Copyright © 2023 – Climate Change Summit – All Rights Reserved
President of Romania
Klaus Iohannis is the fourth Romanian President elected after December 1989. Klaus Iohannis attended the German school in Sibiu, then the “Samuel von Brukenthal” High School in the same city. In 1978 he was admitted to the Faculty of Physics of the “Babeș Bolyai” University in Cluj-Napoca. In 1983, he started teaching at several schools around Sibiu, and five years later, he was teaching physics, alongside his former teachers, at the same high school he had graduated from. He began his political career in 1990, when he became a member of the Democratic Forum of Germans in Romania (DFDR), which he subsequently led for over a decade. At the end of the 1990s, after 15 years as a teacher, Klaus Iohannis rose to the leadership of the education system in the county of Sibiu, a very important stage in shaping his public profile. In 2000, he was the Forum’s nominee in the Sibiu mayoral elections, winning over 70% of the votes. During his second term as mayor, Sibiu became the “European Capital of Culture” in 2007, alongside Luxembourg. This project brought along the opportunity to prove his professionalism and leadership qualities. On 16 November 2014, Klaus Iohannis was elected President of Romania, winning Romanians’ trust with his vision – Romania of Things Well Done (România lucrului bine făcut) – outlining a plan for our country to evolve over the course of the next ten years. Five years later, Klaus Iohannis ran for a new term in the 2019 presidential elections with the program Together for a Normal Romania (Împreună pentru România Normală). President Klaus Iohannis has been awarded numerous state honorary distinctions and prestigious international awards for his contribution to the promotion of democratic values, transparency, the rule of law and the fight against corruption, such as the Charlemagne Prize, awarded by the City of Aachen (2020), the Emperor Otto Prize of Magdeburg (2020), the European Coudenhove-Kalergi Award (European Coudenhove-Kalergi Society, 2020), the Franz Josef Strauss Award (Hanns Seidel Foundation, 2018), the Light Unto the Nations Prize (American Jewish Committee, 2017) or the Martin Buber Plaque (Euriade Foundation, 2016).
Opening message
Assistant Secretary General, NATO
Giedrimas has overall responsibility for management of the NATO headquarters, and is the Secretary General’s primary advisor for NATO-wide management issues. Before assuming his current post, Mr. Jeglinskas served as the Vice-Minister of Defence of Lithuania beginning in 2017. From 2010 to 2017, Mr. Jeglinskas worked as Vice President in Corporate Banking at Citigroup. Mr. Jeglinskas graduated from the U.S. Military Academy at West Point with a BSc in Political Science and Computer Science. He holds an MA in National Security Studies from Georgetown University’s School of Foreign Service in Washington, DC and an MBA in Strategy and Finance from Columbia Business School in New York.
Policy
Founder, Carbon Tracker Initiative
Mark is the founder of the Carbon Tracker Initiative, a non-profit think tank with offices in the US and UK, having enjoyed a career in sustainable finance for 20 years. Carbon Tracker is best known for its work on ‘stranded assets’ and the ‘carbon bubble’ and providing transition analysis for the members of Climate Action 100+ These concepts are also used by the fossil fuel divestment movement; and for investors & regulators, in how to set decarbonisation pathways for the fossil fuel sector.
Energy
Cities Economist, Oxford University
Spatial economist and economic geographer with 8+ years working on urban issues, both in multinational private sector, government public policy and academic research environment. Personal website with a more complete selection of work: www.oliverharman.me Interests and skills lie in sustainable urban development & regeneration, devolution, local government institutional strengthening as well as international development research & policy.
Cities
President, European Startup Network
Nicolas Brien is the current Chairman of EuraTechnologies, Europe's largest startup incubator, based in Lille (France). Since 2020, he has been chairing the board of the European Startup Network, Europe’s most influential tech industry group, representing startups in Brussels. A proud supporter of Europe’s digital sovereignty, M. Brien was named “European young Leader” of 2022 by Friends of Europe and selected by the Choiseul Institute as one of the top 100 future economic leaders. From 2016 to 2021, he has led France Digitale and transform it into Europe’s largest Startup organization with 2,000+ startup members and 100+ VC. Prior to joining the digital ecosystem, Nicolas was Research Director at Kantar-TNS Sofres (WPP) and a senior advisor to the French Government. Nicolas holds a master’s degree in International Finance and Economic Policy from Columbia University SIPA. Since 2021, Mr Brien sits on the Board of many companies and foundations, such as Tilder or France Alzheimer. He regularly contributes to the global conversation on tech policies through op-eds in global media (such as Sifted, Tech.eu, …) and keynotes speeches at international Tech events (such as the FutureProof Summit, Startup Nation Summit, Vivatech, CEBIT, BlockForum Vilnius).
Startups
Director Global Partnerships and DACH-CEE region, BeeOdiversity
Loïc is a passionate changemaker, father and learner. Responsible for BeeOdiversity´s global partnerships and expansion in the DACH and CEE region. BeeOdiversity provides measurement tools, advice and nature-based solutions to help corporates and public actors improve biodiversity and reduce pollution. For-example, our innovative BeeOmonitoring solution allows us to monitor industrial and agricultural pollutants, plant biodiversity and the impact of an activity through bees acting as natural drones (we currently monitor over 100.000 hectares in 15 countries). Loic combines 20+ years of experience in CSR, Sustainability Innovation and Social Entrepreneurship both in the private and non-profit sector.
Biodiversity
CEO, The International Sustainable Finance Center
Linda is Founder and CEO of ISFC, overseeing the strategic development of the think tank and its work on sustainable investing. Linda is a Fellow at the Royal Society for the encouragement of Arts, Manufactures and Commerce (RSA), and until recently was Think Visegrad Fellow at EUROPEUM Institute for European Policy, providing expertise on sustainable finance. Linda is also the 2021 Policy Leader Fellow at the European University Institute's (EUI) School of Transnational Governance.
Finance
Director, ICE-Amsterdam
Douwe is a system-ecologist based on his eduction in forestry, landscaping and nature-management. He is Head Circular Transformation at the C&A Foundation, worldwide. Joustra was program coordinator Cradle to Cradle within Dutch government during the period 2007-2010. He also was program manager of the Dutch Innovation program Climate neutral Cities (2010-2012).
