James Marape

Prime Minister, Papua New Guinea

Prime Minister Marape, who is also a former finance minister of Papua New Guinea (PNG), was first elected to Parliament in 2007 and was elected Prime Minister in May 2019. In addition to the Finance portfolio, he has also served as Minister of Education, Parliamentary Secretary for Works and Transport, and has sat on the Parliamentary Referral Committee on Inter-Government Relations. Prime Minister Marape has earned a Bachelor of Arts degree, a post-graduate Honours degree in Environmental Science, and a Master’s degree in Business Administration from the University of Papua New Guinea. He previously worked as Acting Assistant Secretary of Policy with the Department of Personnel Management from 2001 to 2006.

Andrea Meza Murillo

Minister of Environment and Energy, Costa Rica

Andrea is an expert in sustainable development with more than 20 years of experience in formulating public policies and executing projects. She has worked in more than 15 Latin American countries in multidisciplinary projects financed by various multilateral organizations (IDB, World Bank, CAF, European Union, UNDP), bilateral (AECID, GIZ) and National governments.

Samantha Power

United States Agency for International Development (USAID)

Anne Beathe Tvinnereim

Minister of International Development, Norway

Anne Beathe Tvinnereim (née Kristiansen) is a Norwegian diplomat and politician of the Centre Party. She has served as minister of international development since 2021, and the party’s second deputy leader since 2014.

Habil Olaka

CEO, Sustainable Finance Initiative, Kenya Bankers Association

Dr. Olaka was appointed as Chief Executive Officer of the Kenya Bankers Association (KBA) in October 2010. He is responsible for the strategic direction of the Association, covering industry advocacy, development, and sustainability. Previously he was the Director of Operations of the East African Development Bank (EADB) based in Kampala after serving as the Resident Manager in Kenya. He earlier served the bank as the Head of Risk Management and as the Chief Internal Auditor. Before joining the Bank, he had been with Banque Indosuez (now Bank of Africa) as the Internal Auditor. He started his career at the PricewaterhouseCoopers, Nairobi in the Audit and Business Advisory Services Division. He sits on a number of boards representing the KBA. These are Kenya Deposit Insurance Corporation (KDIC), Higher Education Loans Board (HELB), National Research Fund (NRF), Federation of Kenya Employers (FKE), and the Anti-Money Laundering Advisory Board (AMLAB) as alternate to KBA Chairman. He is the National President of the Federation of Kenya Employers and the Chairman of the board of the Centre for Corporate Governance (CCG). He also sits on the board of the National Housing Corporation (NHC). He holds a Doctor of Business Administration from USIU-Africa, a First-Class Honours BSc degree in Electrical Engineering from the University of Nairobi, and an MBA in Finance from the Manchester Business School in the UK. His DBA dissertation was on the influence of strategic leadership on the implementation of strategy in the commercial banks in Kenya. He is a member of the Institute of the Certified Public Accountants of Kenya (ICPAK). He is an alumnus of the Strathmore School of Accountancy, a Certified Executive Coach and has a good command of the French language.

Jennifer Morgan

Executive Director, Greenpeace

Previously, she was the Global Director of the Climate Program at the World Resources Institute. A climate activist, she has been a leader of large teams at major organisations, and her other ports of call have included the Worldwide Fund for Nature, Climate Action Network, and E3G.

Andrew Steer

Head of Bezos Earth Fund, WRI

Andrew Steer was president and CEO of the World Resources Institute from 2012 to 2021, when he left to become the president and CEO of the Bezos Earth Fund. Before joining this global research organization, he held various positions at the World Bank: most recently he served as the Bank’s Special Envoy for Climate Change from Prior to that Andrew Steer had served as Director General at the UK Department of International Development (DFID) in London. Andrew Steer also serves on the Executive Board of the UN Secretary General’s Sustainable Energy For All initiative and is Co-Chair of the World Economic Forum’s Global Agenda Council on Natural Capital – among other positions. Mr. Steer is a Non-Resident Professor of Practice of Climate Policy and Development at the Fletcher School’s Center for International Environment & Resource Policy at Tufts University.  

