2026 Speakers

Simon Stiell was appointed Executive Secretary of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) in August 2022. From 2013 to June 2022, he served in a number of ministerial roles in the Government of Grenada, including as Minister for Climate Resilience and the Environment for five years. He also served as member of Grenada’s Upper House of Parliament, the Senate, where he was Leader of Government’s Business throughout this period. Prior to his return to Grenada, Simon had a successful career spanning fourteen years within the technology sector, holding senior executive positions in several industry leading companies.

Peter Bakker is a distinguished business leader, who since 2012, has led the World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD) as the President & CEO. WBCSD is the premier global, CEO-led community of over 240 of the world’s leading sustainable businesses working collectively to accelerate the system transformations needed for a net zero, nature-positive, and equitable future. Prior to WBCSD, Peter was the CEO of TNT NV, the global transport, postal and logistics company.

TIME Magazine recently named Peter as one of the Top 100 Climate Leaders in Business. He was also a recipient of the Clinton Global Citizen Award (2009), the Sustainability Leadership Award (2010) and the Prix Voltaire International (2023). He received the royal order Officer of the Order of Orange-Nassau in 2018 in recognition of his long-lasting commitment to engaging business in tackling global sustainability issues.

Peter holds several corporate sustainability advisory board positions, including as Co-Chair of the Business Commission to Tackle Inequality, Board Member of GenZero, Advisory Board Member for Integrity and Sustainability at Mercedes-Benz Group, Supervisory Board Member for the Capitals Coalition and High-Level Advisory Board Member for the United Nations Food Systems Summit (UN FSS+4).

Eva Riesenhuber, who joined Siemens in 2012 after working as a finance lawyer in New York and various positions within Siemens ranging from M&A, venture capital to investor relations, currently serves as Global Head of Sustainability, leading the company’s sustainability transformation across businesses and regions. Her unique background combines expertise in law, finance and capital markets with a deep passion for sustainability, which she leverages to integrate sustainability into Siemens’ business activities, technology roadmap, investment decisions, operations, and governance.

Lucy is an award-winning technologist, venture builder and policymaker. She has over twenty years’ experience building, scaling and leading consumer-facing and deeptech ventures in AI, energy, and mobility; and developing tech policy and regulation in the UK and internationally. She is CEO at Centre for Net Zero, Octopus Energy Group’s open energy research institute; UK Govt’s AI Champion for Clean Energy; and chair of the board at Wikimedia UK.

Solitaire is a renowned sustainability expert who works with the world’s most influential organizations to activate positive and optimistic change. Her ‘solutionist’ vision of solving climate change is desperately needed in our gloomy world. She is Co-founder & Chief Solutionist at Futerra (Edie’s 2023 Consultancy of the Year) and Trustee of the Solutions Union charity. In 2023, she was named both a ‘Leader of the Year’ at Adweek’s Sustainability Awards and also UNGC’s ‘Sustainable Development Goals Pioneer’ for the UK. She was also named by Vogue Business as one of their 100 Innovators. Additionally, she sits on the United Nations Committee for Entertainment and Culture in Climate Action. Solitaire holds master’s degrees in both Sustainability and Shakespeare, she lectures at Imperial College and the Cambridge University Institute for Sustainability Leadership. She has a popular mainstage TED talk (with 1.8 million views), Forbes column, and an award winning book – The Solutionists: How Businesses Can Fix the Future.

Karin has been Chief Sustainability Officer at Volvo Group since April 2022. She leads the company’s sustainability transition towards a fossil-free future – through a unique approach to cross-sectoral partnership and an ambition to drive sustainable solutions and practices across the supply chain. Her expertise plays a key role in helping Volvo move closer to 100% fossil free vehicles by 2040 while inspiring other industry players to enhance their own decarbonization journey. Prior to this, she held various managerial positions at Volvo Group since 1996, lately as Senior Vice President Public Affairs (2018-2022). She has also held roles as Vice President Group Strategy, President Volvo Technology North America, and a number of positions in Research & Development.

Lord Turner chairs the Energy Transitions Commission, a global coalition of companies and energy experts working to achieve low and eventually net zero emissions in all sectors of the economy. He is an independent member of the House of Lords and honourary Fellow of the Royal Society. Lord Turner regularly advises governments in the EU, UK, China, and Australia as well as the COP Presidency. In other roles, he is chairman of Chubb Europe; Chairman of OakNorth Bank, and adviser to AESC Japan. Formerly, he led the Financial Services Authority and was Chairman of the UK Climate Change Committee, the Pensions Commission, and the Low Pay Commission.