Circular economy
Member of the Ukrainian Parliament
Currently Member of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine (Parliament) and Chairman of the Subcommittee on Gas, Gas Transportation and Gas Supply Policy, Mr Andrii Zhupanyn is a former Summa Cum Laude lawyer, experienced in commercial law, mergers and acquisitions, corporate reorganizations & restructuring and many more. Mr Andrii Zhupanyn's legal expertise helped him in his public role with the Ukrainian Parliament, as he proactively mitigated for better energy regulations and laws. With deep knowledge in the energy industry, he soon became a key expert in the Parliament and a sought -after speaker. Since the beginning of the Russian invasion in Ukraine, he found a logistical hub in his hometown in the west of Ukraine and helped distribute over 1.000 tones of humanitarian aid to those in need.
Energy
Global Head of Sustainability Innovation Lab, Vice President, Strategic Growth, Mastercard
Malin is a global executive focusing on enabling solutions, partnerships and system change to accelerate the sustainability transition. Leading Mastercard’s global innovation agenda for Sustainability, she is responsible for the company’s initiatives in Sustainability globally. She and her team is focusing on co-creating the next generation of sustainable commerce solutions with Mastercard’s customers and wider ecosystem of partners. She is also a member of the company’s Innovation Senior Management Team and Head of the Global Sustainability Innovation Lab in Stockholm, Sweden. In 2021, upon joining the European Climate Pact, Mastercard launched its first innovation lab focusing on environmental sustainability. Malin led the creation and was named as the head of this sustainability flagship for Mastercard – the lab serves a global research & development center for innovation and execution of new sustainable business solutions in collaboration with partners and customers. Prior to this role, she held various global positions in the company, growing Mastercard’s business in the government as well as retail sector, as well as leading integrated marketing and communications teams. Malin has an international portfolio of experience, with 15 years in retail and technology. Currently, she sits on the Board of The Swedish Postcode Association which runs the People Postcode Lottery with the objective to support charitable and social initiatives worldwide. She is also a member of the World Economic Forum’s Shaping the Future of Consumption Platform - ‘Consumers for Climate Action’ focusing on increasing consumer awareness and shifting mindsets to leverage responsible consumption as a driver of climate positivity.
Finance
Environmentalist & High altitude climber
A leading Romanian high altitude climber, Alex uses the best stage possible, the summits of the world’s highest mountains to advance environmental and social causes. He reached seven 8000 m summits in the Himalayas by fair means, meaning without supplemental oxygen and high-altitude porters. After surviving the earthquake and the Everest avalanche on April 25th 2015, together with his team he initiated “Joy for Nepal”, a humanitarian campaign where about 37.000 donors answered the charitable call resulting in building three schools for 300 children in remote Himalayan communities. Alex is deeply involved in a series of environmental causes, such as the quest against illegal logging, protecting and conserving Romania’s virgin forests, Vacaresti Natural Park , cyanide free mining, Bucharest Green Belt or saving asprete, probably the world’s rarest fish. Recipient of the 2008 “Gold Medal for Merit in Sport” (Spain), he was awarded twice “The Romanian Sportsman of the Year” by the Romanian Federation of Mountaineering and Sport Climbing and nominated twice more for the same award. He was listed as a 2012 “30 Under 30” honoree of Forbes Romania and he got the 2015 special award for activism from the Civil Society Development Foundation
Biodiversity
Cities
Founder, Tremendas Chile
Co-founder of the Latinas for Climate Movement, Julieta Martiínez, 18, is a climate and gender equality activist. Member of the UN Women Youth Task Force Beijing +25. Founder of the regional Action Platform TREMENDAS, that which promotes the empowerment of young women, teenagers, and young people by inviting them to use their talents and/or skills to generate social impact. This community currently consists of over 200 young women and people from all over Chile and Latin America, who work together under the SDG. She Martinez is the co-founder of the Latinas for Climate movement, a WWF ambassador, and a member of the Ashoka Young Agents of Change Network.
Youth
Mayor of Trikala, Greece
Dimitris Papastergiou was born in Trikala, in 1973. He studied Electrical Engineering and Computer Engineering by choice and because of his love for electronics, programming and broadcasting. He also attended journalism courses. Dimitris believes that the road of participation is one-way if we want to change our life, and that’s why since he became 29 years old, he got involved with municipal projects and initiatives. At the same time, he designed and constructed several energy projects, in the private sector. In 2014, as Head of the political party “Restart Now” Dimitris was elected Mayor of Trikala. He is a member of the Board of KEDE and Chairman of the Committee on Development, Innovation and Entrepreneurship. One of his main goals, is to make really smart and viable Greek cities. He commutes everywhere by bike, because it’s a way of life.
Cities
CEO & Founder, We Don't Have Time
“Official “eco-warrior” according to The Sun and “Mark ZuckerVert” according to FranceTV2, Ingmar is serial entrepreneur and nominated for a DI Gasell Award, Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of The Year, Veckans Affärer Supertalent, Sweden’s Environmental Influencer 2018, and International Gamechanger of the Year. He’s a member of Al Gore’s Climate Reality and European Climate Policy Task Force” Ingmar is CEO and Co-Founder of We Don’t Have Time is the world's largest review platform for climate solutions, a member of the European Climate Policy Task Force and Advisory Board MemberAdvisory Board Member of the Climate & Capital Media
Inspiration
Energy Policy Expert
Corina Murafa was leading until recently Next Now/Planet & Climate and Ashoka Romania. Prior to joining Ashoka, she advanced long-lasting positive change in Eastern Europe as a public policy expert on energy and sustainability. She has worked for the World Bank, OMV Petrom, Deloitte, national governments and think tanks.
Energy
CEO for CEE, WWF
A passionate change maker and organisation builder. Regional CEO of WWF-CEE (formerly WWF Danube-Carpathian Programme), active across 10 countries of Central and Southeastern Europe. Experience in strategy, policy, marketing and environmental issues as well as working across sectors from government to business and non-profit.
