Plenary conference sessions

Plenary conference programme

Sessions overview

Watch our conference sessions. Sessions labeled were live-streamed from our studios in Brussels.

Sponsored session

26 October 11:30-12:30

ING

Sustainable Finance and the role of banks as enabler of green transition

Sponsored session

27 October 11:45-13:15

Aquafin

No water resilient cities without engaged citizens

08:00
09:00
10:00
11:00
12:00
13:00
14:00
15:00
16:00
17:00
18:00
19:00
20:00
21:00

Plenary

Plenary session

Looking beyond COVID-19: Integrated pathways to address health, economy, and climate

28/10/2020, 14:30 - 16:00

Watch this session

COVID-19, the first major pandemic of our century, confirms the crucial importance of sustainable healthcare systems and technologies in fighting health emergencies. Although science, technology and innovation are challenged during this pandemic, they play a vital role in how countries tackle the spread of the coronavirus and prepare for new outbreaks.

Systems for faster development of tests, vaccines, and pharmaceuticals are made possible by intensive collaboration among countries and coordination by the WHO. The use of telemedicine and other communication technologies is instrumental in making health systems more responsive and productive during critical pandemic phases. The integration of mathematical sciences in the prediction and modelling of essential elements proves to be a valuable resource for health sector authorities and managers to make rapid and precise decisions. Access to off-grid decentralised renewable power is crucial in mitigating the human catastrophe and speeding up the global recovery process, especially for developing countries.

Speakers during this plenary session will shed light on how different technological innovations are helping the fight against COVID-19 in different regions of the world. At the same time, they will reflect on the legal plausibility, ethical soundness and effectiveness of deploying emerging technologies under time pressure. Striking the right balance is crucial for maintaining public trust in evidence-based public health interventions.

The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic clearly shows we are facing a double-edged challenge in the long term. While the economic slowdown can have adverse effects on countries’ ongoing efforts towards climate mitigation, the gradual resumption of large-scale economic activities can put renewed pressure on the environment. In this way, the COVID-19 pandemic reconfirms the need for long-term development models designed around the core principle of building a resilient economy that ensures health and wellbeing of citizens and tackles climate change challenges. This plenary session will be an excellent opportunity to examine new technologies that catalyse broader change and tackle the climate change challenges ahead, maintaining the positive outcomes of this COVID-19 pandemic.

Presentation 14:30 - 14:35

Introduction

Paulo Gadelha

Paulo Gadelha

Fiocruz

Coordinator Fiocruz Strategy for 2030 Agenda

As the coordinator of the FIOCRUZ Strategy for the 2030 Agenda, Paulo Gadelha is in charge of promoting FIOCRUZ’ strategic engagement with the Agenda’s aspirational principles and goals. His background in technology includes studies of the application of technology in public health, healthcare models, and the history of Science, Technology & Innovation.

Paulo Gadelha was FIOCRUZ President from 2009 to 2016, leading scientific achievements in biomedical sciences, the generation of scientific and technological knowledge, and the promotion of health and social development. Previously, he founded and directed the “Casa de Oswaldo Cruz”, a FIOCRUZ Institute dedicated to the sociology and history of science and health.

Paulo served as a member of the National Health Council’s Science and Technology Intersectoral Commission. As President of the Brazilian Association of Collective Health, he chaired the 11th World Congress on Public Health. In cooperation with UN/DESA, he headed FIOCRUZ’s efforts in organizing the 1st International Consultation on Science, Technology and Innovation in the implementation of the 2030 Agenda and its health-related goals in 2017.

Presentation 14:35 - 14:55

The global response to the pandemic: research and development at a time of health crisis

Soumya Swaminathan

Soumya Swaminathan

WHO

Chief Scientist

Presentation 15:00 - 15:10

The role of Fiocruz in pandemic responses

Nisia Trindade Lima

Nisia Trindade Lima

Fiocruz

President

Nisia Trindade Lima is the president of the Oswaldo Cruz Foundation, and the first woman to chair the institution in its 116-year history. She served as Fiocruz Vice-President of Teaching, Information, and Communication from 2011 to 2016. From 2006 to 2011, she was director of the publisher Editora Fiocruz.

Lima has been a Fiocruz civil servant for almost three decades. She was one of the founders of the specialization course on History of Health in the Amazon, as well as the History of Science and Health Graduate Program at the House of Oswaldo Cruz. Her major role in shaping up the partnership between Fiocruz and the Brazilian Government helped in enhancing the preservation of both cultural and tangible heritage of Health in Brazil. She earned a medal of honour from the Brazilian Academy of Letters and another during the Foundation’s 100th anniversary.

Lima has participated in international programmes and networks in the areas of the history of science and health and sits on the editorial boards of the journals Medical History; Revista Brasileira de História da Ciência; História, Ciências, Saúde—Manguinhos; Cadernos de História da Ciência (Instituto Butantan); and Escritos (Casa de Rui Barbosa Foundation). Her research interests include the history of science and health, especially the social sciences, and Brazilian social thought.

Presentation 15:10 - 15:20

Water and sanitation in the context of epidemics: challenges imposed to society and health facilities

Anthony Bud Rock

Anthony Bud Rock

Global Water

Principal

Presentation 15:20 - 15:30

Lessons from the Chinese response to the COVID-19 pandemic

Gao Fu

Gao Fu

Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention

Director-General

Presentation 15:30 - 15:40

The role of science, technology, and innovation agencies, at times of pandemics

Manuel Heitor

H.E. Manuel Heitor

Portugal

Minister of Science and Technology

Manuel Heitor has been Minister of Science, Technology & Higher Education of Portugal since 2015.

From 2005-2011, he served as Secretary of State for Science, Technology and Higher Education. He is a full-time professor at IST, the engineering school of the University of Lisbon, and the founder and Director of IST’s Center for Innovation, Technology and Policy Research.

In 2011-12, he was a visiting scholar at Harvard. He earned a PhD at Imperial College, London, in combustion research and did his post-doctoral training at the University of California San Diego.

Manuel Heitor was co-Chairman of the Instituto Superior Técnico in Lisbon between 1993 and 1998. During the ’90s, he studied politics of science, technology and innovation. In 1998, he founded Centre of Innovation, Technology and Development Policies Studies, IN+, at the Instituto Superior Técnico. In 2005, this centre was ranked among the Top 50 global centres of research on Management of Technology, by International Association for the Management of Technology.

Manuel Heitor is a Research Fellow of Texas University at the Institute of Innovation, Creativity and Capital. He founded and coordinated several international conferences related to Technology Policy and Innovation, and is a co-editor of the Purdue University Press book collection on Science and Technology Policy. In 2002, he also co-founded the international network Globelics – the global network for the economics of learning, innovation, and competence building systems.

Recently, Manuel Heitor was one of the promotors of the European step4EU network (science, technology, education and policy for Europe) and the International Observatory of Global Politics for the Exploitation of Atlantic Ocean. In July 2015, he promoted the manifesto “Knowledge as Our Common Future”.

Presentation 15:40 - 16:00

Q&A

here is the text

Plenary

Special session

IEEE’s support of sustainable development – Thoughts and actions

28/10/2020, 13:00 - 14:00

Watch this session

IEEE (Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers) is the world’s largest technical professional organization dedicated to advancing technology for the benefit of humanity.  With its “Technology for the Benefit of Humanity” mission, IEEE is a thought leader in the UN Social Development Goals. But IEEE doesn’t just think and talk about the SDGs, it also acts on them.

This session showcases some of IEEE’s impactful SDG projects by its global members and partners. Some of the UN SDGs represented in these talks are Zero Hunger, Quality Education, Gender Equality, Clean Energy, Decent Work and Economic Growth, Good Health, Clean Water, and Climate Action.

Chaired by

José M. F. Moura

José M. F. Moura

Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers

2019 President and CEO

José M. F. Moura is the Philip L. and Marsha Dowd University Professor at Carnegie Mellon University, a member of the U.S. National Academy of Engineering and the U.S. National Academies Navy Study Board, corresponding member of Portugal Academy of Sciences, and Fellow of U.S. National Academy of Inventors, IEEE, and American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS). He has received several awards for his technical work. He holds a doctorate from MIT and an EE from Instituto Superior Técnico, Lisboa (IST), Portugal.

José holds 16 patents, including two used in over 3 billion disk drive chips in 60% of all computers sold in the last decade and the subject of a 2016 US$750 million settlement between Carnegie Mellon and a semiconductor manufacturer. He is President and cofounded Spiralgen, a company that specializes in super-fast software components for cutting-edge parallel platforms. This includes technology licensed by Intel (10 million lines of code in Intel’s IPP) and licensed and used by several other companies.

Besides being 2019 IEEE President and CEO, José has served the IEEE in several other positions including as Technical Activities Vice-President and Division IX Director and member of the Board.

Presentation 13:00 - 13:15

Achieving holistic development through energy access

How can you achieve holistic development through energy access? Paras Loomba focuses on using energy access as a tool, to further sustainable development in communities through creating interventions in education and livelihood. This brings an overall impact in the communities and in the process to achieve various SDGs.

Paras Loomba

Paras Loomba

Global Himalayan Expedition

Founder

Paras is the founder of Global Himalayan Expedition (GHE), a social impact enterprise, that provides clean energy and livelihood access to the remote Himalayan communities.

Over last 8 years, Paras has led several leadership expeditions to Himalayas (India) to setup solar microgrids for the remote off-grid communities that are thriving for centuries without access to any kind of basic electricity. His initiative GHE has been instrumental in electrifying 110 remote Himalayan villages and impacting over 55,000 lives. In the process, GHE has also created livelihood generation for more than 140 village level women entrepreneurs that run traveler homestays in these solar electrified villages to promote community-based tourism.

An engineer by profession, Paras merges technology and passion with an approach to entrepreneurial models in these high-altitude areas advocating use of sustainable tourism solutions that would eventually providing stimulus to local economy, reducing local emigration and preserving age old cultural Himalayan heritage.

Presentation 13:15 - 13:30

Implementing sustainable development in local Maasai communities

The Maa Trust is a sustainable development implementer and a community-based non-profit in the Maasai Mara, Kenya. The Maa Trust increases benefits that local Maasai communities receive from safari tourism, focusing on the traditionally disadvantaged. The trust works to empower women, youth and children through three thematic areas: Education and Skills, Water and Health, and Alternative Livelihoods. The Maa Trust’s programs are research-based, built upon Dr Mogensen’s PhD examining the relationship between conservancies and development in the Maasai Mara.

This presentation will touch on the following UN SDGs:

  • No poverty: reducing poverty through livelihood diversification and income generation, women’s empowerment and the provision of basic services.
  • Good health and wellbeing: providing quality healthcare to marginalized rural communities through an Integrated Community Healthcare Project.
  • Quality education: making sure that all children attend school, and then once they are in school, that they receive a quality education.
  • Gender equality: preventing all forms of gender-based violence and discrimination, including female genital mutilation, child marriage, and child pregnancy.
  • Clean water and sanitation: moving away from troublesome boreholes and focusing on large scale rainwater harvesting and natural spring rehabilitation.
  • Affordable and clean energy: piloting a new modular solar system called the SunBlazer and rolling this out across the area, including charging electric vehicles.
  • Decent work and economic growth: coordinating three social enterprises, two for women (Maa Beadwork and Maa Honey) and one for youth (Maa Bricks).
  • Climate action/life on land: working with wildlife conservancies to ensure that communities benefit from the protection of wildlife and habitat through evidence-based community development.
Crystal Mogensen

Crystal Mogensen

The Maa Trust

CEO

Crystal holds a Ph.D. in African Studies from the University of Edinburgh and runs the Maa Trust, a community-based non-profit in the Maasai Mara, Kenya. The goal of this trust is to increase the benefits that communities receive from wildlife conservation.

Presentation 13:30 - 13:45

Green Village Electric Projects

GVE Projects Limited is a leading renewable energy solutions provider in Sub-Saharan Africa. In line with our vision of being the first-choice renewable energy enterprise sort globally, we have a business footprint that covers the design, sales, installation and maintenance of renewable energy solutions predominantly solar energy and hybrid power systems for residential, commercial, industrial and rural off-grid or under-served communities through commercially sustainable business models in line with our clients’ needs.

