SPEAKERS
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Cape Town Deputy Mayor Alderman Eddie Andrews
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Dr. Frank Aswani
Chief Executive Officer, African Venture Philanthropy Alliance
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Jonathas Azevedo
Executive Director of Rede Comuá | Board member of Médecins Sans Frontières Brazil
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Dr. Basani Baloyi
Programme Director at the Institute of Economic Justice
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Prof. Andrew Boraine
Partnering and Systems Change Practitioner
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Ziyad Cassim
South Africa Country Representative for the Global Energy Alliance for People and Planet (GEAPP)
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Karabo Chadzingwa
Researcher, Governance and Specialised Reporting Directorate of the African Peer Review Mechanism (APRM) Continental Secretariat
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Lisa Chamberlain
Executive Director, Environmental Justice Fund
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Raisa Cole
F20 South African Chair & Climate Governance Lead at Democracy Works Foundation
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Michelle Cruywagen
Senior Just Transition and Coal Campaign Manager, groundWork
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Slim Dali
Regional Economist, French Development Agency (AFD)
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Lena Dente
Senior Programme Manager, Energy and Just Development
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Rudi Dicks
Head of the Project Management Office (PMO) in the Private Office of the President of South Africa
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Bertha Dlamini
Founding President of African Women in Energy and Power (AWEaP)
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Mira Dutschke
Human rights and governance expert & founder of Kuhama
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Paula Ellinger
Director of Social Innovation at Fundación Avina
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Saliem Fakir
Executive Director, African Climate Foundation
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Duncan Hay
Strategic Advisor, The Lewis Foundation
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Katrin Harvey
Secretary General of the Foundations Platform F20
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Dr. Chantelle Howlett-Downing
Senior Scientist, Pretoria MRC Climate Change and Health division
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Janet Jobson
Chief Executive Officer of the Desmond and Leah Tutu Legacy Foundation
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Zama Khanyile
Divisional Executive: Venture Capital & Corporate Finance
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Nangamso Ka NomaHlubi-Koza
Development Strategist and Atlantic Fellow
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H.E. Mrs Sandra Kramer
EU Ambassador to the Republic of South Africa
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Kate Landon
Executive Director, Ban Ki-moon Foundation
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Severino Lima Júnior
International Articulation Secretary of UNICATADORES | Founder of the Latin American and Caribbean Network of Waste Pickers
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Stuart Mangold
Chief Policy Advisor: International Governance and Resource Mobilisation at the National Department of Forestry and Fisheries and the Environment (DFFE)
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Mandisa Mathobela
International development and philanthropy consultant
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Dorah Marema
Portfolio Head for Municipal Sustainability at the South African Local Government Association (SALGA)
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Brenda Martin
Independent Advisor: SA Energy Transition
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Indiphile Matini
Programme Manager, Youth Ambassador for Climate Change, Social Change Assistance Trust
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Lebogang Matlakala
Programme Manager, Wild Impact
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Amadou Mbodj
Strategy Lead, Fundación Avina
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Glacia Mkansi
Programme Co-ordinator, Wild Impact
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Dorah Modise
Executive Director of the Presidential Climate Commission
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Jerrod Moodley
Finance Specialist, JET PMU
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Zarina Moolla
Head of Climate Action Implementation in Africa, in C40's Regions & Mayoral Engagement Team
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Shehnaaz Moosa
Director of the Climate and Development Knowledge Network (CDKN) programme | Oversees the finance hub at South South North
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Nyasha McBride Mpani
Project Leader Data for Governance Alliance Project
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Chido Cleopatra Mpemba
Special Envoy on Youth, Cabinet of the Chairperson, African Union Commission
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Patricia Mugambi-Ndegwa
CEO & Head of Secretariat, Impact Philanthropy Africa
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Malango Mughogho
Managing Director of ZeniZeni Sustainable Finance
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Aliness P. Mumba
Regional Lead on Climate Justice and Natural Resource Governance, Southern Africa Trust
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María Paula Murcia Huertas
Co-founder of Mutante
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Bongiwe Ndondo
Executive Director, Hlanganisa Community Fund
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Joel Netshitenzhe
Executive Director and Vice-Chairperson of the Board of Governors of the Mapungubwe Institute for Strategic Reflection (MISTRA)
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Kudzayi Ngwerume
Communications and engagement lead, UMI Fund
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Georgia Nicolau
Director, Instituto Procomum | Fellow, Atlantic Fellows for Social and Economic Equity program at the London School of Economics and Political Science
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Harrison Ajebe Nnoko
Executive President (CEO), Ajesh
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Olawunmi Ola-Busari
Political Impact Manager, The ONE Campaign
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Mana Omar
Founder and Executive Director of Spring of the Arid and Semi-Arid Lands (SASAL)
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Juan Pablo Osornio
Engagement Director, Earth Insight
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Paula Quintas
Vice President of Collective Intelligence and Flagships at the BMW Foundation
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Dr. Reham Rizk
Director of the Egypt Impact Lab
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Dr. Artur Runge-Metzger
Fellow, Mercator Research Institute on Global Commons
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Dr. Muhammad Sayed
Specialist, Climate and Environmental Finance Unit at the DBSA
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Valeria Scorza
CEO, Fundación Avina
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Vumile Senene
South Africa Country Lead, Clean Air Fund
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Kalnisha Singh
Development Economist, Strategic Industrial and Economic Transformation Specialist
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Dr. Nomvuselelo “Mvusy” Songelwa (PhD)
Founder of Lipstick Chronicles
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Justin Sylvester
Senior Strategist, ClimateWorks Foundation
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Irvan Tengku Harja
Program Manager for Just Energy Transition & Researcher at The Habibie Centre
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Jiao Tang
Deputy CEO, Catalytic Finance Foundation
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Nivedita Varshneya
Regional Advisor, Advocacy and Collaborations, Welthungerhilfe (WHH)
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Dr Andrew Venter
CEO, Wild Impact
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Alan Wallis
Programme Officer, Natural Resources and Climate Change Programme, Ford Foundation
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Mark Wittcoff
Chairman and General Partner of KW Commercial Landmark & former U.S. Ambassador to the Council for Ukraine Reconstruction
Emcees
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Babalwa Mni
Sustainability Communication Specialist
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Reon van der Merwe
Founder & Director of Impacting Youth
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Deputy Mayor Alderman of Cape Town
Alderman Eddie Andrews holds a Bachelor of Administration (HONS) majoring in Public Administration and Politics (University of Western Cape). Before entering public office, he played professional rugby for Western Province, Stormers, and Springboks. As a consequence of being an active community activist and wanting to do more, he transitioned into politics in 2011 as a City of Cape Town Councillor and has since served as a Sub Council Chairperson, Portfolio Committee Chairperson, and Mayoral Committee Member. He is currently serving the residents of Cape Town as the Executive Deputy Mayor and the Mayoral Committee Member for Spatial Planning and Environment. He remains resolute in his desire to ensure that the City of Cape Town fulfils its enabling obligation and contributes sustainably towards Cape Town’s shared future.
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Chief Executive Officer, African Venture Philanthropy Alliance
Dr Frank Aswani has extensive experience in both the private and social sectors. Before joining AVPA Frank held the position of VP and Director of Strategic Relations for six years at the African Leadership Academy (ALA) in Johannesburg, where he led ALA’s corporate partnerships, business development and fundraising activities. He has also worked for Absolute Return for Kids (ARK) as the Regional Director for Africa and spent fourteen years with Eli Lilly where he worked in Kenya, England, Switzerland and South Africa. His last role at Eli Lilly was Sales Director for South Africa and Regional Director for Sub Sahara Africa.
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Executive Director of Rede Comuá | Board member of Médecins Sans Frontières Brazil
Jonathas Azevedo holds a Bachelor's degree in International Relations from the Federal University of Fluminense and specialized in Humanitarian Aid and Development at PUC-RIO. In 2020, he completed his Master's in Social Innovation and Entrepreneurship at the London School of Economics and Political Science. Jonathas has worked in project management, monitoring, and evaluation, and partnership building with Brazil and Haiti. He has experience in projects focusing on human rights, community engagement, violence reduction, and other related areas. He is currently the Executive Director of Rede Comuá and a board member of Médecins Sans Frontières Brazil.
