Minister of Advanced Education, Skills and Training, Vancouver-Mount Pleasant

Honourable Melanie Mark

Melanie Mark’s story is one of firsts. She became B.C.’s first female First Nations MLA when she was elected to represent Vancouver-Mount Pleasant in 2016. In 2017, she became the province’s first female First Nations cabinet minister, appointed to the Ministry of Advanced Education, Skills and Training.

As the first in her family to graduate high school and complete post-secondary education, Melanie knows the transformative power of education. She is committed to breaking down barriers to education at all access points.
Melanie is Nisga’a, Gitxsan, Cree, Ojibway, French and Scottish. She has deep roots in northern B.C. and grew up in the projects of East Vancouver.

Before entering politics, Melanie advocated for youth, the homeless, sexually exploited children and Indigenous peoples in the justice system. She co-founded the Vancouver Aboriginal Community Policing Centre, led a national project with Save the Children Canada, and served as an advocate with British Columbia’s Office of the Representative for Children and Youth.

She holds a bachelor of arts degree in political science with a minor in sociology from Simon Fraser University, a criminology diploma from Native Education College/Douglas College and an advanced executive certificate in general management from Queen’s School of Business in Kingston, Ont.

Melanie believes, “It is our collective responsibility to disrupt the status quo and inspire this generation to be the innovators, change makers and leaders of tomorrow.”

Her most important role is as a proud mother to Makayla and Maya with her husband, Cassidy.

Honourable Selina Robinson - Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing, Canada.

Honourable Selina Robinson

Selina Robinson was elected as the MLA for Coquitlam-Maillardville in 2013 and re-elected in 2017. She is the Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing.

Selina served as the Official Opposition spokesperson for mental health and addictions, seniors, local government and sports.

Born and raised in the suburbs of Montreal before relocating to Richmond B.C. with her family, Selina has been actively engaged in the Coquitlam community since moving there more than 20 years ago.

As a former city councillor, Selina fought to protect the health of children and families by introducing a local ban on cosmetic pesticides, and worked to improve access for people with disabilities as chair of the Coquitlam Universal Access-Ability Advisory Committee. Prior to being elected, Selina had a home-based family therapy practice, was the Director of Development for SHARE Family and Community Services and was a Counselling Instructor and Program Developer at the University of British Columbia’s Life and Learning Centre and Vancouver Community College. Selina lives with her husband Dan in the Ranch Park neighbourhood of Coquitlam-Maillardville, where they raised their now adult children, Aaron and Leya.

As a cancer survivor, Selina does the annual Ride to Conquer Cancer alongside her husband and they have raised more than $500,000 with team Way Hey! Hey! over the past 8 years. When she is not working or training for the ride Selina can be found in her garden or in a kayak.

Founder, Project Drawdown, USA

Paul Hawken

Insights into Top Actionable Solutions to Reverse Global Warming

Paul Hawken is a long-time advocate for green building and sustainable development. He is the founder of Project Drawdown, which works with more than 200 scholars, students, scientists, researchers and activists to map, measure and model the 100 most substantive solutions that can reverse global warming through reduction and sequestration of greenhouse gases. Hawken has founded several successful, ecologically conscious businesses, written about the impacts of commerce on living systems, and consulted with heads of state and CEOs on economic development, industrial ecology and environmental policy. His eight books have been featured on national and The New York Times bestseller lists and have been used to teach sustainable business on college campuses across the country.

Professor of Urban and Environmental Policy and Planning at Tufts University, USA.

Julian Agyeman

Just Sustainabilities: Re-imagining Equality, Living Within Limits

Julian Agyeman Ph.D. FRSA FRGS is a Professor of Urban and Environmental Policy and Planning at Tufts University. He is the originator of the increasingly influential concept of just sustainabilities, the intentional integration of social justice and sustainability defined as: "the need to ensure a better quality of life for all, now, and into the future, in a just and equitable manner, whilst living within the limits of supporting ecosystems.”

He centers his research on critical explorations of the complex and embedded relations between humans and the urban environment, whether mediated by governments or social movement organizations, and their effects on public policy and planning processes and outcomes, particularly in relation to notions of justice and equity. For example, are we, as urban planners, as good at fostering belonging (recognition, reconciliation, difference, diversity, inclusion) as we are at developing prescriptions for what our cities can become (smart cities, sharing cities, sustainable cities, resilient cities)? His conviction is that just sustainabilities, which foregrounds belonging and becoming, can help us think through both, together.