GVE pioneered Clean Energy Mini-Grid technology for Energy Access in West Africa and has raised US$7.8million (mix of a grant, equity, and debt) which has been used to successfully complete twelve (14) PV solar mini-grid pilot projects (2013 – 2020) in 7 states using a commercially sustainable PAYG business model. These are currently serving 14,868 homes in these communities. GVE’s energy access business plan was rated one of the top-5 most promising Clean Energy & Climate Investment opportunity by UNIDO/ PFAN, USAID, AfDB, ECREEE, EBID, BOAD etc. GVE was recognized by the London Stock Exchange Group as one of the fastest-growing private companies in Sub-Saharan Africa.

Ifeanyi B. Orajaka

Ifeanyi B. Orajaka

Green Village Electric Projects

Founder & Managing Director

Ifeanyi B. Orajaka is a 32-year old Engineer, Obama Foundation Fellow, Global Shaper (World Economic Forum), socio-entrepreneur, Green Ambassador, Mentor and Founder/CEO of GVE Projects Limited. Ifeanyi has over ten years’ experience in renewable energy systems design, installation/maintenance, business development, project management, GIS-based rural electrification planning, policy/strategy formulation and conflict resolution. As the founder and Managing Director of GVE Projects, he is directly involved in the development and implementation of strategies geared towards positioning the young company as a leader in the African renewable energy industry.

He holds a B.Eng in Electrical Electronics Engineering from the Federal University of Technology Owerri and an M.Eng in Power Systems Engineering from the University of Port-Harcourt both in Nigeria. He has also participated in training on Corporate Finance, New Venture Finance, Operations Management, Public-Private Partnerships and Marketing. He is a certified Project Manager and has had professional internship experiences in leading multinational companies (ExxonMobil, Royal Dutch Shell & NIIT).

Ifeanyi’s mission to end extreme energy poverty in Africa has attracted him several international recognitions such as the 2016 Future Africa Award in Business, the 2016 Africa Energy Leader of the Year, the 2018 participant of the Dutch Visitor Program and the IEEE Smart Village Ambassador.

Ifeanyi was recognized as one of Nigeria’s top 100 most innovative CEOs in 2019 by the Guardian Newspaper. His leadership in the renewable energy industry in Africa earned him a Board seat in the Finance working Group of the Africa Mini-Grid Developers Association and an advisory board seat in the Renewable Energy Association of Nigeria where he also chairs the association’s Access to Finance Working Group. Ifeanyi is equally a member of the Africa-Europe High-Level Platform for Sustainable Energy Investments in Africa which is an initiative of the African Union and the European Commission aimed at bolstering more collaboration between both continents towards increased energy investment in Africa for sustainable growth and job creation.

Presentation 13:45 - 14:00

The Women-in-Tech Challenge and the Digital-Change-Maker Challenge

Doreen will highlight some of the UN- ITU’s work with Women-in-Tech Challenge and the Digital-Change-Maker Challenge in various parts of the world.  Some of the SDG’s highlighted are Zero Hunger, Decent Work and Economic Growth, Reduced Inequalities.

Doreen Bogdan-Martin

Doreen Bogdan-Martin

International Telecommunication Union

Director Telecommunication Development Bureau

Doreen Bogdan-Martin was elected Director of the ITU Telecommunication Development Bureau in November 2018 and took office on 1 January 2019.

She is a strategic leader with 30 years’ high-level experience in international and inter-governmental relations, and a long history of success in policy and strategy development, analysis and execution. ​

​From 2008-2018, she led the Strategic Planning & Membership Department of ITU, and also served as Coordinator of United Nations affairs.

She was one of the architects of the annual Global Symposium for Regulators and leads ITU’s contribution to the EQUALS Global Partnership for Gender Equality in the Digital Age. She serves as Executive Director of the UN Broadband Commission for Sustainable Development, and is leading ITU’s collaboration with UNICEF and others on the GIGA project to connect the world’s schools.

She holds a Master’s degree in International Communications Policy from the American University in Washington, DC and a post-graduate certificate in Strategies for Leadership from the Institute for Management Development in Lausanne, Switzerland.

She is an affiliate of the Harvard University Berkman-Klein Center for Internet and Society, and a Generation Unlimited Champion. She serves on a number of advisory bodies, including the Geneva-Tsinghua Initiative, the SDG Lab Advisory Board, and the UN Technology Innovation Labs.

Plenary

Special session

Sustainable Finance for Business Transformation

27/10/2020, 11:00 - 12:30

Watch this session

This plenary session, which is organised by CSR Europe in cooperation with G-STIC, is part of the European SDG Summit that aims to connect 5000+ actors through Plenary sessions and 40+ European and National Roundtables. CSR Europe is the leading European business network for Corporate Sustainability and Responsibility. With its corporate members, National Partner Organisations (NPOs), and Associated Partners, CSR Europe supports 10.000 businesses & industry sectors in their transformation and collaboration towards practical solutions and sustainable growth, co-building with the European leaders and stakeholders an overarching strategy for a Sustainable Europe 2030.

In the aftermath of the COVID-19 outbreak, restoring the old economic order is not an option to achieve sustainable growth. That would only increase inequalities and proliferate unsustainable practices, creating new risks and uncertainties.

If we want to build back better and leave no one behind, we have to learn from this crisis. We urgently need to realise a green transition, decoupling economic development from environmental degradation and shifting from a volume-driven to a value-driven economy. The UN Sustainable Development Goals provide the framework to reach the ambitions set out in Europe’s Green Deal and Industrial Strategy.

Finance and investment will play a key role in this. The development of new technologies and sustainable solutions requires significant R&D investments, while scaling-up impact investments are needed to bring these solutions to the market. In this way investors, governments and companies can define the boundaries of the new economic system. The role of the financial sector and the responsibility of corporate Chief Financial Officers are the keys to success.

Speakers and high-level panellists will highlight the EU policy direction to expand the European Taxonomy and review Corporate Non-Financial Disclosure rules, while others will provide updates on their contributions to a global impact measurement and valuation standard for monetizing and disclosing impacts of corporate activity.

Panel discussion 11:00 - 12:30

Shifting from a volume to a value driven economy

Paolo Gentiloni

H.E. Paolo Gentiloni

European Commission

Commissioner for Economy

Paolo Gentiloni has been appointed European Commissioner for Economy in 2019. His primary responsibilities include the coordination of the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals in the context of the European Semester cycle of economic governance, and further deepening the European Economic and Monetary Union.

Commissioner Gentiloni is coordinating the launch of the InvestEU programme and setting up and implementing the Sustainable Europe Investment Plan. He leads international efforts to find an agreed approach on the taxation of the digital economy and pursuing efforts to make a common consolidated corporate tax base a reality in the EU. In the framework of the European Green Deal, he is leading the review of the Energy Taxation Directive and preparing the proposal for a Carbon Border Tax.

Before his appointment as EU Commissioner for Economy, Paolo Gentiloni has been a Member of the Italian Chamber of Deputies since 2001. He was Prime Minister of Italy from 2016 to 2018, Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation from 2014 to 2016, Member of the Committee on Foreign Affairs from 2013 to 2014 and Minister of Communications from 2006 to 2008. As a former professional journalist, he has also been the Chairman of the Broadcasting Services Watchdog Committee from 2005 to 2006 and a spokesperson for the Mayor and Commissioner in the City of Rome from 1993 to 2000.

Enrico Giovannini

Enrico Giovannini

Alleanza Italiana per lo Sviluppo Sostenibile (ASviS)

Former Italian Minister of Labour and Social Policies,

Hakan Lucius

Hakan Lucius

European Investment Bank

Head of Corporate Responsibility and Stakeholders Engagement

Pascal Canfin

Pascal Canfin

European Parliament

Chair Committee on the Environment, Public Health and Food Safety

Sirpa Pietikainen

Sirpa Pietikainen

European Parliament Group of the European People’s Party

Member of the European Parliament, CoRapporteur Taxonomy Dossier

Antoni Ballabriga

Antoni Ballabriga

Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria (BBVA)

Global Head of Responsible Business

Hans Daems

Hans Daems

Hitachi

Chair of the Board of CSR Europe and Group Public Affairs Officer Hitachi

Saori Dubourg

Saori Dubourg

BASF SE and Value Balancing Alliance

Member of the Board of Executive Directors

Hacina Py

Hacina Py

Société Générale

Head of Impact Finance Solutions

Kaarina Kolle

Kaarina Kolle

WWF

Finance and Utility Coordinator/European Beyond Coal Campaign

Plenary

Special session

10-Member Group roundtable: Science and Technology advice for the SDGs

27/10/2020, 15:15 - 16:45

Watch this session

The members of the United Nations Technology Facilitation Mechanism’s (TFM) 10-Member Group of High-level Representatives on Science and Technology Advice for the SDGs will discuss lessons-learnt from the science-policy responses to the COVID-19 pandemic. They do so with a view to find ways to strengthen how science and technology are harnessed, not just in this case but also for meeting all the global challenges enshrined in the Sustainable Development Goals.

Even though most decision makers and the general public agree that science and technology are key to overcoming the current COVID-19 crisis, the extent to which policy is actually shaped by the balance of scientific evidence and by technological possibilities is far from clear.

The current COVID-19 pandemic is a wake-up call that painfully highlights areas for urgent improvement in science-policy advisory systems, in the wider science-policy-society interfaces, and especially in the international science and technology cooperation against the common enemy of humanity – the virus.

In the past months, various expert conversations on this topic have been convened by the UN and organised science and technology communities. This 10-Member Group roundtable is an opportunity to take stock of how far we have come in the process, guided by questions focused on 3 concrete topics.

Ultimately, this roundtable discussion will contribute to supporting international cooperation on science and on science-policy advice to save lives – not only in the current pandemic – but well beyond it.

Presentation 15:15 - 15:20

Welcome

Agnes Lawrence Kijazi

Agnes Lawrence Kijazi

Tanzania Meteorological Agency

Director General

Agnes Lawrence Kijazi was elected Third Vice-President of the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) by the Eighteenth World Meteorological Congress in 2019 for a four-year term beginning immediately after the closure of the Congress. She has been the Director General of Tanzania Meteorological Agency since 2011.

She was inspired to become a WMO Vice-president in order to take on a leading role in the global implementation of the WMO Vision, Strategic and Operational Plan on reforms to better address the Global challenges of the 21st Century. She is convinced that the WMO reform will be of great benefit to Members and she strives to ensure that no Member is left behind.

Agnes Kijazi has been active at the international level in WMO, the United Nations and as Vice Chairperson of the Meteorological Association of Southern Africa (MASA). She is an advocate for gender mainstreaming within the National Hydrological and Meteorological Services and in the entire WMO Community.

Agnes Kijazi rose from the lowest rank in the field of meteorology, as a Meteorological Assistant, to become the Director General of Tanzania Meteorological Agency in 2011. She became the first woman in the East African Region to hold a top position in a national service and to be elected to the WMO Executive Council. She has also extensively contributed to the development and implementation of various WMO programmes at country, regional and global levels. Prior to her appointment as Director of the Agency, she was Director of its Technical Services from 2007 to 2011 and Manager of Modelling and Verification from 2004 to 2006.

Panel discussion 15:20 - 16:45

Science-policy responses to the COVID-19 pandemic

In the midst of the current COVID-19 pandemic, it is more urgent than ever to have multi-stakeholder cooperation to help address the current crisis, mitigate its longer-term impacts, and – in a broader sense – prepare for future challenges that can threaten progress on the 2030 Agenda.

So what lessons have been learnt from the COVID-19 responses for improving science and technology advisory systems? And how can these lessons help us to be better prepared for future pandemics and sustainable development crises?

Paulo Gadelha

Paulo Gadelha

Fiocruz

Coordinator Fiocruz Strategy for 2030 Agenda

As the coordinator of the FIOCRUZ Strategy for the 2030 Agenda, Paulo Gadelha is in charge of promoting FIOCRUZ’ strategic engagement with the Agenda’s aspirational principles and goals. His background in technology includes studies of the application of technology in public health, healthcare models, and the history of Science, Technology & Innovation.

Paulo Gadelha was FIOCRUZ President from 2009 to 2016, leading scientific achievements in biomedical sciences, the generation of scientific and technological knowledge, and the promotion of health and social development. Previously, he founded and directed the “Casa de Oswaldo Cruz”, a FIOCRUZ Institute dedicated to the sociology and history of science and health.

