Africa Support Program Coordinator; -Global Alliance for Incinerator Alternatives (GAIA). Youth Advisor to the GCA. Co-Founder of Green Africa Youth Organization. Strategic Management, Youth leadership, climate and development,
Movement building, zero waste and Governance.

Okezue Bell is a young inventor, scientist, social activist, and motivated student with over 4 years of advanced placement and college biology, computer science, and mathematics courses. Concerned with service and using technical skills to aid the public and marginalized populations.

Experienced in both wet-lab and computational research and lab experience spanning human and evolutionary sciences, artificial intelligence, and healthcare. Also worked/interned in enterprise technology at Fortune 500 research and development corporations such as Microsoft and IBM.

Developed two seminal innovations: the WeArm, a low-cost and human-like prosthetic arm for below-the-elbow amputees, and Fidutam, an instant-messaging-based financial platform for unbanked and low-infrastructure communities. Raised over $600,000 for both innovations, and secured partnerships with leading organizations, including Johnson & Johnson, Goldman Sachs, and the United Nations. Recognized as a NASDAQ “Face of Entrepreneurship”, Code.org Computer Science Hero, and the International BioGENEius, both for my social service and technical work addressing key global issues.

Journalist with over 50 articles and United Nations and World Economic Forum speaker. Social worker and volunteer with over 1,000 service hours, and workshops on STEM and mentorship sessions reaching over 65,000 students. Supported by UNICEF, the UNA-USA, and UNESCO Nigeria.

Sustainability advisor for global brands, including Leonardo DiCaprio and H&M. Aspiring towards advanced studies at the intersection of biomedical engineering, biotechnology, sociology, and computer science/mathematics.

Operations Lead for OneUpAction International

Youth Coordinator, Global Landscapes Forum

Molly Burhans is the founder and executive director of GoodLands, an organization that works with the religious communities to digitally catalog, map, and strategically plan and manage real estate portfolios around the world for environmental, social, and financial impact. Burhans lead a research team at Esri Inc. to develop the first global data-based maps of the Catholic Church, which were premiered in late 2016 in the Vatican as part of the Vatican Arts and Technology Council. She is the United Nations' Young Champion of the Earth for N. America (2019), representing the most promising youth-driven environmental solution in the continent. She is a Mulago Foundation Henry Arnhold conservation fellow and Ashoka Fellow. She has an MS in Ecological Design and a BA in Philosophy. Her interests include: triple-bottom-line real asset management, social entrepreneurship, innovative funding structures, conservation, blockchain, grand strategy, global meta-governance, geospatial infrastructure, religion, the role of non-state actors in addressing climate change, landscape ecology and restoration, and the ethics of sustainability.

I am a Biologist (UNRC), Master in Ecology and Conservation (UFPR, Brazil) and currently a PhD candidate in Agricultural Sciences (FAUBA). Since the beginning of my career, I have been interested on ecosystem restoration and biodiversity conservation, with an emphasis on the landscape approach as a strategy for the integration of society within these practices. In the context of this motivation, my PhD research topic tests the management of vegetation on crop edges to promote habitat regeneration and a consequent increase in pollinator diversity in rural landscapes of the Rolling Pampas. On the other hand, I have provided advice to native forest restoration initiatives in different areas of Argentina, and since 2016 I have coordinated the activities of the 'Monte Alegre Nature Reserve'. Addressing different but complementary ecosystems such as grasslands and forests, seems to me essential to have a holistic understanding of landscapes, and to think of more efficient strategies to restore their composition and ecosystem services.

I participated in international training programs (Restoration Stewards Program of the Global Landscapes Forum, 2021), as a speaker at international events in person (World Forestry Congress, Seoul, 2022; Committee on Forestry-FAO, Rome, 2022; GLF Investment Case, Luxembourg, 2023) and virtually (76th session of the United Nations General Assembly, New York, 2022; Youth Forestry Policy Day, IUFRO and GLF, 2022; Webinar 'Transforming agrifood systems with forests', FAO, 2022) and I am part of the youth hub of the movement #GenerationRestoration of the United Nations. Having had various instances of training, both national and international, I propose to continue studying and working on projects that allow me to apply the learning and tools acquired to the socio-environmental contexts, to create and empower the success of innovative nature-based solutions.