Worldwide, he is recognized as an expert, an innovator and thought leader. One of the 15 most highly cited urban planning academics in North America, he is the author or editor of 11 books and is Editor-in-Chief of Local Environment: The International Journal of Justice and Sustainability, Series Editor of Just Sustainabilities: Policy, Planning and Practice published by Zed Books and Co-Editor of the Routledge Equity, Justice and the Sustainable City series.

President, British Columbia Institute of Technology, Canada

Kathy Kinloch

Kathy Kinloch is President of the British Columbia Institute of Technology (BCIT), Canada's premier polytechnic institution which serves approximately 50,000 students annually, a position she has held since January 2014. Her focus is broadening and deepening BCIT’s partnerships with business, industry and community within B.C., across Canada and globally to meet the evolving needs of today’s and tomorrow’s workplace.

Kathy is recognized for leading organizational renewal in complex environments. Through a number of senior leadership and executive roles, she has spearheaded successful strategic change initiatives in the post-secondary as well as government and health care sectors.

Acknowledgements of Kathy’s accomplishments include Top 50 Power Lists, Vancouver Magazine; Most Influential Women in Business, BC Business magazine; Influential Women in Business Awards, Business in Vancouver magazine; Woman of Distinction, YWCA Metro Vancouver; Top 100 Hall of Fame and Top 100 Public Sector Leaders, Women’s Executive Network (WXN); and an Honorary Doctor of Laws from Royal Roads University. Most recently, Kathy was selected as “Canada’s Most Admired CEO of 2018” in the Broader Public Sector category by Waterstone Human Capital.

Kathy holds a Diploma in Nursing and a Bachelor of Science (Nursing, with Distinction) from University of Alberta, a Master of Arts in Leadership (Chancellors Award) and a Graduate Certificate in Executive Coaching from Royal Roads University.

Kathy’s board positions include the Business Council of BC; Surrey Hospital Foundation; the Public Policy Forum and TELUS Corporation. She is also a member of the Business Council of Canada’s Business ‘Higher Education Roundtable’, the Asia Business Leaders Advisory Council of the Asia Pacific Foundation, and is currently chairing the provincial Emerging Economy Task Force.

Co-Chair of Working Group II, Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), Durban, South Africa.

Debra Roberts

Dr. Debra Roberts heads the Sustainable and Resilient City Initiatives Unit in eThekwini District Municipality, Durban, South Africa. Previously, she founded and managed the Environmental Planning and Climate Protection Department in eThekwini (1994-2016). She co-chairs IPCC's Working Group II, Sixth Assessment, and she was lead author of Chapter 8 (Urban Affairs) and contributing author to Chapter 12 (Africa) of the IPCC's Working Group II Fifth Assessment. Debra is also an advisor to the Global Commission on Adaptation. Dr. Roberts is an Honorary Professor at the University of KwaZulu-Natal in the School of Life Sciences. She has written widely in the fields of urban space planning, environmental management and urban climate protection. She has received numerous awards for her work.

Mayor of Lalitpur Metropolitan City, Kathmandu Valley, Nepal

Chiribabu Mahajan

Mayor Mahajan has been involved in community organization for over thirty years, including serving as president of a local indigenous community group with over 32,000 members. A priority for Mayor Mahajan and his administration is to launch an Ecocity Network in Nepal, beginning with and led by the municipality of Lalitpur. The initiative is already underway, and includes brand new bicycle lanes and car free areas, neighborhood sustainability plans, a plastics ban, and local sustainable business development initiatives.

Emeritus Professor, University of British Columbia, former director of the School of Community and Regional Planning (SCARP) at University of British Columbia, Canada.

William E. Rees

Prospects for Cities in the Age of Anthropocene

Dr. William Rees is a population ecologist, ecological economist, former Director and Professor Emeritus of the University of British Columbia’s School of Community and Regional Planning. His research focuses on the biophysical requirements for sustainability and the implications of global ecological trends. He has developed a special interest in modern cities as ‘dissipative structures’ and particularly vulnerable components of the total human ecosystem, and in the socio-cognitive barriers to sound environmental policy. Best known as the originator of ‘ecological footprint analysis’, Prof Rees has authored over 160 peer-reviewed papers and numerous popular articles on (un)sustainability. Rees’ academic work has been widely recognized: he was elected Fellow of Royal Society of Canada in 2006 and has since received a Trudeau Foundation Fellowship, an Honorary Doctorate from Laval, the international Boulding Prize and Herman Daly Awards in Ecological Economics, and a Blue Planet Prize (jointly with Dr Mathis Wackernagel).

