Resilience

With Julia Bialetska, CEO of S.Lab

Tiny Little Victory: Creating sustainable innovation in the shadow of war

When war broke out in Ukraine, Julia Bialetska didn’t pause—she pivoted. As co-founder and CEO of S.Lab, a startup turning hemp and mycelium into biodegradable packaging, Julia faced the unthinkable: relocating her company, her team, and her life from Kyiv to Spain.

In this conversation, she shares how she kept her vision alive through crisis. From messy early experiments to major media breakthroughs, Julia opens up about what it means to build a sustainable business under pressure—and why visibility, recognition, and community matter more than ever.

We talk about:

• Turning natural materials into next-gen packaging

• What it’s really like to move a startup during wartime

• How women in tech are shaping a more sustainable future

• Why Ukrainian entrepreneurs are key to rebuilding a better post-war economy

It’s a story of persistence, purpose, and planting seeds in hard soil.