All Speakers

Speaker Kristin SMITHERS
Kristin SMITHERS

Advocacy and Development Officer

Wilderness Foundation Africa

Kristin Smithers is the Advocacy and Development Officer at Wilderness Foundation Africa, specialising in strategic advocacy, development, and public affairs. She has extensive experience managing...
Speaker Cheryl CHARLES
Cheryl CHARLES

President and CEO Emeritus

IUCN Commission on Education and Communication 2021-2025

#NatureForAll Co-Chair Cheryl Charles is an innovator, entrepreneur, educator, author and organizational executive. Throughout her career, Cheryl has focused on the well-being of children, families...
Speaker Joseph NJUE
Joseph NJUE

GIS Officer, Forest Landscape Restoration

IUCN Secretariat

Mr. Joseph Njiru holds a Bsc. Degree in Surveying and mapping and a Msc. in Computer Systems from University of Nairobi and Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology (JKUAT)respectively...
Speaker Nerissa CHAO
Nerissa CHAO

Director

Asian Species Action Partnership

Nerissa Chao is Director of the IUCN SSC Asian Species Action Partnership (ASAP), established to conserve species on the brink of extinction in Southeast Asia. She leads initiatives that channel...
Speaker Chanthasone PHOMMACHANH
Chanthasone PHOMMACHANH

Lao Programs Director

Saola Foundation

I am a biodiversity survey specialist and Lao national with extensive experience in leading field-based biological monitoring teams in the forests of the Annamite range.  I am the Laos...
Speaker AMIAN ARSENE NARCISSE ALPHONSE N'GUESSAN
AMIAN ARSENE NARCISSE ALPHONSE N'GUESSAN

Ingénieur des Techniques des Eaux et Forêts

Ministère de l'Environnement du Développement Durable et de la Transition Ecologique

Born on 21/10/1989 in Sikensi, Ivory Coast. I am a Forestry Engineer with a Master's degree in Environment, Specializing in Biodiversity and Sustainable Management of Ecosystems, with a focus on...
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 Tatiana IVANOVA
Tatiana IVANOVA

Project Officer

IUCN ECARO

Currently working as Conservation Action Project Officer in the Conservation Action Team of IUCN ECARO focusing on projects in Central Asia. Prior to joining IUCN, I have been managing national,...
Speaker Sergio EGUINO BUSTILLOS
Sergio EGUINO BUSTILLOS

Director Ejecutivo

FUNDACION PARA EL DESARROLLO DEL SISTEMA NACIONAL DE AREAS PORTEGIDAS FUNDESNAP - BOLIVIA

Agricultural Engineer with specialised in Agroecology, Protected Areas, Nature Conservation, and financial mechanisms. Master's student in International Cooperation for the Development of Peoples....
Speaker Omaima AHMED
Omaima AHMED

Education and CSR Senior Manager

Goumbook FZCO

Speaker Eileen Delia Mairena Cunningham
Eileen Delia Mairena Cunningham

Lider Indígena

CADPI

Eileen Mairena Cunningham is an Indigenous activist, climate justice advocate, and global researcher. A Miskitu woman from Waspam, on Nicaragua’s Caribbean Coast, she has spent over two decades...
Speaker Susan Lieberman
Susan Lieberman

Vice President, International Policy

Council 2021-2025

Dr. Susan Lieberman is Vice President, International Policy with the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS), where she leads WCS’s policy engagement in multiple intergovernmental fora. She has worked in...
Speaker Katelyn MACKENZIE
Katelyn MACKENZIE

Head of Impact

Jamma Conservation & Communities

Katie is South African, and has lived in Venezuela, Chile, Australia, and the UK. She has worked alongside NGOs and businesses aiming to incorporate different stakeholders within the field of...
Speaker Claudia SOARES MARTINS
Claudia SOARES MARTINS

Secretary Director

Podáali

Claudia Soares Baré, traditionally named Kirimbawa, is an Indigenous member of the Baré people of the Upper Rio Negro (Amazonas, Brazil). She is a sociologist and leader of the Amazonian Indigenous...
Speaker Vatosoa RAKOTONDRAZAFY
Vatosoa RAKOTONDRAZAFY

Regional Coastal and Ocean Governance Manager

IUCN

Vatosoa Rakotondrazafy is a leading Malagasy conservationist and strong advocate for small-scale fishers and community-led resource management. From 2015 to 2020, she served as National Coordinator...
Speaker Edgar RIBEIRO
Edgar RIBEIRO

Programme Officer

IUCN SSC CEC Behaviour Change Task Force

B.Sc. in Biology and Geology, with a specialization in Environmental Education, Edgar has 15 years of experience at Zoomarine Portugal, where he has developed expertise across multiple disciplines...
Speaker Ahmed LEFGHIH
Ahmed LEFGHIH

Executive Director

Fonds Fiduciaire pour le Banc d’Arguin et la Biodiversité Côtière et Marine

Economist, public finance specialist, sustainable finance expert
Speaker Cristi Marie NOZAWA
Cristi Marie NOZAWA

Executive Director

The Samdhana Institute

Cristi Marie C Nozawa Cristi joined Birdlife International in mid-1998 initially as partner development officer focusing on capacity building, institutional and network development; eventually...
Speaker Hariharan JANARDHANAN
Hariharan JANARDHANAN

NYUAD

Speaker Chantal VAN HAM
Chantal VAN HAM

Landscape Partnerships Lead - Europe

Commonland

Chantal van Ham works at Commonland to bring people together to restore landscapes and regenerate the Earth: our common land. With Commonland's holistic approach to landscape restoration - the 4...
Speaker Julien Pierre
Julien Pierre

CEO of Fair Play For Planet

Play For Nature

My name is Julien Pierre, and I am 43 years old. For almost 20 years, I had the opportunity to pursue a career as a professional rugby union player, during which I experienced many memorable moments...
Speaker Deni POREJ
Deni POREJ

Director Marine Conservation

Neom

Dr. Deni Porej is the Marine Conservation Director at NEOM, where he leads one of the world’s most ambitious marine conservation programs. Overseeing 4,000 km² of pristine northern Red Sea waters, he...
Speaker Ellora-Julie PAREKH
Ellora-Julie PAREKH

Chief Sustainability Officer

Al-Futtaim

Ellora-Julie Parekh, is currently the Group Chief Sustainability Officer at Al Futtaim Group, a leading family-owned conglomerate with headquarters in Dubai, UAE and operating in over 30 markets in...
Speaker Muzaffar AHMAD
Muzaffar AHMAD

Senior Environment Specialist

Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank

Muzaffar Ahmad is a Senior Environment Specialist at the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB), where his work is dedicated to ensuring that large-scale infrastructure investments are...
Speaker Helen TUGENDHAT
Helen TUGENDHAT

co-Executive Director

IUCN Commission on Environmental, Economic, and Social Policy 2021-2025

Helen Tugendhat is the co-Executive Director of Synchronicity Earth, a conservation funder based in the United Kingdom that works to support under-funded and over-looked ecosystems and species and...
Speaker Susana FILIPE
Susana FILIPE

Executive Director

CHANGE - Global Change and Sustainability Institute

Susana Filipe is the Executive Director of CHANGE – Institute for Global Changes and Sustainability, an organization with over 350 Researchers, that promotes scientific research to inform the design...
Speaker Zoe JAFFLIN
Zoe JAFFLIN

Programme and Grants Associate

IUCN Secretariat

Speaker Alejandra BOWLES
Alejandra BOWLES

Global Policy Events Manager

The Nature Conservancy