California State Senator Bob Wieckowski chairs the Environmental Quality Committee and Budget Subcommittee 2 on Resources, Environmental Protection, Energy and Transportation.  He was appointed by the Senate President Pro Tem to serve on the Energy and Environment Committee of the Council of State Governments West and in 2017 became the first Californian to chair the committee. He is a state leader in advocating for climate adaptation programs and has participated on many international, state and regional panels examining green infrastructure investments.His 10th Senate District includes several clean energy companies that are helping California improve both its economy and its environment.

Dr. Nancy Vandycke is Economic Advisor of the Transport Global Practice in the World Bank.  She founded and currently heads “Sustainable Mobility for All”— a global platform that unites 53 transport organizations worldwide to change the future of mobility.  Dr. Vandycke also leads the strategic and global analytical portfolio of the Bank in transport, including climate action, impact evaluation and the global tracking framework.  She is a member of the World Economic Forum’s Global Council on Advanced Energy Technologies and, of the Multilateral Development Banks’ Group on sustainable transport. She holds a Ph.D. in Economics from London School of Economics.

Since 2007 Thomas Becker holds the position Vice President Governmental Affairs at the BMW Group in Munich. In his position he supervises the worldwide representation of BMW Group’s political interests, oversees the company’s approach to integrate political topics into the product and business communication of the BMW Group, and steers the sustainability communication of the company.

Thomas Becker started his career as a Consultant in the department of environmental policy at the Association of the German Industry (BDI) in Berlin. He later held several leadership positions at the Association of the Automobile Industry (VDA) in Frankfurt. Before his current role at the BMW Group, he held the position of Deputy Managing Director of the VDA with responsibility for the co-management of the association. Thomas Becker also served as a reserve officer with the rank of Captain from 1988 until 2003 for the German military.

Thomas Becker received his PhD degree (Dr. rer. pol.) with Professor Dr. Ekkehard Kappler at the Reinhard-Mohn foundation chair for management, economics, and social evolution at the University of Witten / Herdecke with magna cum laude. Thomas Becker also holds a diploma in economics from the University of Cologne

George Heyman was elected as the MLA for Vancouver-Fairview in 2013, and re-elected in 2017. He is the Minister of Environment and Climate Change Strategy.

George was the executive director of Sierra Club BC, one of the province’s oldest environmental advocacy and education organizations. He also served three terms as president of the BC Government and Service Employees’ Union (BCGEU). In both organizations, George was a respected negotiator and a strong fiscal manager. Prior to these positions he lived in Terrace for many years, and worked throughout BC’s northwest and coastal communities.

George has been a faculty member of Simon Fraser University’s Dialogue and Negotiation program, teaching courses in multi- party negotiations and collaborative decision-making. He has guest lectured at a number of universities in B.C. and abroad, and served on advisory committees for post-graduate and undergraduate degree programs at three B.C. universities.

George is a passionate advocate for issues facing his constituents, including education, health care, the arts, child care, workers’ rights, transit, affordable housing, environmental responsibility and climate action. He also advocates for a more sustainable, modern and diverse economy.

George enjoys running, kayaking, live music and theatre.