Carlos Ruiz Alonso

Head of Sustainability & Environment

Enagás S.A.

Carlos Ruiz Alonso is currently the Head of Sustainability & Environment in Enagás, where he oversees the integration of sustainability within Enagás’ strategy. He has run initiatives in key areas (carbon footprint, energy efficiency plan, natural gas uses, SDGs, etc.). As a result, Enagás is a recognized leader on CSR & climate change indexes including: DJSI, CDP, FTSE4Good and Ethibel. Other areas of expertise include the integration of H&S, Quality & Environment management systems, EFQM and the development of innovative digital initiatives.

Carlos has participated as speaker in several forums related to sustainability, climate change, integrated reporting, etc; and collaborates with several CSR associations including Foretica and the United Nations Global Compact. He is also a member of SERES Advisor Council. Prior to joining Enagás, Carlos worked for almost 10 years as a management consultant in several firms, focusing in strategy, operating models, organization and processes. He holds a Degree in Industrial Engineering from the University of Madrid, a Management Development Program by the Escuela de Organization Industrial (EOI) and a Corporate Entrepreneurship and Open Innovation Program by the Deusto Business School.

Preston Aitken

Chief Executive Officer (CEO)

HireUp

Preston Aitken has more than a decade of experience in social enterprise and is currently the CEO of HireUp, a company that connects employers to untapped talent. That talent just happens to be people who face significant barriers to employment, such as experiencing homelessness, dealing with mental health or addiction challenges, past involvement with the criminal justice system, etc.

Prior to HireUp, Preston served as the National Program Director for Enactus in Canada, one of the world’s largest university-based social entrepreneurship programs. Preston also serves on the Board of Directors for Venture for Canada, a charity that recruits, trains and supports top recent graduates to work at Canadian startups in need of talent. Preston holds a Masters in Business, Entrepreneurship and Technology from the University of Waterloo and an Honours in International Business from Memorial University of Newfoundland.

Esther An

Chief Sustainability Officer

City Developments Ltd.

A pioneer CSR practitioner for over 20 years, Esther is instrumental in building up City Developments Limited’s (CDL) sustainability leadership since she joined the company in 1995. CDL is one of the first Singapore companies to be listed in leading global sustainability benchmarks, such as the FTSE4Good Index Series (since 2002), MSCI Global Sustainability Indexes (since 2008), Global 100 Most Sustainable Corporations in the World (since 2010), Dow Jones Sustainability Indexes (since 2011) and the inaugural sector-neutral Bloomberg Gender Equality Index (since 2018).

Being the first Singapore company to publish a Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) Application Level checked sustainability report in 2008, CDL was also the first Singapore real estate company to publish an Integrated Sustainability Report in 2015, adopting the IIRC Integrated Reporting framework. Furthering its sustainability leadership, CDL successfully issued a green bond in April 2017, the first issuance by a Singapore company.

A member of the World Green Building Council’s Corporate Advisory Board and the Urban Land Institute Women’s Leadership Initiative Singapore Steering Committee, Esther also sits on board the management committee of the Global Compact Network Singapore, which is the local network of UN Global Compact for CSR. Her latest appointments include: member of the UNEP Finance Initiative Property Working Group; UNEP Sustainable Stock Exchanges’ Green Finance Advisory Group; GRI Corporate Leadership Group for Integrated Reporting; Asia Pacific Real Estate Association (APREA) Singapore Chapter Board and SID Sustainability Committee. The founder of the Women4Green network, Esther is committed to engaging and empowering women in the male dominated green building and technology industries to drive the sustainability agenda.

Nicholas Aster

Founder & Publisher

Triple Pundit

Nick Aster is a new media architect and the founder of TriplePundit.com and head of distribution for 3BL Media. TriplePundit.com has grown to become one of the web\\\'s leading sources of news and ideas on how business can be used to make the world a better place. It was acquired in 2017 by 3BLMedia, the leading news distribution and content marketing company focused on niche topics including sustainability, health, energy, education, philanthropy, community and other social and environmental topics.

Prior to TriplePundit Nick worked for Mother Jones magazine, successfully re-launching the magazine\\\'s online presence. He worked for TreeHugger.com, managing the technical side of the publication for 3 years and has also been an active consultant for individuals and companies entering the world of micro-publishing. He earned his stripes working for Gawker Media and Moreover Technologies in the early days of blogging. Nick holds an MBA in sustainable management from the Presidio School of Management and graduated with a BA in History from Washington University in St. Louis.

Colton Bangs

Manager, Market Intelligence & Business Research

Umicore NV

Colton joined Umicore in 2011 after completing a M.Sc. in Industrial Ecology from the Norwegian University of Science and Technology, specializing in Environmental Systems Analysis with a thesis on the global aluminium cycle. He holds a B.Sc. in Engineering from Swarthmore College in the United States where he graduated with high honors.