Author, Doughnut Economics: Seven Ways to Think Like a 21st Century Economist, UK.

Kate Raworth

Kate Raworth is an economist dedicated to making economics fit for the 21st century. Her book Doughnut Economics: seven ways to think like a 21st century economist is an international bestseller that has been translated into 15 languages, and it was long-listed for the 2017 Financial Times & McKinsey Business Book of the Year award. She teaches at Oxford University’s Environmental Change Institute, and is an advisor to the Global Challenges programme of the Stockholm School of Economics and to the Centre for the Understanding of Sustainable Prosperity at the University of Surrey. Over the past two decades Kate has worked as Senior Researcher at Oxfam, as economist and co-author of the UN’s Human Development Report, and as a Fellow of the Overseas Development Institute based in the villages of Zanzibar. She holds a BA and MSc from Oxford University and an honorary doctorate from Business School Lausanne.

Councillor City of Melbourne First Vice President, ICLEI – Local Governments for Sustainability Senior Enterprise Fellow in Informed Cities, Connected Cities Lab, University of Melbourne, Australia.

Cathy Oke

Dr Cathy Oke, First Vice President of ICLEI - Local Governments for Sustainability, was first elected to the Melbourne City Council in 2008, and has over 20 years’ experience in the sustainability sector. She is chair of Council’s Environment portfolio and deputy chair of the Finance and Governance and Aboriginal City portfolios.

Dr Oke is committed to supporting programs that enable a resilient, vibrant and creative community.  She is passionate about engaging the community in strategies and plans for the city of the future, recognizing the need to build stronger relationships and partnerships with First Nations communities to better care for urban environments in line with traditional knowledge and practice.

Dr Oke has an interest in the intersection of arts and science disciplines as a response to the environmental and climate challenges facing cities, is a founding director of Tipping Point Australia and co-producer of The Living Pavilion.  She was a member of the Executive Advisory Board for the Ecocity World Summit hosted in Melbourne in 2017, and co-curated the city practice stream.

Dr Oke holds a PhD in molecular science from Latrobe University and currently works as Senior Enterprise Fellow in Informed Cities at the Connected Cities Lab, University of Melbourne.

Architect & Urban Planner, Auroville, India.

Lalit Kishor Bhati

Lalit Kishor Bhati is an Architect and Urban Planner who has been living in Auroville for the past 20 years. Bhati engages in diverse planning and integral learning activities, including working as a team member on Auroville’s Master Plan. He had earlier organised the CEPT Winter School Course in 2013 and 14 in Auroville. In addition, Lalit has established the Auroville Integral Sustainability Institute (AISI) in Auroville in 2012 which is a research and learning-oriented setup. Apart from organising learning and educational visits to Auroville, hands-on workshops and ‘Holistic Sustainability’ programmes for diverse background participants, few Study Abroad Programmes, in collaboration with Queens University, Canada.

Mayor, City of Vancouver, Canada.

Kennedy Stewart

Kennedy Stewart was elected the 40th Mayor of Vancouver on October 20, 2018, and is the City's first independent Mayor in three decades. Mayor Stewart is committed to building a sustainable, carbon-free economy while making sure housing costs are kept low and the quality of public services kept high. As a long-time renter in downtown Vancouver, where he lives with his wife Jeanette, Kennedy is focused on rapidly delivering housing for all income levels in every neighbourhood to keep our city welcoming and vibrant – a Vancouver that works for everyone.

United Nations Environment Program (UNEP), Cities Unit, France.

Sharon Gil

Sharon is coordinator and manager of the Global Initiative for Resource Efficient Cities which develops practical tools, conducts research, and brings solutions to implement urban metabolism, systems thinking, and circular economy approaches to cities in developing countries. An urban planner by profession, she also coordinates partnerships and joint resource mobilization on sustainable urbanization for UN Environment.

