Jury and Speakers
Grand Finale Speakers
Steven Schonberger
Regional Director for Europe and Central Asia, World Bank
Lilia Burunciuc
Central Asia Regional Director, World Bank
Barbara Janusz-Pawletta
Vice-rector for International Cooperation, Kazakh-German University
John Colmey
Managing Director, Global Landscapes Forum, CIFOR-ICRAF
Mike Zayonc
Vice President
Khusniddin Sharofiddinov
Deputy Chairman, Executive Committee of the International Fund for saving the Aral Sea
Sascha Djumena
Country Program Coordinator, World Bank
Kseniya Lvovsky
Environment & Natural Resources Practice Manager, World Bank
Khakimov Olimjon Orzikulovich
First deputy Chairman, State Committee on Forestry in Uzbekistan
Challenge Week Jury
Sustainable forestry
Khojimurod Talipov
Deputy head, State committee of the Republic of Uzbekistan on ecology and environmental protection
Abzal Baltabayev
Head of Forests and Protected Areas Department, Forestry and Wildlife Committee of the Ministry of ecology, geology and natural resources of the Republic of Kazakhstan
Eduardo Rojas
Professor of the Faculty of agronomy in Polytechnic University of Valencia
Kristina Toderich
Specially Appointed Professor International Platform for Drylands Research and Education (IPDRE), Tottori University, Japan
Saskia Reus-Makkink
Strategy Lead Nature-Based Solutions - “Palladium: Make It Possible”. Founder - Africa Funded
Agriculture and land management
Vadim Sokolov
Head of Agency for Projects Implementation, International Fund for the Aral Sea Saving Member IWRA, Asia Water Council
Ravshan Yunusov
National Coordinator of SDG integration initiatives in the Aral Sea region UNDP Country Office in Uzbekistan
Parakhat Toreshov
Head Of The Crop Diversification Laboratory - The International Innovation Center for the Aral Sea Basin Under the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan
Zufar Tokpayev
Deputy Director of the Greenhouse Gas Inventory Department at the JSC «Zhasyl Damu»
Marc Garrigasait
Associate Lecturer in Finance, Barcelona School of Management, Pompeu Fabra-UPF University Member of Executive Committee Institut Agricola
Socio economic development
Zafar Makhmudov
Executive Director of the Regional Environmental Centre for Central Asia (CAREC)
David Sarley
Senior Program Officer at Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation
Livia Toth
Ventures Director Plug and Play’s European Headquarter for Supply Chain and Logistics
Baltugan Tazhmakina
Head of Implementation and Monitoring, Ministry of Energy of the Republic of Kazakhstan Department of Renewable Energy
Natalia Olson-Urtecho
Chief Operations Officer RadicalxChange Foundation Advisor on Innovation World Bank Co-Founder Disruptive Factory
Information & knowledge
Shukhrat Otazhonov
Head of the Department of Science and Development of Scientific and Technical Research, Ministry of Innovative Development of the Republic of Uzbekistan
Lin Zhu
Investor Relations Manager StartLife
Nagaraja Rao Harshadeep
Global Lead for Disruptive Technology in the Sustainable Development Practice Group World Bank
Hamid Hadibeik, Ph.D
Managing Director Of Energy And Sustainability, Chief Of Staff To The CEO, Founder At The Plug And Play Tech Center
Daulet Beimurzinov
Senior Manager of the Educational Programme Office, Astana Hub
Pre Challenge Jury
Abduvokhid Zakhadullaev
Head of International Relations and Ecotourism Development of the State Committee on Forestry of the Republic of Uzbekistan Member Intergovernmental Working Group (IWG) Drought UNCCD
Ingrid Verstraeten
Chief of USGS Programs in Europe, Russia, Central Asia, Circum Arctic, and International Organizations, Office of the Director, International Programs, U.S. Geological Survey, Department of Interior
Abay Jabbassov
Executive Board Member International Fund for Saving the Aral Sea, the Republic of Kazakhstan
Waltraud Ederer
Advisor at Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ), Economics of Land Degradation (ELD) Initiative