Circular economy
Co-Founder, Asociatia Parcul Natural Văcărești
Building on his own experience in establishing Romania's first citizen-led national parks, Florin is catalyzing a citizen-driven movement for the creation of a functional system for protected areas in Romania. By connecting urban and rural communities through nature, he is creating incentive structures for businesses and individuals to unlock and exchange resources, showing how they can gain benefits from conservation.
Biodiversity
Program Manager, Europe Climate and Agri, IFC
Leah Soroka has been working for the International Finance Corporation, a World Bank Financial institutions for 7 years, developing initiatives and products to increase access to finance in the agriculture sector for Eastern Europe and Central Asia. Specific initiatives include improving bank lending processes and efficiency, the establishment of risk management frameworks like agri-insurance, and new financial instruments such as crop receipts. Initiatives are thus far located in Azerbaijan, Kosovo, Serbia, Ukraine, Uzbekistan, and Tajikistan. Before that she worked as a value chain specialist for DAI, in the Democratic Republic of Congo and Afghanistan. She has a PhD from the University of Guelph and previous education at York University and Harvard Institute for International Development.
Finance
Youth Climate Advisor to the UN Secretary General
Vladislav Kaim is a young Moldovan economist and climate action and sustainability advocate with vast experience at the UN level, as well as on multiple national and local platforms in Eastern European region. His main fields of advocacy have been green jobs for youth, just transition, green and sustainable economic growth and reforms to the multilateral climate finance agenda. In July 2020, UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres appointed Mr Kaim to be one of his Youth Advisors on Climate Change and oversee the implementation of his Climate Strategy. Vladislav is also the contact point on green jobs at YOUNGO, official youth constituency to the UNFCCC, and 2021 IMF Youth Fellow.
Youth
Chief Sustainability Officer, Societe Generale Group
Hacina Py joined Societe Generale in 1995 and has developed as a seasoned banker through various positions, both in structured finance and in corporate roles. Hacina was appointed Global Head of Export Finance in 2015. She led the transformation of the business line with a strong sustainability focus and took over the position of Head of Impact Finance Solutions in 2019. Hacina graduated from the EM Strasbourg business school and studied finance at Heriot Watt University, Edinburgh.
Finance
Founder, A Grain of Sand
Chris Hines is a leading environmentalist, passionate about driving positive change in relation to the environment. The former founding Director of Surfers Against Sewage and Sustainability Director of The Eden Project, Chris is now the owner of A Grain Of Sand and dedicated to finding solutions to the world’s most pressing environmental challenges. Now booked as a sustainability and environment speaker for corporate events, Chris shares his passions for positive change. Chris is the core of A Grain of Sand an organisation dedicated to delivering positive change.Chris is a highly respected communicator and driver of positive change. He was founder and Director of Surfers Against Sewage for 10 years. Described as "Some of the governments most sophisticated environmental critics." By BBC News and Current Affairs and "Britain's coolest pressure group" by The Independent. SAS were runners up in the 1999 Green Politics Award. With a strong focus on "solution to problems", he helped deliver £5 billion spend on UK coastline. Chris has given evidence to Commons and Lords Select Committees, Monopolies and Mergers Commission and the European Parliament and Commission and was called as a special advisor to the Rt.Hon Michael Meacher MP Minister for the Environment. Chris sees effective communication as a key driver to change and has appeared on everything from Panorama to BBC Newsnight live, BBC Children's TV and the BBC World Service and CNN Skewed View.
Biodiversity
Country Manager Mastercard Romania and Croatia
Cosmin Vladimirescu started his career in the financial-banking sector in 2000, one year after graduating from the Faculty of Management-Marketing at the Romanian-American University of Bucharest. His first role was as a Card Fraud Officer at Bancpost, and in 2005 was appointed Manager of the first Fraud and Payment Denial Department at Bancpost, a position that involved analyzing risk situations and managing card fraud prevention solutions. He joined Mastercard Europe in April 2007 as Account Manager for Romania, with the main responsibility for launching new card products and programs. In 2010, he took on the role of Country Manager Mastercard Republic of Moldova, and after the end of his mandate in 2013, he was appointed Country Manager Mastercard Romania. Since February 2020, he has also been coordinating Mastercard Croatia. From his current position, he coordinates the entire activity of the company, focused on strategic pillars covering the promotion of electronic payments, innovation and development of new payment methods, financial education and inclusion, and social good, managing Mastercards operations and major projects, as well as the relationship with all stakeholders.
Finance
Partner and Senior Advisor, Dröge & van Drimmelen
Marieke van der Werf is director of MW Adviesgroep BV, based in Amsterdam, and associate partner of the Public Affairs Energy Dr2. In The Netherlands she is one of the leading experts on sustainable energy and circular economy. During her career Marieke combined business and politics: she started as a consultant in environmental communication and already in the '90's developed campaigns on combating climate change. Then she moved to politics: after being a member of the City Council In Amsterdam, from 2009 till 2012 Marieke served as a member of the Dutch Parliament. As a politician she was a spokesperson on sustainability and energy. Nowadays Marieke helps companies and organizations to develop transitional strategies and connects them to politicians and policymakers. Marieke is chair of the National Recycling Platform, member of the Green Gas Platform, chair of the CCU-Alliance and member of the Board of Directors of the Royal Dutch Gas Association. Marieke is also chair of energy-fund of the Dutch province Fryslan and member of the board of the Dutch largest environmental NGO ‘Stichting Natuur & Milieu’ (Foundation Nature & Environment). In 1996 Marieke published the book: Communicatie op de Groene Markt (Communication on the green Market) and in 2009 her book Cradle to Cradle in Bedrijf (Cradle to Cradle at work) was published.
Energy
Head of Climate Strategy & Regional Delivery for Central and South Eastern Europe, EBRD
Stefania joined EBRD in 2006 and worked on the design and implementation of several Sustainable Energy Finance Facilities. Subsequently, she headed the New Product and Business Development activities in her team, was then in charge of the relationship with EU and bilateral donors on green financing instruments and, more recently, is coordinating green policy engagement in the CSEE Region. Prior to joining EBRD, Stefania was the Head of Liaison with Financial Institutions under the UNDP/GEF Energy Efficiency programme in Romania and her career also includes various roles in Trade Finance, Credit Risk and Corporate Finance departments of commercial banks. Stefania graduated from the Academy of Economic Studies in Bucharest, specializing in International Economic Relations.
