GreenBiz 23 Program

Chris Gaither is an executive and team coach for regenerative business leaders. He helps senior leaders light up with purpose, drive wide-scale change, and replenish their energy to do the work the Earth and our communities so desperately need.His clients have done brilliant work at prestigious organizations such as Google, Apple, Levi Strauss, Daily Harvest, Airbnb, and the Nature Conservancy. He also serves on the coaching faculty at X, Alphabet's moonshot factory.In previous roles at Apple and Google, he oversaw global storytelling campaigns; built and managed effective teams; and advised VPs and C-level executives on how to inspire, communicate more effectively, and drive change. He was director of strategy and engagement for Apple's Environment, Policy and Social Initiatives team, overseeing programs and campaigns experienced by millions of customers and employees around the world.Chris is a Professional Certified Coach with the International Coaching Federation, and a member of the Climate Coaching Alliance, the Humanitarian Coaching Network, and the Forbes Coaches Council. He proudly serves on the Alameda County Community Food Bank’s board of directors.

Abby catalyzes regenerative business leaders with human sustainability and helps them to embrace radically collaborative ways of working together, producing strong business results and sustainable cultures. Abby draws from nearly two decades of experience building human-centered design teams and product development processes; co-founding a mission driven and venture funded startup; over 12 years of mindfulness study and teaching; expertise as a Certified Professional Co-active Coach (CPCC) through the Co-Active Training Institute (CTI); and her roots as a trained product designer and strategist. Abby holds an MFA in Product Design from Stanford University and a BFA in Industrial Design from Carnegie Mellon University.

Melissa James is a Vice Chairman of Morgan Stanley in Global Capital Markets where she currently heads
the ESG Center for Excellence working to bring domain expertise around ESG to capital markets and
investment banking clients across debt, equity and M&A. Melissa has worked with numerous clients across
sectors on strategy formulation and implementation around environmental, social and governance matters.
Her work includes advising emerging growth companies on ESG stewardship in preparation for going public
as well as structuring and executing ESG labeled capital raises and helping companies think through their
capital allocation decisions with an ESG lens.

Prior to her current responsibilities, Melissa held a number of leadership positions including Global Head of
Loan Products where she managed over $80 billion of loan commitments for the firm’s clients. She also
Chaired the firm’s Capital Commitment Committee and ran the industrial origination effort in Debt Capital
Markets where she had responsibility for managing relationships with some of the firm’s largest industrial
clients.

Melissa sits on the Global Capital Markets Operating Committee. She is a member of the Asset Liability
Committee for the Securities Division, the Securities Division’s Diversity Council and Morgan Stanley’s
Women’s Business Alliance Steering Committee.
Melissa has been recognized by Black Enterprise Magazine as one of the “Top 75 Most Powerful Blacks on
Wall Street” and as one of the “50 Most Powerful Women in Corporate America”. The Network Journal has
recognized her as one of the “25 Influential Black Women in Business”. She has a BA degree from Yale and
a Masters in Business Administration from Harvard Business School.

Kate Kelly is Vice President, Deputy General Counsel and Corporate Secretary at Meta Platforms, Inc.
Prior to joining Meta in October 2021, Kate spent 16 years at Bristol Myers Squibb, most recently serving
as their Vice President, Associate General Counsel and Corporate Secretary from 2015-2021. Before
joining Bristol Myers Squibb, she was an associate at Davis Polk & Wardwell.
Kate is an active member of the Society for Corporate Governance. She currently serves as Chair of the
Society’s Securities Law Committee and is a former Society Board member and past President of the
Society’s New York Chapter.

Bridgette McAdoo leads the Global Sustainability practice at Genesys. As the company’s first Chief Sustainability Officer, she has built a holistic sustainability management approach for Genesys from the ground up. This approach optimizes the company’s economic, social, and environmental impact across various functions and regions. She also continues to leverage advanced sustainability metrics to deliver integrated analysis to our stakeholders and fine tune sustainability initiatives in real time. A hands-on, cross-departmental leader, Bridgette prizes stakeholder engagement and education. The goal: To make sustainability an organic extension of how each employee works and lives at GenesysBridgette has more than 20 years of experience in leadership roles where she utilized her expertise in sustainability, operations, and engineering. This experience spans multiple sectors, including the international non-governmental operation (NGO), the World Wildlife Fund (WWF). There Bridgette led corporate strategy and engagement for WWF’s Freshwater and Food goals. Previously, she was Global Director of Sustainability for Kentucky Fried Chicken (KFC). There she led sustainability issues for the brand, both internally within Yum! Brands, as well as with various external stakeholders. She holds a bachelor’s degree in Industrial Engineering from the Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University and an MBA in Strategy from Claremont Graduate University.Bridgette lives in Maryland with her husband, Shannon…and English Bulldog, Captain.

Michael Kobori has spent his career working to build a more just and sustainable world. As Chief Sustainability Officer at Starbucks Coffee Company, he is responsible for leading Starbucks to become resource positive and activating sustainability with the company’s 350,000 partners and millions of customers worldwide. He also serves as an independent Director of Bunge Ltd., one of the world’s largest agricultural companies, which connects farmers to consumers to deliver more sustainable food, feed, and fuel to the world.

Previously, Michael served as Vice-President at Levi Strauss & Co. where he helped build the company into a sustainability leader in the apparel sector. Michael is deeply committed to industry collaboration on sustainability, having served on a number of boards and advisory commissions, including the U.S. Cotton Board, Better Cotton Initiative, Sustainable Apparel Coalition, ILO Better Work Programme, and Levi Strauss Foundation Board. During his long career in sustainability, Michael also served as Vice-President at BSR and spent nearly a decade at The Asia Foundation, where he supported human rights and economic development in Bangladesh, Thailand, and Vietnam. Michael has taught corporate sustainability at the Haas Business School, University of California at Berkeley. He is the Executive Producer of Utopia Theatre Project, an artist-led social justice theater company.

Michael received his Masters’ Degree in Public Policy from the University of California at Berkeley, where he also received his undergraduate education in Asian Studies and Psychology. He spent a year at International Christian University in Tokyo and studied sustainable finance at Oxford University.

Janna Irons has led clients across industries to develop sustainability and social impact strategies and transform them into cohesive, engaging narratives, reporting, and activations. With a decade of experience as a magazine editor and editorial writer, as well as a Masters in Communication with a focus on marketing and strategic brand management, Janna expertly weaves strategy and creativity into effective, inspiring communications. Working with clients from Eli Lilly to International Paper and Keurig Dr. Pepper, Janna has helped organizations drive performance, build engagement, rally teams, and achieve audience- and business-specific goals. Outside of work, Janna is a travel enthusiast who is happiest adventuring with her husband, daughter, and goofy golden retriever in the mountains or by the ocean.