Paulo served as a member of the National Health Council’s Science and Technology Intersectoral Commission. As President of the Brazilian Association of Collective Health, he chaired the 11th World Congress on Public Health. In cooperation with UN/DESA, he headed FIOCRUZ’s efforts in organizing the 1st International Consultation on Science, Technology and Innovation in the implementation of the 2030 Agenda and its health-related goals in 2017.

Ada Yonath

Ada Yonath

Weizmann Institute of Science

Director and Nobel Laureate

Ada Yonath is an Israeli crystallographer best known for her pioneering work on the structure of the ribosome. She is the current director of the Helen and Milton A. Kimmelman Center for Biomolecular Structure and Assembly of the Weizmann Institute of Science.

In 2009, Yonath received the Nobel Prize in Chemistry along with Venkatraman Ramakrishnan and Thomas A. Steitz for her studies on the structure and function of the ribosome, becoming the first Israeli woman to win the Nobel Prize out of ten Israeli Nobel laureates, the first woman from the Middle East to win a Nobel prize in the sciences, and the first woman in 45 years to win the Nobel Prize for Chemistry.

Michiharu Nakamura

Michiharu Nakamura

Japan Science and Technology Agency

Senior Advisor (Former President)

Nakamura graduated from the University of Tokyo and joined Hitachi Central Research Laboratory in 1967, where he was engaged in compound semiconductors and optoelectronics research. He was a pioneer of semiconductor DFB laser development. In 2004, he was appointed Executive Vice President and Executive Officer of Hitachi Ltd., and then assumed a position of Board of Director till September 2011. He was responsible for corporate technology development and new business incubation. He was a visiting Researcher at California Institute of Technology in 1972-73. He is entitled IEEE fellow, JSAP fellow, and IEICE fellow for his engineering achievements in optoelectronics.

In 2011, he assumed the office of the President of Japan Science and Technology Agency (JST), where policy-driven R&D funding is a major mission. Also, the dissemination of scientific information, science education for young generation, and science communication are among its current activities. He endeavoured to achieve high-impact innovations based on advanced R&D. After completing four- year presidency, he has been serving as the Counsellor to the President and Advisor for Science and Technology of JST since October 2015.

He has been actively working on industrial science and technology strategy. He served as Working Committee Chairman of Council of Competitiveness Japan (COCN) from 2008-2011 and pursued new industrial R&D initiatives under close collaboration with government and academia. He also served for Industrial R&D Committee of the Japan Business Federation, Tsukuba Global Innovation Promotion Agency, Industrial Committee for Supercomputing Promotion, Industrial User Society for Neutron Application, and Nanotechnology Business Creation Initiative.

Guo Huadong

Guo Huadong

Institute of Remote Sensing and Digital Earth

Chairman

Guo Huadong is a Professor at the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) Institute of Remote Sensing and Digital Earth (RADI), an Academician of CAS, a Foreign Member of the Russian Academy of Sciences (RAS), and a Fellow of The World Academy of Sciences (TWAS).

He presently serves as President of the International Society for Digital Earth (ISDE), Director of the International Center on Space Technologies for Natural and Cultural Heritage (HIST) under the Auspices of UNESCO, and Editor-in-Chief of the International Journal of Digital Earth.

Professor Guo Huadong served as President of the ICSU Committee on Data for Science and Technology (CODATA). He has over 30 years of experience in Earth observation, specializing in radar remote sensing and Digital Earth science. He has been Principle Investigator for over 30 major national projects in China, and Principle Investigator for 7 international radar remote sensing projects. He has published more than 400 papers and sixteen books, and is the principal awardee of sixteen domestic and international prizes.

Špela Stres

Špela Stres

Transfer Center for Jožef Stefan Institute

Director of Innovation and Technology

Špela Stres is the Director of Innovation and Technology at the Transfer Center for the Jožef Stefan Institute and a visiting lecturer at the University of Ljubljana. She started her career in research at the Jožef Stefan Institute and continued as a Research Associate at Deutsches Elektronen Synchroton (DESY) in Hamburg, Germany. After an engagement in the industry, she returned to the Jožef Stefan Institute as a Senior Researcher. She managed the Communication and TechTransfer Unit, coordinated Enterprise Europe Network and supervised creation of several spinout companies in the field of material science and ICT.

Špela Stres was the first president of the Slovene Technology Transfer Association. She served as a Board Member of the CERN Technology Transfer Network and as a Vice-President of ASTPProton, Knowledge Transfer Europe, European Association of Science and Technology Professionals. She has vast experience in European Commission programs. She is a European Research Council Evaluator and an Advisory Group Member for The Directorate General for Communications Networks, Content and Technology and The Directorate-General for Research and Innovation.

She is a member of the UN’s 10-Member Group supporting the Technology Facilitation Mechanism (TFM) on the Sustainable Development Goals. She holds a PhD in Physics from the University of Ljubljana, a Master Degree of Law in the field of Intellectual Property from the University of Turin and the World Intellectual Property Office, Geneva and an Executive MBA from the Cotrugli Bussines School.

Agnes Lawrence Kijazi

Agnes Lawrence Kijazi

Tanzania Meteorological Agency

Director General

Agnes Lawrence Kijazi was elected Third Vice-President of the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) by the Eighteenth World Meteorological Congress in 2019 for a four-year term beginning immediately after the closure of the Congress. She has been the Director General of Tanzania Meteorological Agency since 2011.

She was inspired to become a WMO Vice-president in order to take on a leading role in the global implementation of the WMO Vision, Strategic and Operational Plan on reforms to better address the Global challenges of the 21st Century. She is convinced that the WMO reform will be of great benefit to Members and she strives to ensure that no Member is left behind.

Agnes Kijazi has been active at the international level in WMO, the United Nations and as Vice Chairperson of the Meteorological Association of Southern Africa (MASA). She is an advocate for gender mainstreaming within the National Hydrological and Meteorological Services and in the entire WMO Community.

Agnes Kijazi rose from the lowest rank in the field of meteorology, as a Meteorological Assistant, to become the Director General of Tanzania Meteorological Agency in 2011. She became the first woman in the East African Region to hold a top position in a national service and to be elected to the WMO Executive Council. She has also extensively contributed to the development and implementation of various WMO programmes at country, regional and global levels. Prior to her appointment as Director of the Agency, she was Director of its Technical Services from 2007 to 2011 and Manager of Modelling and Verification from 2004 to 2006.

Heide Hackmann

Heide Hackmann

International Science Council

Chief Executive Officer

Heide Hackmann is the Chief Executive Officer of the International Science Council (ISC). She was the Executive Director of the two organisations that merged into the ISC in July 2018: the International Council for Science (2015-2018) and the International Social Science Council (2007-2015).

Heide holds a Master of Philosophy in contemporary social theory from the University of Cambridge in the UK, and a PhD in science and technology studies from the University of Twente in the Netherlands.

She holds memberships of several international advisory committees and boards, including the Scientific Advisory Board of the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research (Germany), the Board of the Stockholm Resilience Centre (Sweden), the Mercator Research Institute on Global Commons and Climate Change (Germany), and the Excellence, Impact and Engagement Committee of the Oceans Frontier Institute in Canada.

She is a member of the UN’s 10-Member Group supporting the Technology Facilitation Mechanism (TFM) on the Sustainable Development Goals.

José López-Portillo Romano

José López-Portillo Romano

Q Element

Chairman

Anne-Christine Ritschkoff

Anne-Christine Ritschkoff

VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland

Senior Advisor

Anne-Christine Ritschkoff obtained a PhD in Biosciences at the University of Helsinki, Finland in 1996. Since 1987, she has been at the VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland Ltd, a globally networked, multi-technological not-for-profit research organization, in various research and management positions. She has more 100 scientific publications from the fields of biotechnology, materials science and natural resources.

Anne-Christine Ritschkoff holds currently the position of Senior Advisor Bioeconomy and Circular Economy. Her special task is to foster technologies, knowledge and practical solutions in the area of natural resources, environmental and clean technologies and resource efficiency. Her previous position as VTT´s Scientific Director & CTO gave her an excellent background and insight into different technologies and scientific disciplines. She enthusiastically promotes new, sustainable solutions and radical innovations for the benefit of the society and economy by integration of different competences and disciplines. She is also actively building strategic networks between Research, Development & Innovation, Industry and Commerce, and Government.

Anne-Christine Ritschkoff contributes to Finnish and international science and innovation systems through various positions of trust. She has been a member in the High-Level Groups, composed of the opinion leaders from the industry, ministries, Finnish Parliament and research institutions, responsible for the establishment of the National Natural Resource Strategy and National Strategy on Bioeconomy.

She has also held several memberships and chairs of international committees and boards of directors, including positions such as president of the board of directors of VTT/MSI (VTT/Molecular Science Institute, USA), president of the board of directors of University of Jyväskylä, and vice-chair of the European Commission Horizon 2020 Advisory Group for “Leadership in Enabling and Industrial Technologies, Nanotechnologies, Advanced Materials and Advanced Manufacturing and Processing” (LEIT-NMP).

Vaughan Turekian

Vaughan Turekian

National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine

Senior Director

Vaughan Turekian is the Executive Director of the Policy and Global Affairs Division (PGA) at The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. From 2015 to 2017, he served as the Science and Technology Adviser to the U.S. Secretary of State. In this capacity, he advised the Secretary of State and other senior State Department officials on international environment, science, emerging technology, and health matters affecting the foreign policy of the United States.

Turekian drew upon his background in atmospheric chemistry and extensive policy experience to promote science, technology, and engineering as integral components of U.S. diplomacy. Previously, he was Chief International Officer for the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) and the Director of AAAS’s Center for Science Diplomacy (2006 – 2015). In this capacity, he worked to build bridges between nations based on shared scientific goals, placing special emphasis on regions where traditional political relationships are strained or do not exist.

In addition, Turekian worked at the State Department as a Special Assistant and Adviser to the Under Secretary for Global Affairs (2002 – 2006) on issues related to sustainable development, climate change, environment, energy, science, technology, and health. He is currently the co-chair of the 10-Member Group of experts advising the United Nations on science, technology and innovation in support of the UN Sustainable Development Goals.

Turekian holds a Bachelor of Science in Geology and Geophysics and International Studies from Yale University and a Master of Science and a PhD from the University of Virginia where he focused on the transport and chemistry of atmospheric aerosols in marine environments.

Plenary

Plenary session

High-level inaugural session

26/10/2020, 13:30 - 15:00

Watch this session

Five years ago, world leaders adopted the 17 SDGs at the UN Sustainable Development Summit, triggering an ambitious global action programme to move the world onto a more economically sustainable, socially equitable, and environmentally sound development path.

With just ten years to go, it’s becoming ever more clear that achieving these SDGs with business-as-usual is just not possible. Nearly 700 million people do not have access to safe drinking water while essential health services are out of reach for at least 50% of the world’s population, to give but two examples. Breakthrough technological transformations are urgently needed.

To set the scene, high-level representatives from countries championing technological transformation and innovation for the SDGs provide their perspective on why deep changes are needed, how they can be enabled and be deployed to work for the benefit of all.

Presentation 13:30 - 13:35

Introduction video

The three previous editions of the G-STIC conference successfully helped putting technological transformations for the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) on the international policy agenda, and strengthened the global commitment toward processes that advance Science, Technology and Innovation (STI) for the SDGs.

A short introduction video captures the vision, spirit and key outputs emanating from these past conference editions.

Panel discussion 13:35 - 13:40

Welcome by two conference hosts

Dirk Fransaer

Dirk Fransaer

VITO

Managing Director

Dirk Fransaer is a Belgian engineer and the Managing Director of VITO since 2001. He graduated as a civil engineer at the University of Ghent (Belgium) in 1980 and as a biomedical engineer at the Catholic University of Leuven (Belgium) in 1985.

VITO is a nonprofit research and technology organization in Belgium, focusing on today’s major societal challenges. From climate change and food security to sustainable energy and resource scarcity, VITO’s research agenda focuses on helping governments and companies around the world to initiate societal transitions in line with Agenda 2030 and its associated Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

In his capacity as Managing Director of VITO, Dirk Fransaer has been standing at the forefront of technological innovation for sustainable development for almost two decades. Dirk Fransaer’s vision and leadership turned VITO into one of the leading technological research institutions around the world, with over 800 employees from 45 different countries.