Sharon started her career in the late 90s, as a technical expert on the award-winning UNDP Private Sector Participation in Managing the Environment (PRIME) Project which has the distinction of being one of the first eco-industrial initiatives in Asia. She continued to develop her expertise in sustainable urbanization working for 2 years on rehabilitating old urban areas in Hong Kong with a private architecture and planning firm. After winning several design competitions, she was awarded “most promising urban planner” by the HK Institute of Planners in 2004. She then established herself as an expert in post-disaster reconstruction and risk reduction with UNDP and the Australian Government Aid Agency. Sharon was instrumental in conceptualizing and implementing the first multi-hazard mapping project in the Philippines bringing together scientists in different fields and linking them with local government actors. She also worked for over a year as Planning Advisor in Zambia where she focused on capacity building on land distribution and gender equality. Sharon joined UN Environment in 2012 to manage a project on mainstreaming the environment issues in city planning and management.

Sharon has a Masters degree in International Affairs from Columbia University New York’s School of International and Public Affairs. She studied urban planning at the University of Hong Kong’s School of Architecture as a Japan/ADB fellow. She speaks English, French, and several Philippine languages.

Co-Founder and Co-Director, CityHive, Canada.

Tesicca Truong

Tesicca Truong is a sustainability activist, a serial changemaker, and an engagement innovator. Her passions lie at the intersection of youth empowerment, citizen engagement and community building. She kick-started Vancouver Youth4Tap, a city-wide movement to promote tap over bottled water and co-founded the Vancouver School Board Sustainability Conference, now in its seventh year. She has served on the Mayor’s Engaged City Task Force, SFU Senate, and as board chair of Sustainable SFU. Currently, she leads the Starfish Canada as Board Chair and advises BC’s Minister of Environment and Climate Change as the youngest member of the Climate Advisory Council. For her work, Tesicca has been named on the North American Association for Environmental Education’s Top 30 under 30 and Corporate Knight’s Top 30 Sustainability Leaders under 30. She the Co-Founder & Co-Director of CityHive, a non-profit on a mission to transform the way that young people are engaged in the planning, design, and decision-making in their communities.

Canadian river conservationist, writer, speaker, teacher and paddler. Founder and Chair of BC Rivers Day and World Rivers Day, Canada.

Mark Angelo

British Columbia’s Mark Angelo is a renowned river conservationist, paddler, educator and speaker. He has travelled more than 1,000 rivers throughout the globe, perhaps more than any other person. He has also journeyed by river through the heart of the world's largest cities. Declaring that rivers are the arteries of the planet, Mark has been dedicated to protecting and conserving Canadian and international waterways for more than 50 years. He was named as one of Canada's 100 greatest modern-day explorers by Canadian Geographic magazine and has received honorary doctorates for his river-related efforts from institutions such as Simon Fraser University and Trent University.

Mark is the founder and chair of BC Rivers Day and World Rivers Day, celebrated in over 70 countries around the world. He is the chair emeritus of the Rivers Institute of the British Columbia Institute of Technology (BCIT)and was the long time head of the BCIT Fish and Wildlife Program prior to his retirement. Over the decades, Mark has led a number of leading-edge river and stream restoration efforts in both urban environments and elsewhere. Mark’s work has been the subject of major television specials, award winning internationally acclaimed feature films such as RiverBlue, and Emmy award winning investigative news features.

Mark has been recognized with the Order of British Columbia, the Order of Canada and the Queen’s Golden and Diamond Jubilee medals. He was also honoured with the United Nations Stewardship Award, the National River Conservation Award and was inducted into the Fraser River Hall of Fame.

Mark is a fellow of the Explorers Club and Fellow of the Royal Canadian Geographic Society. He continues to work with river-related and environmental organizations throughout the world and mentors young people.

Spokesperson for the TWN Sacred Trust Initiative

Charlene Aleck

Charlene is a Granddaughter of Chief Dan George. She’s a former elected Councilor for the Tsleil-Waututh Nation (TWN) and a spokesperson for the TWN Sacred Trust Initiative. She is a mother of Four and a grandmother. As a child she played Sara Jim on the Beachcombers. She is dedicated to the protection and restoration of the land and water her people have been the stewards of since time immemorial.

Founder of Integral City Meshworks Inc, UK.

