All Speakers

Speaker Jonathan CAZABONNE
Jonathan CAZABONNE

Ph.D. student

Université du Québec en Abitibi-Témiscamingue / Mycosphaera

My research aims to document the diversity of fungi and their interaction with other kingdoms, understand the mechanisms that shape fungal community assemblages, and determine their implications for...
Speaker Kristen WALKER-PAINEMILLA
Kristen WALKER-PAINEMILLA

Senior Vice President/Managing Director

IUCN/ Conservation International

Kristen Walker Painemilla is Senior Vice President of Inclusive Finance at Conservation International, where she drives global strategies to scale direct access finance for Indigenous Peoples and...
Speaker Samwel SHABA
Samwel SHABA

CEO

Honeyguide

Sam Shaba is the CEO of Honeyguide Foundation since 2024, where he has risen through the organization since joining in 2014. He leads a team of over 50 professionals, proving that community-led...
Speaker Suleman AUDU
Suleman AUDU

Senior Environmental Manager

Stichting The Ocean Cleanup

Suleman Audu is a Senior Environmental Manager at The Ocean Cleanup, where he leads strategic initiatives to assess and mitigate the environmental and social impacts of plastic pollution on marine...
Speaker Melissa LEACH
Melissa LEACH

Executive Director

Cambridge Conservation Initiative

Melissa Leach is Executive Director of the Cambridge Conservation initiative (CCI), a collaboration between ten world-leading nature and biodiversity organisations with the University of Cambridge,...
Speaker Olivia QingYang CHENG
Olivia QingYang CHENG

Student

Centre for Global Education

My name is Olivia Cheng. I’m 16 years old from Canada, and I'm incredibly grateful and empowered to bring conservation efforts to youth and youth to the conservation space. This cause is extremely...
Speaker Alain MUKIRANYA SIVAKOWA
Alain MUKIRANYA SIVAKOWA

Assistant to the Director

Institut Congolais pour la Conservation de la Nature (ICCN)

Bachelor's degree in ecology and wildlife management and multiple paramilitary training courses, leadership and civic engagement, protected areas management, natural heritage management, etc.Alain...
Speaker Melissa ABDERRAHIM
Melissa ABDERRAHIM

IUCN Secretariat

Marine Programme Officer in the IUCN Ocean Team, based in Headquarters. Working on blue carbon and blue natural capital, sustainable finance, conservation and restoration of marine and coastal...
Speaker Fiona WILTON
Fiona WILTON

Sacred Lands and Waters

The Gaia Foundation

+30 years experience in the non-profit sector, in South America and globally, working on a range of conservation and environment issues; accompanying indigenous communities in reviving bio-cultural...
Speaker Munir VIRANI
Munir VIRANI

Chief Operating Officer

Mohamed Bin Zayed Raptor Conservation Fund LLC

Dr. Munir Virani is Chief Executive of the Abu-Dhabi-based Mohamed bin Zayed Raptor Conservation Fund dedicated to the protection and conservation of threatened birds of prey...
Speaker Monika BERTZKY
Monika BERTZKY

Senior Manager and Head of Safeguards

Asesoramiento Ambiental Estrategico (AAE)

20 years of experience in international conservation, and ca 10 years of experience on environmental and social safeguards in conservation, climate change adaptation and mitigation and sustainable...
Speaker Rebecca WHITE
Rebecca WHITE

State Senator

State of Vermont

REBECCA WHITE is a lifelong Vermonter. She grew up in the village of Wilder, graduated from Hartford High School, and went on to earn a BA in history with a minor in speech and debate from the...
Speaker Ruth TIFFER SOTOMAYOR
Ruth TIFFER SOTOMAYOR

Senior Environmental Specialist

The World Bank

Ruth Tiffer Sotomayor is a Senior Environmental Specialist at the Global Environment Deparment of the World Bank with over 25 years of experience in biodiversity conservation, ecosystem restoration,...
Speaker Karim HAGGAR
Karim HAGGAR

Senior Advisor (Conservation & Biodiversity)

