COP28 Health & Climate Sessions 3rd Dec 2023 Dubai

**December 3rd 2023 is COP28 Health Day. **

Our 4 sessions which will take place in the Green Zone - GGWoA Pavilion will have international experts share their experience and bring solutions to the challenges we face.

**Biographies of the speakers: **

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1. Professor Rym Ayadi is Founder and President of the Euro-Mediterranean Economists Association (EMEA), a Barcelona based regional Think Tank that serves as a leading independent and innovative policy research institution. Co-Founder of the Brain Capital Alliance, and founder and Director of the Euro-Mediterranean and African Network for Economic Studies (EMANES), Professor at the Bayes Business School (Former CASS) of the City University of London and Senior Advisor at the Centre for European Policy Studies (CEPS). She is the Chair of the European Banking Authority (EBA) Banking Stakeholders Group (BSG) of which she acted as elected Chair from February 2019 to present. Professor Ayadi is an Economist and international academic expert on international business and financial systems, financial markets and institutions, global financial regulation and governance, and socio-economic development and foresight in economies in transition. She is currently Member in several international high- level Academic, Advisory Committees and Editing Boards. For more information visit www.rymayadi.com

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2. Mohamed Mosaad Salama - Mohamed Salama MD PhD obtained his medical degree in 1999 from Mansoura University, Egypt, where he began his clinical training. He started his post as a clinical toxicologist at Mansoura University Poison Control Center. He received his MSc in Toxicology in 2006 and, through a DAAD scholarship, his PhD degree in Neurotoxicology in 2011 through collaboration with Philipps University in Marburg, Germany. Upon returning to Egypt, he realized that there was a large gap between basic neuroscience research and clinical application. He established the first Translational Neuroscience Unit in Egypt. Salama’s collaborative research led to the establishment of the Egyptian Network for Neurodegenerative Disorders (ENND). Salama was selected as a SOT Global Senior Scholar in 2013 and a translational/bridging awardee in 2016. He was awarded by Parkinson’s and Movement Disorders Foundation (PMDF) for his continuing research in the field of neurodegeneration. Currently, he is an Atlantic senior fellow for Equity in Brain Health at the Global Brain Health Institute.

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3. Harris Anthony Eyre - Harris Eyre MD PhD is a physician and neuroscientist dedicated to enhancing the brain health of nations. His goal is to achieve economic and national security for communities. Eyre’s achievements span a diverse array of fields, including business and policy, and he is currently driving a systemic transformation. At the forefront of this effort is his leadership in the brain capital movement, which seeks to elevate brain capital into a vital national asset. His key positions are Fellow at Rice University’s Baker Institute for Public Policy, Senior Fellow at Meadows Mental Health Policy Institute, Lead at the Brain Capital Alliance. He advises the HEKA Fund, Euro-Mediterranean Economists Association, and is a member of the Champion’s Cabinet of the Davos Alzheimer’s Collaborative and the Mental Wealth Initiative.

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4. Samantha Suchita Wibawa - Samantha Wibawa is an undergraduate student at Rice University in Houston, Texas, studying Environmental Engineering and Transnational Asian Studies. She is currently working with Dr Harris Eyre on the intersection of brain health and sustainability. She is involved in ASEAN Energy Research through the Economic Research Institute for ASEAN and East Asia (ERIA) on green hydrogen in industry, carbon pricing and its relation to carbon capture and storage, and the supply chain of electric vehicles across all Southeast Asian Member States. Her research projects include carbon additionality with Rice’s Earth, Environmental and Planetary Science Department and diasporic studies with the Chao Center for Asian Studies.

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5. Rachel Meidi - Rachel A. Meidl, LP.D., CHMM, is the fellow in energy and environment at Rice University’s Baker Institute. She was previously appointed deputy associate administrator for the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration, an agency of the U.S. Dept. of Transportation. Her research focuses on sustainability; the circular economy; domestic and international policy and law as it relates to life cycle management of hazardous wastes; safety and environmental regulations of the treatment, storage, disposal, and transportation of chemicals within and outside the U.S.; assessing plastics, plastic recycling technologies, advanced electronics, and alternative energy applications from a sustainability and life cycle perspective to understand the environmental, economic, and social impacts across the supply chain; and resiliency of the energy industry.

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6. Dennis Pamlin - Dennis Pamlin is an entrepreneur and founder of 21st Century Frontiers. His main skill is work with companies, governments and other organisations as a strategic economic, technology and innovation advisor in the area of sustainability. His background is in engineering, industrial economy and marketing. Mr Pamlin worked as Global Policy Advisor for WWF from 1999 to 2009. During his tenure, Pamlin initiated WWFs Trade and Investment Programme work in the BRICs (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) and led the work with companies (especially high-tech companies such as ICT) as solution providers. From 2010 to 2013 he was the Director for the Low Carbon Leaders Project under the UN Global Compact. He is currently a Senior Associate at Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, Senior Advisor at RISE, a visiting research fellow at the Research Center of Journalism and Social Development at Renmin university, and advisor to Centre for Sustainable Development at Confederation of Indian Industries (CII).