Marilyn Hamilton

Dr. Marilyn Hamilton is a city (or Human Hive) evolutionist, futurist, PRAQtivist, author and independent researcher. Founder of Integral City Meshworks Inc; author of the Integral City Book Series, Reframing Complex Challenges for Gaia’s Human Hives (2018), Inquiry and Action: Designing Impact for the Human Hive (2017) and Integral City: Evolutionary Intelligences for the Human Hive (English 2008, Russian 2014), she has created several international communities of Integral City practise. Through care for self, others, place and planet Marilyn believes cities can become “Gaia’s Reflective Organs”. Partnering with Findhorn International Centre for Sustainability she convenes Beyond Smart, Beyond Resilient & Beyond Complexity Integral City workshops and webinars. Guest Editor of Integral Leadership Review, Canada Issue 2015, and Producer of the Integral City 2.0 Online Conference 2012, she designs and delivers “learning lhabitats” for the 4+1 Voices of the city, in multiple modes. She has held the position of CEO, COO, CFO and CIO in the private and civil society sectors. Formerly of Abbotsford, BC, Canada, she now resides in Findhorn Foundation, Scotland, serves on the Board of Findhorn College and F.I.R.E. CIC; is Associate Faculty at Royal Roads University, U of Victoria; and academically supervises, lectures and keynotes at universities and conferences around the world.

Founder of World of Walas. Urbanist. Author. Speaker. Dedicated to sustainable urban development, ethics, and innovations, Canada.

Gerben van Straaten

Founder and CEO Gerben van Straaten, has over 25 years of experience in urban development. He founded World of Walas in 2010 to offer a fundamentally different approach to sustainable urban development. Walas has been experiencing significant growth since then, doubling in size at least once per year. Walas is now a collection of over 25 companies with projects operating in the Netherlands, Germany and Canada, and global partnerships focused on bringing real change to the urban development industry.

Gerben is an international speaker and published author on sustainable urban development and new ideas for old buildings. His unique experience bridges between academic best practices and the traditional real estate industry. He works with governments, cities, NGOs and other organizations on policy for urban planning and development to bring about real change. He is a signatory partner for the UN Sustainable Development Goals, and Special Commissioner for Cities for Earth Charter International.  Follow him on Twitter @gerben_walas and @worldofwalas

Australian Architect, Writer, Independent Researcher and Urban Evolutionary, Australia.

Paul Downton

Australian architect, writer, independent researcher and urban evolutionary, Paul Downton has been a leading contributor to creating and growing the ecocity movement for over three decades. At a time of massive ecological, climatic and cultural change he sees the development of ecocities as a global imperative and an evolutionary adventure.

Paul’s many years of experience in practice, teaching and research include co-convening the Second International Ecocity Conference in 1992 for Urban Ecology Australia, co-initiating and designing the pioneering and internationally awarded Christie Walk medium-density ecological housing development, working with the Chinese Academy of Sciences and other Chinese organisations on transitioning to ecocities, leading research with Deakin University on biophilia potential in Melbourne’s new metro stations, designing an undergraduate program in “Ecological Urban Design” for the DeTao Group and initiating and designing the legendary Halifax EcoCity Project (awarded “World’s Best Ecocity Project” by Ecocity Builders in 1994).

Paul has written widely on his vision for “ecopolis”. His current work focuses on biophilia and the concept of “urban fractals” and he is seeking funding to write “A Fractal Handbook for Urban Evolutionaries” and a series of graphic novels entitled “The Wild Cities of Half Earth”.

Vice President, Habitat for Humanity International, USA

Steve Weir

Mr. Weir is currently focused on leading Habitat for Humanity’s efforts as an emerging global thought leader and practitioner in housing innovation; building on his previous operational role as VP for Global Programs supporting over 80 countries.  Areas of responsibility included Urban Programs, Sustainable Design and Energy Efficiency; Housing Finance and Market Development; Volunteer and Faith Engagement; Disaster Resilience; Evaluation and Organizational Effectiveness.

Mr. Weir started the HFH Sri Lanka country program in 1993 before becoming Vice President for HFHI operations in Asia-Pacific for 20 countries where as a part of that work he oversaw the 2004 Asia Tsunami reconstruction project in four countries impacting over 125,000 people.

Early in his career, Mr. Weir spent 16 years in private practice as a licensed Architect, working with a San Francisco-based architectural and real estate development firm, on projects throughout the Pacific Rim.

Founder of the International Ecocity Conference Series, and the NGOs, Ecocity Builders, 1991 and Ecocity World, 2018, USA.

