, but also for professionals for various companies including OMV Petrom, ING Bank, MSLGroup The Practice, ERICSSON, etc.
Someday I will die happy, knowing that I have done the right things in the right way at the right time to the right persons for the right reasons. Or at least I did my best to.
find out more about me here
Services in Consultancy, Training, Workshops or Speaking
I try to transform complicated things about homes, cities, energy, sustainability and climate change in pieces easy to understand for anybody. I am also very focused on finding Why something should be done, Why it is happening this way, what are the root causes and the best actions to take. All this blended with love, fun and curiosity because these are crucial ingredients in solving the world’s problems one step at a time.
Short Bio:
Photo 1 / Photo 2 / Photo 3
Mihai has 9 years of experience in designing and building award-winning sustainable solar homes. He co-founded and lead two of Romania’s most notorious projects: EFdeN and energiaTa.
He believes in social change through smart design—incorporating architecture, design and engineering, putting sustainability at the core of everything he is doing. Someday he aims to create the best homes in the world.
+500 young people became better professionals by performing together in an interdisciplinary and practical environment, winning +40 national and international awards. EFdeN was made possible by +250 companies that sponsored the project with +2.5 million euros. The team successfully created the country’s first Research Center for Comfort Conditions.
in 2016 energiaTa was born in order to make energy prosumers a reality. 3 years and many working hours, after creating Romania’s biggest prosumers community and bringing all relevant stakeholders together, this dream became a reality.
Previously Mihai had worked with the local Green Building Council in co-creating the National Renovation Strategy. Mihai is also deeply involved in numerous educational and climate-related initiatives, being a strong supporter of Sustainable Development Goals.
Photos of Mihai Toader-Pasti