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Programme Director at the Institute of Economic Justice
Dr. Basani Baloyi is a Co-Programme Director at the IEJ. She is a feminist, development economist and activist. She gained her research experience while working on industrial policy issues in academia, at the Centre For Competition, Regulation and Economic Development (CCRED) and Corporate Strategy and Industrial Development (CSID) Unit. She is the former Inequality Programme Lead at Oxfam South Africa where she infused her research and management experience with movement building and coordination, campaigning and advocating for economic and social justice, in partnership with social movements. Dr Baloyi was the co-editor of a recently published book "The Evolving Structure of South Africa's Economy: Faultlines and Futures" Mistra Publication. Dr Baloyi is also the former Director of Industrial Policy and Acting Chief Director in the Industrial Procurement Unit at the Department of Trade and Industry. Dr Baloyi holds a PhD in Economics at the School of Oriental and African Studies, an MA in Public Policy and an MCom in Economics from Wits University.
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Partnering and Systems Change Practitioner
Andrew is an independent partnering and systems change practitioner with over five decades of experience working in South Africa's political, local government, urban, economic, and sustainability transformations.
He established and led three collaborative intermediary organisations: the South African Cities Network (SACN), the Cape Town Partnership (CTP), and the Western Cape Economic Development Partnership (EDP).
Andrew has hands-on experience with over 100 multi-stakeholder partnering processes, covering a wide range of issues and sectors, such as water, waste, energy, just transition, mobility and transport, transition to biobased materials, inclusionary housing, food and nutrition, public safety and violence reduction, agriculture and rural development, local economic development, youth employment, homelessness, urban management and place-making, tourism, open data, wetlands conservation, and collective memory work.
He advises a diverse range of local and international partners in government, civil society, community organisations, business, and research and knowledge institutions on how to achieve collective impact. Andrew is an adjunct professor at the University of Cape Town's African Centre for Cities (ACC), a research fellow at Stellenbosch University's Centre for Sustainability Transitions (CST), and a member of the Institute for Integrated Transitions (IFIT) Transition Assistance Practice Group.
Andrew was City Manager of Cape Town from 1997 to 2001. He was previously Deputy Director General (Local Government) in the Department of Constitutional Development in the mid-1990s. In this capacity, he assisted with the drafting of the local government chapter in the SA Constitution and initiated the first Local Government White Paper process in 1997-98. He is currently the drafting coordinator of the 2025-26 Review of the Local Government White Paper.
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South Africa Country Representative for the Global Energy Alliance for People and Planet (GEAPP)
Ziyad Cassim is the South Africa Country Representative for the Global Energy Alliance for People and Planet (GEAPP), where he works closely with South African government to accelerate the Just Energy Transition. In South Africa, GEAPP has focussed on strengthening the enabling environment, accelerating fossil-fuel decommissioning pilots and supporting projects that enable the jobs transition. Prior to joining GEAPP, Ziyad was an Associate Partner at McKinsey & Company, working across more than 15 countries in Sub-Saharan Africa, the Middle East and North America on strategy on corporate finance topics for energy, mining and manufacturing players. He also co-led McKinsey’s sustainability and energy transition practices in Africa.
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Researcher, Governance and Specialised Reporting Directorate of the African Peer Review Mechanism (APRM) Continental Secretariat
Karabo Chadzingwa is a researcher in the Governance and Specialised Reporting Directorate of the African Peer Review Mechanism (APRM) Continental Secretariat where she coordinates work on Natural Resource Governance, undertakes governance research and facilitates several flagship projects in APRM members states. She holds a master’s degree (MSc) in Environmental Science from Rhodes University, South Africa. Her research interests include natural resource governance, socio-ecological systems, land policy, Integrated Water Resource Management (IWRM), climate finance, and public policy.
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Executive Director of the Environmental Justice Fund
Lisa Chamberlain is an activist, attorney and academic with more than 15 years of experience working in the social and environmental justice sector in South Africa. She is currently the Executive Director of the Environmental Justice Fund (EJF), a Visiting Senior Lecturer in the Law School at the University of the Witwatersrand (Wits) and a Research Associate at the Southern Centre for Inequality Studies at Wits.
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Climate Governance Lead at Democracy Works Foundation
Raisa Cole’s work embodies the principles of intersectional environmental feminism, recognising the interconnectedness of social justice, racial and gender equity, and environmental sustainability. As the Organisational Development Manager at Democracy Works Foundation, where she also leads the organisation’s Climate Governance Programme, she works to amplify the voices and ingenuity of those at the forefront of the climate crises. She is currently pursuing a PhD in environmental governance at the Wageningen University and Research. She refers to herself as a scholar activist who uses participatory and community-centred research approaches to inform more inclusive and responsive decision making.
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Senior Just Transition and Coal Campaign Manager
Michelle Cruywagen joined groundWork in 2022 as a Senior Just Transition and Coal Campaign Manager, her work includes support to the Africa Coal Network (ACN), Life After Coal Campaigns and capacitating grassroots activism. Prior to joining groundWork, she provided input to GIZ’s Climate Support Programmes response to the IKI call for proposals for a Just Transition to a decarbonised economy. Michelle has an MPhil in Sustainable Development and her master’s thesis explored the cost of a just transition in South Africa. Her career includes 20 years of strategic communications experience.
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Regional Economist at the French Development Agency (AFD)
Slim Dali is a Regional Economist at the French Development Agency (AFD), currently based in Johannesburg. A graduate of the Toulouse School of Economics (TSE), he has held various economist positions within the French Ministry of Economy and Finance and AFD, with a strong focus on macroeconomic analysis, country risk, and climate change. He is currently engaged in supporting policy dialogue around the Just Energy Transition.
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Senior Programme Manager, Energy and Just Development
Lena Dente leads the climate and just development work at the World Future Council. She has experience in the civic and private sector having worked with various stakeholders to make progress across climate and sustainability efforts. As a senior philanthropy advisor at UBS, she worked with philanthropists to help them achieve more impact with their philanthropic capital. She has worked to create sustainability and ESG-focused content and worked with various public and private sector leaders to move from dialogue to climate action. Her career path includes time at the World Economic Forum, the World Energy Council, UBS and as a Robert Bosch Foundation Fellow in Berlin. She has a Bachelor´s Degree in International Studies from DePauw University in Indiana and a Master´s Degree in International Security Policy from Georgetown University´s Graduate School of Foreign Service. Most recently she completed further studies in sustainability at the Cambridge Institute for Sustainability Leadership.
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Head of the Project Management Office (PMO) in the Private Office of the President of South Africa
Rudi Dicks is the Head of the Project Management Office (PMO) in the Private Office of the President. He is responsible for supporting the implementation of the Presidential Employment Stimulus (PES), the Presidential Youth Employment Initiative (PYEI) as well as unblocking regulatory challenges that impact on employment an economic growth. He also oversees the coordination and implementation of the Just Energy Transition Investment Plan. Rudi jointly leads Operation Vulindlela which has been established as a joint initiative between the Presidency and National Treasury to accelerate structural reforms.
In his previous role, he was an Outcomes Facilitator at the Department of Planning Monitoring and Evaluation (DPME), responsible for monitoring the performance of economic and infrastructure outcomes and supporting various economic interventions across government. In this role he established the Socio-Economic Impact Assessment System (SEIAS) that is currently applied across national government.
He also formally served as the Executive Director of the National Labour and Economic Development Institute (NALEDI), the research arm of COSATU from 2008 to 2013. Before 2008, he worked at COSATU and its affiliates, in various capacities since 1994.
Rudi has a Post-Graduate Diploma in Economic Principles as well as a Master of Science (MSc) Finance from the University of London. He also has a Management Advanced Programme qualification from the WITS Business School.