Richard Register

Rebuilding Cities in Balance with Nature

He is the author of Ecocity Berkeley — Building Cities for a Health Future, 1987; Ecocities – Rebuilding Cities in Balance with Nature, 2006; World Rescue – an Economics Built on what We Build, 2016; and forty years of Richard’s drawings: Ecocities Illustrated, 2016.

Richard is a Fellow of the World Academy of Art and Science (based in India) and International Consultant, Chinese Society for Urban Studies, Eco-Cities Planning and Construction Center, Beijing.

He has spoken in 36 countries and is happy to relate that in China the National Government has instituted a program of building “eco-cities” adopting the term “Eco-city” from his book, Ecocities, as translated into Chinese.

Register has participated in two design charrettes with British Columbia Institute of Technology for applying ecocity principles and features to their Burnaby Campus.

Catalytic Communities, Brazil.

Theresa Williamson

Theresa Williamson is founder and executive director of Catalytic Communities (CatComm), an empowerment, communications, think tank, and advocacy NGO working since 2000 in support of Rio’s favelas. In addition to fostering peer-to-peer networking, strategic training and media support on behalf of community organizers, the organization has become known for advocating a community-controlled asset-based development approach to informal settlements. Theresa is an outspoken, respected advocate for the recognition of favelas’ heritage status and their residents’ right to be fully served as equal citizens. She has published several book chapters, four opinion pieces in The New York Times, and has been cited in dozens of publications, with appearances on The Today Show, Vice, and HBO. Dr. Williamson received the 2012 NAHRO John D. Lange International Award for her contributions to the international housing debate and 2005 Gill-Chin Lim Award for Best Dissertation on International Planning. She is editor-in-chief of RioOnWatch.

Executive Director, Ecocity Builders, USA.

Kirstin Miller

Localizing the Sustainable Development Goals using the Ecocity Framework and Standards

Kirstin Miller is Executive Director of nonprofit Ecocity Builders, headquartered in the San Francisco Bay Area, USA where she leads the organization’s program development, global initiatives and activities. She works locally and internationally to help cities access ecocity knowledge, specializing in integrating city-based experiences from a diverse range of perspectives and with a focus on strong citizen engagement. Kirstin leads the development of the organization’s “toolbox” of strategies and initiatives, including the Ecocity Framework and Standards, the EcoCompass curriculum, Urbinsight, and Urban Metabolic Information Systems for cities. She is an international speaker and presenter on ecocity design, technology, and citizen participation. Kirstin serves on the Steering Committee of the Ecocity World Summit conference series, the Technical Committee of the Guangzhou Urban Awards and is a jurist of the Katerva Awards.

Director, Institute Sustainability, British Columbia Institute Of Technology, Canada.

Jennie Moore

Dr. Jennie Moore is a visionary sustainability leader. Prior to joining BCIT she was Metro Vancouver's first Air Quality Planner in charge of climate action, first demand side management planner, and an inspiration for the Sustainable Region Initiative. As founding coordinator of Vancouver's Ecocity Network, she helped bridge civil society and local government leadership on urban ecology. Her work helped initiate municipal greenhouse gas reporting, advancement of green buildings, community energy planning, and eco-industrial networking that has positioned the Vancouver region as a sustainability leader. Her research supports the Vancouver Greenest City 2020 Action Plan, Lighter Footprint goal. She has authored several peer-reviewed articles and regularly contributes to Ecocity Insights, part of the Ecocities Emerging newsletter. Her work has received numerous awards including an Environmental Citizenship Award from the Canadian Federal Minister of Environment. Jennie is a senior associate with One Earth and a core advisor and lead researcher for development of the International Ecocity Standards. She is also the creator of the ecoCity Footprint tool that helps cities and citizens identify pathways to sustainable consumption and lifestyles.

Co-author and Managing Director of EcoAnalytics, Founder of Project Green Bloc, Canada.

James Boothroyd

James Boothroyd is a social entrepreneur and communications strategist devoted to advancing environmental protection and public health. Co-author and Managing Director of EcoAnalytics, a cooperative research initiative on behalf of Canada’s environmental movement, he is also founder of Project Green Bloc, an approach to engaging neighbourhoods in addressing climate change. James began his career as a journalist in the UK and Canada, and led communications for the Canadian HIV Trials Network during its launch of North America’s first trial of medically prescribed heroin in Vancouver’s Downtown East Side.  Later he worked as a writer in the HIV/AIDS Department of the World Health Organization (Geneva) and as Director of Communications and Public Engagement for the David Suzuki Foundation. He is now Principal of Boothroyd Communications, whose clients have included national environmental groups, as well as international agencies such as German Technical Cooperation (GIZ), and the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, TB and Malaria.

