Parallel 3A
Bjørn Rask Thomsen
Bjørn Rask Thomsen is CEO of Denofa, Norway – a soybean processer working with non-GMO soy and full traceability for more than 20 years, and which applies zero deforestation and verification of sustainability to all its supplies of soy. Bjørn has worked internationally with agricultural commodities throughout his career and has a degree in Marketing Economy as well as Food and Drink Innovation. In 2015, he led an industry-wide initiative to agree The Commitment on Sustainable Soy and Forests, which was supported by the food industry and the government.
Amy Duchelle
Amy Duchelle is a Senior Scientist in the Climate Change, Energy & Low Carbon Development Team at the Center for International Forestry Research (CIFOR) in Bogor, Indonesia. Her research interests include forest-based climate change mitigation, impact evaluation, and smallholder and community forest management. Prior to moving to Indonesia in 2015, Duchelle was based at CIFOR’s office in Brazil, where she lived and worked for many years. She holds a B.A. in Biology from Colorado College, a M.S. in Conservation Biology and Sustainable Development from the University of Wisconsin at Madison, and a Ph.D. in Tropical Forestry from the University of Florida. She currently leads CIFOR’s work on analyzing the effectiveness, efficiency, equity, and co-benefits of subnational REDD+ initiatives through the Global Comparative Study on REDD+.
Gita Syahrani
Gita Syahrani is the Executive Director to the Secretariat of Sustainable District Association or Lingkar Temu Kabupaten Lestari (LTKL). LTKL is a membership based association established and managed by Districts Leaders in Indonesia since July 2017.
Using ‘Collective Impact’ approach, this innovative districts partnership intends to accelerate and better support district’s sustainable vision aligned with Sustainable Development Goals, Indonesia’s emission reduction targets and Open Government principles. With more than a decade of legal, financing structure and strategic management consulting & programme implementation experience, Gita is a sustainability professional focusing on climate change & green investment.
She was the Senior Programme Management for the Indonesia Palm Oil Pledge (IPOP) and a leading member of the Planning & Funding Deputy of the former National REDD+ Agency, involved in the design, construction, negotiation and implementation of strategic work plan and funding instrument mechanism for REDD+ Indonesia.
Prior to her time with the National REDD+ Agency, she held a Senior Associate and Lead Counsel for Green Investment and Climate Change division position at one of the first-tier independent corporate law firms in Indonesia. Gita is also serving as member of for the Permanent Committee of International Affairs at the Indonesia Chambers of Commerce & Industry (KADIN).
William Boyd
William Boyd is Professor of Law and John H. Schultz Energy Law Fellow at the University of Colorado Law School and Director of the Laboratory for Energy & Environmental Policy innovation (LEEP) at the University of Colorado. Since 2009 he has served as the Project Lead for the Governors’ Climate and Forests Task Force.
Professor Boyd teaches and conducts research in the areas of climate change law & policy, energy law & regulation, and environmental law. He received his PhD from the Energy & Resources Group at UC Berkeley and his JD from Stanford Law School. In July 2018, he will be joining the faculty of the School of Law and the Institute of the Environment and Sustainability at UCLA.
Francisca Oliveira de Lima Costa
Francisca Oliveira de Lima Costa (Yakashawãdawa), Coordinator, Organization of Indigenous Teachers of Acre (OPIAC), is an Indigenous leader of the Arara People. Francisca is a professor with a graduate degree from the Federal University of Acre.
She teaches theoretical and practical classes in elementary education at the Arara Indigenous School, in the Arara Indigenous Land of Igarapé Humaitá, and also leads a training course for indigenous teachers. Currently, Francisca is an Indigenous Advisor to the Organization of Indigenous Teachers of Acre (OPIAC) and the Acre Agroforestry Agents Movement Association (AMAAIAC), working on project management, elaboration of didactic material and political representation with grassroots governmental and nongovernmental institutions locally, regionally and internationally. She is also developing university research on the Shawãdawa cuisine that is associated with natural resource production systems.
Lloyd Gamble
Lloyd Gamble is the Director of Forests and Climate for WWF-US and serves as the REDD+ Multilateral Finance Lead for WWF’s Global Forest and Climate Program. In the last five years, developed countries have committed several billion dollars in climate finance to efforts to reduce tropical forest loss and associated greenhouse gas emissions. Lloyd leads WWF’s efforts to ensure that these funds are spent effectively – in ways that directly address the major drivers of deforestation (e.g., like unplanned agricultural conversion) but also respect the rights and livelihoods of indigenous peoples and local, forest-dependent communities.
He was recently elected to represent Northern Civil Society as an Official Observer at the World Bank’s Forest Carbon Partnership Facility, that is supporting subnational conservation programs in about a dozen countries. He also works with WWF teams and partners in countries like Nepal, DRC and Peru to design and advance these programs. Lloyd started his career as a field biologist intern with the Nature Conservancy, where he did primary surveys for rare birds, reptiles and amphibians to identify priority conservation areas in the southeastern US.
He graduated to regional conservation planning with TNC and then went on to earn a M.S. and Ph.D. in Wildlife Ecology at the University of Massachusetts. His research evaluated the impacts of habitat fragmentation on dispersal and population viability of pond-breeding amphibians. After completing his graduate work, Lloyd moved to Washington to work on international environmental policy with the U.S. State Department, where he worked for two years before joining WWF.
Daniela Göhler
Daniela Göhler is the Head of International Forest/Climate Finance, Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) on behalf of German Ministry of Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Sefatey (BMU) in Berlin.