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Founding President of African Women in Energy and Power (AWEaP)
Bertha Dlamini is a seasoned management consultant and gender equity strategist with over 15 years of experience in stakeholder engagement, strategic programme design, change management, and entrepreneurship development. As the Founding President of African Women in Energy and Power (AWEaP), she has led pioneering work to integrate women entrepreneurs into Africa’s energy value chains, delivering capacity-building programmes across 30 African countries
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Human rights and governance expert and founder of Kuhama
Mira is a human rights and governance expert dedicated to driving impactful, community-centered change. She is the founder of Kuhama, a consultancy committed to shifting power and perspectives at the intersection of climate and development. Mira champions innovative, home-grown solutions to the climate crisis, centering local narratives and advancing inclusive, participatory approaches.
Her work spans capacity building, project and grant management, technical support, and the design of learning and communication strategies—all aimed at deepening meaningful participation in both invented and invited decision-making spaces. Drawing on her broad and diverse networks, she fosters collaboration across sectors to support community-driven development and climate action.
A strategic thinker, Mira integrates content production with cross-sectoral knowledge co-creation, reflecting her commitment to strengthening social compacts and advancing equity in climate and development governance.
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Director of Social Innovation at Fundación Avina
Paula Ellinger is Director of Social Innovation at Fundación Avina, where she oversees the foundation’s programmatic portfolio. For over 15 years, she has worked at the intersection of climate governance and social innovation in Latin America, facilitating collaborative processes that bridge gaps and connect knowledge with decision-making for a just transition. She holds a BA in International Relations and an MA in Local Development.
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Executive Director, African Climate Foundation
Saliem Fakir is an expert in the fields of climate and energy, finance and economics. He is the Founder and Executive Director of the African Climate Foundation, the first strategic grant-making foundation on the African continent with a focus on delivering impact through support to interventions at the climate-development nexus. He currently also holds the position of honorary lecturer at the Mandela School of Governance (UCT). Saliem served on the Board of GreenCape and is currently serving on the Board of the Atlantic Special Economic Zone.
Prior to establishing the African Climate Foundation, Saliem served as the Head of the Policy & Futures Unit of WWF South Africa for 11 years. He worked at Lereko Energy Investments. He served as a Senior Lecturer at the Department of Public Administration and Planning and an Associate Director for the Centre for Renewable and Sustainable Energy at Stellenbosch University. Prior to that he served as Director of the World Conservation Union, South Africa (IUCN-SA) for eight years. He has served on several other Boards and is a prolific writer who contributes regularly to leading South African publications like Engineering News, Business Day and the Daily Maverick
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Strategic Advisor, The Lewis Foundation
Duncan Hay is the Strategic Advisor to the Lewis Foundation, a conservation focused philanthropy, and an Associate Research Fellow at the University of KwaZulu-Natal. He is the retired Executive Director of the Institute of Natural Resources (INR). He is also a non-executive director of the GreenMatter Partnership where, in 2022, he also served as interim executive director. Duncan earned an MSc degree in Zoology from the University of Natal (now UKZN) and a post-graduate diploma in environmental security from the University of Cambridge. He has over forty years’ experience in natural resource management and rural development programmes and projects, and in developing the capacity of young professionals in these fields. He has led multi-disciplinary teams to several international and national awards including the national Green Trust Award for the Eastern Cape Estuaries Management Programme. He has authored over forty reports and publications, many of them focusing on translating technical subjects into language that is understandable to the general public. Apart from directing the INR and GreenMatter, his recent focus has been on freshwater resources and catchment conservation, particularly the role nature plays in water security.
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Secretary General, Foundations Platform F20
Before joining F20, Katrin was Chief Operations Officer of the Ban Ki-moon Centre for Global Citizens. In that role, she worked closely with global leaders and young changemakers to accelerate progress towards the SDGs and the goals of the Paris Climate Agreement, as part of the legacy of former UN-SG Ban Ki-moon.
In over 15 years working in the fields of sustainability, climate action, clean energy, and organizational management, Katrin has managed projects in Europe, Africa, and Asia in partnership with philanthropic organisations, UN agencies, the EU, and governmental development agencies. In her work she focused on climate change adaptation, sustainable agriculture and food systems, clean energy access, climate change education and capacity building, public-private dialogue, and on facilitating South-South and South-North knowledge exchange among experts in energy efficiency, energy regulation and international law.
Katrin has academic degrees in language studies and international development.
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Senior Scientist in the Climate Change and Health division of the MRC in Pretoria
Dr Chantelle Howlett-Downing is a Senior Scientist in the Climate Change and Health division of the MRC in Pretoria. With a history of chemistry, environmental management and environmental health studies, Chantelle is very interested in the interface between air pollution and health and finding new ways to investigate and understand how these very complex systems work apart and when they meet. At the MRC, Chantelle is active with the Clean Air Fund project and contributing to a range of other analytical activities. Chantelle is also active in academic activities such as supervision for postgraduate students, and is currently an Extraordinary Lecturer at UP. Chantelle is active in the Ethics and Philosophy division for ISES-ISEE.
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Chief Executive Officer of the Desmond and Leah Tutu Legacy Foundation
Janet Jobson is the Chief Executive Officer of the Desmond and Leah Tutu Legacy Foundation, where she drives their work on societal healing for peace and transformation. Previously, Janet was the Deputy CEO (and Acting CEO for the period Feb 2021 to Feb 2022) at the DG Murray Trust (DGMT). At DGMT Janet worked to grow the organization as a public innovator aiming to build a South Africa where all people can fulfil their potential. Alongside her overall organizational leadership, at DGMT Janet specifically led strategies focused on creating platforms for youth leadership networks, tackling school dropout and youth unemployment, and growing an innovative and inclusive society. Janet has held governance roles and worked in various capacities with a range of organizations such as Activate! Leadership, Amandla.mobi, Life Choices, Amnesty International South Africa, CIVICUS, and the South African Girl Child Alliance. Janet brings to her work a drive to build a more compassionate, connected, and just world.
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Divisional Executive: Venture Capital & Corporate Finance
Ms Khanyile is a qualified Chartered Accountant with the South African Institute of Chartered Accountants (SAICA). She holds a Bachelor of Commerce degree in Accounting from the Rand Afrikaans University, a B.Com Honours degree in Accounting from the University of Johannesburg, a Certificate in the Theory of Accounting (CTA) from the same university, and she completed an Emerging Markets Certificate with Fordham University (New York).
Ms Khanyile has over 17 years of experience which spans accounting, external audit, finance, investments, and strategic leadership. Her career started at KPMG as an article clerk and progressed to post-articles, she has worked for the Industrial Development Corporation where she participated in transactions across the African continent. She subsequently joined the National Empowerment Fund (NEF) as the uMnotho Fund Manager and served in this role until May 2021 when she began acting as the Divisional Executive: Venture Capital & Corporate Finance, a role she was officially appointed to on the 01st of October 2021.
As a Divisional Executive, she leads and oversees the investment and strategic activities of the Strategic Projects Fund, uMnotho Fund, and the Women Empowerment Fund. She is the Chairperson of the NEF’s Third-Party Funds Investment Committee which is tasked with supporting South Africa’s economic reconstruction and recovery plan by providing funding through funding partnerships that cut across key sectors of the economy.
Ms Khanyile is the past President of African Woman Chartered Accountants (AWCA). She was listed by the Mail & Guardian as one of the Top 200 Young South African in 2019. She is a Choiseul Africa Laureate, a French institution that recognizes 100 Africans under 40 that set to contribute to the economic development of the continent and was ranked SAICA's top 35 - under – 35 Chartered Accountants.
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Development Strategist and Atlantic Fellow
Nangamso Ka NomaHlubi-Koza is a development and change management strategist with a track record of spearheading initiatives across diverse global contexts—from designing educational equity programs to mentoring grassroots leaders—resulting in scalable, sustainable impacts for underserved populations, with a special focus on education, leadership and sustainable livelihoods.