Stewart Rassier is Head of ESG Strategy at thinkPARALLAX. Stewart brings big ideas to life through practical tools and compelling insights that are grounded in 15+ years of corporate responsibility experience. Working with leading companies from Adidas to Walmart, Stewart accelerates a company’s understanding of its ESG impact and creates concrete next steps to act responsibly. Previously, Stewart has advised, trained, and consulted for companies, nonprofits, and foundations as CEO of Responsible Impact Group, Director of Executive Education and Advisory Services at the Boston College Center for Corporate Citizenship, Regional Head of North America at AccountAbility and Director at Saatchi & Saatchi Sustainability. Stewart is a graduate of the University of St. Andrews in Scotland.

Sally oversees Forum for the Future’s mission to accelerate transformation to a just and regenerative future. This involves working with global businesses such as HSBC and Walgreens Boots Alliance, as well as a wide range of other non-profit, membership and philanthropic organisations. This work takes the form of both one to one partnerships and multi-stakeholder collaborations, all designed to address complex challenges in systems as diverse as from food to apparel. Sally has recently contributed to Forum’s 'Business Transformation Compass' - a guide to just and regenerative business, as well as co-authored ‘Driving Co-Benefits for Climate and Health’, private sector guidance for developing integrated climate and health strategies. Sally is a regular speaker at international conferences and has had articles published in a wide variety of media outlets. She is an independent advisor on Advisory Boards for several global businesses including Kimberly Clark and Burberry and also Co-Chair of the Independent Advisory Group for Travalyst, the global travel and tourism collaboration led by the Duke of Sussex.

Dr. Sophie Gilbert is the Lead Scientist for Biodiversity at Vibrant Planet. Sophie works to include key forms of biodiversity, as well as other ecosystem services, into human decision-making, and to better value nature in our economy and society. For more than 15 years, Sophie has advanced the fields of ecology and conservation to support sustainable wildlife populations in the changing modern world. She’s worked across diverse systems from Alaska through Canada and into the heart of the American West, and collaborated with interdisciplinary scientists, natural resource agencies, NGOs, indigenous groups, stakeholders, and citizen scientists. She communicates broadly and innovatively via professional and public talks, social media, documentary videos and podcasts. Sophie has previously worked as a tenured professor at the University of Idaho, as well as the senior lead for biodiversity at the Natural Capital Exchange (NCX) to drive innovation in ecosystem services crediting. She earned her B.Sc. from the University of California Los Angeles and her Ph.D. from the University of Alaska, Fairbanks, and has published numerous peer-reviewed scientific articles.

Julia has worked across the non-profit, public and private sectors to advance positive impact at the intersection of climate change, natural resource management, and finance including at The Nature Conservancy, the California Governor’s Office of Planning and Research, Blue Forest Conservation and New Forests. Her background is rooted in conservation, environmental science, and business. Julia earned her MBA-MS in Environment and Resources with a focus on land use from Stanford Graduate School of Business. At Stanford, she co-led GSB’s Sustainable Business Club, co-founded the GSB’s business, climate and innovation summit and partnered with The Natural Capital Project and the InterAmerican Development Bank to advance investment in nature-based solutions. She earned a BA in environmental studies with a focus on biodiversity conservation from Yale University.

Ezgi Barcenas is AB InBev’s Chief Sustainability Officer, overseeing the company’s sustainability vision and strategy. In this role, Ezgi coordinates across all business functions to advance sustainability and inclusive growth. Her team focuses on agricultural development, water stewardship, circular packaging, climate action and responsible sourcing to build a resilient value chain spanning nearly 50 countries. She leads ESG engagement and reporting, and also oversees the 100+ Accelerator, an award-winning program which pilots and scales sustainable innovations. Since joining the company in 2013, Ezgi has held key roles within the Corporate Affairs and Procurement functions. Prior to AB InBev, she worked in international trade, public health and international development. Ezgi is a member of Adweek’s Sustainability Council and INSIDER’s Financing a Sustainable Future Council. She was also recognized as a 2022 Sustainability Trailblazer by Reuters’ Responsible Business Awards. She holds a bachelor’s degree in Biomedical and Electrical Engineering from Vanderbilt University, a master’s degree in Environmental Health from Harvard School of Public Health and an MBA from The University of Chicago Booth School of Business.

Maisie Devine is the Executive Director of Sustainable Innovation at AB InBev, the world's leading brewer. Devine also founded the award-winning global 100+ Accelerator program to empower cutting-edge startups to solve critical sustainability issues within the global supply chain. Since its inception, Devine led the program's expansion and global impact beyond AB InBev by enlisting 3 other leading CPG multinational partners into the program: Unilever, The Coca-Cola Company, and Colgate-Palmolive. With the program now in its 4th annual cohort, Devine continues to serve as its Managing Partner. Before her role in sustainability, Devine led technology investments into over 25 startups at ZX Ventures, the global incubator and venture capital arm of AB InBev. Earlier in her career, she co-founded a recruitment software and social network for busy, professional women. She has been named to the Forbes 30 Under 30 list, Tech.co Top 20 Startup Founders Under 30 list, and 26 Women to Watch in Tech list by AlleyWatch. Devine is an active angel investor and limited partner in various early-stage startups and venture funds. She graduated with an A.B. from Princeton University and was a 3-time NCAA varsity lacrosse quarterfinalist. 

Laurel Davis is Fannie Mae’s Senior Vice President of Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) & Mission reporting to the Executive Vice President and Chief Administrative Officer. In this role, Ms. Davis will be responsible for setting Fannie Mae's ESG and Mission agenda in concert with critical enterprise stakeholders (regulators, Board, and Management Committee) and ensuring that the firm is operating in a way that is consistent with those standards and strategy.

