Keynote speaker

Richard Howitt served as a Member of the European Parliament for 22 years, was its Rapporteur on Corporate Responsibility and negotiated Europe’s first rules for corporate sustainability reporting. Richard is now Strategic Advisor on Corporate Responsibility and Sustainability, Business and Human Rights, Senior Associate at Frank Bold LLP, member of Faculty at Audencia Business School and Board member at both the Eiris Foundation and sustainability think-tank, r3.0.

Richard Howitt

Advisor, ESG-competent Board member, Trainer, Keynote Speaker and Conference Facilitator

Speakers

Ivo Germann is head of the Foreign Economic Affairs Directorate. Previously, he headed the Macroeconomic Support Section in the Economic Cooperation and Development Division and Economic, Trade and Financial Affairs at the Swiss Embassy in Washington, D.C. He joined SECO's Macroeconomic Support Section in 2000 and was promoted to Deputy Head of Section in 2004. He returned to SECO in 2010 as head of Private Sector Development and was promoted to head of Operations South/East in 2013.

Ambassador Ivo Germann

Head of the Foreign Economic Affairs Directorate, SECO

Christian Robin is the Executive Director of the Swiss Platform for Sustainable Cocoa (SWISSCO). He holds a PhD in Political Science of the Center for Comparative and International Studies (CIS) of the University of Zurich. Christian joins the Cocoa Platform from SECO, where he served as Deputy Head Trade Promotion, Christian has held a variety of positions across SECO in his 14 years, including as Head of Swiss Economic Development Cooperation in Peru.

Christian Robin

Strategic Advisor on Corporate Responsibility and Sustainability, Business and Human Rights, Swiss Platform for Sustainable Cocoa

Janina Grabs is the Associate Professor of Sustainability Research at the University of Basel, Switzerland and has aPhD in Political Science. Her work on the effectiveness of private sustainability governance in the coffee sector is published in the book “Selling Sustainability Short? The Private Governance of Labor and the Environment in the Coffee Sector” (2020, Cambridge University Press) Her current research agenda focuses on the implementation of due diligence legislation.

Janina Grabs

Associate Professor of Sustainability Research, University of Basel

Rajesh Bhuyan is a Mechanical Engineer from National Institute of Technology, Jaipur, India, with 35 years of experience in diverse fields and countries. Currently he is working as the Director of the trustea certification programme. which has been certified as ISEAL Code compliant. Previously he worked as Regional Manager, Safety, Health, and Environment(EHS), Asia Pacific, for US based FMCG MNC SC Johnson in Kuala Lumpur covering Indonesia, China, Vietnam, and India.

Rajesh Bhuyan

Director, trustea Sustainable Tea Foundation

As chief executive officer, Santiago Gowland is responsible for the strategic, programmatic, financial, and operational leadership of the Rainforest Alliance. and reports to the Board of Directors. Previously, he served as the executive vice president for Latin America and global innovation for The Nature Conservancy (TNC).In his role as head of global innovation for TNC, Santiago was the executive champion for their green technology strategy and systems innovation capabilities.

Santiago Gowland

CEO, Rainforest Alliance

Claire joined Proforest in 2020, working with initiatives across a variety of agricultural commodity sectors.some of her most recent work focused on Environmental and Social Due Dilligence Regulations, including the EUDR and EU CSDDD, and their interface with Voluntary Sustainability Standards. Claire is currently part of the RSPO/Proforest team working on the ISEAL Innovation Fund project EUDR and independent palm oil smallholder inclusion – bridging the gaps in interrupted supply chains.

Claire Reboah

Principal Project Manager, Proforest

Luiza serves as the Global Executive Director of the Round Table on Responsible Soy (RTRS) and has 15 years of experience in sustainability projects. She is also a guest lecturer in the MBA program for Agribusiness Management at the Instituto de Posgrado y Grado (IPOG). Previously, Luiza held the position of Executive Director of the Brazilian Round Table on Sustainable Livestock (MBPS). She was also a member of the Executive Committee of the Global Roundtable for Sustainable Beef (GRSB).