Nangamso is a Global Atlantic Fellows (AFHESA) leading the Food Sovereignty Network. She founded Umhlaba Yimpilo - a movement strengthening community capacitation and resilience in advancing food sovereignty. Her work has informed policy frameworks, optimised NGO operations, and strengthened community resilience. As an author, Nangamso has produced children's literature currently utilised by the Department of Basic Education in South African schools.
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EU Ambassador to the Republic of South Africa
Sandra Kramer is the European Union’s Ambassador to South Africa since August 2022. Ambassador Kramer joined the European Commission in 1995 in the Directorate-General for External Relations. She served as Trade Counsellor at the EU Delegation to Indonesia and as Head of Economic Co-operation at the EU Delegation to India. Ambassador Kramer served as assistant to the European Commission’s Chief Spokesperson and assistant to the Deputy Director-General in the Directorate-General for Enterprise & Industry. In 2014, Ambassador Kramer joined the Cabinet of European Commission President Juncker as Director of Coordination and Administration with key responsibilities on Budget and Human Resources. She served as Africa Director at the European Commission’s Directorate-General for International Partnerships from 2019 - 2022. Ambassador Kramer holds a Master’s degree in Literature from the University of Groningen, as well as a Master’s degree in Economics and International Relations from the Johns Hopkins University, School of Advanced International Studies, Bologna and Washington DC.
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Executive Director, Ban Ki-moon Foundation
Kate Landon holds over twenty years of experience in nonprofit management and foundation roles, and is passionate about advancing gender, racial, and economic justice within philanthropy and for sustainable development. She currently serves as Executive Director of the Ban Ki-moon Foundation based in NYC, which advances the Sustainable Development Goals and Paris Climate Agreement through mobilization of both existing and emerging leaders the U.S. and Americas, with a focus on women and youth. Previous roles include Executive Director of the New Haven/Leon Sister City Project and Vice President of Programs and Institutional Advancement at The New York Women’s Foundation. She holds an M. P. A. in Public and Nonprofit Management and Policy from the Robert F. Wagner School of Public Service at NYU and a B. A. in Sociology from Rutgers College.
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International Articulation Secretary of UNICATADORES and founder of the Latin American and Caribbean Network of Waste Pickers
Recyclable materials picker, founding member, and the first elected President (2024–2029) of the International Alliance of Waste Pickers (IAWP), with affiliates across five continents. He is the International Articulation Secretary of UNICATADORES and founder of the Latin American and Caribbean Network of Waste Pickers, representing 14 countries in the region. A grassroots picker at the COOCAMAR cooperative in Natal, Brazil, he has been a Brazilian delegate to the United Nations Environment Assembly (UNEA) negotiations on the Global Plastics Treaty, actively participating in the Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee (INC) meetings. He represents UNICATADORES at the International Labour Organization (ILO) Assembly in Geneva, collaborating with sister networks such as StreetNet, FITH, and HomeNet to build the International Alliance of Workers in the Circular Solidarity Economy under the principles of a Just Transition. Currently, he coordinates efforts to ensure strong waste picker participation at COP30, to be held in Belém, Brazil, in the Amazon region in 2025. He is also an ESG specialist.
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Chief Policy Advisor: International Governance and Resource Mobilisation at the National Department of Forestry and Fisheries and the Environment (DFFE)
Mr STUART MANGOLD currently holds the position of Chief Policy Advisor: International Governance and Resource Mobilisation at the National Department of Forestry and Fisheries and the Environment (DFFE) based in Pretoria, South Africa, since October 2023. He is responsible for the Chief Directorate which coordinates the Department’s international relations, engagements and cooperation agreements and facilitates resource mobilisation for strategic environment and climate change programmes.
Previously he held the position of Senior Policy Advisor: Africa and Bilateral Relations, at DFFE since 2007. He was responsible for policy, research, negotiation, as well as monitoring and reporting on African and South-South international engagements. He has extensive experience in international co-operation in fields of environment, climate change, biodiversity, oceans and coastal management particularly in Africa and the developing world.
Since the start of his career, he has garnered a wide range of experience in the environmental field, including strategic environmental assessment, integrated environmental management, natural resource management and ecology, state of the environment reporting, project management and intergovernmental relations.
He studied at Rhodes University, Grahamstown, South Africa and holds a B.Sc. in Life Sciences, an Honours Degree in Ichthyology and Fisheries Science as well as a Higher Diploma in Journalism and Media Studies. He is a graduate and Fellow of the Leadership for Environment and Development (LEAD) Programme, an international post-graduate programme for mid-career professionals in environment and sustainable development.
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International development and philanthropy consultant
Mandisa Mathobela is an international development and philanthropy consultant with a specialisation in strategic partnerships and corporate affairs. Her career experience spans across the public and private sector, covering roles in Africa, Europe and the United States. Mandisa is passionate about accelerating socio-economic transformation and mobilizing the delivery of the SDGs through strategic philanthropy and public-private partnerships. Within the United Nations (UN), Mandisa has led resource mobilisation and fundraising for UNICEF and brokered strategic partnerships for UNHCR with the private sector to drive and support the UN’s work in South Africa. Prior to joining the UN, Mandisa served as the Group Head of Stakeholder Relations for Old Mutual Limited and the Group Marketing Manager for Old Mutual plc. In these roles, she was instrumental in spearheading the Group's external affairs and sustainability strategies with its primary stakeholders across 14 markets in Africa. Mandisa is a 2022 recipient of the international Eisenhower Fellowship for Climate Action and a founding director of the Institute for Stakeholder Relations Southern Africa. She holds a Masters degree in International Trade and Investment Policy from The George Washington University and a BA (Hons) degree in International Relations from the University of the Witwatersrand.
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Portfolio Head for Municipal Sustainability at the South African Local Government Association (SALGA)
Dorah Marema is currenly the Portfolio Head for Municipal Sustainability at the South African Local Government Association (SALGA) responsible for climate change, envi-ronmental management, disaster management and fire services. She is a Senior At-lantic Fellow for Racial Equity. Dorah has been involved in issues of sustainability since late 90s and worked with a wide range of multi-stakeholders in various sectors includ-ing small-scale agriculture, environment, climate change, renewable energy, gender and land-rights at local, national and international levels. She founded GenderCC Southern Africa-Women for Climate Justice in 2008 and co-founded the Green Busi-ness college in 2017 - a social enterprise based in Johannesburg, dedicated to building ‘green’ entrepreneurs by uniting green skills with business know-how.
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Independent Advisor: SA Energy Transition
Brenda Martin has played a leading role in South Africa’s policy-driven energy transition since 2007. She has facilitated and led formal civil society, public and private sector participation in both distributed and utility-scale power supply policy and planning.
Since 2014 she has advised Philanthropy Foundations and Development Banks on national energy transition, specialising in socio-political and economic analysis. Brenda produced the first map of influential public sector stakeholders in South Africa’s energy transition in 2019, and she continues to update it annually. As an independent non-executive director, she Chairs the Board of the Pele Energy Group, a South African-owned Independent Power Producer (IPP).
Brenda has an MPhil in Energy & Development (UCT, 2016). Her dissertation analysed the politics of Electricity Planning. She has an undergraduate degree in Business and has completed post-graduate studies at Wits University, the Cambridge Institute for Sustainability Leadership and Harvard Business School.
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Programme Manager, Youth Ambassador for Climate Change, Social Change Assistance Trust
Indiphile Matini, they/them, is a Programme Assistant at the Social Change Assistance Trust and coordinates the Youth Ambassadors for Climate Change (YACC) programme. This youth focused-programme forms part of the Rural Action for Climate Resilience (RACR) project, in which Indiphile has been involved since 2022. Indiphile holds an honours degree in Social Policy and Management, and a Bachelor of Social Work degree, both from the University of Cape Town. Indiphile grew increasingly interested in working with rural communities as a result of their involvement in the RACR project, SCAT’s Youth Development Programme and their participation in the DGMT Innovation Fellowship. When not at work, Indiphile enjoys walking in the forest, live music shows, and being out in the city at open-mic poetry events. Their work presents them with the unique opportunity to work with people at grassroots level sharing knowledge, experiences and contributing to social change.
