Leonardo Lahud leads the trade and investment portfolio of the Productivity, Trade and Innovation Sector at IDB in Brazil. Previously, he served in the Brazilian government, where he was deputy secretary of foreign trade, deputy executive secretary of the Foreign Trade Chamber, and deputy secretary of international affairs and development of the Ministry of Planning and Budget. He holds a master's in international trade and investment law from the World Trade Institute, linked to the University of Bern (Switzerland), a postgraduate degree in international relations from the University of Brasilia, and a law degree from the Federal Fluminense University.
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Pedro Henrique Giocondo Guerra
Chief of Staff for the Vice-President of Brazil
Ministry of Development, Industry, Trade and Services of Brazil (MDIC)
Pedro Giocondo Guerra holds multiple degrees in law and public administration and has specialised training in administrative law, public-private partnerships and international investments. Experienced in legal consulting, academic research and public management, he has worked in law firms; as a researcher on government control, public policies and decisions of Brazil’s Supreme Court; and in the São Paulo public sector. Pedro has extensive experience on the fiscal councils of state-owned and environmental companies. Since 2023, he has held positions of high trust in the Federal Government and is also Chairman of the Fiscal Council of Brazil’s National Development Bank (BNDES).
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Anis Nassar
Lead, Resource Circularity
World Economic Forum (WEF)
Anis is an economist with a specialisation in resource economics and behavioural economics. He leads the portfolio of activities on the circular economy of the World Economic Forum.
Jaap van der Velden has a background in finance, audit, financial management and accounting. As part of the Renewable Polymers’ (RNP) management board and executive team, he helps to bring the company’s technology to the world. Aligning stakeholder interests, he brings together inspired internal and external stakeholders, investors, government and partners throughout the value chain including customers, feedstock parties, engineering and construction firms. Jaap believes in a fossil-free world.
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Silvia Solano
Regional Lead Latin America, Green and Resilient Buildings Program
International Finance Corporation (IFC)
Silvia is an architect with a master’s in natural resources management. With over 15 years’ experience in the construction market, she has honed her expertise across Latin America. She is a leader of the Green Building Market Transformation Program (GBMTP) in Latin America, responsible for strategy and implementation of the programme in Colombia, Mexico, Peru and Brazil. Experienced in green buildings and EDGE certification, she engages with private sector developers, industry associations, financial institutions, government and international cooperation agencies. Her focus on decarbonising the built environment and promoting the expansion of green and resilient buildings underscores her commitment to sustainable development.
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Eric Ruzigamanzi
Program Manager, Circular Food Systems
World Resources Insitute (WRI)
Eric is the country representative for the WRI in Rwanda and leads the country’s circular food systems initiative. He has over a decade of experience in climate finance, sustainable development and policy engagement across Rwanda and beyond. In his current role, he leads strategic partnerships and supports national efforts to integrate climate and circular economy approaches into development planning. He also works with MSMEs to embed circular economy principles into their business models. Eric holds a master’s in sustainability and circular bioeconomy and is passionate about inclusive, systems-based solutions for climate resilience and green growth.
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Bruno Pelli
Global Director, Technical Services in Mining
Vale SA
Bruno Pelli is a mining executive with international experience. He is a mining engineer (University of São Paulo), risk management specialist (University of Queensland), management excellence specialist (University of Pretoria), MBA Fundação Getulio Vargas (FGV-UCI) and holds a sustainability certificate from the University of Cambridge. At Vale, Bruno is responsible for brownfield exploration, geoscience, mine planning and closure, mining rights, mineral resources and processing for iron ore assets around the world. He also leads transformational projects such as Vale's circular mining programme and manages four R&D facilities. Bruno is a board member of Circlua and the Minas-Rio iron ore joint venture.
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Chris Whyte
Business Development Advisor
African Circular Economy Network (ACEN)
Chris’ vision is to drive a just transition to a circular economy for Africa, addressing sustainable impacts and outcomes in energy, water, agriculture, infrastructure, mining, manufacturing and tourism that result in positive benefits for the environment and social upliftment. He founded USE-IT (2009-2020), resulting in thousands of jobs created and 18 national and global awards. Chris was previously executive director of ACEN and is co-founder of the ACEN Foundation (rebranded to Africa Circular) based in Europe. He is also a director of several commercial companies across Africa developing profitable circular economy projects.
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Gustavo Porpino
Researcher
Brazilian Agricultural Research Corporation (Embrapa)
Gustavo Porpino has worked for Embrapa since 2006. He holds a PhD in business administration from Fundação Getulio Vargas's São Paulo School of Business Administration (FGV-EAESP) and was a visiting scholar at Cornell University, where he carried out research on food consumption behaviour. Gustavo is a member of the Brazilian food banks’ network steering committee and he collaborates with Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and UN Environment Programme (UNEP) initiatives on food security and circularity. He is a co-founder of the Pact Against Hunger, a multi-sectoral movement that combats hunger and reduces food waste in Brazil.
With over 14 years’ experience in corporate sustainability, Alice is strategically integrating Arcadis’ ESG practices into organisations in Brazil. An environmental engineer and specialist in sustainable infrastructure and ESG, she works on driving cultural transformation within companies and implementing solutions aligned with national and international ESG protocols. Alice has extensive experience in preparing sustainability reports, assessing and measuring socio-environmental impacts, and developing strategies to enhance ESG maturity across businesses . Her work spans sectors such as mining, energy, sanitation and transportation, fostering more responsible and sustainable management within organisations.