Prior to her present appointment, Ms. Davis was the Vice President for Credit Risk Transfer. She was responsible for developing and executing strategies to transfer credit risk associated with Single-Family’s guaranty business to the Capital Markets and private investors. This included leading the enterprise’s flagship Connecticut Avenue Securities (CAS) program. Before that, Ms. Davis was Fannie Mae’s Vice President for the Single-Family Investor Channel where she was responsible for sourcing, pricing, and executing bulk single-family mortgage transactions with Fannie Mae customers.  Before joining Fannie Mae in 2001, Ms. Davis was Vice President of Finance at First Republic Bank in San Francisco where she was responsible for the bank’s capital markets activities and balance sheet management, including the bank’s private label securitization program. Previously, she served as Vice President of Secondary Marketing at Merrill Lynch Credit Corporation where she was responsible for directing all loan trading and securitization activities, planning loan sales strategy, developing products, and managing investor and industry relationships. 

Ms. Davis has a Bachelor of Arts in economics and history from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and a master of business administration in finance from the University of Maryland.

Erika L. Chan joined U.S. Steel as the Corporation’s first Head of Sustainability.  In this role, she has enterprise-wide responsibility for all aspects of the Corporation’s sustainability efforts. Prior to joining U.S. Steel, Erika worked for Dell Technologies where she shaped the corporate sustainability strategy, advanced long-term goals, and identified opportunities to integrate sustainability practices into business units. Erika has also led the Asia Pacific marketing team at The Nature Conservancy, and she practiced international development consulting at Deloitte Emerging Markets Group.

Erika received a Bachelor of Arts degree in Environmental Resource Management and Business from The University of Texas at Austin.

She serves on the Advisory Council of The University of Texas at Austin Environmental Science Institute and is an Advisory Board member of The Nature Conservancy of Texas.

Andrew is a strategy and innovation expert with over 30 years of experience working with companies to help identify new, white space opportunities and to build their brands. 

Throughout his career Andrew has guided clients by helping them to see around the corners first and execute new value propositions, business models, products/services, and revenue streams.

Prior to joining PwC, Andrew held many C-Suite roles across various industries and companies including consulting (Kantar), marketing (Havas/Vivendi, Harte Hanks), and media (Bloomberg). He has delivered successful brand and business transformations for leading companies including CVS Health, Global Hyatt, Heineken, Jaguar, Keurig, P&G, Reckitt, Unilever, Volvo, and many more.

Outside of work, Andrew is a Henry Crown Fellow at the Aspen Institute and an Advisor at the How Institute for Society.

Kevin Vranes is the global product lead for Salesforce’s Net Zero Cloud product. Kevin started in the climate change world with a Ph.D. in Ocean and Climate Physics from Columbia University in 2003, then became a Congressional Science Fellow working for U.S. Senator Ron Wyden. Since leaving Capitol Hill in 2004, Kevin has navigated between climate- and energy-focused positions in academia, consulting and software. He was the founding Product Manager of Salesforce’s Sustainability Cloud software in 2019 and currently oversees product strategy and execution for Net Zero Cloud.

The Owner and Principal Consultant of Skyra Rideaux LLC, Skyra Rideaux, is an equity consultant, inclusive economic development expert, and a climate and environmental justice activist with more than a decade of expertise in equity, sustainable development and its connection to the 4th industrial revolution (Blockchain, AI, Machine learning, etc). Skyra also specializes in hyperlocal, decentralized community development and has worked with mid-sized and large municipalities to "localize" redistribution of wealth efforts through policy and research-based reinvestment strategies in historically excluded Black and impoverished communities. A former bomb-builder for the US Navy, Skyra currently serves as a senior diversity, equity and inclusion expert for a Fortune 10 global tech company. Previously, Skyra worked for the City of Austin in economic development and circular economy where she was responsible for the recruitment and retention of businesses within the circular economy industry. Her work was focused on supporting new social entrepreneurs and growing the representation of Black, Latine, Women, LGBTQ and other underrepresented founders in the circular economy industry. Skyra is a first-generation college graduate and holds a Bachelor of Arts in public relations from the University of Louisiana at Lafayette.A featured TEDx speaker, Skyra has given keynote presentations and been featured as a national and international keynote speaker, panelist, moderator and podcast guest to discuss the intersection of equity, anti-racism, policy and sustainable development for more than a decade. Skyra is a 2021 International Economic Development Council's (IEDC) Gold Rank award recipient, 2019 Girls Scouts of Louisiana 'Woman of Distinction' awardee, 2017 TEDx speaker, 2015 Acadiana Top 20 Under 40 honoree, a decorated United States Navy veteran, and a member of the IEDC's Racism in Economic Development committee.

Joshua Robinson, a native of Kansas City, Missouri, is a two-time graduate of the University of Kansas with a B.S. in Broadcast Journalism and a Master of Public Administration. Joshua has extensive knowledge in centering Racial Equity in municipal government services, and experience in addressing issues that affect communities most harmed by systemic and structural racism. In addition, Joshua is an innovative speaker, and has spoken on the topics of Black Liberation, Racial Equity & Anti-Racism, LGBTQIA+ Initiatives/Advocacy, Municipal Government, and Self-Empowerment.Joshua began his work in public service as a community organizer, which then led to a career in municipal government, previously working for the City of Austin, and now works in philanthropy. As the Senior Associate, Network Manager for Living Cities his role is to analyze all the ways the organization interacts with cities across the country in the Closing the Gap (CTG) Network. He conducts an qualitative analysis over the needs, common themes, and methods to assist cities in advancing racial equity and utilizing anti-racist principles. He has improved the way the organization utilizes Salesforce through developing Salesforce guidance and resource materials. In addition, he is a thought partner on numerous documents, proposals, programs, curriculum, presentations, and critical conversations; bringing in an important racial equity analysis.

Jay Kairam is currently Vice President, Society (ESG) for Diageo North America, the world's leading premium beverage alcohol company. He brings almost twenty years of experience and leadership with government, not-for-profit community and environmental organizations, and the private sector. Prior to joining Diageo, Jay was at Walmart, where he accelerated the company’s sustainability leadership by establishing and implementing the global environmental policy agenda, driving partnerships to support Walmart’s goals to reduce emissions, promote circularity and protect nature. Jay has worked across the country engaging local, state, and federal leaders and NGOs on environmental and social issues. As Program Director for the National Association of Counties, he oversaw a $15M project portfolio delivering technical assistance to county governments across the country. At the Environmental Defense Fund, one of the nation’s preeminent environmental NGOs, Jay led advocacy campaigns in California and nationally to advance clean energy and environmental justice initiatives. Jay served in the Bloomberg Administration in New York City as Senior Policy Advisor to the Deputy Mayor for Operations and then as Deputy Commissioner and Chief Operating Officer of the Business Integrity Commission, where he championed reforms that transformed the environmental performance of the solid waste sector. In San Francisco, he worked for the Public Utilities Commission, where he led a multi-million-dollar community benefits program that leveraged public-private partnerships to address environmental justice concerns. Jay holds a BA from Vassar College and a Master's degree in Public Policy from Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government and was a Peace Corps Volunteer in Cape Verde. He sits on the Boards of the Anacostia Watershed Society and Fuse Corps and lives in Washington, DC.