Francesco La Camera is the Director-General of the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA). He took office on 4 April 2019 and brings more than thirty years of experience in the fields of climate, sustainability, and international cooperation.

In his role, Mr. La Camera is responsible for leading the delivery of IRENA’s work programme and strategy in cooperation with the Agency’s Members. At a critical time for climate change and the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals, Mr. La Camera is tasked with redefining the structure and operations of the Agency in response to the urgent needs of its Members.

Under his leadership, the Agency has forged a series of new strategic partnerships with UN organisations including UNDP, UNFCCC, and Green Climate Fund, as well as other Financial Institutions. A key priority of his tenure is to implement a more action-oriented approach to the Agency’s work.

Previously, Mr. La Camera served as Director-General of Sustainable Development, Environmental Damage, EU and International Affairs at the Italian Ministry of Environment, Land & Sea since 2014. In this capacity, he developed cooperation and partnership agreements with a wide range of countries. As the national coordinator for climate, environment, resource efficiency, and circular economy, he led the Italian delegation to UNFCCC’s COP 21 to 24 and the EU Presidency at COP 20. He was also responsible for the preparation and organisation of Italy’s G7 Environment Presidency in 2017.

James is Chief Sustainability Officer at Standard Life, one of the UK’s largest retirement savings and income specialists, with 12 million policy holders and £0.3 trillion assets under administration.
James has over 20 years’ experience in climate change and sustainability. He has been at Standard Life for 4 years and previously was Group Head of Sustainability at Lloyds Banking Group, where he developed a sustainability strategy focused on supporting and financing the transition to a sustainable, low-carbon economy, his efforts raising the bank to second in ShareAction’s climate change rankings for the top 20 European banks. Prior to this, James was Managing Director at the Carbon Trust, where he worked for 15 years with businesses and governments around the world on climate change and sustainability related issues, as well as leading their UK business units focused on government policy, market developments, and innovation. James previously worked for McKinsey & Company. He has a PhD from the University of Cambridge in Nanotechnology, and a first-class undergraduate degree from the University of Oxford in Metallurgy and the Science of Materials.

Benedict Smith is the Head of Specialised & Project Finance at Santander UK, where he leads a team providing financing solutions across infrastructure, energy transition and a broad range of specialised financing sectors.

His team works with sponsors, developers, investors and institutional capital providers on the financing of renewable energy, battery energy storage systems (BESS), clean power infrastructure and other transition-enabling assets, alongside broader infrastructure and complex financing transactions. His work focuses on supporting the deployment and scaling of emerging sectors and technologies through innovative financing and capital solutions.

Benedict plays an active role in industry and policy discussions relating to infrastructure investment, energy transition financing and private capital mobilisation, working with government and industry bodies on the future development of UK infrastructure and energy markets. He is closely involved in Santander UK’s work with the British Infrastructure Taskforce and is a member of the Project Finance Bank Forum.

Jennifer Morris, CEO of The Nature Conservancy, leads a team of over 6,000 staff in more than 80 countries and territories addressing the climate and biodiversity crises. With 25+ years in conservation, her leadership emphasizes proven management, innovative finance solutions, and science-based approaches centered on communities. Prior to joining TNC, she held key roles at Conservational International, including COO and President. Jennifer has been named to TIME’s inaugural Climate 100 list of leaders and Forbes’ 50 over 50 for Impact. She serves on the Climate Advisory Board for NBIM, Nestlé’s CSV Council, and is a member and former board chair of Enduring Earth.

Mark O’Conor has over 30 years’ experience helping public and private sector clients with all aspects of IT law, particularly cloud and digital transformation, public procurement and outsourcing, and AI.
Mark is the Global Co-Chair for the Technology Sector, co-chairs the firm’s AI Group, was previously UK Managing Partner, and is the Vice President of the Society for Computers and Law.
Mark advises companies and governments on digital transformation, agile development, open source, AI, and cloud computing legal challenges. He has been involved in drafting and negotiating cloud computing contracts from both the provider and customer side.

Josh Parker leads Corporate Sustainability at NVIDIA. An engineer and a lawyer, he believes following the data wherever it leads is critical for an effective sustainability program. He previously built and led the sustainability program at Western Digital, a computer storage company, and practiced patent law at the law firm Baker Botts.

