Founder, Artemis
Dunedin, New Zealand
This conversation was originally published in 2019 as part of the original Careering Conversations series.
We've lightly edited it for readability while preserving the original conversation and advice, and added an update on what Sandra has been doing since we first spoke.
Few careers are as diverse as Sandra Clair's.
Over more than 25 years she's worked as a journalist, historian, medical anthropologist, herbalist, researcher and entrepreneur. Today she's best known as the founder of Artemis, combining scientific research with traditional plant medicine to create natural health products grounded in evidence as well as experience.
What struck us most was Sandra's commitment to lifelong learning.
Rather than seeing qualifications as something you complete early in your career, she's continued studying, researching and expanding her knowledge throughout her life. Curiosity has never been something she's outgrown.
Sandra's approach to wellbeing is equally holistic.
She believes health isn't achieved through one miracle product or one perfect habit. Instead, it's built through the small choices we make every day—how we eat, sleep, move, recover and manage stress. Looking after ourselves isn't separate from our careers; it's what allows us to do meaningful work over the long term.
One idea from our conversation has stayed with us.
During her medical anthropology research, Sandra spent time with an Amazonian community that had no word for "work". Life wasn't divided into work and everything else. It was simply life. That experience fundamentally changed how she viewed her own career. Rather than describing it as work, she describes it as a life filled with purpose, challenge, learning and contribution.
It's a perspective that's refreshingly different in a world where we're often encouraged to separate work from life.
Since we first spoke
Sandra completed her PhD in Health Sciences at the University of Canterbury in 2019, developing a method to help regulators integrate traditional plant-medicine knowledge into modern pharmaceutical regulation. She continues to lead Artemis and remains an advocate for evidence-informed herbal medicine.
What Sandra taught us
The healthiest careers are built the same way healthy lives are built—through curiosity, balance and a commitment to lifelong learning. Success isn't simply about working harder; it's about creating a life that sustains you.