Kris Verhellen

Kris Verhellen

Extensa

CEO

Francesca Vanthielen

Francesca Vanthielen

Moderator

Keynote presentation 13:40 - 13:50

Why do we need deep technological transitions to achieve the SDGs and climate goals?

The scenarios depicted in the Limits to Growth report (commissioned by the Club of Rome, 1972) have proven to be all too true and scarily precise, while the Agenda 21 action plan of the United Nations (1992) already described the intention and spirit of many of the SDGs. If we were not able to deviate from the business-as-usual path towards greater sustainability during the last 27 years, how can we possibly achieve the SDGs in 11 years?

The answer to this key question is simple: drastic changes are needed, of which technological changes represent one critical dimension. Changes in the social, financial, regulatory, institutional systems are urgently needed as well, and financial inclusion is of vital importance.

Jairam Ramesh

H.E. Jairam Ramesh

Member of Rajya Sabha (Upper House)

Former Minister of Environment of India

Jairam Ramesh is a well-known economist, government official and senior pioneer of the Indian National Congress. He is a Member of Parliament representing Andhra Pradesh state, a position he has held since June 2004.

In 2011, Jairam Ramesh was elevated to the Union Council of Ministers of India and appointed Minister of Rural Development and Minister of the new Ministry of Drinking Water and Sanitation. Between May 2009 and July 2011, he was Minister of State at the Ministry of Environment and Forests.

Mr. Ramesh has been a columnist for The Business Standard, Business Today, The Telegraph, The Times and India Today, and has also anchored a number of popular television programmes on business and the economy. In addition, Jairam Ramesh is the author of the books: “Making Sense of Chindia: Reflections on China and India” (2005), foreword by Strobe Talbott, “Mobilising Technology for World Development” (Co-editor, 1979), “To the Brink and Back: India’s 1991 Story” (2015) and “Old History, New Geography” (2016).

Keynote presentation 13:50 - 14:00

Impact of the EU policy on the SDGs in times of COVID-19

Paolo Gentiloni

H.E. Paolo Gentiloni

European Commission

Commissioner for Economy

Paolo Gentiloni has been appointed European Commissioner for Economy in 2019. His primary responsibilities include the coordination of the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals in the context of the European Semester cycle of economic governance, and further deepening the European Economic and Monetary Union.

Commissioner Gentiloni is coordinating the launch of the InvestEU programme and setting up and implementing the Sustainable Europe Investment Plan. He leads international efforts to find an agreed approach on the taxation of the digital economy and pursuing efforts to make a common consolidated corporate tax base a reality in the EU. In the framework of the European Green Deal, he is leading the review of the Energy Taxation Directive and preparing the proposal for a Carbon Border Tax.

Before his appointment as EU Commissioner for Economy, Paolo Gentiloni has been a Member of the Italian Chamber of Deputies since 2001. He was Prime Minister of Italy from 2016 to 2018, Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation from 2014 to 2016, Member of the Committee on Foreign Affairs from 2013 to 2014 and Minister of Communications from 2006 to 2008. As a former professional journalist, he has also been the Chairman of the Broadcasting Services Watchdog Committee from 2005 to 2006 and a spokesperson for the Mayor and Commissioner in the City of Rome from 1993 to 2000.

Keynote presentation 14:00 - 14:10

Accelerating the transition to a sustainable economy in the UAE

Abdulla Bin Touq Al Marri

H.E. Abdulla Bin Touq Al Marri

United Arab Emirates

Minister of Economy

Abdulla Bin Touq Al Marri was appointed Minister of Economy of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) under the new government structure approved in July 2020. Prior to his appointment, Al Marri held important positions in the government as a senior, top-ranking official.

He was the Secretary General of the UAE Cabinet since 2017, during
which he was instrumental in strengthening the interdependence between the federal and local governments. In this role, he also spearheaded many initiatives to get the pulse of the people and know their sentiments, as well as build the UAE’s long-lasting relations with
international organizations such as the World Economic Forum.

He is also the former Director General of the Executive Office of H.H. Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum. He was part of the high-profile team that was behind the launch of ‘Area 2071’, the nucleus of the future envisioned in the UAE Centennial Plan 2071. Furthermore, the UAE Minister of Economy, in his previous post, took part in the unveiling of the Hatta Economic Zone development project and the relaunching of the Mohammed Bin Rashid Center for Leadership Development.

In addition, he was the CEO of the Dubai Future Foundation, enabling him to play a vital role in the successful launch of Dubai 10X and other initiatives of national importance. The Dubai 10X initiative, in particular, aims to strengthen the emirate’s bid to become the city of the future.

Al Marri is a member of the Boards of Directors of different federal entities. His memberships allow him to actively support the development of priority sectors in the country such as the Golden Visa initiative, which seeks to attract talented individuals from across the world.

The UAE Minister of Economy holds a Bachelor’s degree in Civil Engineering from the University of Sheffield in the UK. Also, he is a graduate of the UAE Government Leaders Program and Mohammed Bin Rashid Center for Leadership Development.

Keynote presentation 14:10 - 14:20

How can technological innovations transform the Industrial and economic infrastructure?

Jan Jambon

H.E. Jan Jambon

Government of Flanders

Minister-President, Flemish Minister for Foreign Policy, Culture, IT and Facilities

Since September 2018, Jan Jambon is the Minister-President of the Government of Flanders and Flemish Minister for Foreign Policy, Culture, IT and Facilities. Before that, he has been a Member of the Belgian Chamber of Representatives and the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Security and the Interior of Belgium.

Jan Jambon started his professional career working as a System Engineer and Account Manager at IBM between 1984 and 1992. Jambon graduated from the Vrije Universiteit in Brussels. He holds a Master degree in Computer Science and a Master of Business Administration from the University of Antwerp.

Panel discussion 14:20 - 14:55

Roundtable: Living the change

Champions of change from different sectors of society will zoom in on specific integrated technological solutions that are already deployed at scale. Real-life examples will highlight how new technologies require new approaches, new ways of doing things, new institutes, new laws and regulation and new funding mechanisms. In doing so, these world-renowned speakers will share with the G-STIC audience how they are making change happen and how they overcome the challenges related to upscaling these solutions.

Nikhil Seth

Nikhil Seth

UNITAR

Executive Director

Nikhil Seth was appointed UN Assistant Secretary-General and Executive Director of the United Nations Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR) in 2015 by the United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon as UN Assistant Secretary-General.

Before assuming the post of the UNITAR Executive Director, Nikhil Seth was the Director of the Division for Sustainable Development, Department of Economic and Social Affairs (DESA) at the United Nations Secretariat in New York. In this role he served as head of the Rio+20 secretariat and of the secretariat for the Third International Conference on Small Island Developing States, spearheading the preparations for these conferences in Rio, Brazil, and Apia, Samoa.

Under Seth’s direction, UN-DESA was also responsible for supporting the intergovernmental negotiations for the post-2015 development agenda, which was adopted at the United Nations Sustainable Development Summit 2015 in September 2015.

Seth started his career with the United Nations in 1993. He served as Special Assistant and Chief of Office to the Under-Secretary-General for Economic and Social Affairs from September 1993 to June 2001, as Chief of the Policy Coordination Branch in the Division for ECOSOC Support and Coordination from June 2001 to January 2003, as Secretary of the Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) and the Second Committee of the General Assembly from February 2003 to August 2006, and as Director of the DESA Office for ECOSOC Support and Coordination from August 2006 to August 2011. In this function, he guided the ECOSOC’s work in implementing several new key mandates, including its Annual Ministerial Review and Development Cooperation Forum.

Before joining the UN Secretariat, Seth was a delegate to the UN in the Permanent Mission of India to the United Nations and involved with various UN conferences and summits including the Rio Summit on Environment and Development and the climate change related process. After joining the UN, he has been involved in the organisation of the Copenhagen Summit on Social Development, the Monterrey Conference on Financing for Development, the Mauritius Conference on Small Island Developing States, the Millennium Summit, World Summit on Sustainable Development and the UN World Summit, beside the Rio+20 Conference.

Satya  Tripathi

Satya Tripathi

UN Environment Programme

UN Assistant Secretary-General, Head of the New York Office

Satya Tripathi is UN Assistant Secretary-General and Head of New York Office at UN Environment. Being a development economist and lawyer with over 35 years of varied experience, Tripathi has served with the UN since 1998 in key positions in Europe, Asia and Africa in the areas of Climate Change, Human Rights, Democratic Governance and Legal Affairs.

He was Chair of the Committees on Laws, Treaties and Administrative matters for the UN-mediated Cyprus unification talks in 2004. As the UN Recovery Coordinator for Aceh and Nias, he facilitated international cooperation and funding of over US$ 7 billion for post-tsunami and post-conflict recovery efforts in support of the Indonesian government and affected populations. He has also been the Executive Head of UNORCID, a UN System Office of 10 UN Agencies established by the UN Secretary General in 2011 to facilitate the implementation of a US$ 1 Billion REDD+ partnership between Indonesia, Norway and other stakeholders on climate change mitigation and adaptation through the conservation of forests and preservation of peat-land and bio-diversity.

Tripathi was instrumental in establishing the Tropical Landscapes Finance Facility (TLFF) in Indonesia in 2016 and the Sustainable India Finance Facility (SIFF) in 2017 to leverage ‘private finance for public good’ at mega-scale to achieve transformative social and environmental impact in developing countries. He previously served on the World Economic Forum’s Global Advisory Council on Forests; and in India as a member of its national civil service.

Jean-Pascal van Ypersele

Jean-Pascal van Ypersele

UCLouvain

Professor of climatology and sustainable development sciences

Jean-Pascal van Ypersele de Strihou is a Belgian academic climatologist. He is a professor of Climatology and Sustainable Development sciences at the Université Catholique de Louvain (Louvain-la-Neuve, Belgium). As a former IPCC vice-chair, he is one of the forerunners of climate change mitigation through a strong decrease in fossil fuel consumption.

Jean-Pascal van Ypersele de Strihou has participated in most UN conferences on climate issues since 1979. He has been instrumental in creating in 2002 the UN Work Programme on Climate Communication and Education and holds numerous awards in science and science communication. He has been appointed by the UN Secretary-General member of the group of scientists in charge of the 2019 Global Sustainable Development Report.

Georges Rebelo Pinto Chikoti

H.E. Georges Rebelo Pinto Chikoti

African, Caribbean and Pacific Group of States

Secretary-General

Georges Rebelo Pinto Chikoti has devoted almost 30 years of his professional career to diplomacy and international relations, in an incredibly complex and challenging global environment for Angola, a young independent state at the time.

This long experience allowed him to enhance his negotiation and dialogue skills. His action, know-how, unwavering commitment, and dedication have significantly impacted democracy in Angola and led to the international recognition of Angola as a major player in the achievement of political stability in Africa and the world.

His leadership is acknowledged at national and international levels. His experience in crisis management allowed him to successfully fulfil his mission at the International Conference on the Great Lakes Region (ICGLR) where he chaired the Inter-Ministerial Committee.

Since 1993 and for almost 25 years, Mr Chikoti has participated in all sessions of the United Nations General Assembly, and the Executive Council (Council of Ministers), as well as the Summit sessions of the Organization of African Unity (OAU), now the African Union (AU).

At the regional level, he has actively participated in key Ministerial and Summit-level meetings of the Southern African Development Community (SADC) and the Economic Community of Central African States (ECCAS), while also being an advocate for these institutions at the international level.

In 2013, he represented the Republic of Angola at the BRICS Summit in Durban, South Africa, during which the strategic partnership between the New Partnership for Development in Africa (NEPAD) and the BRICS Member States was defined. During the same year, Mr Chikoti led the Angolan Delegation at the 5th Tokyo International Conference for Development in Africa (TICAD).

In 2018, he was appointed as a member of the Team of Facilitators in the Political Dialogue process in South Sudan.

During his tenure as Deputy Minister and as Minister of Foreign Affairs, Angola was twice elected a non-permanent member of the United Nations Security Council (2003-2004; 2015-2016). During these periods, he served as the regional spokesperson for Peace and Security in Africa, while also promoting the African agenda at the international level.