As Manager of Market Intelligence and Business Research at Umicore Precious Metals Refining, Colton is responsible for market research and development, and bringing Umicore’s ideas and expertise on closed loop material cycles and recycling forward in interactions with stakeholders, such as universities and research institutes, industry associations, policymakers, governmental working groups and other actors in the supply chains.

Andrea Barrack

Vice-President, Global Corporate Citizenship

TD Bank

Andrea Barrack is the VP, Community Relations and Corporate Citizenship at TD Bank Group. In this role, she is the lead champion for Corporate Social Responsibility across the enterprise, ensuring the development of a best in class integrated strategy that is aligned to business objectives while creating positive social, economic and environmental impacts in the community. Prior to coming to TD, Andrea was the Chief Executive Officer of the Ontario Trillium Foundation, providing strategic and operational leadership to a government agency that distributed over $120 million in public funding to the charitable and not for profit sector.

Andrea Barrack worked in healthcare administration for more than a decade, focused on primary health care and community health. She is recognized for her expertise in making organizations more effective by ensuring that systems are integrated and impact is both measured and assessed. Andrea Barrack earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in psychology at the University of Guelph and a Master of Health Science in Health Administration at the University of Toronto. She has also earned certificates in non-profit management and governance from Harvard University’s Business School and John F. Kennedy School of Government.

In 2016, she was named in the Women’s Executive Network Top 100 Most Powerful Women in the Trendsetter and Trailblazer category. In her volunteer life, Andrea is on the Board for the Western Hemisphere of the International Planned Parenthood Federation and the Chair of the Dean\\\\\\\'s Council for the Ted Rogers School of Management at Ryerson University. She is also a diversity fellows mentor with the Greater Toronto CivicAction Alliance.

Hero Bennett

Senior Sustainability Consultant

Max Fordham LLP

Hero Bennett is a Chartered Environmentalist and Partner at Max Fordham LLP. Her early career started in fuel cell development and building services engineering; she now works as the lead sustainability consultant for Max Fordham. Hero has broad technical expertise cutting across multiple areas from urban design and masterplanning to environmental design of buildings to wellbeing and material consumption issues.

Hero often develops bespoke sustainability frameworks for projects and developed an updated sustainability matrix, the Max Fordham sustainability communication tool for publication in 2010, originally developed with Feilden Clegg Bradley Studios. Hero is active in pushing for more sustainable UK planning policy in London and Cambridge and is a member of LETI (London Energy Transformation Initiative). Hero sits on the Chartered Institute of Building Sustainability and Environment Special Interest Group.

Uwe Bergmann

Director, Sustainability Management

Henkel AG & Co KGaA

Uwe Bergmann is the Director Sustainability Management at Henkel. His responsibilities include the development of the sustainability strategy and the coordination of Henkel’s Sustainability Council, driving the implementation of the strategy together with Henkel’s business units and functions as well as the development of steering and communication tools.

He holds a M.Sc. in Environmental Technology from Imperial College, London and a B.Sc. in Environmental Sciences from the University of East Anglia, Norwich. Prior to joining Henkel in 2000, he worked as a Researcher and Consultant at the Institute for Environmental Management at the European Business School, in Oestrich-Winkel, Germany.

Claudine Blamey

Head of Sustainability & Stewardship

The Crown Estate

Claudine leads the sustainability strategy for The Crown Estate’s business and champions the Total Contribution approach, a methodology to measure the economic value of the impact the business has on its ‘capitals’. The 63 metrics express the negative and positive environmental and social impacts of The Crown Estate on society and are used to guide decision making across the portfolios. The ‘Total Contribution Report’ won the PWC Public Trust Award for Innovation in 2017. Claudine developed The Crown Estate’s 2030 strategy to enhance business resilience for the long term.

This is defined with three ambitious ‘aspirations’ to; climate-proof business, create healthy places and habitats and close the waste-loop using circular economy principles. Claudine led the culture change strategy to transition The Crown Estate from civil service approach to high performing and commercial. A strategic thinker driving a strong purpose to develop successful organisations, Claudine uses decisive management and clear well-reasoned, well-communicated decisions to deliver innovative changes that are commercially successful for the long term and have positive outcomes for society as a whole.

A frequent and well regarded conference speaker on corporate responsibility and sustainability, Claudine sits on the Board of Business in the Community (BITC) and the Mace Group Responsible Business Board and was Chair of the Institute of Corporate Responsibility and Sustainability (ICRS) from 2015-2017. She is a Fellow of the Royal Society for the encouragement of Arts, Manufactures and Commerce (RSA) and the current President of the the Global Sustainability Film Awards 2018.