Dara Olufon is a seasoned executive with over 15 years of experience in sustainability, decarbonisation, and large-scale business transformation. Prior to joining South Pole, he served as a Partner at McKinsey & Company in the UK, where he was a leader in the Global Energy and Materials practice. His expertise spans several key areas including energy transition strategies for hard-to-abate industries, clean hydrogen, biofuels, carbon capture, e-mobility, and renewables, as well as strategic counsel to global financial investors on climate-focused investments. His work has helped drive large-scale, impactful change within industries seeking to evolve and reduce their environmental footprint. Dara holds a strong track record in delivering high-level strategic insights and facilitating the transition to a more sustainable, low-carbon future. He holds Bachelors and Masters degrees in Chemical Engineering from the University of Cambridge.

As founder and CEO of the Capitals Coalition, Mark is a leading catalyst for collaborative action. He combines private-sector roots with a natural gift for diplomacy, bringing diverse views and perspectives together behind a common vision. Over the years, Mark has been instrumental in shaping the Natural Capital Protocol, the Social and Human Capital Protocol, and in co-founding Business for Nature. Whether serving as Co-Chair of the Impact Management Platform, advising the Nature Positive Initiative, or being a member of the Governance Committee for the Natural Asset Accounting Standards Board, Mark remains dedicated to integrating social, human, and natural capital into the heart of modern decision-making.

Gill is the Global Sustainability leader for EY’s Financial Services business. She is responsible for developing and building out our world class capability in this area.

She helps EY’s Financial Services clients to create business value from Sustainability and accelerate their transition to a lower carbon future.

Gill is passionate about making progress on the sustainable finance agenda and was part of the Embankment Project for Inclusive Capitalism.
Gill sits on the IIF Sustainability Finance Working Group and Chairs the TCUK’s International Climate Finance working group.
She has over 25 years’ experience in the wealth and asset management sector, both as a professional advisor and as an industry practitioner. In industry, she has held senior technology roles at both AMVESCAP and JPMorgan.

Lucia Silva is Group Chief Sustainability Officer for Assicurazioni Generali, since September 2015, where she leads the definition and the implementation of the Group Sustainability strategy and policies.

Lucia is a senior sustainability professional with 20 years of experience. She strongly believes that by aligning people, planet and profit, companies ensure they are successful now and in the future. In her current role, she has the opportunity to work on some of the most pressing challenges of our time, such as, climate change, ageing population, demographic changes, and digitalization. Her focus is on integrating sustainability into the business, looking at insurance products and investment strategies.

Lucia is a Board Member of Generali Italia, Generali Real Estate Sgr and of ‘Fondazione Generali – The Human Safety Net’, a non-profit organization supported by the Generali Group, whose mission is to unlock the potential of disadvantaged people so that they can transform the lives of their families and communities.

Prior to joining Generali, Lucia worked for  15 years at KPMG, where she successfully supported various companies from a wide range of sectors in defining and developing their Sustainability strategy. During this period, Lucia was also instrumental in the development and implementation of KPMG’s own Sustainability strategy in the EMEA region (Europe, Middle East, Africa), leading an international network of colleagues.

Lucia holds a master’s degree in ‘Governance, Business Ethics and Risk Management’ from Libero Istituto

Universitario Carlo Cattaneo University along with a degree in Philosophy from Statale di Milano University.

Samed served as Special Advisor to the Executive Director of the United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UH-HABITAT) and as UN-HABITAT Advisor for Eastern Europe and Central Asia, coordinating relations between UN member states and UN agencies and leading various projects. She continues to actively work at the United Nations.

Currently, as the President and Chairman of the Board of the Zero Waste Foundation, he leads national and international projects in the fields of sustainability, environment, and youth studies.

Managing Director, Global Head of Research & Development at S&P Global Ratings, Co-Chair of the S&P Global Look Forward Council. Alexandra is a senior executive at S&P Global with over 30 years of experience in finance and a deep understanding of global credit markets.As Co-Chair of the S&P Global Look Forward Council, she spearheads research on transformative market trends, focusing on capital, geoeconomics, AI, digital transformation, energy, sustainability, and climate. The Council brings together leading experts from across S&P Global to deliver essential intelligence and help markets navigate uncertainty. In her role as Global Head of Research and Development at S&P Global Ratings, Alexandra oversees the flagship Credit Conditions Committee, a global platform that monitors macroeconomic, credit, and market trends, informing the deliberations of 1700 ratings analysts. She also drives product and market development initiatives, particularly in sustainable finance, private markets, and emerging markets. Notably, she led the acquisition and integration of Cicero Shades of Green, solidifying S&P Global Ratings’ position as a leader in Second Party Opinions on green bonds.