Juan Pablo Celis Garcia currently serves as Youth Programme Coordinator of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP). As part of this role, he manages the Young Champions of the Earth award, the UN’s highest environmental honor for young people working on innovative solutions to environmental issues. He is a founding member of the Youth Representatives Steering Committee of the UN Department of Global Communications. Juan Pablo served as Subcommittee Co-Chair of the 66th United Nations DPI/NGO Conference on Education for Global Citizenship, where he chaired the Gyeongju Youth Declaration on Decision-Making. In 2019, he co-led the drafting of the first ever Youth Climate Compact at the 68th UN Civil Society Conference. Previous experiences include, Communications Associate for the UN Association of New York and Adviser to the Permanent Mission of Costa Rica to the United Nations. He holds a B.A. in International Studies - Public Policy, Summa Cum Laude, and a Master of international Affairs

Megan Chen is the founder and director of The Urban Garden Initiative (TUGI), a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization which aims to inspire and empower youth to achieve urban sustainability through a gardening-based educational program. Through her work with TUGI, she has been able to provide resources and opportunities for lower-income youth to become environmental change makers within their communities.

Namgay has championed climate action and breaking barriers to youth participation in decision making through her work in the Bhutanese government that included being an Article 6 negotiator since COP27. As a Global Shaper and Climate Reality Leader, Namgay has engaged over 400 Bhutanese youth in climate literacy. Namgay aspires to understand how global goals can be translated into transformative local action by widening the scope of conversations and action at the grassroots levels. She served as the Thimphu Hub's curator from 2021-22. She currently works at the Bhutan Ecological Society as its Climate Solutions Strategist.

Forest Engineer and Specialist in Environmental Management (ESALQ - USP) and Biologist (UNESP), awarded in 2016 by the Brazilian Society of Forestry and Silviculture. Specialist and consultant in agroforestry systems and native and exotic species silviculture. More than 10 years of theoretical and practical experience in regenerative production systems. Advanced knowledge in dendrology, botanic and identification of native trees. Worked in the coordination of the field team and the development of research and innovation in the agroforestry production systems of Organic Farm ‘Fazenda da Toca’ (Brazil). Has mapped indicators for the evaluation and comparison of biophysical and socioeconomic parameters in agroforestry systems. Developed projects of forest restoration, environmental adaptation, forest seeds direct seeding, horticulture, and fruticulture agroforestry. As an extensionist, participated in sustainable projects, and technical assistance with farmers and communities in various regions of Brazil and Latin America. Extensive experience in facilitating training courses and practical workshops on regenerative production systems and forest restoration, with different types of stakeholders. She was the coordinator of the research and extension group on agroforestry systems at ESALQ - USP.

She is the Youth Advisor to the UN Secretary-General of the United Nations on Climate, representing the LAC Region.

Nature entrepreneur passionate about forest/biodiversity conservation and iterating upon solutions to unlock more value for all from regenerative systems. Previously a management consultant advising clients from across the commercial, government, and NGO/non-profit sectors. Intrinsically motivated, unreasonably optimistic, and creative problem solver. Fascinated by market systems thinking. Relentlessly explores and pursues opportunities to align stakeholders' incentives to build ecosystems that work better for people and the planet.

Xiaojing is in charge of the overall management of Impact Hub Shanghai, leading Hub’s strategic planning and incubation system building. Xiaojing has dedicated herself to sustainable development and innovation leadership fields for many years. As a former negotiation observer of UNFCCC, she was deeply involved in the collective civil climate movement in China. She was also part of the International Antarctic Expedition Program led by Robert Swan OBE and went to Antarctica to investigate climate impact on ecosystems there. Before founding Impact Hub Shanghai, she worked in several leading consulting firms and international organizations, providing sustainable solutions for many corporates and governments, and has experience in establishing several social enterprises and NGOs. Xiaojing studied in Sweden before and has two master degrees in ecology and strategic sustainability management. In 2019, she joined the Ecosystem Leadership program hosted by Dr. Otto Schemer from MIT and got involved in the global practice of ecosystem transformation. She is part of BMW Responsible Leaders Network and Gen T. Fellow in 2020