Julian Moffatt is the Principal Solutions Strategist, ESG for VelocityEHS. Julian contributes his expertise in ESG product creation for VelocityEHS, and oversees the ESG team. Prior to working at VelocityEHS, he has had a multitude of EHS experience, ranging from Vice President of Client Solutions at e3 Solutions, EHS Solutions Manager at Blue292 Inc, and Environmental Health Safety Specialist at Caribou Systems Corporation. Julian studied Environmental Resource Studies at the University of Waterloo in Waterloo, Ontario.

Dr. Spencer Meyer is the Head of Science at NCX and is responsible for ensuring NCX is deploying and advancing the most credible, innovative science on natural capital solutions. He is an innovator and leader with 20 years of experience working collaboratively with NGO, government, private sector, and academic partners to solve natural resource challenges. He is a co-founder of Sebago Clean Waters, an advisor to conservation NGOs and private foundations, and a frequent speaker on forest management, watershed protection, natural climate solutions, conservation finance, and partnership development. 

Jad Daley is the 40th president and chief executive officer of American Forests, the nation’s oldest forest conservation organization, founded in 1875. Under Daley’s leadership, American Forests has grown three-fold and launched partnerships to tackle climate change and social inequity across the United States.

In his current role, Daley serves as the co-chair of the Forest-Climate Working Group, which he co-founded in 2007, and sits on the boards of the Sustainable Forestry Initiative, North American Forest Partnership and Nature4Climate. Daley is also the co-founder and co-chair of 1t.org US, the U.S. chapter of 1t.org – a global platform dedicated to conserving, restoring and growing 1 trillion trees by 2030.

Daley has a long record of leadership in the forest community, including serving as the first director for the 22-state Eastern Forest Partnership and establishing a forest-focused Climate Conservation Program during his nine-year stint at The Trust for Public Land. He has also played a lead role in authoring multiple pieces of federal legislation for forests, including the 2021 REPLANT Act, the 2008 U.S. Forest Service’s Community Forest Program and the 2008 Community Wood Energy Program.

Daley’s writing has been featured in media outlets such as the Washington Post, New York Times, HuffPost, Medium and the U.S. EPA Environmental Justice blog. He is a cited co-author on multiple scientific studies in the area of forests and climate change, including new research between the Forest Service and American Forests, which investigates forest soil carbon.

Daley is a graduate of the Peddie School, Brown University and Vermont Law School, where he earned an M.S.E.L. degree summa cum laude.

Follow Daley on twitter (@JadDaley) and read his latest writings on Mediumm (americanforests.medium.com).

Trina Mallik (she/her) is Vice President of Global Programs and Acting Co-President at the Institute for Sustainable Communities (ISC). In her role, Trina accelerates the mission of ISC, which is to center voices of historically disinvested communities- those most impacted by climate change- in formulating climate change mitigation and resilience solutions. She oversees the Institute’s programs in Bangladesh, China, India, Thailand, Vietnam, Cambodia and the United States. Trina started her career as a mechanical engineer at Bechtel Power, where she designed coal-fired power plants. Since then she has dedicated her career to tackling climate change. After earning her MBA, Trina served as an equity analyst at Innovest Strategic Value Advisors (since bought by MSCI World), an equity research firm that rated companies on their environmental, social, and governance performance. She also worked at PricewaterhouseCoopers as a sustainability consultant for multinational corporations and at Allianz, a global financial services firm, in the sustainability team.Trina’s nonprofit experience includes The Climate Group as Global Head of Member Engagement strategizing with businesses and subnational governments to accelerate a low carbon economy and at The Nature Conservancy, NJ Chapter as the Director of Climate Mitigation. Working with other non-governmental organizations and meeting with government officials, Trina ensured the passage of New Jersey’s leading electric vehicle bill and amendments to the Global Warming Response Act and co-led the effort to pass the Energy Efficient Appliance Standards, which Governor Murphy signed into law in January 2022.Trina lives in New Jersey with her husband and two sons. She has a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Maryland, College Park; a Masters in Engineering Management from George Washington University; and a Masters in Business Administration from the Stern School of Business at New York University.

Danielle leads the Microsoft datacenter environmental justice strategy towards a measurable, positive impact on the climate resilience and capacities of under-resourced communities. She has also launched the zero waste, supplier sustainability and embodied carbon reduction programs for Microsoft datacenters as part of the company’s carbon negative, zero waste, waster positive and ecosystems protection goals. Danielle has a background in strategy, process improvement and change management with Microsoft, AREVA North America and IBM. She serves on the board of 3rd Creek Foundation, an organization dedicated to poverty alleviation. Danielle lives in West Seattle with her husband, daughter, and dog. She is a food enthusiast who loves to travel and stay active in the Pacific Northwest splendor.

Blake McGowan is the Solutions Executive at VelocityEHS. Based in Ann Arbor, MI he joined VelocityEHS (Humantech) in 1999. Blake holds a Certificate in Leading Sustainable Corporations from the University of Oxford, a MSc Degree in Human Neuromechanics, and a BSc Degree in Biomechanics & Neurophysiology from the University of Waterloo in Canada. He has also achieved recognition as a Certified Professional Ergonomist.

Mike Hower is a sustainability communicator and connector committed to helping purpose-driven businesses and people unlock their full potential for positive impact. As founder and principal consultant at Hower Impact, he works with companies to translate sustainability strategy into stories that inform, engage and inspire investors, customers, employees, regulators, and other stakeholders in the service of social, environmental, and business goals.

Through his Impact Hired initiative, he works to connect and engage corporate sustainability professionals at all stages of their careers. Mike’s experience and expertise ranges from ESG strategy and reporting to sustainability communication strategy and engagement. He has nearly 15 years of experience working with leading companies on sustainability strategy and communications in tech, apparel, food, and climate tech, among others. Throughout his career, Mike has written for GreenBiz, Sustainable Brands and Triple Pundit. He continues to contribute to GreenBiz today, where he writes about the latest trends in sustainable business and communication.

He holds a Master's in Strategic Communication from George Washington University and a Bachelor's in Political Science and History from the University of California, Davis.