IUCN World Commission on Protected Areas 2021-2025

Dr. Karim Haggar, WCPA member and IUCN Congress ambassador, is a Senior Advisor at Roland Berger, where he focuses on nature conservation and biodiversity, with a broader emphasis on ESG,...
Speaker Doreen Simiyu NASIMIYU
Doreen Simiyu NASIMIYU

Communication Monitoring and Evaluation Lead

Community Action for Nature Conservaation

Doreen Nasimiyu Simiyu is a seasoned professional with over 15 years of experience in environmental conservation, fisheries governance, and policy advocacy across the South West Indian Ocean region....
Speaker Sonia PEñA MORENO
Sonia PEñA MORENO

Director, Centre for Policy and Law

IUCN

Sonia is a Colombian and Italian national. She is the Director of IUCN's  Centre for Policy and Law. Graduated from Political Sciences and Modern Languages at the University of Los Andes in...
Speaker Omagano SHOOYA
Omagano SHOOYA

Deputy Director , Southern Africa Portfolio

Maliasili

Omagano is the Deputy Director of the Southern Africa portfolio at Maliasili, where she plays a crucial role in providing institutional and leadership support to African organizations engaged in...
Speaker Nadege NZOYEM
Nadege NZOYEM

Snr Director West and Central Africa

Rainforest Alliance

Sharing the vision of making responsible business the new normal, Nadège Nzoyem joined Rainforest Alliance in October 2014 to pursue her passion of protecting forests and biodiversity while improving...
Speaker Dr.Sultan ALKAABI
Dr.Sultan ALKAABI

Manger of Veterinary services

Alain zoo

Dr Sultan Alkaabi :a dedicated veterinarian with over 11 years of experience across diverse fields in veterinary medicine. I graduated from Jordan University of Science and Technology in 2014 and...
Speaker Sylvia Gan
Sylvia Gan
Sylvia is the Learning Manager at the Youth Climate Justice Fund (YCJF), where she leads the design and implementation of monitoring and evaluation systems that generate evidence-based insights to...
Speaker Dina KASRAWI
Dina KASRAWI

Head of Company Engagement & Sustainability

BNP Paribas

Dina Kasrawi is Head of Company Engagement and Sustainability at BNP Paribas in the Middle East and Africa.  A seasoned professional, she has over 25 years of experience in financial services...
Speaker Lucie LABBE
Lucie LABBE

Coordinatrice BESTLIFE2030

Office Français de la Biodiversité

Speaker Liam FLOCKHART FORD
Liam FLOCKHART FORD

Humboldt Project Scientist

Families In Nature

Liam Flockhart Ford actively brings both scientific knowledge and a passion for conservation and sustainability to his work. He is the Program Coordinator of Blue Carbon Plus (BC+), a first-of-its-...
Speaker Neema Michael LEKULE
Neema Michael LEKULE

Indigenous Expert

Ujamaa Community Resource Team

Since working with Ujamaa Community Resource Team as Gender Field Officer and later promoted to Gender program coordinator, I have established and trained 97 Women's Rights and Leadership Forums in...
Speaker Kundan Kumar BURNWAL
Kundan Kumar BURNWAL

Deputy Project Director

GIZ India

Kundan Burnwal is a Senior Advisor and Deputy Project Director for the Indo-German bilateral cooperation project RECAP4NDC, which aims to restore, conserve, and protect forest and tree...
Speaker Pritpal SOORAE
Pritpal SOORAE

Programme Officer

IUCN Conservation Translocation Specialist Group

I am Deputy Chair of the IUCN Conservation Translocation Specialist Group and have been involved with group for nearly 30 years. During this time Ihave worked on developing various guidelines and...
Speaker Oscar Mora Altamirano
Oscar Mora Altamirano

Regidor Propietario

Municipalidad de Curridabat

Regidor Propietario del Concejo Municipal, Curridabat Empresario y Director de EmpresasEs el Punto Focal en la UICN del Gobierno Subnacional de CurridabatMiembro de Urban Alliance IUCN...
Speaker Jennifer SKENE
Jennifer SKENE

Global Forest Policy Manager, Int'l Program

Natural Resources Defense Council

Global Forest Policy Director, NRDCClinical Lecturer, Yale Law School