Kate E. Brandt

Google Sustainability Officer

Google

Kate Brandt leads sustainability across Google’s worldwide operations, products and supply chain. In this role, Kate coordinates with Google’s data centers, real estate, supply chain, and product teams to ensure the company is capitalizing on opportunities to strategically advance sustainability and circular economy. Previously in 2014, President Obama appointed Kate to serve as the Federal Environmental Executive and under EO 13693 she became the Nation\'s first Federal Chief Sustainability Officer. In this capacity, she was responsible for promoting sustainability across Federal Government operations including 360,000 buildings, 650,000 vehicles, and $445 billion annually in purchased goods and services. Prior to the White House, Kate held several senior roles in U.S. Federal Government including Senior Advisor at the Department of Energy, Director for Energy and Environment in the White House Office of Presidential Personnel, and Energy Advisor to the Secretary of the Navy.

Kate is the recipient of the Distinguished Public Service Award, the highest award the U.S. Navy can give to a civilian, for her work helping the Navy go green. Outside Magazin e named her as one of 40 women who have made the biggest impact on our world and Forbes listed her among the top 46 sustainability leaders in 2018. Kate serves on the boards of BSR, The Institute at Brown for Environment and Society, The Roosevelt Institute, Planet Forward, Stanford International Affairs Network, NSF Committee for Environmental Research and Education, and the Corporate Eco Forum. Kate received a Masters degree in International Relations from the University of Cambridge where she was a Gates Cambridge Scholar. She graduated with honors from Brown University.

Henk Campher

Vice-President, Marketing

Salesforce

Challenge conventional thinking – with 20 years of global experience, Henk is known as a disruptive and creative expert in the communications, brand, social impact and sustainability space. He’s had the pleasure of working on some of the coolest award-winning corporate campaigns and developing strategic solutions with companies such Starbucks, Levi’s, Best Buy, Timberland, Tiffany’s, REI, Abbott Labs, Samsung, Kellogg\'s, The North Face, SC Johnson, J&J, Unilever and Nestlé. Today he leads the marketing team at the Salesforce social enterprise, Salesforce.org - getting the best technology into the hands of those who are changing the world.

He has been bridging the world of nerds (social impact, purpose & sustainability experts) and flirts (brand & communication whizzes) thanks to leading the Marketing team at Salesforce.org, leading social impact and purpose work at Allison + Partners and Edelman, his time in the UK as an Oxfam campaigner, and his South African roots as an African development worker, trade unionist and creator of the Nelson Mandela initiated Proudly South African campaign.

He was named as one of the Top 30 CSR Pros to Follow in 2015 by Triple Pundit, Top 100 Thought Leaders in Trustworthy Business Behavior (he is now a judge for the award) and The Guardian’s Top 15 Sustainable Business Executives on Twitter.

Henk is a regular writer for the Huffington Post, Triple Pundit and CSRWire, a frequent speaker at conferences, and a Twitter junkie: @AngryAfrican. He is a member of Team Net Impact for Super Bowl 50. His D? Sustainability book Creating a Sustainable Brand: A Guide to Growing the Sustainability Top Line was published in April 2014.

Mevina Caviezel

Head of Sustainability and Diversity & Inclusion

Sonova Holding AG

Mevina Caviezel is head of the sustainability department at Sonova, the leading manufacturer of innovative hearing care solutions. She defines the strategic priorities of the Sonova global sustainability program and coordinates the implementation through a network of functional CSR Champions. Mevina successfully initiated a Diversity & Inclusion initiative with a pilot in Switzerland and is currently overseeing the global rollout. She also drives and enhances Sonova’s performance in key ESG ratings to ensure the company’s representation in the major ESG indices (e.g. Dow Jones Sustainability Index, FTSE4Good).

Additionally, Mevina is employee representative in the advisory board of the Hear the World Foundation which supports children in need with hearing loss around the world. Mevina’s past experience in the field of sustainability includes working for the sustainability team of the Swiss federal railway company SBB where she maintained dialog with external and internal stakeholders and coordinated SBB’s engagement towards a sustainable supply chain. She holds two Master degrees from the University of St. Gallen in International Affairs and in International Management. 

Josh Chaitin

Senior Vice-President & Managing Director

Global Strategy Group

Throughout his career, Josh Chaitin has helped develop and launch purpose-driven initiatives and campaigns across a broad range of industries, including outdoor recreation, real estate, apparel, automotive, technology, food, health and wellness and many others. He has worked with emerging brands like Theo Chocolate, established brands like Subaru of America and Nordstrom, and institutions like The Seattle Cancer Care Alliance to address a broad range of issues, from access to health care, to creating opportunities for underserved communities, to advocating for the protection of public lands.