Trina Mallik (she/her) is Vice President of Global Programs and Acting Co-President at the Institute for Sustainable Communities (ISC). In her role, Trina accelerates the mission of ISC, which is to center voices of historically disinvested communities- those most impacted by climate change- in formulating climate change mitigation and resilience solutions. She oversees the Institute’s programs in Bangladesh, China, India, Thailand, Vietnam, Cambodia and the United States. Trina started her career as a mechanical engineer at Bechtel Power, where she designed coal-fired power plants. Since then she has dedicated her career to tackling climate change. After earning her MBA, Trina served as an equity analyst at Innovest Strategic Value Advisors (since bought by MSCI World), an equity research firm that rated companies on their environmental, social, and governance performance. She also worked at PricewaterhouseCoopers as a sustainability consultant for multinational corporations and at Allianz, a global financial services firm, in the sustainability team.Trina’s nonprofit experience includes The Climate Group as Global Head of Member Engagement strategizing with businesses and subnational governments to accelerate a low carbon economy and at The Nature Conservancy, NJ Chapter as the Director of Climate Mitigation. Working with other non-governmental organizations and meeting with government officials, Trina ensured the passage of New Jersey’s leading electric vehicle bill and amendments to the Global Warming Response Act and co-led the effort to pass the Energy Efficient Appliance Standards, which Governor Murphy signed into law in January 2022.Trina lives in New Jersey with her husband and two sons. She has a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Maryland, College Park; a Masters in Engineering Management from George Washington University; and a Masters in Business Administration from the Stern School of Business at New York University.

Danielle leads the Microsoft datacenter environmental justice strategy towards a measurable, positive impact on the climate resilience and capacities of under-resourced communities. She has also launched the zero waste, supplier sustainability and embodied carbon reduction programs for Microsoft datacenters as part of the company’s carbon negative, zero waste, waster positive and ecosystems protection goals. Danielle has a background in strategy, process improvement and change management with Microsoft, AREVA North America and IBM. She serves on the board of 3rd Creek Foundation, an organization dedicated to poverty alleviation. Danielle lives in West Seattle with her husband, daughter, and dog. She is a food enthusiast who loves to travel and stay active in the Pacific Northwest splendor.

Janice Lao is an internationally multi-awarded environmental scientist and economist, with nearly 20 years’ experience in the field of corporate sustainability working in conglomerates and multinational companies based in the United States, United Kingdom, and Asia-Pacific. She has been recognized by Forbes Magazine, Fortune, etc for her work on sustainable financial deals/green bonds, sustainability/ESG strategies development and implementation and sustainable supplier engagement.

Registered forester, Freddie Davis III, serves as the Director of the Rural Training and Research Center (RTRC) for the Federation of Southern Cooperatives/Land Assistance Fund located in Epes, Alabama. The Federation owns and operates more than 1300 acres of land collectively which includes its unique training and agroforestry center. 

The RTRC has long been the site for local, state, regional, national and international groups to hold meetings, trainings, and recreational activities. The Southern Regional Agro-forestry Center (SRAC) was established in 2016 through a memorandum of understanding between USDA’s Natural Resource Conservation Service (NRCS), the US Forest Service, and the National Agroforestry Center. A multi-dimensional initiative, the SRAC was designed to conduct research, extension and training to assist African American landowners in the South in adopting sustainable agroforestry practices as well as serve as a regional forestry demonstration site and national showpiece. The goal of the center is to be an integral part of the US Forest Service’s network of experimental forests to conduct leading-edge research on all aspects of forestry, forest uses, and socioeconomics related to limited resource landowners and communities of color.

Mr. Freddie Davis has always been up for a challenge and is a known problem solver in the field.  With more than 20 years-experience in agriculture, forestry, and natural resource conservation, Davis has brought a unique combination of skills to the RTRC. His background includes, Forestry Technical Service Provider for USDA, Procurement Forester and Harvest Contract Manager for Weyerhaeuser Wood Products in Alabama, Land Management Forester for International Paper Company in North Carolina, and military veteran of the US Army and Mississippi National Guard. He has been a successful entrepreneur, establishing himself as a reputable resource for landowners in the region.  Mr. Davis supports limited resource farmers and landowners and advances the mission of the Federation.

Julie DiNatale has been working in sustainability and agriculture for over two decades and is Truterra’s
Commercial and Strategic Partnerships Leader. Julie has been involved in the emerging ecosystem
services markets and regenerative agriculture programs across North America. Prior to joining Truterra,
Julie worked for Corteva Agriscience, an ag tech start-up, consulted for large agribusinesses, and was an
ag-sector analyst for a sell-side Wall Street firm. Before her career in agriculture, Julie spent a decade in
sustainability, health, and safety for a large chemical manufacturer.  Julie grew up in Western New York
where she spent summers on her cousin’s dairy farm. Julie earned a B.S. from Michigan State
University’s College of Agriculture, and an M.S. in Environmental Science from the University of
Rochester.

As a strategic foresight specialist, Nicole is passionate about helping leaders be more adaptive and innovative in the face of disruptive change, especially climate and ecological change. Named one of the top 10 female futurists worldwide— not for her predictions but for “helping leaders get into action in the face of uncertainty”— Nicole has spent decades leading breakthrough strategy and stakeholder projects focused around our most critical long-term issues. Working across sectors, on everything from the future of famine, fashion, to fast-moving goods, she has worked with senior leaders in P&G, Dupont, Cargill, Masterfoods, Bunge, L’OREAL, the World Bank, UNESCO, research institutions like DARPA, to many governments and cities such as San Francisco, Detroit, to Dubai. As Partner at NOW Partners, Nicole works with Fortune 50 companies, governments and institutions transitioning to a post-carbon, regenerative economy. Nicole also serves on several nonprofit boards and has taught in INSEAD, Stanford Graduate School, and King’s College London. Originally from Vancouver BC, she has lived in Singapore, India, Paris and now lives in the San Francisco Bay Area with her husband and tween daughter.

Shana Rappaport has dedicated her career as a convener and community builder to advancing systemic solutions to the climate crisis. 

Over the last ten years, Shana has built and scaled VERGE — the leading climate tech event focused on accelerating a just transition to a clean economy. VERGE convenes the world’s largest companies, public sector leaders and technology innovators to advance solutions to the climate crisis and our most pressing global challenges. 