Erik Novaes

Erik Novaes

AB InBev

Vice President Sustainability

Erik Novaes is an experienced Supply Chain professional, currently leading Procurement and Sustainability for AB InBev’s European Zone. With robust and varied professional experience across Latin American and Eurasian markets, Erik has spent the last 17 years dedicated to delivering value on the ground at AB InBev, holding roles in Logistics and Manufacturing through Procurement, Procurement Performance and Sustainability. Erik was appointed to Vice President for Procurement and Sustainability Europe in January 2020, managing the purchase of goods and services that go into brewing great beers for more than 50 million European, Russian and Ukrainian consumers every day.

Erik holds a Bachelor in Business and an MSc in Transportation Engineering from the Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro – UFRJ.

Kehkashan Basu

Kehkashan Basu

Green Hope Foundation

Founder President & Youth Ambassador World Future Council 

Iconic youth leader, global influencer, champion of children and women’s rights, peace and sustainability campaigner, 20-year-old Kehkashan Basu is a trailblazer who has been challenging the status quo and the social strictures that impede the progress of future generations.

Winner of the 2016 International Children’s Peace Prize, Kehkashan is a tireless advocate for the UN Sustainable Development Goals and the youngest recipient of Canada’s Top25 Women of Influence. She is a United Nations Human Rights Champion, a National Geographic Young Explorer, the youngest ever Global Coordinator for the UN Environment Program’s Major Group for Children & Youth, and a Climate Reality Mentor. She is also a TEDx speaker, an author, musician and the Founder President of the global social innovation enterprise Green Hope Foundation. Green Hope Foundation works in 16 countries empowering young people, especially those from vulnerable communities, in the sustainable development process.

Kehkashan is the recipient of the inaugural 2020 Voices Youth Award for Peace, a 2020 L’Oreal Women of Worth Honouree and a winner of the 2019 Innovator of the Year Award, the John Muir Conservation Award for Habitat Restoration, the Energy Globe Award and the Turner Prize for Social Change. She has recently been featured as one of the Top100 SDG Leaders of the world. A powerful voice for future generations, she has spoken at over 200 global forums across 25 countries.

Francesca Vanthielen

Francesca Vanthielen

Moderator

Presentation 14:55 - 15:00

Closing remarks

Dirk Fransaer

Dirk Fransaer

VITO

Managing Director

Dirk Fransaer is a Belgian engineer and the Managing Director of VITO since 2001. He graduated as a civil engineer at the University of Ghent (Belgium) in 1980 and as a biomedical engineer at the Catholic University of Leuven (Belgium) in 1985.

VITO is a nonprofit research and technology organization in Belgium, focusing on today’s major societal challenges. From climate change and food security to sustainable energy and resource scarcity, VITO’s research agenda focuses on helping governments and companies around the world to initiate societal transitions in line with Agenda 2030 and its associated Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

In his capacity as Managing Director of VITO, Dirk Fransaer has been standing at the forefront of technological innovation for sustainable development for almost two decades. Dirk Fransaer’s vision and leadership turned VITO into one of the leading technological research institutions around the world, with over 800 employees from 45 different countries.

Plenary

Plenary session

High-Level dialogue with UN Secretary-General António Guterres and Gro Harlem Brundtland

28/10/2020, 16:00 - 17:30

Watch this session

Far from undermining the case for the SDGs, the root causes and uneven impacts of COVID-19 demonstrate precisely why we need the 2030 Agenda and underscore the urgency of its implementation. COVID-19 is forcing us to design a new area of technological development that balances economic, social and environmental progress to build a greener and more inclusive future.

While COVID-19 has encouraged technological changes, the question remains how to leverage technology transformation opportunities post-COVID-19? Are organisations ready to seize these new opportunities? What technology transformation trends can we expect to see in the post-COVID-19 era? What are the critical elements to facilitate the deployment of integrated technological solutions that contribute to the achievement of the SDGs?

The fallout from the pandemic requires strong cooperation among all nations, as well as non-state actors. How can we turn the possible negative impact of COVID-19 on the ability to form partnerships into an opportunity to revitalise existing partnerships, and even initiate new partnerships to accelerate the implementation of the SDGs?

Keynote presentation 16:05 - 16:15

Keynote by UN Secretary-General António Guterres

António Guterres

H.E. António Guterres

United Nations

Secretary-General

António Guterres, the ninth Secretary-General of the United Nations, took office on 1st January 2017. Prior to this appointment, Mr. Guterres served as United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees from June 2005 to December 2015, heading one of the world’s foremost humanitarian organizations during some of the most serious displacement crises in decades.

Having witnessed the suffering of the most vulnerable people on earth in refugee camps and in war zones, Mr. Guterres is determined to make human dignity the core of his work as UN Secretary-General, and to serve as a peace broker, a bridge-builder and a promoter of reform and innovation.

Before joining the UN, Mr. Guterres spent more than 20 years in government and public service. He served as prime minister of Portugal from 1995 to 2002, during which time he was heavily involved in the international effort to resolve the crisis in East Timor.

As president of the European Council in early 2000, he led the adoption of the Lisbon Agenda for growth and jobs and co-chaired the first European Union-Africa summit. He was a member of the Portuguese Council of State from 1991 to 2002.

Guterres is a member of the Club of Madrid, a leadership alliance of democratic former presidents and prime ministers from around the world.

Keynote presentation 16:15 - 16:30

Keynote by Gro Harlem Brundtland

Gro  Harlem Brundtland

H.E. Gro Harlem Brundtland

Gro Harlem Brundtland served three terms as Prime Minister of Norway between 1981 and 1996. She was the youngest person and the first woman ever to hold that office.

In 1983, the UN Secretary-General asked Gro Harlem Brundtland to chair a World Commission on Environment and Development. She came to make strong impact on the commission’s work, widely referred to as the Brundtland Commission. She developed the broad political concept of sustainable development in the course of extensive public hearings that were distinguished by their inclusiveness. The commission’s report ”Our Common Future” was presented in London in April 1987, after Brundtland had returned to the post of prime minister ten months earlier. The Commission’s recommendations led to the Earth Summit – the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED) in Rio de Janeiro in 1992.

Gro Harlem Brundtland was Director-General of the World Health Organization (WHO) from 1998 to 2003. She adopted a far-reaching approach to public health, establishing a Commission on Macroeconomics and Health chaired by Jeffrey Sachs, and addressing violence as a major public health issue. Brundtland spearheaded the worldwide movement to achieve the abolition of cigarette smoking by education, persuasion, and increased taxation. When her period at the WHO was over in 2003, she retired.

Since Gro Harlem Brundtland retired in 2003, she has been a Health Policy Fellow at Harvard University, a member of a UN High Level Panel on threats, challenges and change, a UN Special Envoy on climate change, and a member and Deputy Chair of The Elders. This group of former leaders was convened by Nelson Mandela, Graça Machel and Desmond Tutu to contribute their wisdom, leadership and integrity to tackling world problems.

Panel discussion 16:30 - 16:45

Opening statements

Jeffrey Sachs

Jeffrey Sachs

Columbia University

Director Sustainable Development

Jeffrey Sachs is a world-renowned professor of economics, leader in sustainable development, senior UN advisor, bestselling author, and syndicated columnist whose monthly newspaper columns appear in more than 100 countries. He is the co-recipient of the 2015 Blue Planet Prize, the leading global prize for environmental leadership, and has twice been named among Time Magazine’s 100 most influential world leaders.

Professor Sachs is widely considered to be one of the world’s leading experts on economic development, global macroeconomics, and the fight against poverty. His work on ending poverty, overcoming macroeconomic instability, promoting economic growth, fighting hunger and disease, and promoting sustainable environmental practices has taken him to more than 125 countries. Over the past thirty years, he has advised dozens of heads of state and governments on economic strategy in the Americas, Europe, Asia, Africa, and the Middle East.

Professor Sachs served as the Director of the Earth Institute at Columbia University from 2002 to 2016. During that time, he led a university-wide organization of more than 850 research scientists and policy experts in support of sustainable development, championed the Masters of Development Practice (MDP) program, which is now offered at 30 universities around the world, and helped to introduce the PhD in Sustainable Development at Columbia University.

Prior to his arrival at Columbia University in July 2002, Professor Sachs spent over twenty years as a professor at Harvard University, where he served as the Director of the Center for International Development and the Galen L. Stone Professor of International Trade.

Zakia Khattabi

H.E. Zakia Khattabi

Federal Government of Belgium

Minister of Climate, Environment & Sustainable Development

Panel discussion 16:45 - 17:25

Reflections

Gro  Harlem Brundtland

H.E. Gro Harlem Brundtland

Gro Harlem Brundtland served three terms as Prime Minister of Norway between 1981 and 1996. She was the youngest person and the first woman ever to hold that office.

In 1983, the UN Secretary-General asked Gro Harlem Brundtland to chair a World Commission on Environment and Development. She came to make strong impact on the commission’s work, widely referred to as the Brundtland Commission. She developed the broad political concept of sustainable development in the course of extensive public hearings that were distinguished by their inclusiveness. The commission’s report ”Our Common Future” was presented in London in April 1987, after Brundtland had returned to the post of prime minister ten months earlier. The Commission’s recommendations led to the Earth Summit – the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED) in Rio de Janeiro in 1992.

Gro Harlem Brundtland was Director-General of the World Health Organization (WHO) from 1998 to 2003. She adopted a far-reaching approach to public health, establishing a Commission on Macroeconomics and Health chaired by Jeffrey Sachs, and addressing violence as a major public health issue. Brundtland spearheaded the worldwide movement to achieve the abolition of cigarette smoking by education, persuasion, and increased taxation. When her period at the WHO was over in 2003, she retired.

Since Gro Harlem Brundtland retired in 2003, she has been a Health Policy Fellow at Harvard University, a member of a UN High Level Panel on threats, challenges and change, a UN Special Envoy on climate change, and a member and Deputy Chair of The Elders. This group of former leaders was convened by Nelson Mandela, Graça Machel and Desmond Tutu to contribute their wisdom, leadership and integrity to tackling world problems.

Jeffrey Sachs

Jeffrey Sachs

Columbia University

Director Sustainable Development

Jeffrey Sachs is a world-renowned professor of economics, leader in sustainable development, senior UN advisor, bestselling author, and syndicated columnist whose monthly newspaper columns appear in more than 100 countries. He is the co-recipient of the 2015 Blue Planet Prize, the leading global prize for environmental leadership, and has twice been named among Time Magazine’s 100 most influential world leaders.

Professor Sachs is widely considered to be one of the world’s leading experts on economic development, global macroeconomics, and the fight against poverty. His work on ending poverty, overcoming macroeconomic instability, promoting economic growth, fighting hunger and disease, and promoting sustainable environmental practices has taken him to more than 125 countries. Over the past thirty years, he has advised dozens of heads of state and governments on economic strategy in the Americas, Europe, Asia, Africa, and the Middle East.

Professor Sachs served as the Director of the Earth Institute at Columbia University from 2002 to 2016. During that time, he led a university-wide organization of more than 850 research scientists and policy experts in support of sustainable development, championed the Masters of Development Practice (MDP) program, which is now offered at 30 universities around the world, and helped to introduce the PhD in Sustainable Development at Columbia University.

Prior to his arrival at Columbia University in July 2002, Professor Sachs spent over twenty years as a professor at Harvard University, where he served as the Director of the Center for International Development and the Galen L. Stone Professor of International Trade.

Zakia Khattabi

H.E. Zakia Khattabi

Federal Government of Belgium

Minister of Climate, Environment & Sustainable Development

Presentation 17:25 - 17:30

Closing remarks

Dirk Fransaer

Dirk Fransaer

VITO

Managing Director

Dirk Fransaer is a Belgian engineer and the Managing Director of VITO since 2001. He graduated as a civil engineer at the University of Ghent (Belgium) in 1980 and as a biomedical engineer at the Catholic University of Leuven (Belgium) in 1985.

VITO is a nonprofit research and technology organization in Belgium, focusing on today’s major societal challenges. From climate change and food security to sustainable energy and resource scarcity, VITO’s research agenda focuses on helping governments and companies around the world to initiate societal transitions in line with Agenda 2030 and its associated Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

In his capacity as Managing Director of VITO, Dirk Fransaer has been standing at the forefront of technological innovation for sustainable development for almost two decades. Dirk Fransaer’s vision and leadership turned VITO into one of the leading technological research institutions around the world, with over 800 employees from 45 different countries.