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Programme Manager, Wild Impact
Lebogang Matlakala is a community development specialist whose journey from landlocked beginnings to marine conservation exemplifies transformation through education, equity, and community empowerment. As a Programme Manager at Wild Impact, she leads initiatives within the Tomorrow’s Leaders and Thriving Communities focal areas, which includes the Echo Environmental Education, Community Leaders Education Fund (CLEF), and Climate Resilient Communities programmes. Her work connects science with local knowledge to promote youth-led, community-rooted conservation. Through the Echo Environmental Education programme, Lebogang supports the delivery of curriculum aligned lessons and activities that reach over 40 000 scholars per month. She has also been directly involved in the development of a marine conservation focused environmental education curriculum in Zanzibar. Through CLEF she leads a process that facilitates more than 120 University and vocational training bursaries per annum. She also supports the Wild Impact food security focused climate resilience activities and was project manager for the Welverdiend Food Security Project. Lebogang’s people-centred, impact-driven approach is redefining conservation to be more inclusive and locally grounded. Lebogang is currently (also) enrolled in a University of Cape Town PhD programne.
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Strategy Lead, Fundación Avina
Amadou MBODJ is the Strategy Lead for Fundación Avina and Representative in Africa. He is a driven Development Programs and Business Development Specialist with 20+ years of experience impacting organizations like Reach for Change, the Mastercard Foundation, and the World Food Programme... Skilled in building strategic alliances, resource mobilization, and team management, Amadou is a Senegal native with a passion for diverse African cultures.
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Programme Co-ordinator, Wild Impact
Glacia Mkansi is a Climate Resilient Communities programme coordinator at Wild Impact. Wild impact has been instrumental in transforming the lives of young people from rural communities through the CRC food and water security programme. She is thrilled to be coordinating the programme and empowering rural communities to make a positive impact through localised climate-wise agriculture and small-scale water harvesting. She believes that school food gardens are one of the best ways to supplement meals for learners, the additional nutrition from fresh vegetables significantly improves a child’s ability to concentrate and perform better. Her goal is to empower more individuals and strengthening food security through sustainable food production. Glacia’s role include establishing food gardens in Early Childhood Development centres, schools, and Homebased care centres, providing agricultural trainings to YES youth & facilitators and managing 3 seedlings propagation hubs. Through this programme she is not only planting vegetables but cultivating essential life skills, resilience, connecting with nature, and gaining invaluable knowledge sustainable food production and nutrition.
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Sustainability Communication Specialist
Babalwa is a fervent advocate for youth engagement in renewable energy solutions, climate solutions, sustainable food systems, and the creative arts, driven by her unwavering commitment to problem-solving and ethical development. Armed with a background in Social Sciences, she perceives issues through the lens of power dynamics, inspiring her systemic vision of sustainable development.
As an alumna of the Climate Governance, Diplomacy, and Negotiations leadership fellowship (AGNES), she envisions an empowered Africa characterized by widespread electrification, robust food security, and the flourishing of indigenous innovations.
In her capacity as a Communication Specialist and Manager at Zimela, Babalwa architects and manages a multifaceted ecosystem focused on creating interconnected growth points for economic and community advancement across diverse sectors. This impact is further amplified through her Non-Profit Company (NPC), ORNA, where she endeavors to provide global market access to youth creatives and innovators throughout the Global South, building and fortifying bridges of shared excellence and collaborative endeavors.
As a Mercedes–Benz BEVISIONEER fellow alumna, she continues to advance her plant-positive initiative, UTANDO. This pioneering research ecosystem aims to bridge the nexus of energy and food security through the application of renewable technologies and comprehensive waste management education. Furthermore, as Co-Founder of Energy Gist, Babalwa spearheads efforts to cultivate energy literacy and shape impactful policy briefs, recognizing the pivotal role of informed discourse in combating energy poverty both within South Africa and across the African continent.
Babalwa’s profound knowledge in renewable energy and sustainable food systems, coupled with her impactful projects and background in sales, has cultivated her into a highly skilled communication specialist in the realm of sustainability. Her ongoing advocacy and moderation of creativity and innovation summits and platforms underscore her experience as a seasoned moderator and Communication Specialist. She passionately champions youth mobilization as an indispensable catalyst for transformative change.
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Executive Director of the Presidential Climate Commission
Dorah Modise is the Executive Director of the Presidential Climate Commission. In this role, she is responsible for running the Secretariat of the PCC and its various policy and research programmes. She previously held the position of C40 Regional Director for Africa, working in the African Region through cooperative engagements with city leaders and teams to accelerate implementation of their climate change programmes.
Dorah is a sustainability enthusiast with over 26 years’ experience in the environmental sustainability, international diplomacy, Government (local, regional & national) as well as Industry Associations.
She was the inaugural Chief Executive Officer of the South African Paper and Packaging Producer Responsibility Organisations Alliance (PRO Alliance) tasked with conceptualising and implementing joint extended producer responsibility programmes with and on behalf of member PROs. Her other executive role was as Chief Executive officer of the Green Building Council of South Africa where she led green transformation of the built environment sector through numerous green building certification tools and programmes also served as the chairperson of the World Green Building Council’s Africa Regional Network with a key role of coordinating, consolidating, and stimulating the development of Green Building Councils across the African Continent. Dorah also held a position of Head of Sustainability at the City of Tshwane (Capital city of South Africa) where she conceptualised and implemented groundbreaking city sustainability programmes. Dorah’s tenure at the National Environment allowed her to develop & refine her environmental diplomacy skills through her leadership roles in the then United Nations Commission on Sustainable Development processes including the Rio plus 20 in 2012. Dorah is proud to have led the development of the environment sector green economy response programme including the establishment of the national green fund.
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Finance Specialist, JET PMU
Jerrod has a Bachelor of Commerce Honours (Accounting) from the University of KwaZulu Natal, and a professional Chartered Accountancy qualification from the South African Institute of Chartered Accountants (“SAICA”).
Jerrod joined Rand Merchant Bank (“RMB”) in 2009 as a corporate credit analyst, before moving into various roles within the bank's Investment Banking Division. He specialised in the provision of debt solutions for large South African corporates and won the ABSIP 2018 Deal of the Year award for Life Healthcare’s acquisition of the Alliance Medical Group.
Jerrod spearheaded RMB’s Shared Value initiative since 2019, which led to the formation of RMB’s Sustainable Finance and ESG Advisory team in 2021. He then took up the role of FirstRand Limited’s Group Shared Value Enablement Manager providing him with a broader platform to drive impact related activity across the integrated financial services group. Jerrod's passion to contribute to the national interest led him to the Just Energy Transition Investment Plan ("JET-IP") Projects Management Unit based within the Presidency. His focus includes commercial and blended finance opportunities for the implementation of the JET-IP
He is an alumni of GIBS Business School’s Nexus Leadership course, Duke CE's IEDP Leadership Programme and the African Leadership Initiative.
Jerrod previously served as a trustee of the FirstRand Foundation, and currently serves as a trustee on the Boleng Trust and a non-executive board member of the Makers Valley Partnership.
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Head of Climate Action Implementation in Africa in C40's Regions & Mayoral Engagement Team
Zarina Moolla serves as Head of Climate Action Implementation in Africa, in C40's Regions & Mayoral Engagement Team. In this role she works with seven African cities to implement and mainstream climate action into city policies, plans and processes. Prior to this, Zarina worked as a senior manager for the Climate Action Planning programme in Africa and the City Adviser to Durban, where she supported the City to develop their Climate Action Plan. Before joining C40, Zarina worked at the National Business Initiative (NBI) South Africa as a project manager for climate change mitigation, where she managed work on the CDP climate change and water programmes in South Africa.