Luiza Bruscato

Global Executive Director, Round Table on Responsible Soy

Melanie Grant is Executive Director of the Responsible Jewellery Council, and was a journalist for over 20 years having worked at The Times, The FT, The Independent, The Guardian, The BBC and The Economist. She wrote her first book Coveted on jewellery, art and economics in 2020 and won The Media Excellence category of The Gem Awards voted for by the Jewelers of America in 2021. Melanie sits on the boards of New York Jewelry Week, The Black in Jewelry Coalition, ISEAL and The Copenhagen Commitment.

Melanie Grant

Executive Director, the Responsible Jewellery Council

Danielle, CEO of Bonsucro, leads the team in maintaining Bonsucro as the global platform for sugarcane sustainability. Prior to her appointment at Bonsucro in 2018, Danielle was European Director of Outreach and Engagement at Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil, and Executive Director of the Freshwater Action Network at WaterAid. Danielle also sits on the Board for ISEAL She is a qualified English lawyer and holds a master's degree in Environmental Technology and a bachelor’s degree in Law.

Danielle Morley

CEO, Bonsucro

Peter Feilberg is the Executive Director of Preferred by Nature (PbN) and has extensive expertise in data handling, traceability, claims management, and communication. Peter champions innovative approaches to make sustainability systems accessible to smallholders, employing risk-based approaches, and enhancing the credibility of certification schemes. Peter's deep understanding of policy implementation challenges makes him a crucial voice in discussions on strengthening the foundations that enable enterprises to amplify their environmental impacts.

Peter Feilberg

Executive Director, Preferred by Nature

Amanda is a sustainability passionate. As a Policy Advisor, she implements amfori’s advocacy strategy across key environmental topics with an impact on global supply chains, such as transparency, deforestation, environmental due diligence and climate change. Amanda follows policy and legislative trends and contributes to the development of amfori sustainability tools. Previously, she contributed to/led advocacy campaigns in energy access, sustainable finance and international cooperation.

Amanda Soler Guzmán

Advocacy & Engagement Advisor, amfori

Andre brings nearly two decades of invaluable experience in leading socio-environmental civil society organizations. He has a background in forestry and passion for sustainability in land-based supply chains. Before his position at Solidaridad, Andre served as the president of the Renova Foundation, a multi-billion dollar remediation and restoration effort for one of largest environmental disasters in Brazil’s history. He also worked as the Director General of the Forest Stewardship Council and was the Executive Director of the Sustainable Agriculture Network and Imaflora.

Andre de Freitas

Executive Director, Solidaridad Network

Martina is a Senior Advisor in Sustainability at the International Trade Centre (ITC), focusing on Mandatory Human Rights and Environmental Due Diligence. She is also an Associate Professor in the Economics of Agriculture, Food, and Health at Queen’s University Belfast. Martina holds a Ph.D. in International Economics from the Graduate Institute in Geneva and has previously worked at ETH Zurich and the European University Institute in Florence. She is a lead author of the 4th Edition of the Coffee Guide.

Martina Bozzola

Senior Advisor Sustainability and Livelihood, International Trade Centre

Fabian Waldmeier has worked for Fairtrade Max Havelaar for 13 years, taking over as CEO in April 2023. Previously, he was a member of the Executive Board, heading up the International Cooperation division, and was also Deputy CEO. An economist, he began his career in public administration and insurance. He then went on to manage a private foundation in Kenya, focused on humanitarian aid and agricultural education. Thanks to his many years of experience, Fabian Waldmeier has in-depth knowledge of the sustainability of supply chains.

Fabian Waldmeier

CEO, Fairtrade Max Havelaar

Petra has an MSc. in Geoecology and more than 25 years experiences in sustainability of cocoa and its value chain. Her experience includes organic certification, collaborating with smallholder producer groups, facilitating market access, and transferring knowledge in quality and sustainable production systems. Petra leads the sustainability department of the chocolate and snack company HALBA, Switzerland, which is pioneering agroforestry projects and is a division of the Coop Cooperative.