Plenary

Special session

Expo 2020 Roundtable

27/10/2020, 13:30 - 15:00

Watch this session

Expo 2020 in Dubai is the perfect opportunity to hold the fifth anniversary edition of the G-STIC conference. This will be the first edition taking place outside of Brussels (Belgium). The G-STIC objectives perfectly match with Expo 2020’s sustainability pillar focusing on innovative global projects that provide real life solutions to help preserve the planet for future generations.

This special session serves as a curtain raiser event for the 2021 edition of the G-STIC conference. Stakeholders from the United Arab Emirates and G-STIC co-hosts will debate on the potential themes for this 5th anniversary edition. The focus of the session will also be on highlighting the evolving concerns and solutions in a post COVID-19 scenario.

Keynote presentation 13:35 - 13:45

Shaping a post-pandemic world

Expo 2020 has a strong focus on knowledge and technologies that are crucial to achieve the UN Sustainable Development Goals. This world exposition, organized in Dubai from 1 October 2021 until 31 March 2022, is gearing up to help shape a post-pandemic world and create a better future for all, fostering collaboration across cultures, nations and regions.

Reem Ebrahim Al Hashimy

H.E. Reem Ebrahim Al Hashimy

United Arab Emirates

Minister of State for international cooperation, Managing Director of Expo 2020

In February 2016, Her Excellency Reem Al Hashimy was sworn in as Minister of State for International Cooperation, in the UAE’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation. Additionally, she holds responsibility within the Cabinet for the UAE’s bilateral relations with Sub Saharan African countries.

Since her first ministerial appointment in February 2008, Her Excellency has managed and continues to manage the Vice President’s Office for Political Affairs, His Highness Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum.

In November 2013, as Managing Director of Dubai’s World Expo 2020 bid, HE Reem oversaw a historic success at the Bureau International des Expositions. Dubai Expo 2020 will be the first held in the MEASA (Middle East, Africa and South Asia region). Her Excellency holds the position of Managing Director of the Dubai Expo 2020 Higher Committee as well as Director-General of the Dubai Expo 2020 Bureau, in preparation for the upcoming national milestone.

Since its launch in 2007 by His Highness Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Her Excellency has served as Chairperson of Dubai Cares, a philanthropic organisation with the aim of improving access to quality education in developing countries.

Her Excellency was formerly Chairperson of the Federal Competitiveness and Statistics Authority, which drives the UAE’s global competitiveness across many sectors.

Her Excellency completed her undergraduate degree at Tufts University, earning a BA in International Relations and French, followed by an MA from Harvard University. Prior to her current position as Minister of State, Her Excellency served as Commercial Attaché, and subsequently Deputy Chief, of the UAE Embassy to the United States of America, in Washington DC.

Panel discussion 13:45 - 14:00

Opening statements

Bruno Reyntjens

Bruno Reyntjens

VITO

Commercial Director

Hussain Mohammed Al Mahmoudi

Hussain Mohammed Al Mahmoudi

American University of Sharjah Enterprises

CEO

Hussain serves a dual role as the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the American University of Sharjah Enterprises (AUSE) and as the CEO of the Sharjah Research, Technology and Innovation Park
(SRTIP). Both these entities were established through royal decree by the Ruler of Sharjah, who also directly appointed Hussain to these responsibilities in order to create collaborative long-term relationships between industry, academia and the public sector, fostering an ecosystem of enterprise and innovation.

Previously, Hussain served as the Director General of the Sharjah Chamber of Commerce and Industry, a Member of the UAE Chamber Federation, and GCC Chambers for 8 years. He was responsible for the overall management and operations of the Chamber including the provision of services to its members. In this role, he launched several strategic economic initiatives for Sharjah such as the SME Act, Sharjah Export Centre, Sharjah Commercial Arbitration Centre, and the Sharjah Business Forum.

Hussain has held leadership roles at leading regional and international companies such as the Royal Dutch Shell Group, Emirates National Oil Company (ENOC), and several Dubai Holding entities. He currently serves as honorary board member of both, the Tatweer Forum and of Maastricht University in the Netherlands, and as chairman of the Emirates Business Council for Sustainable Development. He also serves as a board member of the Sharjah Entrepreneurship Center (Sheraa). Hussain possesses an MBA from the American University of Sharjah and a BA in Economics and Communications from Seattle Pacific University in the US.

Panel discussion 14:00 - 14:45

The G-STIC conference at Expo 2020

During this roundtable, panellists will explore the topics that could be addressed during the fifth edition of the G-STIC conference at Expo 2020 in Dubai.

Philip Heylen

Philip Heylen

Ackermans & van Haaren

Business Development Manager, Board Director, Port of Duqm (Oman)

Kris Van Nijen

Kris Van Nijen

Global Sea Mineral Resources

Managing Director

Kris has spent the last 20 years overseeing marine engineering projects across continents, and has a track record of successfully balancing economic, environmental and social considerations for sustainable growth. Today, he heads a team developing ultra-deep ocean technologies, focused on recovering critical metals needed for sustainable development and ultimately for the future benefit of humankind. Kris is an active participant and presenter in meetings with regional (EU) and international (UN) intergovernmental bodies charged with regulating the marine minerals sector and has been quoted in the Economist, Time Magazine, Financial Times and Nature. Kris has a PhD in applied economics from the University of Antwerp and an MBA from the Vlerick Business School.

Climate change, population growth and biodiversity loss. These are some of the major challenges the world faces in the years ahead. Metals like cobalt and nickel, essential to address these needs, are becoming increasingly difficult to access, or even scarce, on land. But significant amounts of these metals can be found in polymetallic nodules, deep beneath the Pacific Ocean. Building on its world-renowned expertise in marine technology, DEME has established an in-house, deep-sea exploration and exploitation specialist: Global Sea Mineral Resources (GSR). Using Best Available Techniques (BAT) and the highest scientific standards, GSR aims to be a global leader in the responsible exploration and exploitation of polymetallic nodules, contributing to the sustainable development of the planet.

Per Sjaastad

H.E. Per Sjaastad

European Union

Ambassador of Norway to the Kingdom of Belgium, Deputy Head of Norway's Mission

Leen Govaerts

Leen Govaerts

VITO Energyville

Unit Manager, Smart Energy and Built Environment

Leen Govaerts holds a Master degree in Business Engineering and an Executive MBA. She started her career as a researcher in the field of low carbon mobility at the VITO research institute on sustainable development. At present she is leading the research unit Smart Energy and Built Environment of VITO Energyville dealing with sustainable energy and urban sustainability. Key research areas are long term energy strategies and policy, energy district design and sustainable building concepts with living labs being a central concept in the research approach.

Leen Govaerts is a member of the Energyville executive committee, a research association of 400 researchers on sustainable energy and cities between VITO, KULeuven, imec and university Hasselt. She is the chairperson of BERA – Belgian Energy Research Alliance – and a member of the Executive Committee of EERA, the European Energy Research Alliance. She is involved in several international networks and has experience in coordinating several European research consortia. She is a recognized expert on behalf of the Flemish Government to evaluate energy and sustainability aspects for renewal of urban districts.

Khaled  Al Hashmi

Khaled Al Hashmi

The National Space Science and Technology Center

Director

Leading the National Space Science and Technology Centre, developing and establishing manufacturing facilities and capabilities in design and build of satellites and R&D program in space science and technologies. Previously, spearheaded development and implementation of the Space Science & Technology and Innovation roadmap, the national space program for the UAE Space Agency inclusive of the program management of the UAE Mars Mission “The Hope” project, other small satellite projects and currently the 813 Arabic Satellite.

Held several roles in senior executive management positions that demanding critical business transformation as Chief Operating Officer, Executive Director, and Director at various Space, Aerospace, Oil & Gas industries, government administration and state-owned enterprises in areas of Strategy, Business Planning, Organization Development, and Operations.

Earned a Doctorate in Business Administration and an MSc in Thermal Power & Fluids Engineering from the University of Manchester, graduated from Harvard Business School–General Management, earned a Diploma in Public Sector Innovation from University of Cambridge. His first Degree was a BSc in Aerospace Engineering from Saint Louise University.

Francesca Vanthielen

Francesca Vanthielen

Moderator

Panel discussion 14:45 - 15:00

Closing remarks about the G-STIC conference at Expo 2020

Reem Ebrahim Al Hashimy

H.E. Reem Ebrahim Al Hashimy

United Arab Emirates

Minister of State for international cooperation, Managing Director of Expo 2020

In February 2016, Her Excellency Reem Al Hashimy was sworn in as Minister of State for International Cooperation, in the UAE’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation. Additionally, she holds responsibility within the Cabinet for the UAE’s bilateral relations with Sub Saharan African countries.

Since her first ministerial appointment in February 2008, Her Excellency has managed and continues to manage the Vice President’s Office for Political Affairs, His Highness Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum.

In November 2013, as Managing Director of Dubai’s World Expo 2020 bid, HE Reem oversaw a historic success at the Bureau International des Expositions. Dubai Expo 2020 will be the first held in the MEASA (Middle East, Africa and South Asia region). Her Excellency holds the position of Managing Director of the Dubai Expo 2020 Higher Committee as well as Director-General of the Dubai Expo 2020 Bureau, in preparation for the upcoming national milestone.

Since its launch in 2007 by His Highness Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Her Excellency has served as Chairperson of Dubai Cares, a philanthropic organisation with the aim of improving access to quality education in developing countries.

Her Excellency was formerly Chairperson of the Federal Competitiveness and Statistics Authority, which drives the UAE’s global competitiveness across many sectors.

Her Excellency completed her undergraduate degree at Tufts University, earning a BA in International Relations and French, followed by an MA from Harvard University. Prior to her current position as Minister of State, Her Excellency served as Commercial Attaché, and subsequently Deputy Chief, of the UAE Embassy to the United States of America, in Washington DC.

Peter Claes

H.E. Peter Claes

Embassy of Belgium in the United Arab Emirates

Ambassador

Ibrahim Hafeezur Rehman

Ibrahim Hafeezur Rehman

VITO Arabia Science and Technology

CEO

Ibrahim Hafeezur Rehman is presently Director of India Operations of VITO and also CEO – VITO Arabia Science and Technology LLC, Dubai. VITO is an independent Flemish (Belgian) research organization in the area of clean technology and sustainable development.
With a Master in Organic Chemistry; specialization program in Environment Management from University of Manchester; and a Doctorate from University of Utrecht; Dr Rehman has over 30 years experience in the field of sustainable development in general and water and energy management in particular.
Rehman has led a large number of research and implementation projects in India and across number of other countries in the field of energy, water and environment. Rehman has served on various National and International Committees and Boards of Government/Multi-lateral organizations/Corporates. He has worked in different countries such as India, Belgium, UAE, and Thailand and led a large number of transformative Projects and Campaigns in India, Africa, South East Asia, etc. He is also a co-author of several books and has written a number scientific (and policy) papers/articles in reputed journals (including Nature) and magazines.

Plenary Water

Special session

EUROPEAN PREMIERE BRAVE BLUE WORLD

26/10/2020, 18:55 - 20:45

Watch this session

The Brave Blue World documentary paints an optimistic picture of how humanity is adopting new technologies and innovations to re-think how we manage water.

Brave Blue World is supported by its production partners WEF, DuPont Water Solutions, Suez and L’Oréal, its impact partners Xylem and aqualia, and its collaboration partners Water.org and the Water Alliance.

This exclusive European premiere, organised by Capture (Centre for Advanced Process Technology for Urban REsource recovery), Vlakwa (Flanders Knowledge Center Water) in collaboration with B-IWA (Belgian committee of the International Water Association), watercircle.be (Flemish Water Technology Network) and Aquaflanders (Federation of Flemish water companies and sewer managers), will be followed by a high-level panel discussion.

Register for free >

Presentation 19:00 - 19:45

Documentary Brave Blue World

Paul O’Callaghan, a water industry expert and the CEO of BlueTech Research, visites sites around the world that are employing novel ways of tackling existing water problems. As he meets with pioneers and innovators who are addressing global water and sanitation challenges, their stories reveal a hopeful future for our most precious resource.