Hindou Oumarou Ibrahim

Coordinator, Indigenous Women and Peoples Association of Chad, Indigenous Peoples of Africa Coordinating Committee

Environmental activist and member of Chad’s pastoralist Mbororo community, Hindou Oumarou Ibrahim began advocating for Indigenous rights and environmental protection at age 16, founding the Association for Indigenous Women and Peoples of Chad (AFPAT) to introduce new income revenue activities for women and collaborative tools such as 3D participatory mapping to build sustainable ecosystems management and reduction of nature-based resource conflicts. Her vision is to grow support for both traditional knowledge and science to improve resilience to climate change especially for rural communities. She is a member of the Indigenous Peoples of Africa Coordinating Committee and served as co-chair of the International Indigenous Peoples Forum on Climate Change during the historic UN Climate Change Conference (COP21) in Paris. She is dedicated to the protection of all Indigenous peoples, from the Congo to the Arctic, and the value of their knowledge in the fight against climate change. She advances environmental protection for Indigenous peoples by participating in international policy dialogues held around the three Rio Conventions; Climate Change (UNFCCC), Biodiversity (CBD), and Desertification (UNCCD) pressuring governments to recognize land rights of Indigenous peoples and advance their solutions for climate adaptation and mitigation. Ibrahim’s work with indigenous communities at the local and global level has achieved recognition and support including, the Pritzker Emerging Environmental Genius Award, Hindou’s TED talk on how Indigenous knowledge meets science to solve climate change, appointment as a UN Sustainable Development Goals Advocate, Daniel Mitterrand Prize, Lui-Walton Conservation International Senior Indigenous Fellow and National Geographic Explorer.

Marcello Brito

Leader and co-facilitator, Brazilian Coalition on Climate, Forest and Agriculture

Brazilian, graduated in Food Engineering. Specializations in International Trading of Oils, Fats and Seeds by the FOSFA, London - England; Social Responsibility and the Third Sector and MBA in International Trade by FIA/USP, Administration, Science, and Management of International Trade by IAE/Institute of Administration and Economics, Grenoble - France. Worked in several areas as commercial director, sustainability director, and CEO of leading companies in the Brazilian Agribusiness. Former VP in RSPO - Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil, founder of POIG - Palm Oil Innovation Group, CEO of CBKK SA - Purpose of Welfare and Conservation. President of the board of directors of ABAG - Brazilian Association of Agribusiness, co-facilitator of the Brazilian Coalition on Climate, Forest and Agriculture, board member at Conservation International (Brazil section), Instituto Arapyaú, JBS-Amazônia fund, WCBEF - World Bioeconomy Forum and Black-Jaguar Foundation.

Vandana Shiva

Environmental Activist

Dr. Vandana Shiva is an Indian scholar, physicist, ecologist, environmental activist, food sovereignty advocate, ecofeminist, editor and author of numerous books. Based in Delhi, she has written more than 20 books. She is often referred as "Gandhi of grain" for her activism associated with the anti-GMO movement. Vandana Shiva is a tireless defender of the environment. She is the founder of Navdanya, a movement for biodiversity conservation and farmers’ rights. She is also the founder and director of the Research Foundation for Science, Technology and Natural Resource Policy. Shiva fights for changes in the practice and paradigms of agriculture and food. “I don't want to live in a world where five giant companies control our health and our food.” – Vandana Shiva

Zuu Gbedemah

Zuu (also known as The Ghanaian Vegan) has spent the last few years, after studying psychology in university, helping build brands and tell business stories. In this time he has cemented himself as an accomplished photographer, graphic designer, digital marketer and content creator. Two years ago he began his vegan journey and committed to sharing his experience while advocating for a plant-based lifestyle. Through social media, various events and speaking engagements, Zuu has managed to capture international recognition and shine a spotlight on veganism in Ghana. His pages offer followers recipes, nutritional facts as well as information on local restaurants.