GREENTECH FESTIVAL SPEAKERS

Adam founded Wildflower ltd to address urban infrastructure problems in New York City. Newly opened Wildflower Studios, the first vertical content creation campus with partner Robert De Niro and designer Bjarke Ingels, the largest EV supercharger station in NYC and becoming Amazon’s most active e’commerce developer there are recent initiatives. Adam also raises Japanese Wagyu for Northern California restaurants to support local food systems while increasing fire Resiliance. He was formerly a directors cabinet member at Scripps Institution of Oceanography.

With over ten years of experience in the sustainable energy industry and an international background, Anastasia works as a business development manager at Energy Partners GmbH by MaxSolar onn innovative solutions for the future of energy. She is an experienced specialist for commercial PV systems, storage systems and C&I energy solutions.

Benjamin Cassou is a Franco-American entrepreneur and innovator dedicated to redefining materials through circular economy solutions. As the co-founder of ReStalk, he transforms agricultural co-products into high-value, sustainable materials, replacing fossil-fuel-based and tree-based packaging and goods. With a background in film, storytelling, and business, Benjamin brings a creative and strategic approach to sustainability, bridging industries to build scalable, regenerative solutions. He is currently leading global initiatives to develop Agri-Hubs, fostering collaboration between agriculture, technology, and manufacturing. Passionate about systemic change, he champions innovation that harmonizes economic growth with environmental responsibility.

Bernhard is the Head of the United Nations (UN) World Food Programme (WFP) Innovation Accelerator, which he created in 2015. The Accelerator sources, supports and scales start-ups and nonprofits working to achieve Zero Hunger, as well as running accelerator programmes for external partners such as the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Humanitarian Grand Challenge, and other UN Agencies. Prior to starting the Accelerator, Bernhard co-founded the award-winning ShareTheMeal app that crowdsources funding for WFP, helping to deliver over 167 million meals for hungry children worldwide. ShareTheMeal was named as an App of the Year (2020) by Apple and Google. He gave a TED Talk and is a regular speaker at global conferences and events related to artificial intelligence, blockchain, social impact and entrepreneurship and disrupting global hunger through technology, i.e.‘tech for good.’

Charlie, as the CEO of The Anti-Greenwash Charter, combines his expertise in responsible communications and sustainable business practices, honed through founding Gusto and Skribbl, with his role as a podcast host exploring ethical business, to lead the strategic direction and partnership development of the Charter.​

Dr. Christine Lemaitre, born in 1975 in Gießen, studied structural engineering in Stuttgart. After working in the USA, she pursued R&D in lightweight structures. Since 2010, she has been CEO of the German Sustainable Building Council, shaping sustainable architecture worldwide.

Conyers Davis the Global Director of the Schwarzenegger Institute, a public policy Institute founded by Arnold Schwarzenegger in 2012 at the University of Southern California in Los Angeles, CA. Previously he worked for British Prime Minister David Cameron, Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, Simon & Schuster and Lionsgate Films. Additionally, Conyers managed projects for the 2004 G8 Summit and the 2005 Hurricane Katrina recovery effort while working at the US Department of Homeland Security in Washington, DC. Conyers has a degree in International Relations from the University of St Andrews, Scotland, and serves on the national board of After-School All-Stars, the largest school based after school provider in the United States.

Corinna Tappe is an experienced intrapreneur with experience in consulting, corporate and start-up world. She is an enthusiastic networker and is passionate about sustainability and digitalization. After founding her own startup and holding management positions, e.g. at the renowned NGO Startup Teens, she now promotes innovations and sustainable business models in the field of green technologies as CEO of Green Tech Hub.

Dominik Campanella is the co-founder of Restado and Concular. Restado is the largest marketplace for reclaimed construction materials. Concular is the leading digital ecosystem for circular construction. It enables professional stakeholders of the real estate and constructions sector to make their projects circular.