Prior to joining Global Strategy Group, Josh co-founded PRpose, a communications agency focused on purpose-driven communications. Before that, Josh led Edelman’s Business + Social Purpose practice group in Seattle, where he helped launch REI’s #OptOutside campaign, in addition to working with the co-op on their efforts to engage more people in the outdoors, to promote and protect wild places across the USA, and to create more leadership opportunities for women in the outdoor industry. He has helped companies like Vulcan demonstrate their commitment to sustainability through their redevelopment of Seattle’s South Lake Union neighbourhood and has helped organizations like FSG work with business leaders to create meaningful career opportunities for populations that have traditionally faced barriers to employment.

Josh is driven to use communications to help businesses lead the way in sustainability and social responsibility, and to find ROI in their efforts to create a better world. He holds an MPA from the University of Washington’s Daniel J. Evans School of Public Affairs and a BA from The Evergreen State College.

Tania Choufani

Global Head of Environment, Social & Governance

The Abraaj Group

Tania Choufani is a leading ESG specialist with over 16 years of professional experience providing sustainability advisory to the financial industry and private sector across emerging markets. She was previously a Managing Director and Head of ESG for The Abraaj Group focused on raising and investing private capital in growth markets across Africa, Asia, Latin America and the Middle East. 

Prior to that, she was a Consultant for the International Finance Corporation ESG Department supporting their financial markets portfolio. She started her career as a Project Manager for Environmental Resources Management, a global sustainability consulting firm and has worked for both the public and private sector across 26 countries.

Tania is a Chevening Scholar and holds an MSc in Environmental Management from Oxford Brookes University and a BA in Geography and Environmental Science from McGill University. She is a member of the EMPEA ESG Steering Committee and an advocate of the mentoring program for female entrepreneurs in the Middle East promoting gender diversity and inclusion of women. She is passionate about equal opportunities and the achievement of the SDGs through knowledge sharing, innovation and partnerships.

David Clark

Vice-President, Sustainability

Amcor

David leads Amcor’s sustainability programs and is closely involved with integrating sustainable design and social responsibility into Amcor’s product development and innovation processes. This includes leading Amcor to achieve a recently-announced pledge that all of Amcor’s products will be designed to be recyclable or reused by 2025, to increase the use of recycled content, and to participate in increasing the collection, processing, and use of recycled containers.

David is also chairman of the Plastic Recycling Corporation of California, serves on the External Advisory Board of the Erb Institute for Global Sustainable Enterprise at the University of Michigan, and is an Aspen Institute First Movers Fellow. David holds a B.S., Physics, from the University of Michigan and an MBA from Pepperdine University.

Linden Coppell

Head of Sustainability

Etihad Aviation Group

Linden has over 20 years of environmental and business sustainability experience, including the development of comprehensive strategies and programs across two major airlines.

Linden joined Etihad Airways at the beginning of 2009 with the responsibility for developing the overall strategy for environmental management for the airline. This has now developed into a broader sustainability role and she is currently implementing initiatives for key areas such as emissions and waste management, supporting the development of alternative sustainable fuels, implementing mechanisms to help prevent human trafficking and slavery, and developing a strong culture of environmental and social awareness throughout the business.

A key aspect of her strategy is developing and implementing wildlife and animal protection policies for the business. She instigated the commitment of the airline to the United for Wildlife declaration to help in the prevention illegal wildlife trade and has partnered with a number of organisations to help ensure that tourism activities promoted by the airline do not negatively impact the welfare of animals.

Prior to joining Etihad Airways Linden worked as the Environmental Manager of Cathay Pacific Airways.  

Linden represents Etihad Airways on the Environmental Committee of the International Air Transport Association (IATA) and the Environmental Policy Group of the Arab Air Carriers Association (AACO). She is currently the Chair of the IATA Environment Committee Wildlife Taskforce.  

Judy Cotte

VP & Head, Corporate Governance & Responsible Investment

RBC Global Asset Management

Judy Cotte is V.P. & Head, Corporate Governance & Responsible Investment for RBC Global Asset Management (“RBC GAM”) and is a member of the firm’s Executive Committee.  RBC GAM manages approximately CAD $425 billion in assets for individual and institutional investors through offices in Canada, the U.S., Europe and Asia. The Corporate Governance & Responsible Investment team oversees all of RBC GAM\'s activities related to corporate governance and responsible investment including the more formal integration of Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) factors into the investment process, proxy voting and the firm’s ESG-focused engagement program.

Prior to joining RBC GAM, Judy was the Director of Policy Development & Chief Operating Officer for the Canadian Coalition for Good Governance (“CCGG”), a coalition of most of Canada’s largest institutional investors.  Before joining CCGG, she completed her Masters degree in securities law while working on special projects for various branches of the Ontario Securities Commission (“OSC”) including the Office of Domestic and International Affairs, Enforcement and Corporate Finance.  Previously, she was Senior Litigation Counsel with the OSC where she prosecuted offences under the Securities Act, including misleading disclosure, market manipulation and insider trading.  Prior to joining the OSC, Judy was litigation counsel for a large broker/dealer and prior to that, a partner in a Bay Street law firm.