Described by former United Nations Secretary General, Mr. Kofi Annan as “…an embodiment of youth leadership”, Shadrack is a young man whose leadership style is inspired by his background of growing up in abject poverty. As the son of a peasant farmer and charcoal seller, he had two options; become a farmer or start a family. Education was secondary. However, he broke away from tradition and chose education. A “face-to-face” encounter with leg amputation and death after contracting a life-threatening infection on his legs from swimming in his village’s river inspired him on a medical career path. He graduated from the University of Pennsylvania with a Pre-Medicine/Biology degree in 2015 as Class Flagbearer and one of five students in his graduating class awarded the prestigious $150,000 President’s Prize.

In college, Shadrack founded Tarkwa Breman Community Alliance (TBCA), and prior to this endeavor, he founded and presided over Students for A Healthy Africa (SAHA) and the African Research Academies for Women (ARA-W). SAHA provides free health insurance for HIV/AIDS orphans in Ghana and has constructed a health clinic and potable water well in two communities in rural Nigeria. ARA-W bridges the gap between male and female scientists in Africa through annual summer research internships for college women.

He is a recipient of the prestigious Samuel Huntington Public Service Award, which has
past recipients such as U.S Surgeon General, Dr. Vivek Murthy and McArthur “Genius” Fellow,
Dr. Angela Duckworth. His efforts have been lauded by President Bill Clinton, and Ghana’s Vice
President, Kwesi Amissah-Arthur. He has also received multiple invitations to meet President
Clinton and other leaders at the annual Clinton Global Initiative (CGI U) and has been appointed
an Associate Fellow of the Royal Commonwealth Society. Shadrack was named a Future of
Ghana’s Top 30 Under 30 in 2015 and is also a 2016 Cordes Fellow. His work has been featured in USA TODAY, Philadelphia Inquirer, NextCity, the Clinton Global Initiative, and Ghana
Broadcasting Corporation.

Co-Founder at Treeconomy and WEF Uplink Generation Restoration selected innovator.

Rob brings professional experience in cleantech project management, forestry and climate change research, and sustainability consulting. He holds an MSc in Environmental Technology (Business & the Environment option) with distinction from Imperial College London's Centre for Environmental Policy — where his thesis focused on nature-based carbon capture on UK farms — and a B.A. & Sc. in Arts & Science and Ecology from McMaster University, Canada. Rob was a Fulbright Killam Fellow in Environmental Resource Management at the University of Washington and is a Global Sustainability Fellow. An unabashed nature-lover, Rob has dedicated his career to combating climate change and restoring ecosystems. You can find him outside, staring at trees.

National and international climate policy consultant and advocate, Co-Founder of Youth Negotiators Academy, former Focal Point of the Youth Constituency at United Nations Climate Change, and former Vice-Chair on Youth at United Nations Food Systems Summit. She is a known climate justice activist and public speaker for a just transition towards sustainable development and ambitious climate action. She was the youngest negotiator of Switzerland to any UN climate negotiations and is currently training young diplomats from all over the world for multilateral processes. She has been studying at ETH and the University of Zurich (Political and Environmental Sciences).

Helena Gualinga is an Ecuadorian environmental and human rights activist from the Kichwa Sarayuku community in Pastaza, Ecuador. She has become a spokesperson for the Sarayuku indigenous community, and exposes the conflict between oil companies and her community in local schools as well as the international community to raise awareness. Gualinga is a co-founder of Polluters out, which was founded to demand refusal of funding coming from fossil fuel corporations by the UNFCCC. She also demonstrated in New York City outside of the UN in 2019. She participated in the COP25 in Madrid, Spain, to speak about her concern on the Ecuadorian government authorizing oil extraction in indigenous land, as well as to criticize the Ecuadorian government for claiming interest in protecting the Amazon during the conference while not having attended to indigenous Amazon women's demands brought to the government in 2019. She has been featured in Vogue magazine, Revista Hogar magazine, and had the documentary “Helena Sarayaku Manta” made about her life and activism.

The purpose of my life is to change the world. The most important struggle that humanity is facing is climate crisis and I have decided to dedicate my life completely to this. My goal is to be the voice of the most vulnerable, so that through their teachings we can make a better world.

