Speakers

Berk Birand is the CEO of Fero Labs, an industrial process optimization software company based in New York. He is passionate about helping large industrial companies advance their digital transformation goals using explainable machine learning.
He holds a Ph.D. in electrical engineering and computer science from Columbia University. His academic research focused on optimizing wireless and optical networks with efficient cross-layer algorithms. He developed scheduling algorithms for optimizing cellular base stations in 5G networks and has several patents in IoT systems for resilient fiber-optic networks.

Bjørn Kjetil is Head of Sustainability in Hydro. Prior to that, he was head of the Hydro’s Climate Office and Energy Strategy since 2011, and Head of Energy analysis from 2007 to 2011.  Previously, he was Political Advisor to the Norwegian Minister of Oil and Energy. He is an economist by training.

Burcin Temel McKenna is the Head of Cement Process and Systems R&D at FLSmidth in Copenhagen, Denmark where she leads product and sustainability system development solutions for the Cement industry. Burcin has previously worked as the R&D Director for the Research and Partnerships function in Mining, FLSmidth and prior to that as a Project Manager and Research Scientist at Haldor Topsoe from 2008 till 2017. Burcin holds a Ph.D. from UC Santa Barbara in Chemistry.

For more info: https://www.linkedin.com/in/burcin-temel-mckenna-a156b88

Cedric is an Environmental Engineer with over 20 years of experience in senior positions in the environmental management, infrastructure, waste and construction materials industries. Cédric is a recognized expert on the net zero agenda, the transition towards circular models, industrial transition, and the transition towards sustainable construction ecosystems. He is responsible for LafargeHolcim’s Public Affairs and Government Relations function. In parallel, Cedric currently chairs Construction Products Europe, sits on the Steering Committees of the World Bank’s Carbon Pricing Leadership Coalition and the Global Alliance for Buildings and Construction.

Clotilde Rossi di Schio is a senior specialist for energy efficiency at Sustainable Energy for ALL (SEforALL).

Prior to joining SEforALL, Clotilde has been working in the energy sector for more than 12 years as a member of McKinsey’s German office and at Turboden, a Mitsubishi Heavy Industry group company.

As a research assistant with the SIPA Center on Global Energy Policy at Columbia University, she specialized in decarbonization strategies.

Clotilde has an MBA in Finance from Columbia Business School, an MPA in Energy Policy from Columbia SIPA and a Master of Science in Mechanical/Industrial Engineering from Vienna University of Technology.

Dimitrios Koufos has more than twenty years of practical experience in areas such as Production Technology & Process Optimization, Production Μanagement Systems, Energy & Environmental Technology, Energy & Environmental Legislation/Reporting, Supply Chain Management, Technology Strategy & Investment Analysis in companies like Shell, Motor Oil Hellas, TITAN Cement, and currently in the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD).  He has held positions various positions such as:

• Senior Engineer
• Senior Supply Chain Analyst
• Senior Process Engineer
• Business Intelligence Coordinator

Dimitris has practical field experience in variety of production processes and systems and has evaluated technologies and the respective business cases studies ranging from greenfield investments, to plant modernization and upgrades, energy management, environmental compliance issues, product compliance requirements around the world (e.g. USA, Greece, Egypt, Albania, Russia, Croatia, Romania, etc).

His studies include an MBA (Shell Internship Awarded) , an MSc in Process Control from the University of Connecticut (Scholarship from the University Research Centre) and a Diploma in Chemical Engineering from the University of Patras. Also he is certified from the College of Petroleum and Energy Studies of Oxford University in the following:

• Linear Programming in Refinery and Supply Planning
• International Oil Supply, Transportation, Refining and Trading

In his current role he is the Direct Finance Unit Lead of the Energy Efficiency Climate Change Team at the EBRD.