Panel discussion 19:45 - 20:40

High-level debate: opportunities for the water sector enabled by new technologies

Paul O'Callaghan

Paul O'Callaghan

Blue Tech Research

Founder & CEO, Executive Producer Brave Blue World

After being awarded a biochemistry degree, Paul O’Callaghan worked for the Body Shop alongside the pioneering environmentalist Anita Roddick. Paul then volunteered for the World Wildlife Fund in Malaysia, after which he completed a Master’s degree and returned to research the effects that deforestation was having on water quality.

Paul’s next role was with Atkins, one of the globally leading engineering management consultancies. Whilst working as an engineering consultant, he observed the prolonged length of time it took to bring water technologies to the marketplace. As a result, he founded BlueTech Research in 2011 with a clear mission to support innovation.

Paul’s latest project, the Brave Blue World documentary, is designed to increase awareness of existing solutions for the water crisis. He co-produced the documentary that has attracted support from a host of A-list celebrities. Paul regularly lectures and has recently spoken at Davos 2020, Web Summit 2020 and at Harvard and Cambridge Universities. He advises many global Fortune 500 corporates including L’Oréal, Microsoft and PepsiCo on their water strategy policies. He is currently also studying for a PhD in Water Innovation.

Egbert Lox

Egbert Lox

Umicore

Senior Vice President

Egbert Lox earned his MSc (1982) and PhD (1987) in Chemical Engineering at the University of Ghent (Belgium). He joined the central research laboratories of Degussa AG (Germany) in 1987, where he built up the R&D group for automotive emission control catalysts and assumed consecutive management levels in that area till 2006.

From 2006 to 2012, Egbert Lox took care of the management of the corporate R&D team of Umicore, which deploys its activities in Belgium and Germany. Between 2013 and September 2020, he assumed the position of Senior Vice-President Government Affairs, based in Umicore’s headquarters in Brussels (Belgium). Since October 2020, he is Senior Vice-President assigned to the Chief Technical Officer.

Egbert Lox represents Umicore in the Board or Executive Committee of several industry associations in Belgium, France, Germany and the EU. He lectures on automotive emission control catalysts, amongst other subjects, at the Department of Mechanical Engineering of the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT) in Germany. In 2015, he was granted the honorary professorship at this university.

He is a permanent member of the Royal Flemish Academy of Belgium for Sciences and Arts (KVAB) and an elected member of the Academia Scientiarum et Artium Europaea (EASA, Salzburg, Austria).

Christiane Malcorps

Christiane Malcorps

Solvay

Global Head of Facility Excellence

Veronica Manfredi

Veronica Manfredi

European Commission

Director for Quality of Life in DG Environment

Francesca Vanthielen

Francesca Vanthielen

Moderator

Water

Plenary session

Round Table: cooperation towards resilient water systems

27/10/2020, 10:00 - 11:15

Watch this session

Resilient water systems should be firm, shock-resistant and flexible. Resilience and flexibility are essential characteristics of any water system that needs to cope with highly fluctuating circumstances. Every water user must be able to adapt to the new reality of heavy rainfalls and long periods of drought, and our cities and regions must also remain livable in this new reality.

Flexible water systems must therefore be built that make maximum use of the available water resources for all possible applications and uses. Given the highly complex interactions within the water system itself and with external systems for energy, food or mobility, one thing is sure: we will have to take a strong focus on cooperation. Cooperation is not just required to develop and finance innovative water solutions. It is also crucial for the implementation of such solutions at scale and the related follow-up.

Keynote presentation 10:05 - 10:15

Keynote speech: cooperation towards resilient water systems

Zuhal Demir

H.E. Zuhal Demir

Flemish government

Flemish Minister of environment

Panel discussion 10:15 - 11:15

Panel discussion: cooperation towards resilient water systems

Luc Vandenbulcke

Luc Vandenbulcke

DEME

CEO

Jacob Bossaer

Jacob Bossaer

Bosaq

CEO

Jan Goossens

Jan Goossens

Aquafin

CEO

Since the end of 2016, Jan Goossens has been the CEO of Aquafin. This company employs over 1000 dedicated employees and operates more than 300 wastewater treatment units throughout Flanders. Aquafin also manages and finances the continued expansion of the sewer infrastructure and water treatment capacity on behalf of the Flemish Region. Backed by in-house research, the company is also diversifying towards large-scale energy, heat and nutrient recovery from wastewater. Developing integrated stormwater plans for municipalities countering the increasing effects of climate change, such as drought and flooding, is one of Aquafin’s other key activities.

With a PhD in analytical chemistry as educational background, Jan Goossens started his professional career at the chemical company BASF holding several management positions in HR, sales and operations. He was involved with both plastic (nylon) and fertilizer businesses.

Before becoming Aquafin’s CEO, Jan held the position of Managing Director at Marpobel, an industrial water treatment facility in the Port of Antwerp. Next, he was appointed Managing Director at Industrial Services, a Dutch maintenance provider to the Chemical, Energy and Offshore Industry. During 15 years, Jan has also been a guest professor at Ghent University where he still serves as a guest lecturer on water management.

George  Brik

George Brik

Hydrovolta

CEO

George Brik is a co-founder and the CEO of Hydrovolta, a company specialised in water desalination. He has over 20 years of experience in sustainable & environmental entrepreneurship, with a special focus on blue economy, and improving efficiency and solving problems for the water treatment industry. George Brik is driven by a passion to improve and create eco-friendly and sustainable water treatment technologies to protect the future generations.

Inge Genné

Inge Genné

VITO

Program manager WATER

Inge Genné is program manager Water at VITO (the Flemish Institute for Technological Research). Since 2016, she is heading a multidisciplinary team of experts (engineering, hydrology, monitoring, economics, data science) that addresses the economical and societal water challenges in an integrated way.  VITO’s innovation strategy focusses on digital water, the value of water and the water/climate nexus. VITO develops tools and products and supports industry, public authorities and cities to evaluate sustainable water management concepts. VITO also hosts the Flanders Knowledge Center Water (Vlakwa) that enhances the formation of innovation partnerships and supports the Flemish water agenda by developing a systemic view on water.

Inge has a Ph.D. in chemistry (University of Leuven) and started her research career in the area of membrane technology. She then expanded her horizon to the broader water domain leading the teams on industrial water and separation technology. Inge is coördinating the WaterPROOF Flanders project, focused on the implementation of demosites to accelerate the Blue deal strategy of the Flemish Government.

Diane D’Arras

Diane D’Arras

IWA

President

Francesca Vanthielen

Francesca Vanthielen

Moderator

Plenary

Special session

Incentivising tech development to realize the Green Deal

27/10/2020, 08:30 - 09:45

Watch this session

This panel session will focus on how to ensure that the necessary technology advancement is made to realise the Green Deal. By encouraging technological innovation, the shift towards a sustainable society could be achieved in a way that we cannot immediately predict. Furthermore, innovation in technology is regarded as a critical condition to remain competitive at a global level.

Therefore, this panel encourages speakers to share their views on how we can make the right decisions to retain leadership on sustainable technology. What are the steps we need to take and how will we realise this shift with the (human) resources that we have? What are best practices to bridge the innovation gap and to allow new concepts to come to fruition in a conservative environment?

This session is hosted by the IEEE European Public Policy Committee and the KU Leuven.

Chaired by

Dirk Van Hertem

Dirk Van Hertem

KU Leuven

Professor and Member of IEEE EPPC

Presentation 08:35 - 08:40

The Leuven model of technology valorisation and innovation management

Koenraad  Debackere

Koenraad Debackere

KU Leuven

General Manager Leuven Research and Development

Presentation 08:40 - 08:45

Skills development needed for climate change

Pär Lundström

Pär Lundström

The Swedish Installation Federation

Representing CEDEFOP and EuropeOn

Presentation 08:45 - 08:50

Promoting innovative energy system development

Alberto Pototschnig

Alberto Pototschnig

Florence school of regulators

Part-time professor, former director of ACER

Alberto Pototschnig is part-time Professor and Deputy Director for the World of Practice at the Florence School of Regulation – European University Institute, where he has been teaching on energy regulation and market design since 2004.

From 2010 to 2019 he was the first Director of the European Agency for the Cooperation of Energy Regulators (ACER). Before joining the Agency, from 2006 Alberto was a Partner in Mercados EMI, a Madrid-based international consultancy specialising in the energy sector, where he served as CEO and Deputy Chairman. He previously worked at the Italian Transmission System Operators (from 2003 to 2005), served as the first CEO of the Italian Electricity Market Operator (from 2000 to 2003) and in the Italian Energy Regulatory Authority (AEEG, from 1997 to 2000), with his final position being Director of Electricity Regulation. Alberto started his professional career in 1989 with London Economics, an international economic consultancy, where he was eventually in charge of the industrial economic advisory practice. Between 2003 and 2005 Alberto also acted as an adviser to the Italian Government on environmental and climate policy issues.

Alberto holds a Degree in Economics from Bocconi University in Milan and an MSc in Econometrics and Mathematical Economics from the London School of Economics, University of London.

Presentation 08:50 - 08:55

New ecosystems to co-create a consumer-centric system

David Zenner

David Zenner

Elia Group

David Zenner joined ELIA in 2003. Before his current position as a Head of Consumer Centricity, he was the responsible for all customer relations within Elia. He has a long experience in the operation and maintenance of the grid and was responsible for these activities in different areas of Belgium.

From 2008 to 2011, he also worked on different projects related to Protection & Control System for power grids in the Middle East.

He graduated in electromechanical engineering at Ghent University in 2002, and holds a Master of Electrical Engineering, Electromechanical Engineering from the Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL).

Presentation 08:55 - 09:00

Technology development and innovation towards a carbon-neutral world in a global utility

Michael Webber

Michael Webber

Engie

Chief Science and Technology Officer

Panel discussion 09:05 - 09:45

Panel discussion about tech development for the Green Deal

Koenraad  Debackere

Koenraad Debackere

KU Leuven

General Manager Leuven Research and Development

Pär Lundström

Pär Lundström

The Swedish Installation Federation

Representing CEDEFOP and EuropeOn

Michael Webber

Michael Webber

Engie

Chief Science and Technology Officer

Alberto Pototschnig

Alberto Pototschnig

Florence school of regulators

Part-time professor, former director of ACER

Alberto Pototschnig is part-time Professor and Deputy Director for the World of Practice at the Florence School of Regulation – European University Institute, where he has been teaching on energy regulation and market design since 2004.

From 2010 to 2019 he was the first Director of the European Agency for the Cooperation of Energy Regulators (ACER). Before joining the Agency, from 2006 Alberto was a Partner in Mercados EMI, a Madrid-based international consultancy specialising in the energy sector, where he served as CEO and Deputy Chairman. He previously worked at the Italian Transmission System Operators (from 2003 to 2005), served as the first CEO of the Italian Electricity Market Operator (from 2000 to 2003) and in the Italian Energy Regulatory Authority (AEEG, from 1997 to 2000), with his final position being Director of Electricity Regulation. Alberto started his professional career in 1989 with London Economics, an international economic consultancy, where he was eventually in charge of the industrial economic advisory practice. Between 2003 and 2005 Alberto also acted as an adviser to the Italian Government on environmental and climate policy issues.

Alberto holds a Degree in Economics from Bocconi University in Milan and an MSc in Econometrics and Mathematical Economics from the London School of Economics, University of London.

David Zenner

David Zenner

Elia Group

David Zenner joined ELIA in 2003. Before his current position as a Head of Consumer Centricity, he was the responsible for all customer relations within Elia. He has a long experience in the operation and maintenance of the grid and was responsible for these activities in different areas of Belgium.

From 2008 to 2011, he also worked on different projects related to Protection & Control System for power grids in the Middle East.

He graduated in electromechanical engineering at Ghent University in 2002, and holds a Master of Electrical Engineering, Electromechanical Engineering from the Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL).

Plenary

Special session

Fostering job creation by social entrepreneurs in Africa

27/10/2020, 13:30 - 15:00

Watch this session

As a non-profit foundation, Siemens Stiftung promotes sustainable social development, which is crucially dependent on access to basic services, high-quality education, and an understanding of culture. To this effect, the Foundation’s project work supports people in taking the initiative to responsibly address current challenges. Together with its partners, Siemens Stiftung develops and implements solutions and programs to support this effort, with technological and social innovation playing a central role.