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7. William Hynes - William Hynes DPhil is a Senior Climate Change Economist at the World Bank. He was formally Co-ordinator of New Approaches to Economic Challenges (NAEC) in the Office of the Chief Economist at OECD. He worked in OECD over 14 years as a Senior Advisor to the Secretary General, Advisor in the Sherpa and Global Governance Unit, Senior Economist at NAEC, Economist in the Development Co-operation Directorate and was also an Economic Affairs Officer at the World Trade Organisation. William is an Honorary Professor of UCL and a Fellow at the Santa Fe Institute, has a doctorate from Oxford University and was a Marie Curie Fellow at the London School of Economics.

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8. Nisaa Jetha

Nisaa, a qualified solicitor of England & Wales with a background in private equity, specializes in evaluating portfolios against the UN SDGs across diverse markets. Operating at the C-suite level, she spearheads new impact ventures in innovative ventures and governments, acknowledged by the Founder Institute for her role in Impact and Sustainability Start-Ups across Europe. Notably involved in COP27’s Innovation Lab, she demonstrates a dedicated commitment to addressing climate challenges. Her leadership roles, including Chief Founding UK-Member, showcase her influence within Fortune 100 companies, contributing to initiatives for a sustainable future. Nisaa has been a speaker at prominent forums, including Davos (WEF), the World Impact Investing Forum, ESG World Forum, and the United Nations, reflecting her contributions to impactful ventures, policy advocacy, and pioneering work in sustainability. She holds a BA (hons) from McGill University, an LLB (hons) from the University of London, and postgraduate diplomas in law from the University of London & University of Nottingham. Invited by the Initiative for Responsible Investing (IRI) at Harvard Kennedy School, she engaged with emerging leaders and industry experts in the impact field, focusing on Next Gen family offices and wealth holders.

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9. Victoria Thompson

Victoria Thompson is an experienced entrepreneurial FinTech lawyer with a deep knowledge of working with organisations to successfully manage and deliver digital and cultural transformation. Victoria is the founder of FinTech for good, Orora, based in London.

Prior to founding Orora Victoria was the Head of Digital Legal for HSBC Bank (UK and EU),  Group Head of Innovation Legal Advisory for Barclays Bank and Group Head of Technology, Operations, Innovation and IP Group Legal for Development Bank of Singapore. With these roles she was responsible for leading global innovation teams, supporting the launch of award winning digital banks in India, Indonesia and major transformation programmes across the globe.

Before moving in-house Victoria worked in London’s leading TMT and Fintech teams at Hogan Lovells and DLA Piper working in their teams in the UK, Middle East and US. She also spent time on secondment to the UK Government helping with digital strategy and developing draft policy and regulation to help new government agencies deliver change.

Victoria is Chair of the City of London Whitechapel Think Tank, founding member of the UK’s Digital Pound Foundation, start-up mentor, regular speaker and lecturer at UCL’s Computer Science Faculty on Fintech Law and Policy, as well as a Honorary Fellow at UCLs Distributed Ledger Technology Science Foundation.

Victoria was listed as one of Innovate Finance’s Women in Fintech Power list 2018,2019 and 2022, and also nominated for UK’s in-house innovation counsel of the year award 2019 for her work helping to launch the Barclays Female Innovators Lab, and named as one of the most influential women in blockchain.

Victoria has a passion for all things in the emerging tech space and is a strong advocate for inclusive and sustainable finance. Victoria is also a wife and a mother to 3 boys who constantly provide her with inspiration to help build a better tomorrow.

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10. Saket Saith

Saket Saith is the Group Chief Technology and Data Officer at RAKBANK, one of the leading and most dynamic banks in the UAE. He is responsible for driving the bank’s digital transformation strategy, overseeing the technology and data platforms, and ensuring the delivery of innovative and customer-centric solutions. Saket is a systems architect at heart and a technology enthusiast who believes that technology can and should be used for the greater good.

He has over 25 years of experience in the technology and banking industry, during which he has architected and implemented several world-class platforms. He has worked with leading financial institutions such as Barclays Bank  and Development Bank of Singapore, as well as technology organizations like Sun Microsystems.

Saket is passionate about emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence, blockchain, cloud computing, and big data, and how they can be leveraged to create value for customers, businesses, and to improve society and financial inclusion. Saket holds a bachelor’s degree in engineering from Delhi University and a master’s degree in engineering from the National University of Singapore.

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11. Steve Wyer

Steve is a seasoned FinTech entrepreneur. Steve began his career as a Mechanical Engineer after securing a 1st class honors degree from the University of Oxford. Steve then went on to become a management consultant at big4 firms and global SI’s, within consulting, senior management and commercial development teams.