Dan Jørgensen is the European Commissioner for Energy and Housing within the European Commission in office between 2024 – 2029. He was Minister for Development Cooperation and Minister for Global Climate Policy between December 2022 – September 2024, and Minister for Climate, Energy, and Utilities between June 2019 – December 2022 in the Danish Government. He was a Member of the Danish Parliament (Folketing) between 2015 – 2024 where he served as Vice-Chairman of the Parliamentary Group of the Social Democratic Party (2017-2019) and as Vice-Chairman of the Danish Delegation to NATO Parliamentary Assembly. Dan Jørgensen was also a Member of the European Parliament within the S&D Group between July 2004- November 2013. He holds a Master’s degree in Political Science from Aarhus University (Denmark) which he obtained in 2004. He pursued an academic career and lectured as External Lecturer at several universities between 2010 – 2013, i.e. University of Copenhagen; Seattle University; Sciences Po, Paris; Danish Institute for Study Abroad, Copenhagen; Department of Political Science, Aarhus University and also as Adjunct Professor at the Aalborg University, Denmark (2016 – 2019).

Esther Finidori is the Chief Sustainability Officer at Schneider Electric, where she leads
the company’s global sustainability strategy and initiatives. She previously served as Vice President of Schneider Electric France, in charge of strategy and sustainability, and was a
member of the French Management Committee.
Earlier in her career at Schneider Electric, Esther was VP Global Environment, responsible
for defining the group’s environmental strategy and leading key transformations to deliver on
its vision. She joined Schneider Electric in 2016, bringing with her a strong background as an
environmental consultant with specific expertise in climate change and the energy transition.
Esther is also an independent and non-executive Board member at Swissquote, the
Swiss leader in online banking.
Esther holds a Master of Science in Engineering from École Centrale Paris and an MPhil
in Technology Policy from the Judge Business School of Cambridge University.

Grazielle Parenti is Vale’s Executive Vice President of Sustainability (non-statutory), with more than 30 years of experience in sustainability, corporate relations, government affairs, international relations, communications, community engagement, agribusiness, and diversity & inclusion.
Before joining Vale, she held leadership positions in global companies such as Syngenta, BRF, Mondelez, Diageo, and DSM. Bloomberg has recognized her as one of the leading business figures in Latin America. She is an active member of the Brazilian Institute of Corporate Governance (IBGC) and the Women Corporate Directors network.
Parenti has a degree in business administration from FGV/EAESP, an MBA in marketing from FIA/USP, and a specialization in public policy management from FGV. She has also completed executive courses at national and international institutions.

Husain Al Meer is the Director, Global Offshore Wind and UK at Masdar, a
global leader in renewable energy. In this role, he oversees the entire value
chain for Masdar’s Global Offshore Wind and European Battery Storage
investments. His remit includes investment, business development,
commercial operations, asset management, technical oversight, legal, and
corporate functions. Additionally, he manages strategic stakeholder
relationships with the UK Government, European markets, and public affairs
in the UK and across Europe.
Husain played a pivotal role in setting up the strategy and partially executing
energy investments as part of the Sovereign Investment Partnership signed by
the UAE and UK governments in 2021, which included a GBP 10 billion capital
deployment plan. He also transformed Masdar’s offshore wind and European
BESS investments from a passive role to a more active development approach
and established Masdar’s presence in the UK over the last three years.

Alok Sharma served as a Member of Parliament in the UK House of Commons for 14 years (2010-2024) and was subsequently appointed a Member of the House of Lords in the UK Parliament.

Prior to entering Parliament, Alok qualified as a chartered accountant and then worked for 16 years as an investment banker based out of London, Frankfurt, and Stockholm.

He served in a range of UK government ministerial roles prior to entering the UK Cabinet as Secretary of State for International Development. He was subsequently appointed Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, as well as President Designate of the 26th UN Climate Change Conference (COP26). In 2021, he took on the COP President role full-time, leading the UK’s work in bringing together the world to tackle climate change and getting almost 200 countries to sign up to the historic Glasgow Climate Pact.