Gokce is a research professional with a decade of regulatory analysis, project development and stakeholder management experience focused on energy and industry transitions. She is also the honorary Head of Research and Academic Engagement of the “Women in Energy, Climate and Sustainability Foundation” and Founding Member of the Women in Green Hydrogen.

Dr. Tongbo SUI is currently vice president of Sinoma International Engineering Co. Ltd. He has been intensively engaged for over 20 years in R&D of low energy & low CO₂ clinker cements as a solution to addressing cement and concrete sustainability. Before joining Sinoma in 2010, he worked as vice president of China Building Materials Academy during 2006-2010.

He is now also visiting professor at Tongji University of China, University College London of UK and senior advisor of China Cement Association, and active in international organizations as co-chair of WG5 for Cement Innovation under GCCA, and member of ACI, ASTM, RILEM & ICT.

Jekaterina is in charge of German activities of Europe’s leading clean transport campaign group Transport & Environment (T&E). Her aim is to ensure that the use of hydrogen and PtX in the transport sector is efficient and sustainable. Before joining T&E Jekaterina was with the Federation of German Industries (BDI). At the BDI, she was in charge of strategic positioning of the German industry on hydrogen and hydrogen related technologies. In the past she’s also been involved as an associate research fellow at the Jacques Delors Centre in Berlin where she published several publications on energy policy in the EU. Besides hydrogen Jekaterina is an expert in power market design, energy research and international energy policy.

Jekaterina holds a master’s degree in public policy from the Hertie School in Berlin.

Jostein Søreide works in Hydro’s Climate Office, where he is responsible for climate strategy, climate accounting and sustainability. He has 20 years of experience in working with sustainability related issues like life cycle assessments, sustainability reporting and sustainability dialogues with stakeholders, investors and customers. Jostein was responsible for the establishment of European Aluminium’s Sustainability Committee in 2010, which he chaired from 2010 to 2014. He was also elected as industry co-chair of the ASI Standard Setting Group from 2013 to 2014, and is currently elected as the industry co-chair of the ASI Standards Committee.

Karen Scrivener came up with the idea for LC3 cement in 2008, this material has the potential to cut CO2 emissions related to cement by more than 400 million tonnes a year.  She obtained her PhD at Imperial College in 1984.  She worked for Lafarge in France for 6 years, before being appointed Professor and Head of the Laboratory of Construction Materials, at EPFL, Switzerland in 2001. Her research focusses on the understanding the chemistry and microstructure of cement based materials and improving their sustainability. In 2003 she founded the research network Nanocem bringing together the leading Industrial companies (Cement and admixtures) with European academic institute to do research on Cementitious Materials.  She was made a fellow of the UK Royal Academy of Engineering in 2014.

Mattias Frumerie is Sweden’s Head of Delegation to UNFCC and leads climate diplomacy efforts. Mr Frumerie is also a member of the UNFCCC Standing Committee on Finance. Previously, Mr Frumerie has held several positions within the Ministry for Foreign Affairs, including postings in Budapest and Brussels. Mr Frumerie has also worked as an EU advisor in the Prime Minister’s Office.

Founder at Thinking the Unthinkable. International broadcaster. Moderator of public/private conferences (corporate/government). http://www.thinkunthink.org/

35 year analytical expertise in diplomacy, defence, international security.
– Main news presenter, the BBC’s international 24-hour news channel BBC World News 1996-2014.
– presented The Hub with Nik Gowing, BBC World Debates, Dateline London , plus location coverage of major global stories.
– 1979-1996 ITN : bureau chief in Rome/Warsaw’
– Diplomatic Editor Channel 4 News (1988-1996).
– BAFTA award for coverage of Martial Law in Poland 1981

Councils/boards
– Chatham House (1998–2004)
– Royal United Services Institute (2005–present)
– Overseas Development Institute (2007-2014)
– Westminster Foundation for Democracy inc vice chair (1996-2005)
– Wilton Park (1998-2012 )
– Hay Festival

Much sought-after analytical expertise on failures to manage information in new transparent environments of conflicts, crises, emergencies and tension. Peer-reviewed study at Oxford University is “Skyful of Lies and Black Swans”. Predicts new vulnerability, fragility and brittleness of institutional power in the new all-pervasive public information space.