Steve has developed and exited companies specialising in financial services consulting, FinTech, cyber and regulatory compliance with one of his recent ventures Regulativ.ai being included in the UK CyberSecurity runway programme.

His specialist disciplines and topics of personal interest include cyber risk management, ESG reporting, sustainable finance, data transformation, operational management, financial change, risk management and regulatory transformation.

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12. Ingrid Coetzee

Ingrid Coetzee is “Director: Biodiversity, Nature and Health at ICLEI – Local Governments for Sustainability. She has more than 40 years’ experience in sustainability, advocacy and governance and has worked in national, subnational and city governments. Her work focuses on biodiversity advocacy, and mainstreaming nature and its benefits into urban planning and decision-making to help cities become greener, healthier, and more resilient and liveable places. Ingrid coordinates ICLEI’s work in the CitiesWithNature and RegionsWithNature partnership initiatives. She also serves as technical lead on ICLEI’s biodiversity advocacy work, which includes the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) and associated processes, and represents ICLEI and the voice of local and subnational governments on the UNEP Major Groups Facilitating Committee, the UNEP Intergovernmental and Multi-stakeholder Advisory Group of GEO7, the AMCEN Civil Society Group, as well as the CLEANAction Coalition and World Coastal Forum. Ingrid also serves as technical leads on ICLEI’s contributions, as one of the 15 Global Partners, to the UN Decade of Ecosystem Restoration.

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13. Doreen Nyanjura

Nyanjura Doreen is the Deputy Lord Mayor of Kampala Capital City. She is serving her second term both as Deputy Lord Mayor and as the elected Local Council 5 (LCV) Woman Councilor, representing Makerere University at Kampala Capital City Authority.

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14. Elizabeth Sackey

Hon. Elizabeth Naa Kwatsoe Tawiah Sackey is the current Chief Executive of the Accra Metropolitan Assembly (AMA). She is an economist and a politician.

Before being appointed the first female Chief Executive of the Accra Metropolitan Assembly (AMA), Hon Elizabeth K. T. Sackey had served as the Deputy Minister for Greater Accra Region in the first term of His Excellency President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo’s government from 2017 to 2021. She also served the people of Okaikoi North Constituency between 2005 and 2017 as a Member of Parliament. While in Parliament, Hon. Elizabeth K. T. Sackey was appointed to represent Ghana at the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Parliament for seven (7) years.

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Moderator: Gareth Presch is the Founder and CEO, World Health Innovation Summit and World Health Service, the Director of Together, We Inspire Consultancy, CEO, Global Social Prescribing Alliance, Expert Global Solutions - G20/T20, Advisor - Great Green Wall of Africa Foundation, Advisor - World’s Fair Bid Committee Educational Fund (USA Expo2027) - TGE Associate, PBII Health Lead.

Former Leadership Fellow, George’s House, Windsor Castle, Chief Officer of the National Haemophilia Council, Ireland and was a member of Pope Francis’s Vatican COVID19 Commission - Group 2 looking to the future.

Gareth has been involved in healthcare for nearly 25 years and has a BA Honors Degree in Public Management (Healthcare). He is the Founder and CEO of the World Health Innovation Summit and World Health Service and his previous roles within the health sector include working on Ehealth solutions and District Nursing within the NHS (2014 - 2015). He was the former Chief Officer of the National Haemophilia Council, Ireland (2006-2013) reporting to the Department of Health and advising the Minister for Health and the Health Service Executive (HSE) on all aspects relating to haemophilia and rare bleeding disorders. The mistakes of the past had cost the Irish State in excess of €1b and the Council was established on that basis. Part of his role within blood policy he worked on the procurement of state medicines through the Haemophilia Product Selection Monitoring Advisory Body and established the National Blood Transfusion Committee (2011-2013) and was involved in establishing a National Haemochromatosis project (2011-2013). He also worked with the Department of Health, Special Delivery Unit, to support the National Endoscopy Service Improvement Programme in Ireland.

His previous roles within the health sector included healthcare estates (Estates Management, Property Register - portfolio management of over 600 properties), health promotion, community/primary care, acute hospitals etc.

He actively supports a number of charities (Kopz 4 Kidz, Great Garda Run, Tania McCabe Foundation etc) and is keen on the great outdoors.

Healthy Planet = Healthy People 3rd December 2023

1. Health Planet - Healthy People - Keynote Gareth Presch CEO, World Health Innovation Summit: Future Healthcare and the opportunities for Africa to develop sustainable health for all. (10am - 10.45am)

2. Brain Capital for a sustainable future - EMEA, AUC etc (11.30am - 12.30pm)

3. Climate Finance, Health and Resilience Panel (2.30pm - 3.30pm)

4. Healthy Planet - Health African Cities (4pm - 5pm)