Alok was knighted in King Charles III’s 2023 New Year’s Honours for his services to tackling climate change. He currently serves as Chair of the UK’s Transition Finance Council, Co-Chair of the Rockefeller Foundation’s Climate Advisory Council, a Member of the Advisory Council of the Oxford Martin School at Oxford University, and a Distinguished Fellow at Conservation International.

Leading CDP, the global non-profit that runs the world’s largest independent environmental disclosure system, Sherry Madera is pioneering a new age of Earth-positive economics, a model that places sustainability at the heart of value creation.

Drawing on her unique background as an investment banker, Economic Ambassador for the City of London to Asia, capital markets chief, author and entrepreneur, Sherry is putting environmental data at the core of strategic business decision-making and performance. Earth-positive economics recognizes that environmental health is not a constraint on prosperity – but a precondition for it.

Sherry speaks regularly in global forums on topics including sustainable finance, FinTech, international trade, data policy and geopolitics. She is the author of the newly published book, Navigating Sustainability Data: How Organizations can use ESG Data to Secure Their Future.

Camilla currently holds the position of CEO at Electrify Britain.

Camilla has more than 15 years’ experience in climate action and decarbonisation, working with governments, investors, business, international institutions, and civil society to turn their ambitions into action. She served as the Deputy Director of Strategy for COP26 at the UK Cabinet Office and advisor to the COP26 President, as well as playing a pivotal role in developing the UK’s approach to adaptation and resilience for the UN Climate Action Summit. Her expertise centres on identifying and brokering the actions and partnerships which deliver decarbonisation and climate action at scale.

Camilla contributed significantly to the creation of the Paris Agreement and its net zero goal, as well as the UN’s climate security efforts. She was also a Director of the UK Youth Climate Coalition and Chair of Climate Outreach, focused on public engagement with climate change.

Professor Emily Shuckburgh is Chief Scientific Adviser (CSA) for the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ) and Director of Cambridge Zero at the University of Cambridge. She is also Professor of Environmental Data Science at the Department of Computer Science and Technology.

A mathematician and climate scientist, Emily is a Fellow of several leading institutions and President-elect of the Royal Meteorological Society. At Cambridge, she holds senior roles across climate science and AI research initiatives. She previously spent over a decade at the British Antarctic Survey, leading major research programmes, and has also conducted research at MIT and the École Normale Supérieure in Paris. She is co-author, with HM King Charles III and Tony Juniper, of the ‘Ladybird Book on Climate Change’.

Hilde Tonne is a highly accomplished business leader and board member with extensive experience in the energy, infrastructure, and technology sectors.

She has held executive and board positions in some of the most influential organisations in Europe and beyond. Her leadership has been instrumental in driving innovation, transformation, and sustainable business practices across industries.

Hilde’s non-executive positions include Chair of Arup Group Limited Board, further solidifying her leadership influence in global infrastructure development; Senior Advisor at Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners; and Board Member at Stiftelsen Handelshoyskolen BI in Oslo, Norway,
where she has contributed to strategic decision-making since August 2023.

She was the Chief Executive Officer of Statnett SF, Norway’s state-owned electricity systems operator from 2021 to mid-2024. Under her leadership, the organisation navigated the complexities of the European energy crisis while driving forward key initiatives in energy transformation, reinforcing her reputation as a forward-thinking leader committed to sustainability and innovation in the energy sector.

Throughout her career, Hilde has been a driving force for change, particularly in the energy and digital sectors. She is committed to creating long-term, sustainable solutions and believes that energy transformation is at the heart of addressing the global climate crisis.

Martin Ferreira is Senior Vice President for Global Business Development within Masdar’s offshore wind division located in London. In this role he is responsible for identifying and delivering new global offshore wind development projects and opportunities and is accountable for Masdar’s investments in its offshore wind development portfolio.

Martin joined Masdar in 2022 to support and drive its ambitious growth targets and its transition from a more passive offshore wind investor to that of a more active and co-developer role.

As well as future growth opportunities, Martin is responsible for Masdar’s investments in its Dogger Bank South and Sheringham Shoal & Dudgeon Extension development projects and led Masdar’s successful acquisition of 49% of the Baltic Eagle offshore wind farm located in Germany.