Outside of her work leading VERGE with GreenBiz Group, Shana is a sought after public speaker, moderator and facilitator around sustainability and systems change. She previously served as Board Director of Project Drawdown and the Buckminster Fuller Institute, and is a trained leader of Al Gore’s Climate Reality Project. Shana also Associate Edited a book published in 2019, “Evolving Leadership for Collective Wellbeing: Lessons for Implementing the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals”.

Shana previously served as Director of Education for Bioneers, and as a nationally recognized community leader during her time as an undergraduate and graduate student at the University of Southern California.

David is a Product Manager at C3 AI, where he focuses on designing AI-enabled enterprise sustainability software. Prior to joining C3 AI, David was the Director of Research – Projects at the Sustainability Accounting Standards Board (now part of IFRS) where he co-led the team that developed the SASB sustainability disclosure standards. David also led efforts at SASB to drive convergence among ESG reporting standards, working extensively with other standard-setters, regulators, investors, and companies. David has an MBA from UC Berkeley – Haas as well as undergraduate degrees in Chemical Engineering and Materials Science & Engineering from UC Berkeley.

Rob oversees the development and establishment of Aspiration’s global carbon portfolio as well as the Aspiration carbon credit quality standards. He’s been a leader in the climate change and carbon business for over 12 years, pioneering the very industry standards in carbon markets at the foundation of Aspiration’s business.

Lauren Phipps works to accelerate the transition from a linear to a circular economy. She is a Master of Environmental Management candidate at the Yale School of the Environment focusing on industrial ecology, business and the mechanics of systems change. Her work centers on critical materials and strategies to forge and future-proof the value chains that drive decarbonization. Lauren is a co-lead of the Business and Environment club and a CBEY 2050 Fellow. Prior to Yale, Lauren led circular economy strategy, programs and partnerships at GreenBiz as Vice President and Senior Analyst. During her time at GreenBiz, Lauren launched Circularity, the world’s largest circular economy conference, and authored an industry-leading weekly newsletter known for its skeptical yet solutions-oriented voice and systems lens. Lauren holds bachelor’s degrees in Environmental Analysis and Sociology from Pitzer College.

Ellen Lenny-Pessagno is Vice President for Global External Affairs and Sustainability for Albemarle (ALB), a global specialty chemicals company with leading positions in lithium, bromine and refining catalysts. We power the potential of companies in many of the world's largest and most critical industries, from energy and communications to transportation and electronics. In this role, Ellen leads a global team to develop and implement the Energy Storage external affairs and sustainability strategy, works proactively with government authorities and communities to create long-term relationships, and develops partnerships with organizations such as industry associations, think tanks, and other external stakeholders to support Energy Storage growth. As a member of the Energy Storage Leadership Team, Ellen and her colleagues developed and are currently leading the execution of the 10-year energy storage growth strategy. Prior to this role, Ellen was Global VP Lithium Sustainability and Country Manager Chile. She was responsible for developing the sustainability strategy for the Lithium Global Business Unit (recently renamed to Energy Storage Global Business Unit). Ellen led Albemarle to become the first lithium company to complete the Initiative for Responsible Mining Assurance (IRMA) self-assessment globally in Albemarle´s Salar mine site in Chile and the first to begin its third-party audit. The comprehensive IRMA mining standard is the only standard to be collaboratively developed by NGOs, affected communities, unions and end users. As Country Manager, Ellen represented Albemarle in Chile, executed the corporate strategy, and led all external affairs and community and environmental management. 

Noemí is a trilingual storyteller and strategist with 15 years of global impact communications experience across the nonprofit and corporate landscapes. She started her career in brand strategy at Sesame Workshop producing annual reports. Inspired by the business sector's ability to create positive impact, she joined Change.org where she brought local and global nonprofits onto the world’s largest activism platform, helping to transform the way people, businesses, and elected representatives engage with one another. After leaving Change.org, Noemí spent time traveling and consulting for growing tech start-ups. Eventually, she returned to New York and completed her Master’s degree in Social Innovation & Corporate Responsibility from the Gallatin School of Individualized Study at New York University.After a brief stint at a boutique sustainability consulting firm in New York, where she worked with corporate giants to develop ESG strategies and communications, Noemí co founded qb. (stands for queen bee), a small women-owned ESG strategy and communications firm. qb. was born out of the desire to diversify the ESG consulting space and deliver people-first solutions. Today, she leads reporting and disclosure for qb.’s most influential clients, complying with rigorous, ever-changing standards.Aside from running qb., Noemí is a mother of two, a travel fanatic, and a sign language student.

Obiageli obtained her undergraduate degree in Construction Science and Masters degree in Community Development from Prairie View A&M University. She is a community development consultant with a background in economic development, stakeholder engagement, construction analytics and mobility. Obiageli is a native Houstonian that utilizes her own lived experiences growing up in systemically underserved and underinvested communities, to understand problems of the past to help solve problems of the present so they are no longer problems of the future. This drives her passion for her work in being the change she wants to see. She dedicates her time to facilitating relationships and leveraging resources to implement innovative programs within communities and corporations to enhance community development, economic development and social responsibility.

Ellen has worked at the intersection of sustainability and human resources as a recruiter and consultant for 25+ years. A super connector, Ellen’s passion for sustainability and ESG was sparked while obtaining her MBA from Yale and interning at L.L.Bean. Ellen is a regular speaker at industry events, and pens a column with GreenBiz entitled “Talent Show.” She frequently shares her perspective with global media outlets, including Marketplace, the Wall Street Journal and Barron’s.

Nancy Mahon, Senior Vice President, Global Corporate Citizenship and Sustainability is a transformational, collaborative leader with deep global experience in enterprise-wide management as well as leading Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) strategy, operations, marketing, reporting and risk reduction. In the increasingly disruptive ESG arena, Nancy is a trusted and sought-after advisor, speaker and enterprise ambassador. She is committed to taking the long view on building sustainable and inclusive companies, teams and communities. Nancy is an influential and effective company liaison with investors, ESG rankers and raters, government officials, NGOs, employees and customers. A senior executive at The Estée Lauder Companies who serves on the CEO’s Executive Leadership Team, Nancy helms best practices, synergizing them across brands, regions and functions, integrating ESG operations into the enterprise and ensuring compliance with all local and international laws. Nancy oversees the enterprise wide leadership initiative on sustainability at The Estée Lauder Companies and serves on the Inclusion and Diversity Council.

