Spotlight Climate

Raj Kumar is the Founding President and Editor-in-Chief at Devex, the media platform for the global development community. He is a media leader and former humanitarian council chair for the World Economic Forum and a member of the Council on Foreign Relations. His work has led him to more than 50 countries, where he has had the honor to meet many of the aid workers and development professionals who make up the Devex community. He is the author of the book "The Business of Changing the World," a go-to primer on the ideas, people, and technology disrupting the aid industry.

David Nabarro is the Co-Director of the Imperial College Institute of Global Health Innovation at the Imperial College London and supports systems leadership for sustainable development through his Switzerland based social enterprise 4SD. From March 2020, David is appointed Special Envoy of WHO Director General on COVID-19. He secured his medical qualification in 1974 and has worked in over 50 countries – in communities and hospitals, governments, civil society, universities, and in United Nations (UN) programs.

David worked for the British government in the 1990s as head of Health and Population and director for Human Development in the UK Department for International Development. From 1999 to 2017 he held leadership roles in the UN system on disease outbreaks and health issues, food insecurity and nutrition, climate change and sustainable development. In October 2018, David received the World Food Prize together with Lawrence Haddad for their leadership in raising the profile and building coalitions for action for better nutrition across the Sustainable Development Goals.

Dr. Barbara Buchner is Global Managing Director of Climate Policy Initiative, and also the Executive Director of its widely renowned Climate Finance program. Named one of the 20 most influential women in climate change and one of the 100 most influential people in climate policy, Barbara advises leaders on climate, energy, and land use investments around the world.

Barbara directs the Global Innovation Lab for Climate Finance (the Lab) and its sister programs in Brazil and India. The Lab’s public-private approach solicits, shapes, and tests cutting edge climate finance instruments that resolve financing barriers hindering alternative energy, adaptation, and land use projects. Instruments from the Lab have mobilized over 2 billion US dollars for sustainable development in developing countries in just five years.

Prior to joining IFAD in September 2020, van Ginneken was Chief Executive Officer of the SNV Netherlands Development Organisation, a leading development organisation with 1,400 specialized staff working on agriculture, energy and water in 28 countries in Africa, Asia, and Latin America. Previously, she held various leadership positions in the water, agriculture and energy sectors during sixteen years at the World Bank in Washington D.C. and in field offices. Among others she managed the World Bank’s South Asia water program of over US$5 billion and the World Bank’s US$4 billion energy program in West- and Central Africa.

Ruth K. Oniang’o is Editor-in-Chief and Founder at African Journal of Food, Agriculture, Nutrition and Development (AJFAND). She is a noted leader in outreach to and work with smallholder farmers in Kenya, both through her work with the AJFAND and with the Rural Outreach Programme, an NGO that supports resource-poor farmer groups engaged in production and agro-processing at the community level. As a member of Kenyan Parliament from 2003 to 2007, she worked to create awareness about poverty and hunger, with special focus on science and technology, agricultural research and productivity, food security, nutrition, bio-safety legislation, fertilizer and other input use, HIV/AIDS, and gender issues. She currently chairs Kenya’s Food Security and Nutrition Taskforce, which provides oversight for the implementation of the National Food and Nutrition Policy.

Ruth served as lecturer and professor of food science and nutrition at Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology in Nairobi and is assisting Great Lakes University of Kisumu with its postgraduate, research and partnership programs. She has served on several national and international boards and advisory committees for the FAO, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation’s Agriculture Strategy Advisory Committee, IFDC, IRRI, CGIAR, IFPRI, HarvestPlus, and numerous private sector entities. She is currently a member of the Sasakawa Africa Association Board of Trustees, is an advisor to the University of Leeds Africa College Initiative, and was recently admitted to the Australian Center for International Agricultural Research.

Kamal Khera was first elected as the Member of Parliament for Brampton West in 2015. A registered nurse, community volunteer, and political activist, Ms. Khera is passionate about improving the lives of those around her. A first generation Canadian, Ms. Khera immigrated to Canada from Delhi, India, at a very young age. She attended York University where she earned an Honours Bachelors of Science in Psychology and an Honours Bachelors of Science in Nursing. Drawn to helping others, Ms. Khera gained diverse experience in the health care field through her professional experience with the Centre for Addictions and Mental Health, Peel Family Shelter, and William Osler Health System. Recently, she worked as a registered nurse in the oncology unit at St. Joseph’s Health Centre Toronto, which gave her a deep understanding of the issues that impact individuals every day.

Michelle Winthrop is Policy Director in the Development Cooperation and Africa Division in the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade. She was previously the Climate and Resilience Policy Lead. Prior to joining the Irish Government, Michelle was Director of Programmes for Farm Africa, a British NGO working on agriculture, forestry and market development in Africa. Michelle has worked for many years prior to that as a livelihoods and climate adviser within the UK’s Department for International Development, in the UK. This involved postings in East Africa (on secondment to the World Bank), Indonesia and Central America, as well as positions at HQ in the UK, including one working on gender and multilateral reform.