Finance
Chief Environment Economist, Société Générale
With a doctorate in economics, Emmanuel Martinez is an environmental expert and a specialist in energy and climate issues (over 20 years of experience). He has worked in various professional backgrounds (administrations, NGOs, business associations, engineering and research organizations, international company in the financial sector). He was the Head of Environment of Societe Generale for 11 years before joining the team of the economists in the RISK Directorate. He was also Member of the Board of a major French not-for-profit company in the circular economy from 2012 to 2019. For three years, he chaired the Commission “Ocean” of EpE (Entreprises pour l'Environnement, the WBCSD Partner in France). Throughout his career, Emmanuel Martinez has provided the design of environmental strategies and advice on environmental issues and he has implemented incentives tools as carbon taxes in various organizations (companies, countries or regions).She has been specialised as energy policymaker, working with all Energy Ministers from 2007 to 2015. From 2012 to 2015, she was Head of Cabinet at the Minister of Environment, Energy & Climate Change, competent to develop policy formulation, implementation and monitoring on a wide range of energy and environmental projects. From October 2017, she was Advisor to the President of Nea Dimokratia on energy and natural resources. Alexandra holds a Bachelor of Law degree from Democritus University of Thrace, a Master’s Degree LLM in European Commercial Law from the University of Bristol U.K., and a M.Sc. in International & Economic studies from the Athens University of Economics & Business.
Finance
Climate Ambassador, Global Youth Climate Network
Climate action advocate and a young development professional, currently working as a Junior Professional Associate at the World Bank within The Environment, Natural Resources and the Blue Economy Global Practice. Miriam is managing the Bank´s Environmental and Social Framework (ESF) portfolio for Europe and Central Asia (ECA) and helping with its quality assurance. She also works as part of Design for Climate (D4C) team aiming to integrate climate and green agendas in the design of ECA projects while providing operational support to task teams on Climate Corporate Commitments with a focus on climate co-benefits and on implementation of Climate Change Action Plan and Green Agenda in ECA. In 2021, she was the only CEE ambassador in the Global Youth Climate Network to initiate and scale up climate actions and in 2020 was appointed as the Head delegate of the European Union to Y20 (G20 Youth engagement group), having devised and negotiated pro-youth policy recommendations for G20 leaders. With an academic background in international relations, politics, law, sociology and economics, acquired throughout her BA studies of social sciences at Sciences Po Paris, Miriam is a fresh graduate of a dual Master's degree (MA) in International Public Management (with focus on diplomacy) at Sciences Po Paris and in European Studies at King's College London.
Youth
Managing Director, Renault South Eastern Europe
Cecilia Tudor has over 18 years of experience with Renault Group România in trade, marketing and communication for brands like Dacia and Renault. She lead various departments over the years and in 2017 she became director of Special Sales for Renault Commercial Roumanie and in March communication and CSR director for Renault Group România. In february 2021, Cecilia took over the position of Managing Director Renault South Eastern Europe and coordinates the activity of Renault at the SEE cluster level. She is a graduate of the Bucharest University of Economic Studies with studies at the Université d’Auvergne, L’Institut Universitaire Professionnel de Clermont and an executive management program with ESCP Business School Europe.
Cities
Chief Sustainable Finance Advisor European Investment Bank, Luxembourg
Eila Kreivi is Chief Sustainable Finance Advisor at the European Investment Bank since February 2022. From April 2011 until end of January 2022, she headed the Capital Markets Department of the EIB, as its Director. Before that, she was the Head of Funding for the Americas, Asia & Pacific. Between March 2018 and January 2022, she was an alternate member of the Board of Directors of the European Investment Fund (EIF). Prior to joining the financing arm of the European Union in 1995, Eila Kreivi worked at the Union Bank of Finland and Société Générale, in Helsinki and in Paris. She holds a Master of Science degree in Economics from the University of Abo Akademi in Finland. In addition to her native language of Finnish, she is fluent in English, French and Swedish. Eila Kreivi chaired the Executive Committee of the Green Bond Principles in 2015-2018. She has represented the EIB at the EU High-level Expert Group on Sustainable Finance in 2017 2018, established by the European Commission. Between 2018 and September 2020, she also represented the EIB at the European Commission’s Technical Expert Group on Sustainable Finance created in 2018. Since October 2020, she is a member of the Platform on Sustainable Finance, an advisory body created by the European Commission. In July 2020, she was elected as member of the Board of Directors of the International Capital Market Association (ICMA).
Finance
Mayor, District 2, Bucharest
Radu Mihaiu is Mayor of City Hall of Sector 2 of Bucharest, Romania. He was Secretary of State in the Ministry of European Funds in 2016, in the technocratic government, being responsible for digitization. Mihaiu graduated from the “Sfantul Sava” National College in the Capital and the Faculty of Mathematics from the University of Bucharest. He has worked in the private sector, in the IT field and runs a company that develops digital applications. In addition, he founded an NGO, Reality Check, where he dealt with the digitization of social services.
Cities
Producer / Director, ”The Earthshot Prize: Repairing Our Planet”
Daniel has worked in Natural History documentary making for over 15 years, with credits including BBC’s ‘Natural World: My Congo’, BBC Earth’s feature film 'Earth: One Amazing Day' and the Netflix/WWF Emmy Award winning ‘Our Planet’ project. He made a documentary about the finance sector's destruction, and potential restoration, of the natural world, in ‘Our Planet: Too Big to Fail’. Recently, Dan has created a short film with Sir David Attenborough, on halting global deforestation, for world leaders at COP26, and Produced and Directed the first episode of the BBC/Discovery series 'The Earthshot Prize: Repairing Our Planet', entitled 'Protect and Restore Nature', with Sir David and Prince William.
Biodiversity
Head of Natural Capital, Impact-Based Finance Department, Groupe Societe Generale
Within Societe Generale’s Impact-Based Finance department, Eric is in charge of developing the offer around Natural Capital and new economic models having a positive impact on society and the environment. He is strongly involved in the definition and implementation of the group’s Biodiversity roadmap. Eric has expertise both in asset management for which he was a fund manager for 12 years and in digital transformation for which he has served as a team leader in SMEs or start-ups. Before joining the Impact Based Finance team, Eric worked in particular on solutions for extra-financial assessment of companies, in particular on the analysis of their impacts and the construction of a portfolio of impact investing.