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Director of the Climate and Development Knowledge Network (CDKN) programme | Oversees the finance hub at South South North
Shehnaaz Moosa oversees the Research Program, in the Africa Region, which supports cutting edge research on climate-compatible development in Africa. She also provides technical input on a range of projects at SouthSouthNorth ranging from the Sustainable Settlements Facility to the Kuyasa Project. She previously consulted on a range of projects to the public sector including managing the National Strategy for Sustainable Development in South Africa. She has also lectured in Chemical Engineering at the University of Cape Town. Shehnaaz holds a BSc in Chemical Engineering, an MSc in Engineering and a PhD in Engineering.
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Project Leader Data for Governance Alliance Project
Nyasha McBride Mpani is a governance expert with extensive experience in data-driven advocacy around democracy, good governance, and human rights in Africa. He specializes in harnessing data, technology, and policy analysis to promote transparency, ‹ accountability, and inclusive decision-making processes, with a strong background working with African Union organs and Pan-African Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) across the continent.
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Special Envoy on Youth, Cabinet of the Chairperson, African Union Commission
MS. CHIDO CLEOPATRA MPEMBA is currently serving as the youngest diplomat and political appointee in the Cabinet of the African Union Chairperson. She was appointed as the Special Envoy on Youth. She has committed her career to uplifting local communities in humanitarian assistance and championing pivotal initiatives in financial economic empowerment, gender empowerment, climate change, mental
health, education, and digital transformation. She also serves as the youngest appointed Commissioner & Co-Chair for the World Heath Organization (WHO) Commission on Social Connection leading the work with Ministers & thought leaders from across the globe. She is a Global Leadership Council Member for UNICEF Generation Unlimited.
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CEO & Head of Secretariat, Impact Philanthropy Africa
Patricia leads Impact Philanthropy Africa, a forum of self-funded corporate and private charitable foundations dedicated to creating social impact across Africa. The organization aims to enhance the societal impact of corporate and private giving, striving to transform lives by improving the social and economic conditions of communities.
Under Patricia's leadership, Impact Philanthropy Africa works to foster a philanthropic culture and influence policy through advocacy and thought leadership for greater societal good.
Prior to founding Impact Philanthropy Africa, Patricia worked as the Africa Representative for Big Win Philanthropy UK. She has also held a variety of leadership and strategy roles in other organizations including Africa Director for Strategy and Partnerships at the Children’s Investment Fund Foundation (CIFF), and Vice President and Regional Director for the Global Business Coalition on Health (GBC). Patricia is recognized for her visionary leadership in driving meaningful philanthropic engagement across the continent.
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Managing Director of ZeniZeni Sustainable Finance
Malango Mughogho is the Managing Director of ZeniZeni Sustainable Finance which works to change the way financing decisions are made, so that all finance leads to beneficial results. The firm has a strong focus on developing financing structures for projects that deliver sustainable impact, and on financial sector policy solutions to address gender inequality, climate change and the sustainable provision of water.
She has over 20 years’ experience in banking and development finance and served as a member of the UN Secretary General’s 2022 High Level Expert Group on the net zero commitments of non-state entities and a Climate Finance Member for the Global Water Partnership’s Southern Africa Coordination Unit Regional Technical Committee.
Malango holds a BSc (Hons) in Banking and International Finance from City, University of London and an MSc in Economics and Finance from Warwick University, and was the 2015 Mo Ibrahim Foundation Leadership Fellow at the African Development Bank.
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Regional Lead on Climate Justice and Natural Resource Governance, Southern Africa Trust
Aliness P. Mumba is the Regional Lead on Climate Justice and Natural Resource Governance at the Southern African Trust. With over 15 years of experience across Zambia and the African continent, she is a seasoned development practitioner committed to social impact, policy innovation, and sustainable development. Aliness specializes in gender inclusion within climate-smart agriculture (CSA), advocating for the equitable participation of women and marginalized communities in climate-resilient agricultural systems. Her expertise spans institutional capacity strengthening, gender-responsive policy development, programme implementation, and results-based management. Aliness brings a grounded perspective to policy engagement, aligning grassroots realities with broader frameworks to support climate solutions that are both inclusive and sustainable. She holds a Master’s degree in Gender Studies and degrees in Sociology from the University of Pretoria and the University of Zambia.
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Co-founder of Mutante
María Paula is a journalist and anthropologist who works at the intersection of narrative, multispecies care, and decolonial climate justice. She is co-founder of Mutante, a Colombian platform that promotes participatory journalism, public conversation, and narrative transformation. Her work engages communities directly and centers alternative knowledge systems and collective care practices through social listening. She holds a master’s in rural development and is interested in bridging platforms and different knowledge systems to foster a transdisciplinary approach of socioecological issues and its solutions in the collective search for justice in the Global South.
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Executive Director, Hlanganisa Community Fund
Bongiwe Ndondo is a distinguished South African social justice activist and development professional, currently serving as the Chief Executive Officer of the Hlanganisa Community Fund for Social and Gender Justice. With a career spanning over three decades, she has been instrumental in designing and implementing programs that uplift marginalized communities across Southern Africa, emphasizing the importance of grounding development work in local contexts.Under her leadership, Hlanganisa has expanded its reach, supporting community-based organizations in South Africa, Malawi, Zimbabwe, and Zambia. The organization focuses on grant-making, capacity building, and advocacy to promote social accountability and human rights. Ndondo is a passionate advocate for women's empowerment. She has led initiatives such as gender analyses of political party manifestos to assess their commitments to women's rights. She also emphasizes the integration of indigenous knowledge systems in addressing climate change, as highlighted in her TEDx Johannesburg talk. Beyond her professional endeavours, Ndondo is an avid reader, keen golfer, and a proud grandmother to Sesethu.
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Executive Director and Vice-Chairperson of the Board of Governors of the Mapungubwe Institute for Strategic Reflection (MISTRA)
Joel Khathutshelo Netshitenzhe is the Executive Director and Vice-Chairperson of the Board of Governors of the Mapungubwe Institute for Strategic Reflection (MISTRA). He has a Master of Science (MSc) degree in Financial Economics and a post-graduate diploma in Economic Principles from the University of London; as well as a diploma in Political Science from the Institute of Social Sciences in Moscow. Before his retirement in 2009, he served in government as head of Communication in President Nelson Mandela’s office, CEO of Government Communications (GCIS), and head of the Policy Unit in The Presidency. He was a member of the first National Planning Commission and nonexecutive Director of NEDBANK Group and the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR). He currently serves on the Boards of the Development Bank of Southern Africa (DBSA) and Life Healthcare Group. He was a member of the National Executive Committee of the ANC from 1991 to 2022, and is currently a member of the ANC Veterans League NEC.
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Communications and engagement lead, UMI Fund
Kudzayi’s most excited about the ability to harness the power of storytelling and co-creation anchored in equity and justice to achieve breakthroughs. Currently she leads communications and engagement at UMI Fund, working with grassroots led organisations to drive meaningful impact through intersectional people-centered campaigns and strategic communications.
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Director, Instituto Procomum | Fellow, Atlantic Fellows for Social and Economic Equity program at the London School of Economics and Political Science
Georgia Nicolau is a Brazilian creative professional, researcher, trained facilitator and consultant in the areas of social organizations, collective action, innovation and culture and arts. She is interested in everything that has to do with a transition to a fairer, egalitarian and cooperative world. Since 2020, she is a fellow at the Atlantic Fellows for Social and Economic Equity program at the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE). In 2016, she co-founded the Procomum Institute, a commons-oriented NGO where she is currently the executive director.
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Executive President (CEO), Ajesh
Harrison Ajebe Nnoko is a seasoned manager, forester and land use planning expert who leads AJEMALEBU SELF HELP (AJESH). AJESH is an apolitical non-profit operating in Cameroon, Ghana, Tanzania and the USA to empower, nurture, and promote a healthy and sustainable society free from poverty and injustice living in harmony with nature. They do so by working on focusing on natural resources management, targeting issues of land governance, ecosystem restoration and forest conservation via participatory mapping and land use planning, defending community access rights to natural resources.