Prior to joining Masdar, Martin spent 16 years at RWE in its offshore wind division and has held positions such as Director of Offshore Development for UK & Ireland, Head of Investment & Asset Management (Development & Construction) and Head of Offshore Commercial Management.

Martin’s offshore wind achievements include:

• Responsibility for over 20GW of offshore wind project development
• Seven successful Financial Investment Decisions
• Six auction successes (both route-to-market and seabed lease auctions)
• Six successful offshore wind acquisitions
• Creating over twenty different offshore wind joint-ventures

Prior to his career in renewable energy, Martin spent nine years at the business advisory firm Grant Thornton, six of which he spent in the Corporate Finance division specializing in mergers and acquisitions.

Dr. Mekala Krishnan is a partner at the McKinsey Global Institute (MGI), McKinsey’s business and economics research arm.

Her research focuses on topics related to sustainable and inclusive growth, including climate risk and the net-zero transition, globalization, productivity growth, and gender economics. Her most recent research focuses on the net-zero transition, adaptation and physical climate risk across sectors and geographies, including its implications for companies and countries. She is an author of the recent MGI reports, Advancing adaptation: Mapping costs from cooling to coastal defenses, The hard stuff: Navigating the physical realities of the energy transition, An affordable, reliable, competitive path to net zero, The net-zero transition: What it would cost, what it would bring, From poverty to empowerment: Raising the bar for sustainable and inclusive growth, and Climate risk and response: Physical hazards and socioeconomic impacts. Her past research has focused on the risks facing global value chains and the future of globalization.

Mekala is a frequent speaker on these topics at global conferences as well as with executives at Fortune 500 companies. She has authored numerous articles, and her work has been cited in leading business publications, including The Financial Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Economist, and Harvard Business Review.

Mekala serves on advisory boards for the Massachusetts Office of Energy Transformation, the Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce, and the Centre for Social and Economic Progress India. She is on the board of the Global Fund for Women, a leading public foundation dedicated to improving global gender equality. She has served on a Bretton Woods Committee working group on climate finance, on an advisory board for the Sibley School of Mechanical Engineering at Cornell University and was previously a member of a task force at the Hutchins Center on Fiscal and Monetary Policy at Brookings focused on improving productivity measurement.

Haley Lowry is the Global Head of Sustainability for Dow Packaging and
Specialty Plastics. She leads the business’s sustainability strategy, including partnerships to address circularity, to improve recycling systems and infrastructure, and monetizing decarbonization through low carbon products. With 20+ years of experience, Haley has developed low carbon and circular business models and products that align social, environmental, and commercial goals across the CPG, automotive, and industrial industries. Haley serves as a member of the P&SP Global Leadership Team.

After joining Dow in 2005 as part of the Commercial Development Program, Haley assumed a variety of roles in market research, customer service and sales. In 2006, she became sales account manager for Rigid Packaging and Consumer Durables. In 2008, Haley began supporting Food & Specialty Packaging and Industrial & Consumer Packaging (I&CP) as the market development manager – leading North America competitive intelligence for the markets and serving as the polyethylene chairman for American Chemistry Council’s Plastics Industry Producers Statistics Group. Later, she was the I&CP market manager, identifying new opportunities, developing solutions for strategic customers and the value chain, and executing market participation strategies. Prior to her current role, Haley was the Product Manager responsible for pricing in Southern Europe, Middle East and Africa regions based Horgen, Switzerland.

Mary L. Schapiro is Vice Chair of the Glasgow Financial Alliance for Net Zero (GFANZ) and Vice Chair of Global Public Policy at Bloomberg L.P., where she oversees Bloomberg’s public policy and regulatory priorities globally and serves as Special Advisor to the Founder and Chairman.

Schapiro has over 30 years of public service experience, having served under four U.S. presidents from both political parties in senior financial regulatory roles. From 2009 to 2012, Schapiro served as the 29th Chair of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) – the first woman to hold the role – where she led the agency through post-crisis reforms and one of its most active rulemaking periods. She previously served as Chair of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) and as CEO and Chair of the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA), making her the only person to have led all three major U.S. financial regulatory bodies.

Leslie Maasdorp is CEO of British International Investment (BII), the UK’s development finance institution. He was previously Vice-President and Chief Financial Officer of the New Development Bank, based in Shanghai, for nine years. Over the past 25 years he held senior leadership positions at global financial institutions, including serving as International Advisor to Goldman Sachs, Vice Chairman of Barclays Capital and President of Bank of America Merrill Lynch in South Africa. In the early years of South Africa’s democratic era, he held key roles in the Government of South Africa, as Special Advisor to the Minister of Labour and Deputy Director-General responsible for Restructuring of State-owned Enterprises.