Christine Brynaert is a CPA and Partner in Deloitte Tax’s Global Investment & Innovation Incentive Services (Gi3) practice. Christine has over eleven years of professional experience in public accounting, including state and federal tax areas such as Credits & Incentives, Audit Defense, Controversy, and Tax Return Preparation. Christine is a lead in Deloitte Tax’s ESG practice and primarily advises clients in tax credit structuring and syndication for ESG focused areas such as the New Markets Tax Credit Program, Renewable Energy Tax Credits, Green Manufacturing Tax Credits, Qualified Opportunity Zones, Disaster Relief Retention Credits, and COVID-19 Employee Retention Credits.

Victoria Mills works with market-leading companies to catalyze environmental improvements that make business sense. She currently leads the Environmental Defense Fund’s work with companies to advance public policies consistent with their climate and energy goals. Victoria has also led corporate partnerships in the consumer products, transportation, information technology and paper and packaging sectors. 

Chris Coulter works with leadership organizations to help them better understand and respond to shifting stakeholder expectations, build trust with key constituencies and exert greater influence in shaping the future. Chris has two decades of experience in providing evidence-based counsel in the areas of reputation, purpose and sustainability. He is passionate about building trusted and recognized leadership for GlobeScan’s clients. Chris has substantive international experience having lived in North America, Europe and Asia and works with GlobeScan clients in all regions of the world. He is also a member of SustainAbility’s Council and is a Board Member of Canadian Business for Social Responsibility and Good World Solutions.

Michelle Nutting is the Global Lead of Agriculture and Environmental Sustainability for Nutrien. She has been with Nutrien for more than 32 years and has a B.Sc. in Agriculture with a major in Soil Science from the University of Manitoba. Her career has included roles in field research and extension, regulatory management, sales and distribution. In her current role, Michelle is responsible for guiding the development of programs for agriculture and environmental sustainability within the company, and also with the broader external stakeholder community, to make positive contributions to productive and sustainable agriculture. She is actively involved in projects with the Gold Standard, the World Business Council for Sustainable Development, the Natural Climate Solutions Alliance, and the Science Based Targets Initiative.

Mary Francia is a Partner at H.I. Executive Consulting (HIEC), a leading global executive search firm focused on hiring Board, CEO, and Senior-level technology executives globally. She leverages her technology strategy knowledge with her P&L and business management experience in the Americas, Europe, and Asia in Telecom, Consumer Electronics, Media, and Healthcare to bring transformational leaders to her clients and coach executives in the right direction and path.

Mary led the Board Practice and the Miami Latin America Offices for Odgers Berndtson, a global executive search firm and a Strategy, Go to Market, and Innovation Consulting Firm. In her corporate roles as Vice President and Strategic Partner at Alcatel-Lucent (now NOKIA), she tackled strategic issues the CEO and Board identified in the product portfolio, talent, and supply chain and led strategies for markets like China and India. At Royal Philips, she was globally responsible for business innovation, creating new revenues and market channels for connected entertainment and healthcare devices with telecom operators launching products like Internet Radios, IPTV, and remote patient monitoring.
Mary has been on boards for over 30 years in family, industry, and non for profit boards. She is currently Board Advisor at Competent Boards on ESG Board Education and Equitas Tech, an Investor Tech Consultancy.

Mary is an Italian American born in Peru and fluent in English, Spanish, French, and Portuguese. She has a Bachelor’s in Business Administration, an MBA in International Business, and Certifications in International Corporate Governance, ESG, DEI, and Climate change. 

Helle Bank Jorgensen is an internationally recognized expert on sustainable business practices, with a 30-year record of turning environmental, social, and governance (ESG) risks into innovative and profitable business opportunities. She works with many global Fortune 500 board members and executives, as well as smaller companies and investors.Helle is the founder and chief executive of Competent Boards, which offers online climate and ESG programs that draw on the experience of over 180 renowned board members, executives, and investors. Hundreds of directors and senior executives have enrolled in these programs to mitigate the risks and seize the opportunities presented by ESG and climate change.Helle serves at:-Nasdaq Center for Board Excellence’s Sustainability & ESG Insights Council;-World Economic Forum (WEF) Expert Network for Corporate Governance, Leadership, and Emerging Multinationals;-His Royal Highness Prince of Wales A4S (Accounting for Sustainability) Global Expert Panel;-The Non-financial Digitisation Working Group of the Impact Management Project (IMP);-The Reuters Panel of Expert Judges for the Responsible Business Awards;-Canadian Climate Governance Experts –- a Commonwealth Climate & Law Initiative;-Chair of the Advisory Committee of the ESG Exchange.In 2020 she was awarded the Global Impact Award and named one of "5 people in ESG to look out for." She was also selected as one of LinkedIn's Top Voices in the Green Economy in the US and Canada for 2022. Ms. Bank Jorgensen is the author of the newly published book Stewards of The Future: A Guide for Competent Boards, an Amazon bestseller.

Katie Kross is a sustainability educator, author, and speaker. For more than 12 years, she has led academic programs and thought leadership initiatives as the managing director of the Center for Energy, Development, and the Global Environment (EDGE) at Duke University’s Fuqua School of Business. Katie earned her MBA from UNC and is the author of Profession and Purpose: A Resource Guide for MBA Careers in Sustainability.

Treston has dedicated his career to improving our planet. He’s currently a Project Consultant at WSP USA on their Sustainability, Energy and Climate Change team. In his role, Treston helps clients navigate the complex sustainability and energy landscape and unlock opportunities to reduce cost, create brand value and mitigate risk across the value chain. He has experience supporting clients with sustainability strategy and program management, renewable energy sourcing strategies, and supplier engagement. Treston has served clients across various industries including aviation, specialty chemicals, natural gas, and cloud computing. Prior to sustainability consulting, Treston was a New York City Teaching Fellow, supporting students in his hometown, Brooklyn, NY. He holds a BA in Public Policy from the University at Albany – SUNY, an MS in Education from Long Island University, and is currently pursuing an MBA in Sustainability from Bard College.

Bryan Yuji Walker leads the organizational design portfolio at IDEO. He actively pursues new ways that designers can catalyze and support massive change of complex, human systems, and has worked with organizations in a diversity of industries (consumer electronics, health care, fashion, sports apparel, retail and hospitality, food and beverage and financial services). He is passionate about collaborating with organizations to design innovation strategies that build upon existing assets to meet future needs and goals—and ultimately support enterprise-wide transformation. He has a bias towards action, believing the best way to help an organization become more innovative is by working together to bring more innovative "products" to market.