Judy is a member of the CCGG Public Policy Committee, the TSX Listings Advisory Committee and the UN PRI’s Global Policy Reference Group.  She has been designated the Country Correspondent for Canada by the International Corporate Governance Network.  She is a past member of the OSC’s Securities Advisory Committee, Continuous Disclosure Advisory Committee, Environmental Reporting Advisory Committee and Enforcement Committee.  She was previously the Canada Correspondent for the Council of Institutional Investors.

Patsy Doerr

Global Head, Corporate Responsibility, Sustainability & Inclusion

Thomson Reuters

Patsy Doerr is responsible for overseeing the company’s corporate social responsibility, diversity & inclusion and sustainability functions. Patsy has over 20 years of experience in talent, learning, organizational development, diversity and inclusion, employee recognition and customer engagement mainly in investment banking. She has held a number of global leadership roles at JPMorgan, Deutsche Bank and Credit Suisse, in New York, London and most recently, Hong Kong.

Prior to joining Thomson Reuters, Patsy was responsible for talent and learning, employee recognition, alumni relations and the global centers of excellence development effort at Credit Suisse in Asia Pacific. She was based in Hong Kong, but her responsibilities spanned 14 countries across the region. She has extensive experience with panel moderation, facilitation, communications and presentation. She was the key interviewer for CSTV in APAC and in that role, had the opportunity to work with Roger Federer and Tony Fernandes, CEO of Air Asia.

She is a frequent guest speaker at various organizations, universities and schools, and is certified in a number of personality profiling and team building tools. She is passionate about supporting a diverse, global environment to support business goals. Patsy was recently awarded with the Tri-State Diversity Council – Most Powerful & Influential Woman award and the Promoting Workforce Diversity & Gender Equality award for the Banking, Financial and Insurance industry sector by City State Reports.

Patsy sits on the Board of Trustees for Marymount School for Girls, the Board of Directors for the Samburu Girls Foundation and the Board of Directors for the Responsible Investment Association (Canada). On the Board of Directors for the 30% Coalition Patsy is Vice President and on the Board of Directors for All In Together she is Secretary.  She is a member of the Leadership Committee for Out Leadership, YMCA Leadership Committee, the 30% Club Steering Committee and the Business Advisory Board for PFLAG.

Patsy has a BS in Biology (pre-medicine) from Washington and Lee University in Lexington, VA and a Master of Science (summa cum laude) in Adult Learning and Organizational Development from Fordham University in New York, NY.  Patsy is also lifetime member of the ODK Honor Society at Washington and Lee University as a result of her work driving women in leadership. Recently, she received the Decade of Women Quantum Impact Award.

Patsy is an avid runner, focusing on half marathons and marathons all over the world, including Cambodia, Australia, Hong Kong, Macau, New York City, and most recently, Berlin. She has two children (a 15 year old son, Nicholas and 12 year old daughter, Ella) and lives on the Upper East Side of Manhattan.

Kelly Drennan

Partner

The Circ Advisory

Kelly Drennan is a systems thinker, social entrepreneur, thought leader, disruptor and collaborator who is devoted to making change within the fashion industry. Nearly 12  years ago she founded Fashion Takes Action, out of her desire to create a better, more sustainable future.

Armed with more than a decade experience working in conventional fashion PR & Events (prior to starting FTA), Kelly was determined to raise awareness for its many negative social and environmental impacts – both with industry and consumers.

Kelly is also responsible for producing the World Ethical Apparel Roundtable (WEAR) which began in 2014, developing FTA’s youth education program My Clothes My World and Design Forward – Canada’s Sustainable Fashion Awards. Kelly is a sought-after consultant for fashion designers and brands who want to embrace CSR and sustainability.

Kelly’s knowledge and passion for sustainable fashion is evident the minute you meet her. She has given hundreds of presentations to industry, academics and consumers in the hopes to raise awareness for responsible consumption and production, and for human rights in the fashion industry. Through this, she has earned respect from global leaders, industry colleagues, and the media, as a sustainable fashion go-to expert.

She has been recognized as a Canadian environmental leader with the esteemed Clean 50 Award for her work in Education & Awareness, and is the first recipient of this award for the fashion industry.

Kelly is very passionate about the circular economy in fashion, and is responsible for convening a Textile Diversion Collective in Ontario. This multi-sector collaborative that has more than 40 stakeholders is committed to increasing the amount of textiles collected and diverted, as well as to finding solutions for reuse and recycling.