Fianance
General Manager for Energy & Natural Resources, Middle & Eastern Europe, SAP
Professional with well-established managerial, organisational, people and business development capabilities. Involved in various industry-driven complex initiatives with a strong focus on successful execution. Member of ESMIG (European Smart Industry Group) - Customer in Control working group. Deep understanding of Utilities, Oil & Gas, Chemical, Metal & Mining value chains. Hands-on experience with IT & company growth strategy, margin optimisation and operational excellence. Responsible for definition and deployment of regional Go2Market strategies (Energy & Utility sector), direct cooperation with key clients and industry associations. Also leading SAP Global Utility and Oil & Gas Industry Value Advisors.
Tech
Co-founder & CEO, Rize
Etienne has cofounded Rize, after an Engineering degree and a few years working in finance. Rize mission is to accelerate the adoption of regenerative agriculture thanks to carbon finance. Rize is a platform where farmers can understand their carbon footprint, monitor their action plan and finance their climate action. Rize relies on an advanced technological MRV infrastructure to monitor carbon at farm level.
Food & Agri
CEO at BRD - Groupe Societe Generale
François Bloch has been Chief Executive Officer of BRD, Societe Generale's subsidiary in Romania, since 2016. Prior to this, he was First Deputy Chairman of Rosbank from 2012 to 2016. He began his career at Societe Generale group in 1990 within Fimat, the brokerage subsidiary, working on Futures markets, where he has held various positions in France, Germany and in the USA. In 2008, François Bloch was appointed Head of Strategy and Integration at Newedge. In 2009 he joined Societe Generale's Risk division as Global Head of Credit Risk - Countries and Financial Institutions. François Bloch is a graduate from Ecole Nationale de la Statistique et de l'Administration Économique (ENSAE).
Finance
Owner and Founder, NewsEnergy.ro
Senior business journalist with almost 20 years of experience in the energy sector, founder of NewsEnergy.ro, a media platform that was nominated a Climate Pact Ambassador by the European Commission. Currently I am also a communications expert on Energy & Climate Change for EM360 Group, moderator of Energy Trends - a series of video debates dedicated to energy transition co-produced with EM360.
Moderator
President, Social Innovation Solutions
Ciprian Stanescu is a Romanian social entrepreneur and futurist. He runs Social Innovation Solutions, an organization working to empower individuals and organizations to understand future transformations and to develop sustainable tech, policy, and entrepreneurial solutions. SIS runs a variety of educational programs and business competitions like Social Impact Award, Future Makers & Transformator; conversation platforms like Future Summit, Future Talks, Climate Change Summit and Sustainable Futures and foresight & circularity executive education & analyses. Ciprian worked 12 years for global organizations like Ashoka and the Aspen Institute, is a Global Shaper Alumni of the World Economic Forum, co-founder of Global Shapers Bucharest Hub & and Board Member of Rethink Romania. He teaches futurism, trend-watching & sustainability at The Entrepreneurship Academy in Bucharest. Ciprian has recently completed an executive program at the Cambridge Judge Business School in Circular Economy & Sustainability and holds an MA in Political Science from the Central European University. He is a frequent speaker on Future Trends and Social Innovation both in Romania and abroad, a radio host at Tanănana, and editor of Future Magazine.
Host
Global Head of Economics, Cross-Asset and Quant Research, UK Head of Research at Société Générale
We would like to welcome Kokou Agbo-Bloua, Global Head of Economics, Cross-Asset and Quant Research, UK Head of Research at Société Générale, as speaker at Climate Change Summit, taking place on October 4-5, in Bucharest. Kokou joined SG CIB in 2014 as Global Head of Engineering for Global Equity Flow (GEF) before taking the leadership of the Flow Strategy & Solutions team within Global Markets Financial Engineering. In June 2020, he was appointed Global Head of Economics, Cross-Asset & Quant Research, in addition to his role as Head of Flow Strategy & Solutions. Previously, he was Head of Equity & Derivative Strategy Europe at BNPP in London, where he was responsible for European fundamental equity strategy, derivatives parameters, global cross-asset themes and convertible bonds strategy. Prior to this, he started his career on the trading side as a portfolio manager at Goldman Sachs Principal Strategies (GSPS) and then a derivatives trader at JP Morgan. Born in Togo and educated in China, where he spent 12 years of his life, Kokou Agbo-Bloua graduated with an MSc in Management from HEC School of Management in Paris in 2002 and completed his post-graduate studies in Finance at the Anderson School of Management at UCLA. Kokou is a frequent contributor to the financial news media, with regular appearances on Bloomberg TV and CNBC.
Finance
Director of city planning and habitat, Communauté urbaine GPSEO Grand Paris Seine et Oise
Active for twenty years in the field of city planning in France and abroad, Sylvain Viard specializes in rebuilding depreciated neighborhoods with a focus on climate vulnerability and energy consumption. Working both with the public and private sector, neighbourhood renewal implies all buildings owners as well as local cities and collectivities in charge of roads, sewer systems, water systems, transportation systems and schools. Secondary experience is with building a new tropical city forty thousand inhabitants strong in the french tropical island or Reunion, in a climate changing environment, with specific risks such as flooding, landslide, tsunamis and coastal erosion. The job consists in building teams of highly trained professionals, organizing the decision process, coordinating all actors of the project and making things happen in a complexe environment with limited resources. Neighbourhood renewal can bring keys to adapting to climate change, buildings representing 18% of energy consumption in France today.