Bryan’s work has been widely recognized. His innovative design research on a baby stroller was awarded the product design of the year by the Human Factors Ergonomic Society and was later featured in the Smithsonian. His work has also been written about in BusinessWeek, The Wall Street Journal, Harvard Business Review, The New York Times, USA Today and Fast Company.

In addition to his work at IDEO, Bryan is a core design team member for the Aspen Institute First Movers Fellowship Program. He also lectures at Cornell University, Stanford University, UC Berkeley, and the California Center of Arts on the topics of design thinking, organizational design, consumer experience design and service design.

Uvini Lokuge is a Director at within IDEO's Climate Domain. Uvini’s expertise is in designing circular and waste-free solutions that are systemic in nature but enabled by individuals, from customers to executives. She has led industry-wide collaborations between executives and startups to support the innovation process and implementation of these new waste-free systems. Uvini has expertise across designing for behavior change in shoppers to adopt and use new circular models and designing enabling infrastructure for these models to work across different environments.

Devon is the Head of Net Zero Strategy at Meta, where she leads carbon reduction efforts across the company in line with Meta’s commitment to achieve net zero in its value chain by 2030.  Prior to joining Meta, Devon was the Senior Director of Net Zero Solutions at ENGIE Impact where she advised companies on net zero strategy and execution.  In her career, she has held both corporate and nonprofit leadership positions in organizations focused on decarbonization, ecosystem protection, and social justice. She has a Bachelor’s from Stanford University and a Master’s from Harvard University.

Verena Radulovic is Vice President for Business Engagement at the Center for Climate and Energy Solutions, a not-for-profit that works to secure a safe and stable climate by accelerating the global transition to net-zero greenhouse gas emissions and a thriving, just, and resilient economy.

Ms. Radulovic works with businesses, policymakers and other stakeholders to advance business action on climate mitigation and resilience and help galvanize business support for ambitious, practical climate policies and solutions. She manages the Business Environmental Leadership Council (BELC), one of the largest U.S.-based cross-sectoral group of corporations focused on addressing the challenges of climate change and supporting climate policy. She oversees C2ES’ work on climate-related financial risk disclosure, supply chains, corporate greenhouse gas accounting, and climate resilience.

Previously, Ms. Radulovic led the Center for Corporate Climate Leadership at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), which provides greenhouse gas accounting guidance and resources to help organizations reduce their climate impacts. She brings over 15 years of experience managing public-private partnerships at the EPA with industry that measure and reduce the carbon footprint of their operations, supply chains, and products. In previous roles, she managed ENERGY STAR’s consumer electronics portfolio, developed an initiative to address potent greenhouse gases in the electronics industry’s supply chain, helped companies understand green power purchasing options via EPA’s Green Power Partnership, created pathways for smaller suppliers to report their GHG emissions to the U.S. government, and helped develop industry standards for more environmentally sustainable products.

Chris Lee represents Kailua, Waimanalo, and Hawaii Kai in the Hawaii State Senate. He currently serves as Chairman of the Committee on Transportation and Culture and the Arts, and previously chaired the House Committee on the Judiciary and House Committee on Energy and Environmental Protection. He has authored laws making Hawaii the first state to commit to 100 percent renewable energy, a carbon negative economy by 2045, and eliminating all fossil fuels from ground transportation. He has worked to advance efforts on climate change and the electrification of transportation. Chris also serves as Vice President of the National Caucus of Environmental Legislators, and is a graduate of Oregon State University.

Nadia’s career has focused on the design of complex rules and regulations to help bring new, green technologies to market. Prior to joining Antenna Group as Vice President of Public Affairs and later as Chief of Staff to the CEO, Nadia served as Head of U.S. Government Relations for General Motors (GM) Cruise, GM's zero-emissions self-driving car company. Here, Nadia helped craft new laws and regulations for self-driving cars in over 40 U.S. cities, while also serving as the Co-Chair of the Autonomous Vehicle Subcommittee for the Bay Area Council and on the Policy Advisory Committee for sf.citi. She also proudly served as Founder & President of Latinx@Cruise, one of the company’s first official cultural diversity initiatives.Prior to Cruise, Nadia drove public policy and new market design for Advanced Microgrid Solutions, an advanced energy storage company based in San Francisco, CA. Nadia also worked in Washington, DC, where she supported Federal Governmental Affairs for NextEra Energy / Florida Power & Light, the world's largest renewable energy developer and the largest electric utility in the nation. Here, she oversaw political engagement with the U.S. Congress and the Executive Branch on issues relating to renewable energy, public utilities, and tax reform.In 2021, Nadia served as Co-Chair for the Vermont Climate Council's Just Transitions Subcommittee, specializing in the state’s investments in low-emissions and job rich sectors and technologies to address the effects of climate change. She currently serves on the Board of the ACLU of Vermont and supports the Aspen Institute's Latinos in Society program in partnership with the White House on the U.S. Latino Economic Agenda. Nadia's professional background also includes roles at the U.S. Department of State and the Human Rights Watch.

Paul Butler is a 3rd generation farmer in Central, IL where he raises 1,000 acres of corn, beans, wheat, and honey bees on their family farm. The farm is a conservation minded primarily no-till and limited tillage with a focus on balancing soil preservation and high yield.

Cynthia Muffuh joined the UN Global Compact Office in March 2022 as the Head of Human Rights and Gender Equality where she is responsible for articulating and delivering on the strategy to support business align their strategies andoperations with the Ten Principles especially around human rights and gender equality and move from commitment to action. She brings over 20 years’ experience leading global programs oninternational development and social sustainability. Throughout her career she has worked across the private sector, non-profit and intergovernmentalorganizations engaging and working with stakeholders and partners on complexglobal issues. She is a dual qualified legal practitioner with a focus on International Human Rights Law. She is married with 2 children.

Executive Director Avasant Foundation and Principal AvasantChitra has more than 25 years of Management and Business Development experience. She leads the development and implementation of the foundation’s mission through global initiatives to empower deserving young women and men through education, employment & entrepreneurship in the new digital economy. Chitra has also worked with state and local governments, international organizations including World Bank, USAID, and Fortune 500 corporations. Under Chitra’s leadership Avasant Foundation was recognized by Clinton Global Initiative for its Youth Empowerment initiatives in Jamaica and Haiti in 2015 and 2016. She received the Stevie award in 2018 and the Red Ladder award for Women in business in 2020. In 2022 she was recognized for her work as Unstoppable woman. Chitra is part of the Leadership team for Center for Social Impact, IAOP.