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Political Impact Manager, The ONE Campaign
Olawunmi Ola-Busari is committed to using her imagination, strengths, love, and courage to help build a world of opportunity and prosperity for all. She currently serves as the Political Impact Manager with the Africa team at the ONE Campaign. In this role, she supports ONE's government relations teams in G7 countries by providing informed and nuanced perspectives on African development priorities, strengthening African diaspora engagement, and helping to ensure that African issues secure the attention of policymakers and their constituents. Previously, as a Policy Officer with the ONE Campaign, she helped shape ONE's climate advocacy strategy and represented ONE at COP27 and the Africa Climate Summit. Before joining The ONE Campaign, Olawunmi held short-term consultancies with the World Bank and Two Rabbits, an education NGO, and was a Policy Associate with the Abdul Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab in South Africa. Olawunmi has a master's degree in Global Human Development from Georgetown University's School of Foreign Service and a bachelor's degree in Economics from Bard College.
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Founder and Executive Director of Spring of the Arid and Semi-Arid Lands (SASAL)
Mana Omar is an award-winning Indigenous climate and gender justice advocate and the Founder and Executive Director of Spring of the Arid and Semi-Arid Lands (SASAL), a youth-led Non-Governmental organization working with pastoralist communities to advance climate justice. She is Global Citizen Scholar with the Ban Ki-moon Centre for Global Citizens, she serves on several committees including the Africa Climate Justice Movement, where she champions the inclusion of Indigenous voices in policy and action. Mana has spoken at numerous global, regional, and national conferences, contributing to critical dialogues on climate resilience, adaptation, justice, and Indigenous leadership.
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Engagement Director, Earth Insight
Juan Pablo Osornio has twenty years of experience on climate politics and policy. He has worked with governments in the US, Europe, Latin America and Asia on climate policy and was responsible for creating the global climate political strategy for Greenpeace from (2017-2022). Juan Pablo is passionate about international cooperation and committed to bringing countries together to protect the global commons. He is originally from Mexico City, holds a BA in International Relations from Instituto Tecnologico Autonomous de Mexico and an MPA on Environmental Science and Policy from Columbia University SIPA. Juan Pablo's role is housed within the Meliore Foundation.
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Vice President of Collective Intelligence and Flagships at the BMW Foundation
With over 20 years of experience in communication, branding, design, and strategy within global contexts and organizations, Paula Quintas has cultivated a deep understanding of organizational dynamics, needs, and implementation pathways. Paula possesses expertise in governance frameworks, emphasizing transparency and accountability to strengthen organizational integrity, in special in the third sector.
As Vice President of Collective Intelligence and Flagships at the BMW Foundation, she is responsible for ecosystem initiatives and the new focus of the BMW Foundation Responsible Leader Network as a dynamic platform for collective action. In 2023, in recognition of Paula’s work on innovative solutions that leverage storytelling to drive positive impact, she was honored with the EMEA Innovator 25 Award by PRovoke Media.
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Director of the Egypt Impact Lab
Rizk serves as the director of the Egypt Impact Lab (EIL), a collaborative initiative between the Ministry of Planning, Economic Development, and International Cooperation and J-PAL MENA . This innovative partnership aims to strengthen poverty reduction policies by rigorously evaluating promising government programs. Rizk was the Head of the Modelling and Social Planning and Development Unit at the Ministry of Planning and Economic Development. Simultaneously, she holds the position of an Associate Professor of Economics in University of London at the European Universities in Egypt and in the Master’s Program in Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne University. I am also a Research Fellow at the Economic Research Forum.
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Fellow at the Mercator Research Institute on Global Commons and Climate Change, Berlin and a member of the boards of AGORA and Germanwatch, and the sustainability advisory council of Novo Nordisk, Copenhagen.
Until his retirement in early 2021, he was Director at the European Commission in charge of developing climate neutrality strategies and the governance of EU climate policy, regulating emissions from non-ETS sectors and supporting innovation in the EU's energy and industrial sectors (e.g. Innovation and Modernisation Fund). He served on the Boards of the European Environment Agency and the European Fund for Strategic Investments. From 2003 until the conclusion of the Paris agreement in 2015, he led on international climate negotiations for the EU. He co-chaired the working group preparing the Paris agreement in 2013/14 and was a Member of the UNFCCC Bureau from 2010-12. Between 1993 and 2003, he worked as European Commission official in Sarajevo, Brussels and Harare. Until 1993, he conducted research in West Africa and lectured at the University of Göttingen. He holds a doctoral degree in agricultural economics.
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Specialist in the Climate and Environmental Finance Unit at the DBSA
Dr. Sayed is a Specialist in the Climate and Environmental Finance Unit at the DBSA. His role is to provide strategic advice to the bank regarding access to various climate financing mechanisms including conceptualization and development of proposals responsive to the priorities of the DBSA such as the establishment of a Climate Finance Facility. He provides advisory services to all the Bank’s sectors regarding Climate Change matters and maintains continuous dialogues with relevant external climate change partners on behalf of the bank. He holds a PhD in Biochemistry from the University of Cambridge and an MBA from the Gordon Institute of Business Science
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CEO, Fundación Avina
Valeria Scorza (she/her) was named CEO of Fundación Avina and Board Chair of Avina Americas in 2024. Previously, she served as the Director of Strategic Partnerships, where she played a crucial role in establishing alliances with private donors, international development organizations, and corporations to advance the foundation’s mission. Valeria has led various grantmaking initiatives to amplify marginalized and underrepresented communities’ voices in decision-making processes. She has also advised the Human Rights Funders Network and served on the World Economic Forum’s Global Future Council. With a robust background in political innovation and human rights, Valeria has worked with ProDESC, the International Center for Transitional Justice, Amnesty International, and the UN Mission in Liberia. She holds a BA from Universidad Iberoamericana and a MIA from Columbia University. Valeria also serves on several boards, including the Human Rights & Business Award, WINGS, and Equis Justicia para la Mujeres.
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South Africa Country Lead, Clean Air Fund
Vumile Senene has over 17 years of experience in the air quality management field, having worked at national and local spheres of government. He has over the years worked with officials across spheres of government providing technical support and promoting cooperative governance. He also facilitated the development and implementation of air quality improvement programmes and coordinated stakeholder engagements involving corporations, civil society and academia. He is currently the Country Lead for the Clean Air in South Africa and is responsible for overall strategic and programmatic leadership for Clean Air Fund's operations in the country.
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Development Economist, Strategic Industrial and Economic Transformation Specialist
Kalnisha Singh is a Development Economist, Strategic Industrial and Economic Transformation Specialist. Kalnisha started her career in the fields of industrial and economic efficiency – advising on the design of policy and incentives; as well leading teams that implemented industrial development models in South Africa, and abroad.
Her career currently spans the impact, transformation and sustainability segments – consulting to and implementing projects on behalf of the Financial, Mining, Renewable Energy Sectors and other key sectors in the South African economy.
Kalnisha is passionate about Diversity, Equity and Inclusion – with a particular interest in discussing concepts of (African) identity, intrinsic bias and gender mainstreaming. She is also vocal about her position on rethinking economic models that serve Africa, as well as the benefits of transformative thought to drive development outcomes.