The first White House National Climate Advisor and former U.S. EPA Administrator, Gina McCarthy is one of the nation’s most respected voices on climate change, the environment, and public health. As head of the Climate Policy Office under President Biden, McCarthy’s leadership led to the most aggressive action on climate in U.S. history, creating new jobs and unprecedented clean energy innovation and investments across the country. Her commitment to bold action across the Biden administration, supported by the climate and clean energy provisions in the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and the Inflation Reduction Act, restored U.S. climate leadership on a global stage and put a new U.S. national target to cut greenhouse gas emissions by 50-52 percent below 2005 levels by 2030 within reach.

Throughout her years of public service in both Republican and Democratic administrations, McCarthy is credited for her common-sense strategies and ability to work across the aisle, with states, communities, business leaders, and the labor community, to tackle our nation’s toughest environmental challenges in ways that spur economic growth. and improve public health for workers and families, especially those living in environmental justice communities.

Gina is Chair of the America Is All In coalition and a Senior Fellow at The Fletcher School’s Climate Policy Lab at Tufts University. She is also an Operating Advisor at Pegasus Capital Advisors and a Senior Advisor at TPG Rise Climate Fund. 

Before joining the Biden administration, McCarthy was President and CEO of the Natural Resources Defense Council, one of the nation’s largest and most influential environmental advocacy organizations. Prior to NRDC, she was a Professor of the Practice of Public Health in the Department of Environmental Health at Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health where she served as the Director of the Center for Climate, Health, and the Global Environment. She was also a fellow at the Harvard Kennedy School of Government. During this time, she engaged students and climate science thought-leaders across the faculty, as well as corporate and non-profit leaders across the world, to coordinate strategies to turn climate and health science into actions that promote a healthier, more sustainable, and just world.

Ruth Davis OBE was appointed UK Special Representative for Nature on 15 November 2024.

Ruth studied English Language and Literature at Oxford University. She later received a Masters degree in Plant Sciences from Reading University, and a diploma in Horticulture Science from Kew Gardens.

Ruth is an Environment Specialist and Advisor. She has more than 20 years’ experience of high-level influencing on nature and climate change, in the public and private sector,

Ruth was previously Deputy Director for Policy and Advocacy at the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds. Prior to that, she was Political Director at Greenpeace UK, leading campaigns on climate and energy, fair and sustainable fishing, and the protection of the Arctic.

She has also advised the UK Government in several roles, including  its COP26 Nature Campaign. She writes extensively about the philosophy, politics and practice of environmentalism.

Jennifer Wu is the Head of Sustainable Finance Innovation at the City of London Corporation. She also leads the secretariat of the Transition Finance Council and the UK Carbon Markets Forum. Prior to joining the City of London Corporation, Jennifer was the Chief Global Sustainable Investing Strategist and Global Head of Sustainable Investing at J.P. Morgan Asset Management, after leading the development of BlackRock’s Sustainable Investing global strategy and climate transition investment solutions. Jennifer has 24 years of international experience in investment management and banking, and development finance.

He completed his primary and secondary education in Ankara and graduated from the Faculty of Engineering and Architecture, Department of Civil Engineering at Konya Selçuk University in 1999. In 2017, he completed his master’s degree on Urban Transformation.

Between 1999 and 2005, he worked in various private sector organizations. From 2005 to 2006, he served as a Specialist at the Ankara Implementation Department of the Housing Development Administration of Türkiye (TOKİ). Between 2006 and 2009, he worked as Branch Manager for the European Side Implementation Department of the TOKİ Istanbul Implementation Directorate. From 2009 to 2018, he served as the General Manager and a Member of the Board of Directors of Emlak Konut GYO Inc., a subsidiary of the Prime Ministry Housing Development Administration of Türkiye.

Following his tenure as Minister of Environment, Urbanization and Climate Change from 2018 to 2023, he was elected as the Justice and Development Party (AK Party) Member of Parliament for Istanbul in the 28th term, where he also chaired the Parliamentary Environment Committee.

On 2 July 2024, he was reappointed as the Minister of Environment, Urbanization and Climate Change.

Murat KURUM is married with three children and speaks English.