Anthony D’Arcy

Head of Corporate Responsibility Reporting, Communications & Customer Relations

Nokia

Anthony DArcy heads the corporate responsibility reporting, communications and customer relations at Nokia’s global headquarters in Espoo, Finland.

Mr. DArcy has worked at Nokia for 23 years, joining Nokia in 1995. After initial years in marketing and communications for the Fixed Access business, Mr. DArcy worked for 3 years in brand and marcoms as marketing director for Nokia Broadband Systems in the North Bay, California.

On his return to Finland he headed the Marketing communications and industry marketing where he represented Nokia in various industry fora such as GSMA and GSA. This was followed by roles in sustainability marketing and communications, where he represented Nokia and chaired The Telecommunications Industry Dialogue, an industry association which he helped formalize which looked at freedom of expression and privacy within the Telecommunications industry.

After a number of years heading customer communications working directly with the Nokia sales interface and customers, where he had the opportunity to bring his skills to the integration of 2 major mergers/acquisitions, Mr. D’Arcy moved back to Corporate responsibility in 2016 to his current role.

Prior to joining Nokia, Mr. D’Arcy worked in a business training company as a trainer in both his native UK and Finland.

Mr. DArcy served as Chairman and a board member of the International School in Espoo, Finland for a number of years, was on the board of the GSA (Global Suppliers Association) telecommunications organization. Mr. DArcy is an avid linguist, who has a BA Hons in French, Russian and linguistics, speaks fluent Finnish, and a smattering of other languages.

Dorothee D’Herde

Director, Sustainability & Social Impact

McKinsey & Company

As McKinsey’s Director of Sustainability and Social Impact, Dorothée is responsible for the firm’s sustainability strategy and contribution to society. This includes its responsible business practices (e.g. environmental footprint) and its social impact agenda (e.g. giving back at local and global level). Dorothée joined McKinsey in 2009 as global head of external relations for the Sustainability & Resource Productivity Practice (SRP) and in that role helped SRP shape and communicate its thought leadership agenda on the challenges and opportunities of sustainability and resource productivity.

Before McKinsey, she worked in politics, public affairs and communications: for the Belgian deputy prime minister, in the European Commission’s spokesperson service and at public affairs agency GPlus Europe (Omnicom Group). She studied literature and linguistics in Ghent, Madrid and Nijmegen and European Studies in Bruges. She speaks English, Dutch, French, Spanish, Italian and basic German and loves spending time with her daughter, exploring new places, teaching and dancing. 

Mark Eckstein

Director, Environmental & Social Responsibility

CDC Group

Mark Eckstein is Co-Director of Environmental and Social Responsibility at CDC Group where his responsibilities include oversight and management of E&S issues across CDCs Funds and Debt Portfolios. Prior to CDC, Mark led the sustainable finance team at WWF US (2007-2013), was part of the environment and social risk management group at the International Finance Corporation (1998-2006), where he focussed on the agribusiness sector and was DFID Environmental Advisor for Africa (1994-1998).

Frances Edmonds

Head of Sustainability

HP Canada Inc.

In her role as Head of Sustainability, Frances Edmonds is responsible for overseeing HP’s full suite of corporate social responsibility programs including strategic partnerships with key nonprofit organizations and an industry leading volunteer program. With Frances’s leadership HP is able to state that HP Canada is the most environmentally responsible IT Company in Canada1. Frances works closely with HP’s many partners to drive sustainability practices across HP’s business and throughout Canada.

From being a founder of WWF’s Living Planet @ Work program to creating sustainability reporting contests, Frances seeks new and innovative ways to bring the power of HP to create meaningful change in Canada’s businesses. See her TEDx talk demonstrating the power of collaboration. Strongly believing in environmental education, Frances has established programs to provide a wide range of environmental education opportunities for Canadians, from kindergarten to companies that are not even HP’s customers.

More recently Frances has turned her attention to community engagement: having managed HP’s global team she now works to develop and implement global environmental education and volunteer programs for HP. Her recent articles in Alternatives magazine & the Globe & Mail show her leadership in this area. Frances judges many environmental awards and was recognized in 2017 as being one of Canada’s top sustainability professionals by receiving her second Clean 50 award. In addition she is a board member of Learning for a Sustainable Future and sits on the Schulich Centre for Responsible Business advisory council.

Frances started her career in the UK Government as an enforcer of environmental health and safety requirements. On moving to Canada, Frances worked in the chemical and pharmaceutical industries, as manager of environmental health and safety, before joining HP Canada. Frances has a degree in Environmental science from Bradford University (UK), a post graduate diploma in Occupational Health and Safety, and is a Canadian Registered Safety Professional (CRSP).