The World Association of the Major Metropolises, Senior Manager, Institutional Relations, Spain

Agnes Charlotte Bickart

The World Association of the Major Metropolises serves as a forum to help government leaders share mutual learning, innovation, governance, technical/financial assistance, international presence and debate.  As senior program manager and development strategist, Agnes advises and supports the work undertaken by the Secretary General regarding strategy, policy and representation. She connects political leaders, policy makers and practitioners worldwide in order to advocate metropolitan interests and improve the performance of metropolises in addressing both local and global challenges. Her mission is to enhance major cities´ global outreach, promoting their achievements and credentials in urban settings and to ensure METROPOLIS is an uplifting presence for big cities worldwide.

Agnes is currently involved in various international collaborative urban programs such as the METROPOLIS Urban Innovation program which is at the core of the METROPOLIS work on urban diplomacy and metropolitan advocacy.  A key driver of the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals and implementation of the New Urban Agenda, this program is led by the city of Guangzhou and encompasses the Guangzhou Award which allows cities around the world to learn from each other and solve their problems with local resources and applied global knowledge.

Agnès is French national and since 2007 she has been working for METROPOLIS General Secretariat based in Barcelona. She holds a Master of Arts degree from West Paris Nanterre/La Défense University. By the time of joining METROPOLIS, Agnès had acquired professional experiences in international business activities while working in Lisbon, Paris, Brussels and New York where she acquired experience overseas.

UN-HABITAT, Youth and Livelihoods Unit Headquarters in Nairobi, Kenya.

Douglas Ragan

Douglas Ragan has worked in youth development at the local, national and international level for the past 30 years. Currently he is the Unit Leader for Youth and Livelihoods for UN-Habitat, managing UN-Habitat's youth programme which has engaged over 500,000 youth through projects in over 70 developing countries. His current focus is working with youth in informal settlements and in conflict cities. He manages two flagship youth programmes for UN-Habitat: the Urban Youth Fund and the One Stop Youth Resource Centres.

Doug has authored, co-authored and edited 17 research and policy publications on urban youth issues, the most recent being the Global Youth-Led Development series, representing some of the first research done on youth-led agencies in the developing world. Doug holds a Bachelors Degree in Latin American Studies, a Masters Degree in Management.

Dr. Maarten Hajer - Professor of Urban Futures at Utrecht University & Member of UN International Resource Panel

Maarten Hajer

Maarten Hajer is an urbanist and political science and is currently a professor of Urban Futures at Utrecht University. He is also a member of the UN’s International Resource Panel.

President & CEO, Canada Green Building Council

Thomas Mueller

Thomas Mueller is a Founding Director of the Canada Green Building Council (CaGBC) and became President & CEO of the Council in 2005. As Chief Executive, he leads the Council’s national green building strategy, programs and standards along with advocacy and policy initiatives. In 2018, he was appointed as CEO of Green Business Certification Inc. Canada (GBCI CA) to deliver advanced performance standards to the industry.

As a past Board member of the Green Building Certification Institute (GBCI), the World Green Building Council (WGBC), and as a Board member of Building Energy Innovators Council (BEIC), he supports the transition toward green building and cities at home and globally.

Thomas is a well-known advocate for green buildings, sustainable community development and market-based solutions for carbon emissions reduction. He participates frequently in government and industry consultations on climate change and broader sustainability solutions and is a nationally and internationally recognized authority and speaker on green buildings.

He is currently participating in a number of initiatives and groups including the WorldGBC Global CEO Network, and the Advisory Committee of Energy Efficiency in BC’s Built Environment Research Project at UBC.

Thomas has an Undergraduate Degree in Geography, Planning and Applied Ecology from the Ludwig-Maximilian University in Munich, Germany; and holds a Master’s Degree in Regional Planning & Resource Development from the University of Waterloo, Ontario.

For his green building work, Thomas has received numerous awards. Most recently, he became a recipient of Canada’s 2015 Clean50 Award and an Honorary Fellow of the Royal Architectural Institute of Canada (RAIC) in 2016.