The foundation’s empowering people. Network connects inventors and entrepreneurs who have developed simple technical solutions and helps to expand their social impact in developing regions. By initiating new forms of collaboration, technology transfer, and access to finance, it supports its members on their way to scale, replicate and expand. Currently the empowering people. Network connects around 60 organisations from around the world, start-ups and smaller businesses using straightforward technology to improve basic services for people in developing regions while creating employment and economic prosperity.

Through roundtables, studies and reports, the foundation aims to raise awareness about the impact potential of social tech entrepreneurs and their specific support needs. In their recent study Social Entrepreneurs Create Jobs in Africa, the social entrepreneurs’ potential to contribute to employment and income generation in African countries has been analysed. Based on the assessment Siemens Stiftung formulated recommendations that address the international development community.

Presentation 13:30 - 13:50

Key findings of the study “Social Enterprises create jobs in Africa”

Siemens Stiftung conducted a study in 12 selected countries on the African continent with the distinct objective to assess and quantify the potential of social enterprises to contribute to improved social and economic conditions through the creation of jobs and income opportunities. The study has been funded by GIZ and is part of the “Invest for Jobs Initiative – Opportunities for Growth in Africa” that has been launched by the German Federal Ministry of Economic Cooperation and Development. The assessment comprises country-specific profiles, deep dives in case studies of five selected social enterprises as well as deducted growth support models and a comprehensive set of recommendations towards actors from different fields of the international development ecosystem.

Carola Schwank

Carola Schwank

Siemens Stiftung

Development Cooperation / epNetwork Lead

Carola Schwank leads the empowering people. Network programme (EPN) within the Development Cooperation Unit at Siemens Stiftung/Munich. She is in charge of the international Network initiative including the global competition “empowering people. Award”. Focusing on entrepreneurial models of basic supply in Sub-Saharan Africa, she has also been in charge of a cooperation project which combines basic supply, job creation and knowledge transfer. Carola studied German, history, political science and sociology at Friedrich-Alexander University of Erlangen-Nuremberg and has over twenty years of professional experience in various fields of communications and social responsibility at the Siemens AG.

Panel discussion 13:50 - 15:00

How to foster job creation by social entrepreneurs in Africa

The panel discussion will reflect on selected recommendations of the study and discuss possible ways and processes to implement them on an operational level. In breakout sessions, the panellists will work with participants to develop initial approaches on how the proposals from the study could be applied on an operational level to help social enterprises grow and create more and better jobs in African countries.

Iana Aranda

Iana Aranda

ASME- Engineering for Change

President

Iana Aranda is the Director of the Engineering for Global Development Department at the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) where she sets the business strategy of a portfolio of programmes and platforms that advance knowledge, workforce and hardware-led social innovation to improve the quality of life of underserved communities. Iana also serves as the President of Engineering for Change, LLC (E4C) – a knowledge organisation and global community of over 1 million individuals dedicated to design and delivery of essential technologies advancing sustainable development. In both roles, Iana is driving an agenda for a multidisciplinary and human-centred approach to international development enabled by technology, cross-sector partnerships, innovation ecosystems and engineering workforce development. Iana has 15 years of experience in academic, research and non-profit sectors focusing on the intersection of engineering design, business strategy and social impact.

Dino Corell

Dino Corell

UN ILO

Employment and Migration Officer, Office for Nigeria, Ghana, Liberia, Sierra Leone and ECOWAS

Dino Corell is an Employment and Migration Officer in the Country Office of the International Labour Organization (ILO) for Nigeria, Ghana, Liberia, Sierra Leone and ECOWAS, based in Abuja, Nigeria. He focusses on employment, youth employment, skills development and labour migration. Prior to that, Dino served as Programme Analyst in the ILO Office for the United Nations in New York. Before joining the ILO, he worked for the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) and the University of Vienna.

Aissata Sow

Aissata Sow

Mastercard Foundation

Country Programs Lead Nigeria & Digital Economy Lead, West/Central Africa

Aissata Sow began her career in international development upon graduating with a Bachelor’s degree in Management from the Dakar Institut Supérieur de Management. She embarked on her 15-year long career by managing the Gorée Institute in Senegal, swiftly thereafter joining the George Soros Open Society Foundation as a Permanent Consultant. Furthering her education at the University of London, Aissa obtained her Masters degree in Science of International Development, propelling her to a new position as Chief of Operations for the African Virtual University. In 2012 Aissa joined Intel Corporation, covering Francophone Africa as Director for Public Sector and Education.

In March 2019, Aissa was hired by the Mastercard Foundation in Toronto where she is leading the Digital Economy Programs for West and Central Africa and also managing Nigeria Country programs. Extremely driven and passionate, Aissa strongly believes in transforming the African continent into what it should be: a welcoming, thriving and enjoyable place where every citizen plays a productive role in improving their own lives and the lives of future generations.

Leonhard Nima

Leonhard Nima

Studio Nima

Founder and CEO

Leonhard Nima is the Founder of Studio Nima, Co-Founder of N3XTCODER and former Adjunct Professor of Social Entrepreneurship at Hult International Business School in San Francisco and London. He previously worked for Nobel Peace Prize Laureate Professor Muhammad Yunus at The Grameen Creative Lab as Head of Academia. With international corporate and consulting experience, he has worked with multinational companies and global organizations such as Accenture and Avantgarde. He has been a speaker and moderator at international conferences such as the Global Social Business Summit in Malaysia, Mexico, France and Germany, the European Social Business Forum in Norway and the Netherlands, the BMW Group rad°hub in the UK, United States and Germany, One Young World in Switzerland or TEDxSocial Business in Austria. Leonhard Nima held guest lectures at the University of Mannheim, Germany and the Istituto Europeo di Design in Milan, Italy.

Frank Aswani

Frank Aswani

African Venture Philanthropy Alliance (AVPA)

CEO

Frank Aswani is the CEO of Africa Venture Philanthropy Alliance (AVPA), a network of social investors who collaborate to increase the flow of capital into social investors across Africa and ensure that the capital is deployed for maximum social Impact. He is Kenyan, lives in Johannesburg and holds a Veterinary Medicine degree from the University of Nairobi and an MBA from GIBS (Gordon Institute of Business Studies), University of Pretoria, South Africa.

Maryanne Ocholo

Maryanne Ocholo

Aspen Network of Development Entrepreneurs

Senior Regional Chapter Manager, East Africa

Maryanne Ocholo is an Impact Investment professional with experience working across several African markets in the small and growing business ecosystem. She previously worked at Barclays Bank of Kenya in operations, administration and turnaround management of an SME portfolio in distress. Maryanne is a trained financial journalist passionate about fuelling economic growth in Africa through data-driven journalism. She is happiest making connections, introductions and brainstorming ways of making entrepreneurs in East Africa overcome barriers to success. Maryanne holds an MBA from IE Business School.

Michaela Pawliczek

Michaela Pawliczek

Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit

Private Sector Cooperation, Economic and Social Development

For the past twenty years, Michaela Pawliczek has gained experiences in consulting, coaching and training for the international community, impact investors and the private sector in Europe and Africa. During this time, she covered topics as SME development, green economy/jobs, biodiversity, climate change and woman empowerment. In 2014, she was the principal founder and Executive Secretary of “ADDEV Madagascar” (Agir pour le développement durable et l’économie verte à Madagascar), the first association in Madagascar boosting the number of green jobs on the Big Island while promoting CSR amongst the Malagasy private sector.

Currently, Michaela is working for GIZ headquarters in Frankfort, Germany, as a project manager at “Invest for Jobs”, a Special Initiative on Training and Job Creation from the German Government. In this innovative programme she is focusing on green jobs, social entrepreneurship and CSR. Recently, she accompanied the foundation of the association “Circular Economy 4 Africa”, bringing together more than 50 stakeholders from Europe and Africa with the aim to promote and strengthen the value chains for circular economy in six African countries.

Plenary Climate

Special session

CO2 capture: from postponed, cyclic to zero emissions economics and opportunities

26/10/2020, 17:30 - 18:30

Watch this session

The IPCC’s ambition to limit temperature increase to 2°C above pre-industrial levels not only requires the gradual reduction of CO2 emissions from industry, fuel burning and land use. It also needs the introduction of CO2 capture technologies, in the form of negative emissions. Starting from 2030, a net reduction of 700 megatons of CO2 is required per year, of which the half originates from ‘CO2 capture and valorisation’ strategies, reaching net zero CO2 emissions by 2070.

This target setting for CO2 capture however needs some more attention, in the frame of existing and new CO2 valorisation options such as Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS), allowing CO2 fixation, and its utilisation alternative (CCU) that foresees the ‘zero emission aspect’ in the mineralisation route, with for example building materials as an end product.

But how can we make CCU become a key pillar of the transition to a sustainable economy and create an action plan to develop CCU into a new industrial sector? What are the enablers and hurdles to accelerate CCU adoption, and what policy, institutional and regulatory changes are required to accelerate the uptake of CCU breakthrough solutions?

Chaired by

Deepak Pant

Deepak Pant

VITO

Senior scientist sustainable chemistry

Keynote presentation 17:35 - 17:45

How to make CCU become a key pillar of the transition to a sustainable economy and fight against climate change

Walter Eevers

Walter Eevers

VITO

Director R&D and Vice-President CO2 Value Europe

Panel discussion 17:55 - 18:25

Roundtable

Philippe De Smedt

Philippe De Smedt

CEFIC

Sector Group Manager

Thomas Wyns

Thomas Wyns

VUB

Researcher Environment & Sustainable Development

Ludo Diels

Ludo Diels

University of Antwerp

Chair of the Advisory Board of Processes4Planet to the European Commission

Mark Sisouw de Zilwa

Mark Sisouw de Zilwa

ING

Managing Director - Energy / Head Technical Team EMEA/ Asia Pacific (

Plenary

Special session

Sponsored session by ING

26/10/2020, 11:30 - 12:30

Watch this session

Keynote presentation 11:35 - 12:05

Sustainable Finance and the role of banks as enabler of green transition

ING believes sustainable business is better business. The transition towards a more sustainable economy can be supported through their balance sheet commitments by financing change and by sharing sector knowledge with focus on their clients’ business profiles.

Being sustainable is not just about reducing their own impact, it’s in all the choices they make as a lender, as an investor and through the services they offer their customers. That’s why sustainability is inherent to their purpose of empowering people to stay a step ahead in life and in business.

Jan De Jaeck

Jan De Jaeck

ING

Sustainable Finance Lead Belgium, Luxembourg and Nordic

Panel discussion 12:05 - 12:30

Q&A

Jan De Jaeck

Jan De Jaeck

ING

Sustainable Finance Lead Belgium, Luxembourg and Nordic

Francesca Vanthielen

Francesca Vanthielen

Moderator

Water

Special session

Roundtable Aquafin

27/10/2020, 11:45 - 13:15

Watch this session

Panel discussion 11:45 - 13:15

No water resilient cities without engaged citizens

Climate change significantly affects cities. The increase extreme weather events forces cities to rethink their water management. To cope with the impact of climate change, many are thinking about how they can evolve into a water resilient city and some are leading by example. Despite the fact that many interesting projects can be done to reshape the public domain, citizens will have to participate as well to make cities water resilient and to reach the ambition of becoming climate proof.

In this round table discussion, the difficulties cities and sewer operators experience in practice will be discussed to convince citizens to engage them and even to take action themselves. What are the best channels to reach them? Do they feel the urge to act? What is holding them back? Who starts the conversation? What (digital) tools are useful?

Brecht Donckels

Brecht Donckels

Aquafin

R&D Engineer

Birgit De Bock

Birgit De Bock

Aquafin

R&D Engineer

Plenary

Special session

Solar Impulse Session

28/10/2020, 14:30 - 15:30

You wish to know how the Efficient Solutions Label can support your cleantech business growth? You would like to be sure that your solution is eligible before you actually start applying? You want to know how to be faster to fill out your application? Join the Solar Impulse Foundation team in this 1-hour webinar to get all the info you need before starting your application to the Efficient Solutions Label.

Presentation 14:30 - 15:30

Accelerating adoption of cleantech solutions

Pierre Majoux

Pierre Majoux

Solar Impulse Foundation

Innovators coordinator