Cities
Country Manager for Romania and Hungary, Europe and Central Asia region, World Bank
Anna Akhalkatsi is the World Bank Country Manager for Romania and Hungary as of July 1, 2021. She oversees the World Bank’s program and leads policy dialogue with government counterparts, private sector, civil society and other relevant constituencies in the two countries. A Georgian national, Ms. Akhalkatsi first joined the World Bank in 1999 as an economist in Tbilisi, Georgia. She then became the country representative for the International Finance Corporation (IFC) in Georgia before moving to Washington D.C., where she worked on strategy, small business finance and firm capability, value chains and agribusiness issues. Subsequently, Ms. Akhalkatsi acted as Regional Lead for IFC’s Cross-Cutting Advisory Solutions in the region of Latin America and Caribbean. Prior to taking up her new post in Romania she was the World Bank Country Manager for Moldova. Extended bio Anna Akhalkatsi is the World Bank Country Manager for Romania and Hungary as of July 1, 2021. She oversees the World Bank’s program and leads policy dialogue with government counterparts, private sector, civil society and other relevant constituencies in the two countries. A Georgian national, Ms. Akhalkatsi first joined the World Bank in 1999 as an economist in Tbilisi, Georgia. She then became the country representative for the International Finance Corporation (IFC) in Georgia before moving to Washington D.C., where she worked on strategy, small business finance and firm capability, value chains and agribusiness issues. Subsequently, Ms. Akhalkatsi acted as Regional Lead for IFC’s Cross-Cutting Advisory Solutions in the region of Latin America and Caribbean. Prior to taking up her new post in Romania she was the World Bank Country Manager for Moldova. Before joining the World Bank Group, Ms. Akhalkatsi worked at the Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs, and the Parliament of Georgia, as well as in private sector consulting. She is an alumni of the Central Eurasia Leadership Academy and IFC's Global Business Leadership Program. Ms. Akhalkatsi has co-authored a number of IFC publications on a range of private sector development issues. She holds an MA in Economic Policy Management from the University of Clermont-Ferrand, France, and in Human Geography from the Tbilisi State University, Georgia. She is a graduate of the Joint Vienna Institute, Austria.
Policy
Program Leader for Sustainable Development and Infrastructure for Europe at the World Bank.
Based in Brussels, Marc oversees the investment and advisory work across various sectors of the World Bank in EU countries, with particular focus on Poland, Bulgaria, Romania and Croatia. His previous roles with the WB were Manager for Climate and Carbon finance in the Climate Change Group and Adviser on Risk and Markets and Global Lead for Climate Smart Agriculture in the Agriculture Global Practice. Before the WB, Marc was a consultant for the World Bank and FAO in Central Asia, Caucasus and Turkey on issues related to agribusiness and sectoral policy. Prior to this, he was a commodities trader based out of the Former Soviet Union. He has an M.A. in Jurisprudence from Trinity College, Oxford University.
Energy
Landscape Architect | LAND Co-Founder, CEO & Creative Director
Architect, landscapist and urban planner, Andreas Kipar is the founder and Creative Director of the international landscape architecture studio LAND, with offices in Germany, Italy and Switzerland. As a graduate in Landscape Architecture at the GHS University of Essen and in Architecture and Urban Planning at the Politecnico of Milan, where he has taught Public Space Design since 2009, he often holds seminars and lectures at a number of universities, including Naples, Dresden, Venice, Zurich, Versailles and Dortmund. He is a full member of the German Academy of Urban and Regional Planning (DASL), the Association of German Landscape Architects (BDLA), the Italian Association of Landscape Architects (AIAPP) and the Italian Urban Planning Institute (INU). He is the inventor of the “Raggi Verdi” [Green Rays] model in Milan, which connects up the various areas of the city to favour a new slow mobility from the centre towards the suburbs. This model, internationally recognised as a pioneering one in green urban planning, has also had subsequent applications in Essen, the European Green Capital 2017, and in the award-winning Smart City of Rublyovo-Arkhangelskoye in Moscow. Andreas Kipar and his team are currently supervising the landscaping for EXPO 2020 in Dubai, the greenery strategy for some urban centres in the Middle East and the German Pavilion at Expo 2019 in Beijing. He has been appointed to draft urban and peri-urban green plans in a number of cities, including Milan, Cagliari, Piacenza, Reggio Emilia and Essen, and to develop territorial strategic plans, such as in the Ruhr basin, on the Karst Plateau, in the Langhe, on the Lake Garda and on various Italian islands. Photo by Ralph Richter
Cities
Director-General, Blockchain & Climate Institute (BCI)
Alastair Marke is currently the Director-General of the Blockchain & Climate Institute (BCI), which is a think tank supporting governments in the deployment of blockchain and emerging digital technologies to achieve climate change policy goals. He is a co-drafter of the ISO 14097 climate finance standard and a UK representative on ISO 22739 blockchain and distributed ledger technologies standard (use case, smart contract and governance) working groups. In the UK, Alastair chairs the Energy, Climate Change & Green Finance Committee of the British Blockchain Association; and serves as an ad hoc Expert Advisor to the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Blockchain. Alastair is a seasoned climate change and innovation policy advisor in the field of international development. Seeing the dire need to accelerate global efforts to fill the current climate finance gap, Alastair co-founded the BCI composing over 80 experts from 30 countries. The group has produced the world's first book on blockchain and climate change issues - "Transforming Climate Finance & Green Investment with Blockchains" released in July 2018. Alastair is a recognised speaker and strategist of a series of innovation projects that apply blockchain to renewable energy, green finance and disaster risk insurance, etc. His forthcoming book will be on blockchain and emissions trading law.
Finance
Regional Program Leader, Food & Agriculture Organization
Raimund Jehle, a german national, has a PhD in agricultural economics. Prior to joining FAO, he was a farmer, held several positions in academia and worked as a consultant for the European Commission’s Directorate-General for Economic and Financial Affairs in Brussels. Since joining FAO in 1999, he has served in various positions at FAO headquarters in Rome and, as of 2007, in the Regional Office for Europe and Central Asia in Hungary. Prior to his appointment as Regional Programme Leader, Raimund Jehle held the positions of Deputy Regional Representative for Europe and Central Asia and Regional Initiative Coordinator.
Cities
Chairman of the Advisory Board of the Institute of Integrated Economic Research
Hans van der Loo is Chairman of the Institute for Integrated Economic Research, a thinktank advising leaders in policymakers, business strategists and family offices. He is Co-Founder and CEO of the Blue Cooling Initiative promoting biomimicry principles to increase the reflectiveness of clouds to cool the climate. He is also Ambassador of the EU STEM Coalition to foster more sySTEMic thinking. He studied in Breukelen, Paris, Oxford, Düsseldorf and Tokyo. Until 2014 he worked in industry (McKinsey, Shell, WBCSD). He has lived in 9 countries and worked in over 50 countries. He co-authored a book about Resilience and has spoken at Bilderberg, COP, EBS, WEF conferences.