Having worked in different countries, I have a front-row seat to the problems faced inside companies and an iterative playbook for ways to solve them.

I probe young growth companies at how they negotiate around core sustainability and business strategy issues, in their world of turbulent markets, limited resources, social disparities and structural faults.

Jabri joins the Africa team of the UN Climate Change High-Level Champions team having worked at the Stakeholder Engagement Team of the UNFCCC Secretariat & has prior multilateral experience working at UNEP, Red Cross Kenya & Crevit Mulier (a legal bureau based in Nairobi) as well as volunteering at Greenpeace Africa & the Kenya Environmental Action Network.

He has a climate and energy law background.

Jabri works to regionalize the UN Climate Change High-Level Champions’ global initiatives for Africa. He specifically works on the continued operationalization and success of the Africa Green Hydrogen Alliance (AGHA) and on youth engagement in Africa, having successfully delivered the Youth Pavilion at COP27.

Expert on scaling ecosystem restoration

Stanford

I am a young entrepreneur with aspirations in promoting sustainability in the green technology sector. My approach focuses on job creation, improving people's lives and developing green technology-based projects.

Divin is responsible for the overall management and strategy of Mvutu, an Mvutu agricultural technology company that connects farmers and vendors to ensure a fair and reliable food supply network. He has received numerous awards for his work. in social entrepreneurship, including being recognized by Foreign Policy Magazine as one of the world's top 100 thinkers for 2016. He was nominated as an African Entreprebeurship Award 2018. At Mvutu, Divin guides us in delivering in-depth work that combines collaborative design and well-integrated supply chain solutions to ensure better on-farm livelihoods and cleaner food for all.
Having started his entrepreneurial journey very early, Divin is deeply drawn to ideas that leverage technology and innovation to generate lasting social impact and quality solutions for market needs.

Demonstrated success in project management; corporate social responsibility and sustainability; strategy; environmental, social, and governance assurance; international business; team development; and business analysis.

Possess robust business acumen with an entrepreneurial mindset and comfortable with all cultures and aspects of business.

A recognized problem solver who delivers results by taking ownership and by cultivating excellent relationships through stressing positive key individual attributes and communicating clear and actionable business needs.

Comfortable presenting to groups of any size and seniority level.

Gayathri Kuppendra Reddy is an entrepreneur, investor, and socially conscious citizen. 

She graduated with a master's in Advanced Management Practice from the University of Bath, UK.
She is currently the Associate Director at RGA Software Systems Pvt Ltd which is a Commercial Real Estate Developer for the past 20+ years.

Gayathri has invested in setting up RGA Software’s Investment Vertical also has led the investments for the group since January 2017, and she is the advisor for the Groups ideation and strategy for diversification from the existing real estate portfolio. 

Gayathri’s most notable contribution is in setting up a Social Enterprise as a part of her contribution to Society.
She is the founder of KReate Foundation. KReate is an Organisation that focuses on identifying solutions to Bangalore City‘s rapid urbanization impact with regard to infrastructure and water conservation. KReate has been actively working on increasing community awareness of the need for better Urban Planning and Development. KReate’s focus areas are Water, Infrastructure, and Climate Change. She is also a trained Climate Reality Leader.

She is also a part of the Global Shapers community since 2019. A wing of the World Economic Forum. She is the present Vice-Curator of the Bengaluru hub.

Gayathri also sits on the board of Nisvartha Foundation - an NGO that works on providing access to higher education for underprivileged children.