Petra Heid

Head of Sustainability, HALBA, Switzerland

Ximena is an industrial engineer and qualified project manager, with an MBA and Masters in CSR and Sustainable Leadership. She has more than fifteen years of experience in the design and implementation of sustainability models for public and private companies. Ximena currently works as the Deputy Director of Quality and Sustainability at ProColombia.

Ximena Serrano

Deputy Director of Quality and Sustainability, ProColombia.

Lina is an expert in technology with extensive experience in sectors like logistics, telecommunications, eCommerce, and agriculture. She’s an advocate for digitalization, championing the use of technology for meaningful and impactful purposes. As FSC's CITO, Lina enables and leverages technological innovations to drive sustainability initiatives, promoting solutions that enhance growth while ensuring environmental and social responsibility.

Lina Ramon

Chief Information Technology Officer, Forest Stewardship Council International

Jon Jacoby is CEO of GoodWeave International. Founded by Nobel Peace Prize laureate Kailash Satyarthi, GoodWeave works to end child and forced labor in global supply chains in India, Nepal, Bangladesh, and beyond. Jacoby has advanced business respect for human rights and the environment for 25 years as a grant-maker at Open Society Foundations, team leader at Oxfam, and co-founder of the Investor Alliance for Human Rights. He holds an MBA and MA from Columbia and a BA from Harvard.

Jon Jacoby

CEO, GoodWeave International

As a Chief of the Division for Fair Production, Sustainability Standards and Trade, Virpi Stucki is leading UNIDO’s work on sustainable supply chains as well as sustainable industrial skills development. Prior to joining UNIDO in 2012, Ms. Stucki worked at the Royal Dutch Shell as a biodiversity advisor, the International Union for Conservation for Nature (IUCN) in Burkina Faso and Switzerland as well as Aalto University, School of Engineering. Virpi Stucki holds a PhD in civil and environmental engineering.

Virpi Stucki

Chief of the Division for Fair Production, Sustainability Standards and Trade, UNIDO

Jacky Broomhead joined Better Cotton in 2021 to launch Better Cotton’s traceability programme. Her areas of experience include all things supply chain, traceability and data standardisation for retail and textiles. Jacky has a background in fashion and management consulting with tertiary qualifications in design, business, and marketing. Prior to Better Cotton, she worked for supply chain standards body GS1 UK where she helped launch the apparel department and worked on RFID and data standardisation projects across retail.

Jacky Broomhead

Director of Traceability, Better Cotton

Dafni Skalidou is a social researcher with extensive experience in sustainable value chains and impact evaluation. Her work focuses on the reach, implementation, and effectiveness of sustainability initiatives, the labour dynamics of production, and the use of mixed research methods in the context of global production networks. Since completing her PhD thesis in 2018, she has been working as an independent consultant, helping international organisations to understand and improve their impact.

Dafni Skalidou

Social researcher & consultant

Alison is the CEO of CottonConnect, where she leads a team of over 140 employees, impacting the lives of over 770,000 cotton farmers in India, China, Pakistan, Turkey, Egypt and Bangladesh. Under Alison’s leadership the organization: drives supply chain transparency connecting sustainable fibres from farm to store; focuses on the rights and skills of women in supply chains through pioneering gender programmes; and continues to develop innovations at a farm level. She leads cotton strategies and programmes for global brands and retailers.

Alison Ward

CEO, CottonConnect

Alex Kunze, environmental engineer EPFL, MBA and mediator SDM has worked in the field of responsible business conduct for over 20 years in more than 15 countries in Europe, Latin America and Africa. Since 2013, he leads the work of the Swiss National Contact Point for Responsible Business Conduct, coordinates policy issues including legislative developments and represents SECO at the Swiss Network of the UN Global Compact.

Alex Kunze

National Contact Point Responsible Business Conduct, Swiss State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO)

Juan Pablo is Fairtrade’s Senior Advisor for Climate and Environment. He holds an economic policies M.Sc. from the National University of Costa Rica, with an emphasis on ecologic economy and sustainable development. Before joining Fairtrade, Juan Pablo worked for the humanist Dutch-based organization Hivos, and was manager of InterAmerican Development Bank Lab’s SAFE Platform. He has specialised training in human rights, gender equity, value chains, green business, landscape restoration, microfinance, and sustainable development goals.