Jonathan Farkouh

Manager, Global Supply Chain

The Estée Lauder Companies

Jonathan Farkouh has Masters in Urban Planning from McGill University in Montreal, Quebec and a Bachelor of Arts from Wilfrid Laurier University in Waterloo, Ontario. Jonathan began his career at the Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC) where he oversaw parliamentary affairs in the Office of the Assistant Deputy Minister. Following his role at PHAC he was a Manager at the Retail Council of Canada, one of the country’s largest trade associations. Jonathan was responsible for the Energy and Occupational Health & Safety portfolios, providing advisory services to Fortune 500 clients.

Currently, Jonathan is a Manager with the Estee Lauder Companies, Inc (ELC) in New York City. ELC is one of the world’s leading manufacturers and marketers of quality skin care, makeup, fragrance and hair care products. Jonathan is part of the Global Environmental Affairs & Safety department and has responsibility for energy procurement and sourcing and the global contractor insurance & safety program.

Ted Ferguson

President

Delphi Group

As President of The Delphi Group, Ted ensures Delphi’s services are tailored to client needs and offer the optimal business solutions to sustainability issues. He provides strategic advice and guidance on sustainability and carbon issues, and oversees Delphi’s popular sustainability performance benchmarking services.

Ted has over 20 years of experience working with leading-edge companies, government initiatives and non-government organizations to bridge the gap between short-term business needs and longer-term energy and environmental concerns. Almost half of his experience has been with Delphi, working for a wide range of clients across numerous sectors including: electricity, oil and gas, food and beverage, financial, telecommunications, manufacturing and transportation. He has delivered dozens of strategies for clients, and continues to work with many of them on ensuring successful implementation.

On behalf of Delphi, Ted also provides strategic leadership to The EXCEL Partnership  (excelpartnership.ca), a corporate leadership forum dedicated to corporate sustainability issues that includes members from 18 of Canada’s most influential companies.

Prior to joining Delphi, Ted worked for BC Hydro, where he was responsible for corporate sustainability strategy, policy engagement on carbon regulations, and climate change risk management. He also helped develop the first set of rules and guidelines for the international emission markets while working at Foreign Affairs Canada.

Ted has a Master of Environmental Studies and Economics degree from the University of Northern British Columbia and an Honours undergraduate degree from Trent University.

Beyond Delphi, Ted leads an active and engaged life with his wife and two boys. He is club secretary for Velo MSM, a group of mountain bikers creating trails at Mont Ste Marie in Quebec. Ted is also the volunteer greening coordinator for the public school his boys are at in Ottawa.

John Friedman

Sustainability Manager

WGL Holdings, Inc.

John Friedman is an award-winning communications professional and recognized sustainability expert with more than 20 years of experience as both an external and internal sustainability leader, helping companies, ranging from small companies to leading global enterprises, turn their values into successful business models by integrating their environmental, social, and economic aspirations into their cultures and business practices.

On digital media, Friedman is recognized as a thought leader; on Triple Pundit’s List of the Top 30 Sustainability Bloggers on Twitter, #3 on GreenBiz list of most influential \"Twitterati\", #14 on Guardian Business’ \"30 Most Influential Sustainability Voices in America\", was voted #4 of the \"100 Leading Voices in CSR\" by Global CEO Magazine readers, and has regularly been included among the top voices in CSR by Forbes’ Brandfog.

An Albany State (New York) communications graduate, Friedman earned a management certificate as part of the Lafarge/Duke Management Training program at the Fuqua School of Business in 2000. John Friedman manages sustainability for WGL Holdings, Inc., a diversified energy business that provides natural gas, electricity, green power, carbon reduction and energy services.

Cassandra Garber

Head of Global Strategic Initiatives, Sustainability

3M

As Global Sustainability Leader at 3M, Cassandra works across many facets of Sustainability – from strategy and product development, to brand building, reporting, and stakeholder engagement. Cassandra has 15+ years of experience leading cross-functional, enterprise-wide programs at 3M, Coca-Cola and General Electric, with increasing focus in Sustainability for the past 8 years. She joined 3M in early 2013 with a central role in the Sustainability Center of Excellence. Prior to 3M, Cassandra worked in a variety of Sustainability, Marketing and Communications roles at Coca-Cola and General Electric. She earned her B.A. degree in Advertising and Public Relations from the University of Southern Indiana. Cassandra works at the 3M headquarters based in St. Paul, MN, USA, and lives in Woodbury, MN, with her husband, Lute, and three children, Abigail (7,) Lute (6,) and Juliette (1). She enjoys everyday adventures with her family, Minnesota summers, bicycling, table tennis, and working toward a greater good.