I am a junior expert and researcher in environmental management with focus on ecosystem restoration, environmental remote sensing and GIS for communal tenure and community land conservation and protection. I have more than seven years of experience in land governance, land tenure security, environmental management and climate change. At the International level, I have been selected as one of the eight finalists of the Transformative Research Challenge (TRC) of the 2022 World Food Forum in Rome, Italy. At the international level, I have also worked with the Global Landscape Network (GLF) for one year under the program of “Young African Landscape Leaders Fellow”. Over the past three years, I have developed many research and analytical skills by conducting some field researches in the area of land governance, climate change, biodiversity conservation and tenure security. At the international level, I have also been a consultant in Agri-food Systems and Land Tenure Security for various World Bank Studies with the NRMC Center for Land Governance in India. At the regional level in Africa, I have worked during two months as the PSDFD/ABEE Regional West and Central Africa Consultant with the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA) in Addis Ababa in Ethiopia. At the national level in Cameroon, I have been a consultant at the Integrated Program for the Valuation and Transformation of Agricultural and Agri-Food products. I have also worked at the National Level as the Country Representative Officer of YILAA in Cameroon. Youth Initiative for Land in Africa (YILAA) is an African Regional Organization which has many representation Offices in many African countries. With the help of some fellowship programs like the UNEP/UNESCO/BMUZ International Postgraduate Course on Environmental Management, the NELGA short course on Land Governance and the Executive training on Sustainable Investment in Agriculture, I have developed key competences in the areas of monitoring land use changes, biodiversity management and climate change, which will help me in carrying out all the task which will be assigned to me by an organization.

Fernando Morales is a landscape restoration practitioner, advisor, and Co-chair of the #GenerationRestoration Youth Hub. He is also a Scientist at Granada University, where he specializes in governance on ecosystem restoration and ecopreneurship, leading nature-based restoration projects in southern Spain. With his expertise, Fernando actively engages in the international scenario and participates in high-level climate discussions such as the UN Conference of the Parties (COPs). Fernando has honed his business skills for environmental impact by participating in ecopreneurship programs in the USA, Italy, and Belgium. As a strong believer in the power of positive-thinking, Fernando envisions a world with intergenerational justice, and nature as part of the solution for climate recovery.

Gloria Amor Paredes is an environmental education and community development specialist. She is the co-founder of Salumayag Youth Collective for Forests, an indigenous youth and women-led initiative that empowers local and indigenous communities in the stewardship of their ancestral lands through regenerative practices and narratives. This project is based in Sto. Domingo, Quezon, Bukidnon, a Manobo-Kulamanen community that has a long history of ecological, social, and economic disadvantages. The work of Salumayag Youth is anchored on the community’s desire to nurture culture and sustain indigenous way of living. For Salumayag Youth, forest regeneration and regenerative agriculture must be accompanied by community storytelling and nature-based education.

Kevin J. Patel has fought as an intersectional climate justice activist in Los Angeles, CA for the past ten years. In 2019, Kevin founded OneUpAction, an organization that supports and empowers marginalized youth by providing them with the resources they need to be change makers. Kevin has created the first-of-its-kind Youth Climate Commission in LA County to amplify youth voices on the climate crisis. Kevin is a UN Togetherband Ambassador for Goals 7, 13, & 14. He is also a National Geographic Young Explorer. He also serves on the Youthtopia World : Circle of Youth Council, the Intersectional Environmentalist Council, and the ClimatePower Creative Advisory Board. Kevin is currently pursuing his undergraduate degree in Political Science at Loyola Marymount University.

I co-founded Oceanus Conservation, a science-based non profit organization focusing in protecting and restoring coastal ecosystems through local engagement such as education, livelihood and incorporating innovative technology. I gained my International MSc in Marine Biodiversity and Conservation in Ghent University and a postgraduate in Observational Oceanography in Alfred-Wegner Institute, Germany.

I have more than a decade of experience ranging from locally-marine protected areas, mangrove conservation and management, capacity building, community-based conservation and marine education to youth and local schools.

I am also active in the international conventions such as the COP 26 (Glasgow) and UN Ocean Conference (Portugal) bringing voice for community-based conservation.

Ayisha Siddiqa is a human rights and land defender from the tribal lands of Moochiwala and Mahsan in North Pakistan. She is the Co-founder of Polluters Out and Fossil Free University; climate justice oriented initiatives. Her work focuses on uplifting the human rights of marginalized communities due to the impacts on climate change. She is currently a research scholar at NYU school of law, working to bridge the environmental and human rights sector with the youth climate movement. 

I am a value creator, a landscape restoration entrepreneur, and GLF ocean restoration steward 2023, experienced in natural ecosystem management, monitoring & evaluation, and operations management. With half a decade of experience managing complex field operations and designing field-facing programs, I have the skills for forestry management, project management, and sustainable landscape restoration business models.