Ongoing “Thinking the Unthinkable” study reveals candidly why so many leaders face new difficulties identifying what looms in the disruptions of the “new normal”. The findings are scary. Based on hundreds of interviews, inc 60 top level confidential interviews of corporate/public service leaders, plus new generation of millennials.

2014- Visiting Professor, Kings College, London in School of Social Science and Public Policy.

Member World Economic Forum’s Global Agenda Council on Geo-Economics.

Honorary Doctorates – Exeter University 2012; Bristol University 2015 for ongoing cutting edge analyses and distinguished career in international journalism.

1994: Fellow Kennedy School of Government, Harvard.

Patrick Child is Deputy Director-General in DG Research and Innovation (R&I) at the European Commission. He leads the policy for implementation, impact & sustainable investment strategies. As a member of the Board of DG R&I, he follows in particular research and innovation in climate action and clean energy and mobility technologies as well as the R&I dimension of the post-COVID recovery and resilience strategy. He is the Commission representative of Mission Innovation (24 countries and the European Commission working to reinvigorate and accelerate global clean energy innovation with the objective to make clean energy widely affordable) and Chairs the MI Steering Committee. He is also the Commission representative in the International Group of Earth Observations (GEO) and lead co-chair of the Executive Committee for 2021.

Until April 2016, Patrick Child was Managing Director of the European External Service with responsibility for administration and finance, covering human resources policy, security and the budget.  Before he took up this post in 2011, he was director in the External Relations Directorate General in the European Commission responsible for the management of the network of Commission delegations.  He has previously served as head of cabinet for External Relations Commissioners Benita Ferrero-Waldner and before that Chris Patten from 1999-2004.

With a background in the UK Finance Ministry, he joined the European Commission in 1994, where he started in the Economic and Monetary affairs Directorate General before becoming Commission press spokesman for economic and monetary union from 1995-1999.  Mr Child studied mathematics at Cambridge University.  He is married with two children.

Peter Flanagan is Senior Vice President and the Global Head of Key Accounts and Commodities at FLSmidth, a Danish OEM that provides engineering, equipment and service solutions to the global mining industry. With 25 years of experience in mining, Peter uses his knowledge to enable top tier miners to improve their performance and productivity, drive down costs and reduce environmental impact. Peter has been at FLSmidth for 15 years, before which he held senior positions at Eimco, Dorr-Oliver and Fuller.

Rana is the Chief of the Energy Systems and Infrastructure Division at UNIDO where she is oversees the organization’s strategy and programmes in promoting a low carbon infrastructure powering industrialization and the decarbonization of industry. She has a long standing experience of 20 years in designing and implementing programmes in the energy sector in Africa and the MENA region. She also leads on behalf of UNIDO global initiatives such as the industrial energy accelerator.

Rasmus Valanko is the Managing Director for Systems Transformation at We Mean Business (WMB). He works to implement systemic change by working with companies and partner organizations on climate change.
Prior to joining WMB, Rasmus led the sustainability transformation of the chemical company Kemira, acting as Director for Corporate Sustainability. He brings a wealth of experience in leading business collaboration initiatives from previous roles at the World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD) where he led the Climate & Energy program.
He has also worked for Royal Dutch Shell on global climate change and CO2 policy as well as their alternative energies strategy, initiating investments in electric mobility. Rasmus began his career in the public sector working for the Ministry of Environment on multilateral environmental agreements as well as oversees development aid while at the Ministry for Foreign Affairs.
Rasmus brings a wealth of knowledge on sustainability from private, public and NGO sectors and believes in the power of collaboration to find innovative solutions to some of the most complex challenges faced by society today.