Martin Gettings

Group Head of Sustainability

Canary Wharf Group PLC

A Chartered Environmentalist, Full Member of the Institute of Environmental Management & Assessment and BREEAM Accredited Professional, Martin is Canary Wharf Groups first dedicated sustainability lead, to create, embed and deliver a long term Sustainability Strategy for the 128 Acre Canary Wharf mini-city and £2bn mixed development pipeline.

Martin has been with Canary Wharf Group since 2011 and in this time is responsible for achieving some of the Groups highest environmental benchmark ratings to date. As mentor on the Cognicity program, the Groups in house Future City Accelerator, he has helped several start-ups achieve success in their curriculum and pilot implementation. Prior to this, Martin was with Balfour Beatty Group PLC, where a background in engineering, design, and construction management, provided a foundation for a career in sustainable development and innovation.

Alan X. Gómez Hernández

Vice President, Sustainability

Citibanamex

Alan Gómez is the VP for Corporate Sustainability at Citibanamex (Citibank Mexico’s subsidiary). Across the country, Alan is the lead champion to address and secure the full integration of Citi’s sustainability strategy to the business objectives focusing on Green Finance, Environmental and Social Risk Management (ESRM) and Operations and Supply Chain.

He has more than 12 years of experience in the development and implementation of sustainability and climate change strategies for governments, companies and cities with institutions like Mario Molina’s Centrum for Energy & Environment (1995 Chemistry Nobel Prize) (2007-2010), Mexican Ministry of Environment (SEMARNAT) (2010-2012) and Det Norske Veritas (2012).

Alan earned a Bachelor of Environmental Engineering at the Metropolitan Autonomous University (UAM) in Mexico City, postgraduate studies in Sustainable Management at the Leuphana University of Lu?neburg (Germany) and Corporate Social Responsibility at the Anáhuac University (Mexico). He also earned certificates on Urban Sustainability (UNAM) and Senior Management for Business (IPADE).

Since 2017 he was named Chair of the Sustainability Committee at the Mexican Banks Association (ABM).

Mark Gough

Executive Director

Natural Capital Coalition

Mark Gough is the Executive Director of the Natural Capital Coalition, and led the collaboration that delivered the Natural Capital Protocol, a standardized global framework for including natural capital in decision making. Mark previously worked for The Crown Estate, helping to develop its integrated vision and approach to value measurement. Prior to this he was the Global Environmental Manager for the information company, Reed Elsevier.

Mark is a Director of the Aldersgate Group, which brings together business, politics and civil society to drive action for a sustainable economy, and a member of the TEEB Advisory board. He has sat on a number of national and international committees, including the Steering Committee of the United Nations CEO Water Mandate and the Board of the Alliance for Water Stewardship.

Balaji Gurumurthy

Vice-President, Sustainability, CSR, ESG Risk & Sustainable Finance

YES Bank

Balaji Gurumurthy is the Vice President, Responsible Banking at YES BANK, India’s fourth largest private sector bank. He drives YES BANK’s sustainability strategy to create sustained stakeholder value by intrinsically linking economic, social and environmental parameters to business & contributing towards achieving UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

In this role, his responsibilities include Sustainability & CSR Strategy formulation & implementation, Sustainable Finance (Managing ESG Risks & Opportunities), Climate Action, Developing Innovative Financial Mechanisms towards SDGs including Climate Finance, Green Banking products, Financial Inclusion amongst BoP & Triple Bottom Line Reporting.

Recently, Balaji has been recognized as one of the ‘30 UNDER 30’ Global Emerging Leaders In Sustainable Business identified by GreenBiz Group and the World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD). His professional recognition placed YES BANK as the only bank in the world, and only Indian Company to be featured in the prestigious list of leaders from across sectors who are shaping the next generation of sustainable business.

Balaji is an MBA GOLD Medallist from NITIE, Mumbai (India\\\'s Top Business School) with PG Diploma in Industrial Safety & Environmental Management with focus on Sustainability & Climate Change. He holds a B.Tech in Chemical Engineering from Anna University, Chennai & obtained PG Diploma in Environmental Law from National Law School of India, Bangalore. He has been a speaker at various international and national platforms on Sustainability, Climate Action, Sustainable Finance and Financial Inclusion

Balaji has a 2 year old daughter (Bhagyarathi) and lives in Mumbai along with his wife (Bavadhariny), parents (Gurumurthy & Vanaja) & younger sister (Gayathri)

Laura Jungmann

Manager, Sustainable Products

Ahold Delhaize

Laura works in the product integrity team at Ahold Delhaize. There she is responsible for setting and supporting the implementation of global policies on Ahold Delhaize’s critical commodities, including palm oil, soy, seafood and others. Externally, Laura engages with key multi-stakeholder platforms, NGOs and pre-competitively with other companies to drive the sustainability agenda forward. Prior to working at Ahold Delhaize, Laura worked with WWF’s Market Transformation Initiative, and has a masters in environment and resource management.