Regenerative agriculture - Soil regeneration - Resilience design - Agroforestry - Agroecology - Permaculture design - Food forest - Dryland farming - Ecosystem restoration - Forestry - Agronomy - Rural development - Community led conservation - Community empowerment - Conservation - Regeneration - Reforestation

Gabby is a student at Stanford University studying a combination of Economics, Computer Science, and Sustainability. Hailing from Malaysia, she is the Southeast Asian representative on Earth Uprising's Global Youth Leadership Council and a member of the UN's Asia-Pacific Youth Advisory Group on Climate Justice. Gabby spends much of her time focused on climate education and sustainable development. As a National Geographic Young Explorer, Gabby developed Tideturners, an environmental education initiative providing free classroom resources and workshops for youth communities. She has also attended key business and policy conferences, including COP27, as a youth delegate and spoken to thousands of people at events including TEDx, Global Biodiversity Festival, World Education Week, and NatGeo's GenGeo series. Previously, Gabby has written about climate change for various publications, worked on conservation, climate finance and policy projects in Malaysia & the UK, and pursued climate research on regenerative climate solutions as a Research Fellow at Regeneration.

Marinel Ubaldo is a Registered Social Worker, and one of the Founders, and the Executive Ditector of Youth Leaders Environmental Action Federation. She is an advocate for climate and the environment, she has been actively involved in educating communities- especially, the youth and children- about climate change and the roles they can take to adapt and mitigate to its effects. She has spoken to world leaders on behalf of Filipinos during the opening of the UNFCCC COP 21 in Paris and in UNFCCC COP 25 in Madrid. She has also been a Resource Person during the Climate Justice Liability Public Hearing during the Climate Week in New York USA last September 2018. She has recently been trained by former US Vice-President Al Gore as a Climate Reality Leader, and she continues to tell her story in the global platform aiming to shed light on the reality of climate change, and the urgency for world leaders to keep their climate commitments and for the rest of the world to act on it.

Environmentalist and climate activist from Kenya, Elizabeth Wathuti is the founder of Green Generation Initiative and the Head of Campaigns and Daima Coalition for the protection of green spaces Coordinator at the Wangari Maathai Foundation.

Harmony Jade Sugaq Wayner is a tribal member of Naknek Native Village, a commercial fisher in the Bristol Bay salmon fleet, and a marine scientist focused on sustainable rural food systems to promote Indigenous values and well-being in Alaskan villages. She is the Vice-Chair of the Arctic Youth Network, an Arctic Frontiers Emerging Leader, an Indigenous fellow for the Interagency Arctic Research Policy Committee (IARPC), and an Alaska Sea Grant Fellow. Harmony has worked at sea with the National Marine Fisheries Service on their Arctic Integrated Ecosystem Survey in 2017 and was an Indigenous co-author to the Arctic Monitoring and Assessment Program (AMAP) report under publication on societal implications of climate change. She currently lives in Anchorage, Alaska, where she works for Sea Grant and the NOAA Marine Debris Program on a strategic plan for marine litter on Alaska's remote and rugged coastline. She is most passionate about elevating the voices of Indigenous communities in Alaska by integrating western science and Indigenous knowledge to promote sustainable societies.

"Joe is a Welsh ecologist and nature campaigner with a background in systems ecology and a passion to achieve greater youth involvement and empowerment in conservation and environmental governance. Joe works as the Conventions and Policy Officer at Reserva: The Youth Land Trust, Head of Campaigning at UK Youth for Nature, and is a former member of the World Ocean Day Youth Advisory Council and Stockholm+50 Youth Task Force.
Joe holds a First Class BSc in Ecology and Environmental Biology from Imperial College London and a MSc in Environmental Change, Impact, and Adaptation from Aberystwyth University."

Vriko is the co-founder and CEO of Archireef, a startup that focuses on restoring marine ecosystems like coral reefs with the power of architecture, science and 3D-printing. In the face of rapid climate change, the likes of coral reefs are being threatened at an unprecedented rate, and Vriko made it her mission to help restore life underwater. During her PhD, she co-invented the world’s first 3D-printed clay reef tiles, a product that has proven to be the gold standard of coral reef restoration.