Inspiration
SVP of Strategy, FintechOS.
Mike works as SVP of Strategy at FintechOS where he thinks about the future direction of the industry and what important topics will affect the business and our lives. The topic of Sustainability is key to the future of our business and the broader community and transcends our investors, employees and customers. He has had the good fortune of working in many different sectors: fintech/ technology, banking, insurance, asset management and wealth management in a number of different roles. These experiences and working across many countries have given him a broader yet more detailed outlook and a better understanding of customers and what problems they are facing. Sustainability / Impact has been a topic close to Mike’s heart for many years. The first product he worked on was more than 20 years ago and latterly helped set up Barclays Bank’s Impact Investing business to help customers gain better access to this important exposure in their lives.
Head of Climate Department · National Meteorological Administration, Romania
Roxana Bojariu, PhD in physics from the University of Bucharest, is currently coordinator of the Research Group on Climate Variability and Change in the Climatology section of the National Meteorological Administration, Bucharest, Romania. Roxana Bojariu worked on the assessment reports of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) published in 2007, 2013, and 2021 and is now the Romanian focal point to IPCC.
Cities
Group Chief Financial Officer at Globalworth
Stamatis Sapkas is the CFO of Globalworth and has more than 20 years of experience in real estate advisory, finance and investment. He joined the Group in 2013 and prior to Globalworth, Stamatis was a member of Citigroup’s Real Estate and Lodging investment banking team based in London, and previously EFG Eurobank Ergasias, having started his career at Eurobank Properties in Athens, Greece. His experience includes transactions in M&A, Equity Offerings, Debt Financings and NPL in the Real Estate and Lodging sectors and has worked in a number of jurisdictions in Europe, the Middle East and Africa. He holds a B.Sc. in Management Science with Computing from the University of Kent and an M.Sc. in Banking & International Finance from Bayes Business School.
Cities
Co-Founder, Urban Cultor
My colleagues and I invest passion and energy to build resilient urban and periurban gardens, edible landscapes and strong communities for the future. We strongly believe that urban waste can become tomorrow's valuable ressource, therefore our projects are focused on urban composting solutions dedicated to local authorities, companies and farmers. Soil, nature and biodiversity need us now.
Startups
Deputy CEO, Global Corporates, BRD Groupe Société Générale
Mrs. Maria Rousseva has over 22 years experience in banking field over which 16 years in management positions inside SG Groupe such as: Head of Corporate and Investment Banking at Societe Generale Expressbank, Bulgaria (November 2005 – October2011); Member of the Management Board/Executive Director in charge of Corporate and Financial Markets at Societe Generale Expressbank, Bulgaria (November 2011 –October 2012); Deputy CEO/ Deputy Chairman of the Management Board, Head of Corporate and Financial Markets at Societe Generale Expressbank, Bulgaria (November 2012 – June 2015); CEO/ Chairman of the Executive Board at Societe Generale Bank Serbia (July 2015 – July 2019); Member of the Supervisory Board at Ohridska Banka, Societe Generale Group (February 2012 – December 2019); Member of the Board of Directors at SKB Banka Slovenia, Societe Generale Group (May 2018 – December 2019), Member of the Board of Directors at Rusfinance Bank LLC, Rosbank Group (August 27, 2019 –February 2021); First Deputy CEO/ First Deputy Chairman of the Management Board at PJSC Rosbank (since August 21, 2019 to April 29, 2022); Member of the Board of Directors of Societe Generale Insurance LLL and Societe Generale Life Insurance LLC, Russia (since September 18, 2019 – May 31, 2022)
Finance
Head of the EIB Group Representation in Romania
Lara Tassan Zanin has been appointed the Head of the EIB Group Representation in Romania on September 1st 2018. She oversees the largest office of the EIB Group with some 40 EIB experts providing technical assistance to various Romanian authorities. As the first EIB Resident Representative in Ankara, she has opened the new office of the EIB Group in March 2014 and followed primarily the EIB public sector lending in Turkey. In 2011-2014, Lara was in London representing the EIB at the Executive Board of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD). She had joined the EIB in 2006 as transport engineer in charge of appraising road and rail projects in several countries around the world. Prior to the EIB, she gained experience in the Central European Initiative (CEI), a regional organisation supporting candidate countries in Central and Eastern Europe in their path to the EU Accession. In 2007 she has received the Medal Award of the Central European Initiative for her remarkable results. The medal was awarded for the first time to a staff member. Lara holds a PhD in applied engineering and London Business School Executive MBA. In her leisure time, she enjoys travelling, dancing and studying psychology. She is passionate of art and classic music.
Finance
Executive Director, Romanian Business Leaders
Alina Burlacu is currently the CEO of Romanian Business Leaders, a platform of action and involvement that brings together entrepreneurs and C-level executives from Romania who invest their time and energy in developing projects under three pillars: entrepreneurship, education and good governance. Before this, Alina was the Community Manager and Summit Coordinator of the RBL Foundation. Alina has also a vast experience in designing and delivering trainings for different companies and organizations, both in Romania and abroad and she was involved as volunteer, mentor or jury member in various programs such as Future Makers, Social Impact Award, EduHack, Startup Weekend and others. Between July 2018 and July 2019, she was the Curator of Global Shapers Bucharest Hub, part of Global Shapers Community, an initiative of the World Economic Forum. She has bachelor degrees in Political Science and European Administration and master degrees in the field of European Public Space and Analysis and Conflict Resolution.
Host
Co-Founder, Financial Intelligence
Host
Romanian Minister of Economy
Florin Marian Spataru was sworn in as the Minister of Economy in November 2021, after serving as President of ANCONAV, Romanian Shipbuilding Association, since 2013, and HR & Corporate Affairs Director at Damen Shipyards, since 2018. During his career at ANCONAV, his responsibilities included representation of Romanian Shipbuilding Association in SEA Europe (The Shipyards’& Martitime equipment Association of Europe), OECD working Group WP6, representation in other international and national shipbuilders associations. In 2009, he studied at London Business School and during 1997-2002 he graduated from ‘’Dunarea de jos’’ University of Galați.
