All Speakers

Jane BUDD

Head Veterinary Services

Environment and Protected Areas Authority Sharjah

Dr. Jane Budd is Head of Veterinary Services at the Environment and Protected Areas Authority (EPAA) in Sharjah, UAE. She has over 25 years of experience in wildlife health and conservation,…

Jenny GRAY

Chief Executive Officer

Zoos Victoria

Jenny Gray has been Chief Executive Officer of Zoos Victoria since 2007, leading its transformation into one of the world’s most respected zoo-based conservation organisations. Under her leadership,…

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…

Gerry CREIGHTON

Curator of Elephant Care and Conservation

Al Ain Zoo

Gerry Creighton has spent over 25 years working with elephants and has nearly 40 years of experience in a professional zoo environment. Gerry started work in Dublin Zoo in 1983 as a trainee keeper,…

Rinah RAZAFINDRABE

Directeur Général de la Gouvernance Environnementale

Ministère de l'Environnement et du Développement Durable Madagascar

Mr. Rinah Razafindrabe is the Director General of Environmental Governance within the Ministry of Environment and Sustainable Development. He has 20 years of experience in the field of natural…

Katherine GALIDO

Programme/MEL Coordinator

NTFP-EP Asia

Katherine (Kate) Mana-Galido has dedicated her career to environmental advocacy, community empowerment, and sustainable resource management. She began her professional journey with the Environmental…

James BARTRAM

Advisory Chair - NFEL

Toronto Zoo

I have a broad base of international experience in education, conservation and design, with particular interest in program start-ups, innovation, staff development and multi-agency partnerships. I’ve…

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,…

Dickson Kaelo

Chief Executive Officer

Kenya Wildlife Conservancies Association

Dickson Ole Kaelo is a conservation ecologist and the founding Chief Executive Officer of the Kenya Wildlife Conservancies Association (KWCA). With over 20 years of experience, he has championed…

Joao SOUSA

Senior Programme Officer, Blue Natural Capital

IUCN Secretariat

Name : Joao Matos de Sousa Academic Background: Joao possesses a BA in Biotechnology, a MA in Biotechnology Engineering and a post graduation in Engineering Policy and Management of Technology.…

Torsten THIELE

Founder

Global Ocean Trust

Torsten Thiele is a sustainable finance and ocean governance expert and the Founder of Global Ocean Trust. He supports policy development and researches innovative Blue Finance approaches, drawing on…

Lucas JOPPA

Eman SABBAGH

Senior Specialist in Marine and Coastal Conservation

Nationl Center for Wildlife (NCW)

Dr. Eman Sabbagh is a marine scientist with experience in marine ecology, conservation, and environmental management in the Red Sea and Arabian Gulf. She specializes in seagrass ecology, coral…

Wendy Yap

Director, International Biodiversity Conservation

National Parks Board, Singapore

Wendy Yap is the Director for International Biodiversity Conservation at the National Parks Board of Singapore. She oversees regional and global cooperation on nature conservation and biodiversity,…

Sandrine Enguehard

Deputy Chief Sustainability Officer

Societe Generale

Deputy CSO since March 2024, Sandrine is notably in charge of our Nature task force and Sustainable Business.Previously Sandrine Enguehard was Heading our Sustainable finance team for SG…

Diana GARLYTSKA

Youth Advisory Committee Chair

IUCN

Diana Garlytska is a young expert who over 9 years of her career in academia has taught in more than a dozen of countries across Europe and Asia as a visiting lecturer. Diana has written several…

Georges HABIB

Young Professional Focal Point

IUCN CEESP

Georges is an Engineering Geologist with a strong foundation in Geosciences, currently exploring the intersection of the earth beneath our feet and the energy systems shaping our future. With a…

Suk-Kyung SHIM

Chair of Education and Communication Committee

IUCN National Committee of Korea

Dr. Suk-Kyung Shim is the Director of the Institute for Human and Nature. She has extensive experience in policy…

Deborah BRADY

Lead Ecologist

The Lifescape Project

Deborah Brady is an experienced ecologist specialising in mammals and the use of species reintroductions as a tool to address biodiversity loss at a landscape scale. As a founding director and now…

Susan LEOPOLD

Executive director

United Plant Savers

Dr. Susan Leopold is an ethnobotanist and conservation biologist known for her work in the fields of plant conservation, sustainable agriculture, and ethnobotany. She is the Executive Director of the…

Jessica Webb

Strategy Lead, Forests and Nature for People • Food-Land-Water Program

World Resources Institute (WRI)

Jessica Webb is Strategy Lead for Forests & Nature for People and Co-director of Global Forest Watch at the World Resources Institute (WRI). She has over 15 years of experience advancing tropical…

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…

Won Wa Musiti BIHINI

Congo Basin Affiliate Consultant

Synchronicity-Earth

I have been an Affiliate Consultant with Synchronicity Earth since 2018 for its Congo Basin Programme. I bring over thirty years of professional experience, including nearly twenty years of an…

Alison Ormsby

Associate Director of Design/ Forest Specialist

Adventure Scientists

Alison Ormsby has a PhD in Environmental Studies and was a professor of Environmental Studies for 20 years. Dr. Ormsby has taught human ecology and policy courses and published about topics that…

Emma HINCHLIFFE

Director, IUCN UK Peatland Programme

IUCN UK Peatland Programme

Dr Emma Hinchliffe worked for the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA) devising policy and guidance to support wetland protection, having taken a PhD on the functional ecological role of a…

Rob SMALL

Director, People & Nature

Fauna & Flora

Rob Small is Director of Fauna & Flora’s People & Nature programme. This team of interdisciplinary specialists, supports projects and partners across 30 countries in the Americas and…

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…

Mariam WESTON FLORES

Programme Officer

IUCN SSC HWCC SG

I am an Engineer in Sustainable Development with an MPhil in Conservation Leadership from the University of Cambridge and an unfathomable passion for wildlife conservation and sustainable social…