All Speakers

Speaker Yan GAO
Yan GAO

Engineer

Land Consolidation & Rehabilitation Center, MNR

Speaker Maria PUCHALSKA
Maria PUCHALSKA

IUCN European Regional Office

Maria Puchalska is an intern with the Natural Resources Team at the IUCN European Regional Office in Brussels. She is pursuing a master’s degree in Environmental Policy at Sciences Po Paris and holds...
Speaker Scott BRENNAN
Scott BRENNAN

Chief Operating Officer

American Prairie

Reporting directly to and working closely with American Prairie's CEO, Scott is responsible for overseeing all organizational operations including conservation strategy, philanthropy, brand and...
Speaker Olga SHKABARDNYA
Olga SHKABARDNYA

General Director

Energy for Development

General Director of the non-profit organization “Energy for Development”, Head of CSR and Internal Communications at the State Atomic Energy Corporation "Rosatom". She graduated from the Faculty of...
Speaker yuyu YAN
yuyu YAN

NbS Shanghai Hub/Shanghai Land Consolidation and Rehabilitation Center

Engineer with Master's degree, primarily engaged in land resource management and ecological protection and restoration.
Speaker David EMMETT
David EMMETT

Head of International Biodiversity

Hempel Foundation

I am a tropical nature conservationist with almost 30 years of experience from East Africa, Madagascar and the Asia-Pacific. I specialise in strategic planning, landscape-scale conservation,...
Speaker Hanta Julie RAZAFIMANAHAKA
Hanta Julie RAZAFIMANAHAKA

Executive Director

Madagasikara Voakajy

Julie Hanta Razafimanahaka is a Malagasy conservation ecologist and Director of Madagasikara Voakajy, an NGO dedicated to safeguarding Madagascar’s unique biodiversity. Inspired as a teenager by the...
Speaker Cecilia SáENZ
Cecilia SáENZ

Coordinadora proyecto VOCES para América del Sur.

IUCN

I am an Ecuadorian professional with a background in International Political Sociology, having completed a master's degree in Buenos Aires, Argentina. I have over 12 years of experience in...
Speaker Michelle ANAGNOSTOU
Michelle ANAGNOSTOU

Banting Postdoctoral Fellow

University of Oxford

Michelle Anagnostou is a Banting Postdoctoral Fellow at the University of Oxford researching how to better leverage anti-money laundering interventions to tackle illegal wildlife trade. Collaborating...
Speaker Jessica SWEIDAN
Jessica SWEIDAN

Trustee

Synchronicity Earth

Jessica Sweidan has been engaged in global philanthropy since she graduated from Northwestern University (USA) in 1993 alongside her husband Adam. In 2009, they launched Synchronicity Earth, a UK-...
Speaker Jun HASHIMOTO
Jun HASHIMOTO

Landscape architect

Shimizu Corporation

I aspire to be a person who can articulate the inherent value of nature. I deeply believe in the power of landscape architecture—its potential not only to solve diverse problems related to human land...
Speaker Mariam ALRASHDI
Mariam ALRASHDI

Senior Officer Environment

Alainzoo

Speaker Sonia Castañeda
Sonia Castañeda

Deputy Director

Fundación Biodiversidad

I contribute to nature conservation and climate emergency through the management of organizations and projects. As a child I got inspired by Mafalda, a comic strip character and cultural icon of the...
Speaker Jacqueline NILES ARGUELLO
Jacqueline NILES ARGUELLO

Intern

Families In Nature

Jacqueline Niles Arguello (Jaxie) is an International Studies, Communication, & Spanish triple major at Trinity University in San Antonio, Texas.  Jaxie has a passion for environmental...
Speaker Natalia GREENE
Natalia GREENE

Politóloga

GARN - Global Alliance for the Rights of Nature

Natalia Greene - Ecuadorian activist and political scientist. Bachelor of Arts at Hampshire College, Massachusetts. Master’s degree in Social Sciences from FLACSO-Ecuador, Master’s degree in Climate...
Speaker Hong DOU
Hong DOU

Deputy Secretary General

Yunnan Green Environment Development Foundation

Deputy Secretary-General of the Yunnan Green Environment Development Foundation, and a Ph.D. in Zoology from Yunnan University. With a background in conservation biology, I have long been involved in...
Speaker Meshal ALHARBI
Meshal ALHARBI
Dr. Meshal Abdullah Alharbi is the Director General of the Rangelands Administration at the National Center for Vegetation Cover and Combating Desertification (NCVC). He earned his Ph.D. from King...
Speaker Liang LI
Liang LI

Vice Dean

IUCN World Commission on Protected Areas 2021-2025

Speaker Mark LECKIE
Mark LECKIE

Programme Officer

Integrated Biodiversity Assessment Tool

Mark Leckie is a Programme Officer at the Integrated Biodiversity Assessment Tool (IBAT), supporting companies, financial institutions, and conservation organizations in integrating biodiversity...
Speaker Deborah BACKUS
Deborah BACKUS

CEO

Clean Rivers

Deborah Backus is the CEO of Clean Rivers, a UAE-backed foundation addressing challenges at the nexus of waste and water. With over 20 years of experience leading transformative initiatives, she is...
Speaker Kartikeya SARABHAI
Kartikeya SARABHAI

Director

Centre for Environment Education

Kartikeya V. Sarabhai is an eminent environment educator and founder director of the Centre for Environment Education (CEE), India. He holds Tripos in Natural Science from Cambridge University, UK...
Speaker Elham CHEHAIMI
Elham CHEHAIMI

Director

CSO Network

Dr. Elham ChehaimiDirector, MENA CSO Network | Director, Posterity Institute | Action Learning Leader, GovCampusSustainability strategist and policy advisor with 15+ years’ experience bridging...
Speaker Waleed HAMZA
Waleed HAMZA

Professor of Oceanography and Aquatic Ecology

United Arab Emirates University

Prof. Waleed Hamza has obtained his Ph.D. from Italy in Aquatic Ecology, in 1994. He has and is acting as principal investigator of different research projects in the field of Oceanography and...
Speaker Chad Wilsey
Chad Wilsey

Chief Scientist

National Audubon Society

Chad leads a team of scientists conducting analyses in support of Audubon’s Flight Plan. Chad was a principal investigator on Audubon’s Survival by Degrees report, and Water and Birds in the Arid...
Speaker Astrid SCHOMAKER
Astrid SCHOMAKER

Executive Secretary

Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD)

In April 2024, the United Nations Secretary-General appointed Astrid Schomaker Executive Secretary of the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD).Prior to her appointment as Executive Secretary of...
Speaker Nur'ain LAPOLO
Nur'ain LAPOLO

Executive Director

Japesda

Nurain Lapolo has been the Executive Director of Japesda (Jaring Advokasi Pengelolaan Sumber Daya Alam) since 2018. She brings over a decade of experience in natural resource management, inclusive...