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Founder of Lipstick Chronicles
Popularly known as “Mvusy” is a founder of the Lipstick Chronicles, a movement that amplifies the silenced voices of women and communities through coaching and inspiring engagements. Passionate about issues of social justice and transformation she facilitates conversations on gender, equity, inclusion and belonging, and is a podcast host of Lipstick Chronicles on Vukaonlineradio. As an Executive and Leadership Coach, her coaching philosophy resonates with the concept that, “The Strength of the Baobab Tree Lies from Within!” She is a mentor and research supervisor to graduate students on Conservation, Entrepreneurship and Leadership in Tshwane University of Technology and Institute for IntegratedConservation in the US. Mvusy is an advisor and an ambassador to a Community Conservation Development Project (BOLD) based in the Eastern Cape, South Africa. She is a strategic and ethical leader with experience in Education, Environment, Technology, Travel & Tourism and Heritage sectors in South Africa. She excels in integration of social and environmental issues whilst nurturing and developing human talent. Her latest corporate Executive experiences include the only and last woman to date in the Conservation and Tourism sector to hold the positions of Managing Executive: Operations of South African National Parks, and the Chief Operating Officer of the Eastern Cape Parks, and Tourism Agency. Mvusy’s leadership is influenced by her childhood experience of being a cattle herder. Passionate about governance and ethical leadership, she currently serves in the following Boards/ Councils ; World Wildlife Fund – South Africa (WWF-SA), Nelson Mandela Museum (NMM,SA), the Tourism Transformation Council (SA), and the Institute of integrated Conservation, William and Mary University in USA. In these oversight structures she is a chairperson of the following Committees; Social, Ethics & Transformation (WWF_SA), Strategic & Operations (NMM), Supplier &Enterprise Development (TTCSA), and a member of HR & REMCO (WWF-SA, and NMM). She is a Hubert Humphrey Fellow, a Ford Foundation Fellow, and a South African Women in Science (SAWS) award recipient.
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Senior Strategist, ClimateWorks Foundation
Justin Sylvester leads the Just Transition program at the ClimateWorks Foundation, supporting energy transition initiatives in the Global South. With over 15 years of experience in philanthropy, he has led program strategies that foster accountable governance for local communities at the Ford Foundation and others. Justin holds a master’s in International Relations from the University of Cape Town and is an independent Board member of Oxfam International.
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Program Manager for Just Energy Transition & Researcher at The Habibie Centre.
Irvan Tengku Harja is the Program Manager for Just Energy Transition and is a Researcher at The Habibie Centre (THC). Previously, he served as the Southeast Asia Energy Finance Consultant at the Rainforest Action Network and as the Policy Coordinator for Influencing Just Energy Transition at Oxfam in Asia. His initial encounter with the concept of "just transition" occurred during his involvement in the trade union movement. In 2015, Irvan was appointed Deputy Chair of the Federation of Metal, Electronics, and Machinery Workers Union in Yogyakarta. Irvan holds a Master's in International Relations from the National Research Tomsk State University in the Russian Federation. His publication topics include international trade, just energy transition, sustainable finance, business and human rights, and labor rights.
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Deputy CEO, Catalytic Finance Foundation
With a corporate finance and private equity background, combined with her environmental science and international relations’ specialisation, Jiao has worked in the space of international climate finance over 15 years in various sectors including waste management, sustainable agriculture, and renewable energy. As the Deputy CEO of Catalytic Finance Foundation (Catalytic), Jiao oversees the implementation of Catalytic’s mandates and execute organisational strategies. At Catalytic, with the CEO, Jiao is leading the work on the design of blended-finance solutions for donors, philanthropies, and capital providers aiming at scaling the flow of finance towards impactful projects in developing countries and regions, providing technical assistance at project level to bring them towards impacts and bankability, and deploying catalytic, patient, and concessional capital on behalf of donors into early-stage projects and impact funds.
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Founder & Director of Impacting Youth
Reon van der Merwe is the Founder & Director of Impacting Youth, an international social impact enterprise helping organisations reach and empower younger generations to co-lead in spaces on social equality, climate action, multilateral reform and education. Reon has worked as a South African- based development practitioner for more than 10 years, providing high-level support to national, regional, and international development organisations. He has worked with organisations and networks affiliated with the United Nations, African Union, European Union, SADC, and BRICS. He currently serves as an advisor to several diplomatic institutions including as Chair of the Youth Advisory Council to the Embassy of the Netherlands in South Africa, Special Advisor on Sustainability to the Commonwealth Wealth Youth Council Africa Office and Stakeholder Engagement Lead for the Y20 South Africa. Reon uses Design Thinking methods and techniques to support organisations with effective programme design and management, advocacy and stakeholder engagement, as well as facilitation and training.
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Regional Advisor, Advocacy and Collaborations, Welthungerhilfe (WHH)
Nivedita Varshneya is Regional Advisor, Advocacy and Collaborations, working with Welthungerhilfe (WHH) and is based at New Delhi. She works closely with WHH offices in India, Nepal and Bangladesh and has her focus on key themes such as food systems, agroecology and sustainable livelihoods. She is passionate about connecting the dots between sustainable food, nutrition, health, ecology and smallholder livelihoods. Nivedita has been with WHH for 18 years. In her previous role as Country Director for India, she played a pivotal role in driving several food system initiatives, reinforcing WHH’s commitment to sustainable development.
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CEO, Wild Impact
Andrew has over 30 years’ experience developing and leading conservation-based community development, in South Africa, across Africa and now into Asia and South America. He deeply believes that Wild Impact’s vision is the only sustainable way forward for the conservation of planet earth’s spectacular biodiversity and wild landscapes. Namely, that the communities living in and around wild landscapes and seascapes need to be actively advocating for, and supporting, the restoration and conservation of these areas; and derive meaningful socio-economic and entrepreneurial benefit from them. Under Andrew’s leadership, Wild Impact has grown into a significant African based Non-Profit Organization that established development partnerships focused on community-based natural resource and wildlife conservation, improved access to primary healthcare and education, leadership, environmental awareness, climate resilience, and youth-focused workplace learning and entrepreneurship. Andrew is also a Board member of the Global Nature Fund.
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Programme Officer, Natural Resources and Climate Change Programme at the Ford Foundation
Alan Wallis currently holds the position of Programme Officer, Natural Resources and Climate Change Programme at the Ford Foundation. Prior to this he was the Strategic Advisor to the African Climate Foundation, assisting ACF in the development of the Foundation’s strategy, programme development and fundraising. Alan is a human rights lawyer, with over 12 years of experience having worked within a variety of socio-legal, economic and political contexts. Alan has worked in the not-for-profit sector as a human rights litigator and researcher; managed programming, budgeting and strategy development in human rights philanthropy; and has provided technical support and human rights advice to civil society organisations, government institutions and judiciaries in the global south. Prior to joining ACF, Alan was the Director for Legal Affairs at the Judiciary of Seychelles. Alan also has 5 years of experience in philanthropy and grant making at the Open Society Foundation for South Africa, where he managed the Foundation’s Information, Expression and Accountability portfolio. Alan holds an LLB from the University of Cape Town, a Post-Graduate Diploma in Environmental Law, and a LLM in international human rights from the University of Michigan, where he was the Ismail Mohammad Human Rights Fellow and Grotius Scholar.
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Chairman and General Partner of KW Commercial Landmark & former U.S. Ambassador to the Council for Ukraine Reconstruction
Mark Wittcoff is Chairman and General Partner of KW Commercial Landmark, a commercial real estate investment company affiliated with Keller Williams Beverly Hills. Mark’s responsibility for properties throughout the United States informs his belief that the value of the built environment is dependent on the wellbeing of the social landscape. He leads efforts to help improve communities as founder and trustee of the Wittcoff Foundation that donates and raises funds to support efforts in education, healthcare, climate and partnerships aligned with the U.N. Sustainable Development Goals. Mark was nominated by President Biden as U.S. Ambassador to the Council for Ukraine Reconstruction. He received the Public Leadership Credential from the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University where he is a member of the Dean’s Council Leadership Circle. Mark is a former member of the Board of Directors of UCLA Health System, the Stuart M. Ketchum Downtown Los Angeles YMCA, Challengers Boys and Girls Club, Meals on Wheels West, the William H. Parker Los Angeles Police Foundation, the World Children’s Transplant Fund, the Alliance to Stop Slavery and End Human Trafficking and Jewish National Fund in Los Angeles. Mark has an adult son, Nicholas and he lives in Laguna Beach, California with his fiancée Nancy Christiano