Inspiration
Romanian Minister of Research, Innovation & Digitalization
Policy
Co-Founder, Polymore
Startups
Co-Founder, Ecotree
Young entrepreneur, Co-Founder of Ecotree - the first digital waste management platform in Romania. I graduated Business Administration in Tourism and started my career in HoReCa where I've acumulated 10+ years of experience in different management positions. In 2017 I shifted into the Recycling Industry, where, I co-founded Ecotree, with the desire of helping companies to improve theyr recycling efficiency. Today, Ecotree is a Software as a Service for companies providing them easy access to a platform for daily waste operations (documents, orders, BI data, etc).
Startups
Ranked amongst the fifty most influential people in India, Sadhguru is a Yogi, mystic, visionary and a New York Times bestselling author. Sadhguru has been conferred the Padma Vibhushan by the Government of India in 2017, the highest annual civilian award, accorded for exceptional and distinguished service. He is also the founder of the world's largest people's movement, Conscious Planet – Save Soil, which has touched over 3.9 billion people.
Inspiration
Senior Consultant, EY
Energy professional with 10 years of experience in consulting, management, sales, communications and volunteering. Manager within EY Romania Business Consulting team, focusing on energy & resources. FEL100 Member, being selected in 2020 amongst the 100 future energy leaders by the World Energy Council and Member of Future Energy Leaders Romania. Passionate about education, innovation, leadership & organisational culture with a personal mission of connecting dots, constructing teams, communicating energy and creating the future.
Moderator
Speakers Director, Climate Change Summit
Smaranda is the Climate Change Summit Speakers' Director. Graduate of the Diplomatic School in Madrid, with MBA from London School of Business and Finance and an Executive Program from Harvard Kennedy School of Government, she brings over a decade of experience in business management and market strategy. She has been conducting research in digital transformation, anthropology, social sciences, future of retail and innovation, also taking the lead in delivering talks on future of humanity, AI, gender in tech, digital behavior/ psychology. As a keynote speaker or panel facilitator, Smaranda is positively biased by today’s technological leaps and weaves a narrative of an unprecedented development of humanity in the near future, assisting organizations to become agile in their process of exponential transformation. She’s fluent in English, Spanish, French and Portuguese with a fondness for Arabic, Middle East studies, history, politics and literature. She is currently Executive Director of UPGRADE100, the largest digital &tech festival in the region, consultant for AdWorld Conference and digital anthropology advisor with several established companies and startups.
Moderator
Climate Change Expert Engineer, Climate Change Presidency Office, Turkey Ministry of Environment
Dr. Bengu Ozge Serifoglu is a Climate Change Expert in the Climate Change Presidency Office-Turkiye. She is responsible for the energy sector mostly focusing on renewable energy and green energy transition and analyzes possible future implementations for decarbonization of the energy sector for the National Determined Contribution and Long Term Low Emisions Development Strategy project for Turkiye. Dr. Serifoglu is a graduate of Environmental Engineering from Yildiz Technical University-Istanbul and holds a PhD degree from Mechanical Engineering, University of California San Diego-USA, focusing on solar forecasting in her PhD thesis.
Minister of Environment, Waters and Forests Romania
Barna Tánczos is the Romanian minister of the Environment, Waters and Forests and senator within the Romanian Parliament. Between 2007 – 2012 he also played an important role as secretary of state, within several ministries, as follows: Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, Ministry of Development and Tourism, Ministry of Transport. He directly contributed to the progress that has been made in reference to the integration of all environmental considerations into the Common Agriculture Policy (CAP), as vice president of the Committee on Agriculture, Food Industry and Rural Development within the upper house in the bicameral Parliament of Romania. Languages spoken: Hungarian (mother tongue); Romanian (fluent); English (fluent). Concerning the education and professional training: he graduated the Special training for senior civil servants, the Romanian Banking Institute, training on marketing policies for SMEs. He has a license in economic studies and a Master’s degree issued by the Romanian National Defense University. Moreover, regardless of the political activity, he played a very important role as President of the Romanian Ice Hockey Federation (2008-2013) and also as President of the Mens Sana Foundation (2016-presently).
Policy
National Technology Officer, Microsoft Romania
Andreea is an experienced business strategy and public policy professional with over 15 year of experience working for multinationals in telecommunications and information technology and in an advisory capacity with the World Economic Forum as part of the Smart Cities Committee and with the United National Global Compact - in Europe and United States. Most recently she is the National Technology Officer for Microsoft in Romania where her focus is on building bridges between technology, business, economy, policy and society. She is actively providing technical insights on critical infrastructure, digital sovereignity, national data strategies, smart cities and novel technologies. Andreea co-founded the Young& Bold NGO, where their mission is to enable the young and bold professionals to create their own ecosystem of partners aiming at making their communities better. She is also advising start-ups in ag tech and smart cities particularly around technology choices as well as business models. Andreea has an International MBA from Nijenrode Business Universitiet, Netherlands where she specialized in Business Sustainability and graduated with a thesis on Orchestrated Collaboration Models for Smart Cities, sponsored by IBM Europe.
Tech
General Manager, Microsoft Romania
Bogdan Putinică, General Manager for Microsoft Romania, has extensive expertise in managing software services operations, leading expertise build-up and innovation in fast changing settings in start-up environments, as well as in global companies. With over 20 years of rich and diverse business experience as a senior executive and global leader, Bogdan founded his own software startup at the onset of his career, that he eventually grew to a global scale. Bogdan’s experience and impact have been repeatedly recognized by multiple awards for entrepreneurship, leadership and management performance. He is an author and speaker on leadership and business topics; as well as an active volunteer and co-founder of the charity 3 Wishes, which focuses on grassroots humanitarianism.
Tech
Country Manager, WWF Romania
Professional Biologist with over 19 years of nature conservation and management experience working in the Danube Carpathian Region, especially in non-governmental organisations. Focused on developing nature conservation programmes embedded into socio – economic challenges of Romania and on mobilising civil society’s interest for environment.
Biodiversity
Copyright © 2023 – Climate Change Summit – All Rights Reserved