She has more than 12 years of experience in forestry and climate finance. Her career development is characterized by a combination of policy, in-country operations and science. Daniela has been with GIZ since 2004 but changed her perspective several times: For the last 4 years, she was on secondment (for the Ministry of Economic Cooperation and Development, BMZ) to the World Bank in Washington, DC, where she worked for the Forest Carbon Partnership Facility (FCPF) with a focus on the Congo Basin.
Prior to that, she was seconded to BMU, Division International Climate Finance, in Berlin. Previously, Daniela worked several years in Indonesia, Cameroon and Madagascar. Her scholarly activities include lectures at the Yale School of Forestry & Environmental Studies and the University of Potsdam. Daniela holds a M.Sc. in Forestry from the University of Dresden. She likes hiking, diving and sailing.
Jason Gray
Jason Gray is Chief of the Climate Change Program Evaluation Branch, which oversees and implements the Cap-and-Trade Program at the California Air Resources Board (CARB). He previously served as manager of the Market Monitoring Section of the Cap-and-Trade Program, and as a staff attorney with CARB, where he advised the Board and its staff on the development and implementation of air pollution control regulations, including greenhouse gas reporting and verification regulations, compliance offset protocols, and the offsets provisions of the Cap-and-Trade Program.
His current duties include supervising the implementation of the Cap-and-Trade Program, including linkage efforts with Québec and Ontario. Jason also represents the Board in the Governors’ Climate and Forests Task Force. Before entering the legal profession, Jason worked on environmental education, biodiversity conservation, and sustainable development projects with the U.S. Peace Corps and WWF in the Central African country of Gabon. These experiences are recounted in the book Glimpses through the Forest: Memories of Gabon. Jason received a Bachelor’s degree in Biology and French from Gonzaga University, and a J.D. and Certificate in Environmental and Natural Resources Law from Lewis & Clark Law School.
Javier I. Kinney
Javier I. Kinney is a Yurok Tribal citizen and serves as the Director of Office of Self-Governance for the Yurok Tribe. He has attained a Bachelor of Arts Degrees in History and Native American Studies from the University of California, Davis, a Master of Arts degree in Law & Diplomacy, specializing in Development Economics and International Law from Tufts University-Fletcher School of Law & Diplomacy, and a Juris Doctorate from Suffolk Law School.
Mr. Kinney has extensive experience advising Tribal governments with expertise in areas of strategic actions, climate change, natural resource management, mediation, negotiations, public policy, economic development, youth empowerment, land acquisition, tribal governance, philanthropic partnerships, protection of tribal cultural resources and water policy. Kinney’s visionary work and interests have provided him the opportunity to travel with indigenous delegations and other missions to Venezuela, Colombia, Bolivia, Mexico, Jamaica, Hungary, Canada, Brazil, Norway and Germany.
His commitment as a change-maker to global consciousness and visionary change motive him to create opportunities of collaboration and partnerships domestically and with indigenous communities worldwide. As a graduate student at the Fletcher School, Kinney was selected as a delegate to the inaugural International Achievement Summit held in Budapest, Hungary. Most recently, he has presented at the Nexus Global Youth Summit held at the United Nations Headquarters, and recently represented the Yurok Tribe as a tribal delegate to the United Nations Council of Parties 23, Climate Change Conference in Bonn, Germany and this spring will be traveling to Oslo, Norway and Acre, Brazil regarding climate change and resiliency initiatives.
Kinney currently serves on the board of the Yurok Justice Advisory Board, advisor to the Yurok Tribe’s Community Development Financial Institution, and the Yurok Tribe’s non-profit organization, Kee-Cha E Nar.
Tião Viana
Tião Viana is the Governor of the Brazilian State of Acre, serving in his second term as Governor. Governor Viana is an infectious disease specialist with a doctorate in tropical medicine from the Universidade de Brasília. He was twice elected Senator by the people of Acre–in 1998 and 2006—and served as Vice-President of the Senate in 2007 and 2009. Since the beginning of his political career, he has sponsored important bills for the country, such as law 11,530, which instituted a compensation pension for people affected by leprosy who had been forcefully hospitalized. He has served as Governor of Acre since 2011, ensuring that the State maintains GDP growth while continuing to lead on environmental issues and forest protection. During Governor Viana’s time in office, Acre has consistently combined significant reductions in deforestation rates with economic growth and social justice. Through his leadership and commitment, Governor Viana demonstrates his belief in the people of Acre and in the economic and social capacity of the State, as is attested by statements from farmers, business people, public officials, and National authorities.
Jose Yunis
Abogado de formación, cuenta con especialización y maestría en administración pública de la Universidad de los Andes y de la Escuela de Gobierno John F. Kennedy de Harvard respectivamente. José participó activamente en la creación del sistema nacional ambiental y el nuevo esquema de compensaciones ambientales de Colombia.
Colaboró en la ampliación y estrategia financiera para proteger el Parque Nacional Natural Chiribiquete. Por esta labor, la prestigiosa revista SEMANA lo nombró como personaje del año 2013. Por su trabajo en pro de la conservación del país, esa misma revista lo había catalogado como uno de los mejores líderes de Colombia en el 2012. Ha sido jefe de las oficinas legales de Parques Nacionales y del Ministerio de Ambiente de Colombia, Oficial de Natural Resources Defense Council en Washington, representante en Colombia The Nature Conservancy.
Su experiencia ambiental incluye países de Latinoamérica y el Caribe, consultorías para el Banco Mundial e Inter-Americano de Desarrollo, USAID y otros donantes internacionales. Es socio fundador y representante de la Fundación Bahía y Ecosistemas de Colombia, organización creada para la protección de la bahía de Cartagena. Actualmente José coordina el programa Visión Amazonía, un esfuerzo nacional e internacional de 100 millones de dólares para evitar deforestación en dicha región.