Kanysh Nurymgereyev
Independent Consultant UN Agencies, World Bank, Asian Development Bank
Michael Keefer
President, Visionary Leader Plant Ecology, Ecological Restoration, Ethnoecology
Niels Thevs
Head of the Central Asia Office of World Agroforestry (ICRAF)
Nagaraja Rao Harshadeep
Global Lead for Disruptive Technology in the Sustainable Development Practice Group World Bank
Diego Arias Carballo
Lead Agriculture Economist Agriculture Global Practice World Bank Group
Gaukhar Ospanova
Private Sector Development Specialist World Bank
André Wehrli
Regional Water Advisor Central Asia Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC)
Olamide O. Bisi-Amosun
Young Professional Environment, Natural Resources & Blue Economy Practice Group World Bank
Natalia Olson-Urtecho
Chief Operations Officer RadicalxChange Foundation Advisor on Innovation World Bank Co-Founder Disruptive Factory
Bill Payne
Dean and Professor College of Agriculture, Biotechnology, and Natural Resources, University of Nevada Reno Administrative Head Nevada Agricultural Experiment Station, University of Nevada Cooperative Extension
Marc Garrigasait
Associate Lecturer in Finance, Barcelona School of Management, Pompeu Fabra-UPF University Member of Executive Committee Institut Agricola
Seth M. Siegel
New York Times Bestselling Author Senior Fellow University of Wisconsin’s Center for Water Policy 100 Global Water Heroes
Robert C. Brears
Chief Operations Officer RadicalxChange Foundation Advisor on Innovation World Bank Co-Founder Disruptive Factory
Aliya Karakulova
Senior Operations Officer, Agile Fellow
Hamid Hadibeik
Managing Director of Energy and Sustainability, Chief of Staff to the CEO, Founder at the Plug and Play Tech Center
Bakhadir Ahmetjanov
Professional in the Food Industry
Aigerim Zharkin
Senior Executive Astana Hub
Sergio Vallesi
Environmental Consultant ProBlue, WACA, RESILAND Programs by World Bank Group
Livia Toth
Ventures Director Plug and Play’s European Headquarter for Supply Chain and Logistics
William Bill Young
Lead Water Resources Management Specialist World Bank Program Manager Central Asia Water and Energy Program
Lin Zhu
Investor Relations Manager StartLife
Thanh Phuong Ha
Program Analyst Environment, Natural Resources, and Blue Economy Unit Europe and Central Asia (ECA) World Bank
Vadim Sokolov
Head of Agency for Projects Implementation, International Fund for the Aral Sea Saving Member IWRA, Asia Water Council
Saskia Reus
Investment Strategy Forestry, Nature Ecosystem and Landscape Restoration
Nurbek Darvishev
Investments Analyst, Advocate for Data-Driven Decision Making, Chief of Division Fund for Reconstruction and Development of Uzbekistan
Maxim Savelyev
Product Manager at Donnelley Financial Solutions
Jose Luis Riechmann Fernández
ICREA Research Professor Center for Research in Agricultural Genomics (CRAG), Director of CRAG
Luis Torras
Strategy Financial Analyst Koala Sicav, Panda Agriculture and Water Fund, Japan Deep Value, Financial consultant
Zagipa Sapakhova
Associate Professor Department of Plant Protection and Quarantine at the Kazakh National Agrarian University (KazNAU)
Simon Marie Charre
Consultant at UNIQUE forestry and land use GmbH, Natural Resources Management Specialist
Ravshan Yunusov
National Coordinator of SDG integration initiatives in the Aral Sea region UNDP Country Office in Uzbekistan
Anna Inozemtseva
IWRM Lead within the USAID-funded Water and Vulnerable Environment (WAVE) regional activity, Tetra Tech ARD
David Sarley
Senior Program Officer at Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation
Jason Mingo
Environment Technology Research Manager for Water Services Association of Australia
Kristina Toderich
Specially Appointed Professor International Platform for Drylands Research and Education (IPDRE), Tottori University, Japan
Amanubo Amos
Founder & Director - Green Trust Africa, Environmental Consultant