Juan Pablo Solís Víquez

Senior Advisor Climate and Environment, Fairtrade International

Marius holds a M.A. in political science and has more than 10 years experiences in corporate sustainability. As Head of Social Standards, he is responsible for the definition and implementation of human rights due diligence in Migros’ retail supply chains worldwide. Together with his teams in Zurich, Delhi and Hongkong he manages a variety of tasks and projects on farm and factory level. He also assumes the role of chair of the membership advisory council (MAC) at amfori.

Marius Lang

Head of Social Standards, Migros Supermarket

With UEBT since September 2023, Deniz monitors and integrates evolving requirements on human rights due diligence into the UEBT systems, tools, and processes. She is developing strategies to address human rights risks and concerns in specific supply chains. Deniz has both hands-on, field level, and high-level corporate experience designing and implementing human rights due diligence programs in various geographies related to different sectors.

Deniz Austin

Human Rights Expert, UEBT

Julia is responsible for Policy and Sector Transformation as of May 2023. She previously worked with UEBT from 2009 until 2021 and last served as Deputy Director and Senior Coordinator for ABS and Policy. Her last position was Head of Policy at UN Environment Programme World Conservation Monitoring Centre, where she oversaw a team focused on accounting for the value for biodiversity in policy. She is a trained lawyer with internationally recognized expertise on legal and policy issues linked to biodiversity. Julia grew up in Mendoza, Argentina and has an LLM degree from Lewis & Clark Law School in the US.

Maria Julia Oliva

Director of Policy and Sector Transformation, UEBT

Giulio is a Project Manager at GIB, managing a granted project under the ISEAL Innovation Fund on Due Diligences. He is also the communication coordinator for the FAST-Infra Label. Giulio has been with GIB for two years. He holds a Bachelor’s degree in Drama, Art, and Music Studies and a Master’s degree in Euroculture: Society, Politics, and Culture in a Global Context.

Giulio Baroni

Project Manager, GIB

Mareike works as a Project Manager for a GIB project on Due Diligence granted under the ISEAL Innovation Fund. She is a sustainability consultant at ecos, focusing on developing and implementing sustainability strategies. She holds a Master in Sustainability Management) and a trinational Bachelor in International Business Management. Before joining ecos, she worked on ESG analyses for sustainable investments in the renewable energy sector and gained experience in IT project management at an international leasing company.

Mareike Kremling

Project Manager, ecos

Marcel Koehler is Data Insights Manager at Assurance Services International (ASI) and holds degrees in business and geography. He established and leads ASI’s data team which focuses on digital assurance through the development of new data sources and technologies and the application of data analytics. He is leading an ISEAL Innovations Fund project to validate compliance through satellite-based insight generation with UAV ground truthing.

Marcel Koehler

Data Insights Manager, Assurance Services International (ASI)

Simone Hutter is an experienced business advisor specialized in business and human rights. She has a legal background with a PhD in international human rights and international humanitarian law. She currently works as a Project Manager of International Cooperation and specialist on human rights and environmental due diligence at Fairtrade Max Havelaar Switzerland. Prior to joining Fairtrade, Simone worked as a senior legal analyst at ECOFACT and consulted companies about human rights and environmental due diligence. She has published several works, including “Starvation as a Weapon”.

Simone Hutter

Project Manager of International Cooperation, Fairtrade Max Havelaar Switzerland

Speakers at the ISEAL Global Sustainability Symposium 2024

Speakers at the ISEAL Global Sustainability Symposium 2024

Keynote speaker

Speakers

Speakers at the ISEAL Global Sustainability Symposium 2024

Speakers at the ISEAL Global Sustainability Symposium 2024

Keynote speaker

Speakers

Related content

Closing the income gap for farmers

Sustainability standards: shaping business to deliver on the SDGs

ISEAL members putting certification on the map