Elissa Brunato is the CEO of Radiant Matter. Previously, she worked in the design and production of textiles and garments. While overseeing international production sites, she noticed significant amounts of unnecessary waste at multiple stages of manufacture, harming the environment and exposing workers to hazardous materials. Realizing that the industry lacked sustainable options for embellishment components and surface finishes, Elissa founded Radiant Matter, a material technology start-up that develops sustainable, brilliantly colored, bio-inspired material solutions from cellulose. Their growing platform technology helps reduce microplastic pollution, shift dependence on petroleum, and is less resource-intensive, promoting a circular economy.

Erik has been with Schenker for more than 25 years in various positions and, in addition to various IT areas, has also headed the innovation area for Schenker Germany since 2011. Since 2016, he has been responsible for the Innovation division for DB Schenker globally. The focus of his area is, among other things, on researching/observing social and technical trends, their impact on the logistics industry and the derivation of future business models for the logistics of tomorrow. He is also responsible for DB Schenker’s own Lab, all start-up activities and innovative pilot projects.

Member of Alliance 90/The Greens since 2009; 2010 to 2011 member of the state board of the Green Youth Berlin; 2011 to 2014 member of the federal board of the Green Youth, most recently as federal spokesperson; 2016 to 2018 spokesperson for the Duisburg district association of Alliance 90/The Greens; from 2018 to 2022: state chairman of Alliance 90/The Greens North Rhine-Westphalia. Federal chairman of Alliance 90/The Greens since November 2024.

Freya Burton has served as LanzaTech’s Chief Sustainability Officer since 2016 and the Head of LanzaTech Europe since February 2024. She joined LanzaTech in 2007 and has firsthand experience of scaling and commercialising a new technology, from the R&D stage, through the challenges of fundraising and navigating the legislative environment to deploying new technologies to scale in globally. Today, she oversees government policy, external relations and ESG at LanzaTech.She also serves as a board observer for the Roundtable on Sustainable Biomaterials.

Hirander Misra is the Chairman and CEO of GMEX Group and ZERO13, a climate fintech platform recognized for pioneering blockchain solutions in sustainability and carbon credits. With over 25 years of expertise, Hirander has driven ZERO13 to win the COP 28 UAE TechSprint for innovative use of blockchain in climate finance. His work has positioned ZERO13 at the forefront of scaling sustainable finance and carbon markets globally. Hirander is also featured in top influencer lists for the UN Sustainable Development Goals and is a regular speaker at major global events like COP28 and the World Economic Forum

Prof. Dr. Johan Rockström is the Director of the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research and Professor at the Institute of Earth and Environmental Science at Potsdam University. Rockström is an internationally recognized scientist on global sustainability issues, who led the development of the new Planetary Boundaries framework for human development in the current era of rapid global change at the Stockholm Resilience Centre. He is a leading scientist on global water resources, with about 25 years of experience from applied water research in tropical regions, and more than 150 research publications in fields ranging from applied land and water management to global sustainability. Rockström provides strategic scientific guidance as a member of the European Commission’s Expert Group ‘Mission Board for Adaptation to Climate Change, including Societal Transformation’ and the ‘Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences’ and consults several governments and business networks.

Jon Goriup is a product-driven startup founder dedicated to developing sustainability-focused solutions.He began his startup career by creating cross-selling solutions for the event industry. After completing his studies at ESADE Business School and the University of North Carolina, he shifted his focus to optimising supply chain systems.In East Africa, Jon worked on enhancing transparency and traceability in agribusiness supply chains, helping connect local producers with European markets.Now, as the co-founder and CEO of VCG.AI, Jon leads an award-winning AI-powered solution for implementing successful circular innovations globally.

Jure Mikolčić is the Executive Vice President and CEO of the Germany Division of Stadler Rail. His professional journey encompasses diverse experiences in the railway industry: Starting in 2001, he worked in various positions for Siemens, i.a. as Sales Director for Commuter & Regional Trains in Germany. Before he joined Stadler in 2019, he served as the CEO of Knorr-Bremse PowerTech. In addition to his role at Stadler, Jure Mikolčić actively contributes to the Verband der Bahnindustrie in Deutschland (VDB) as the Vice-President for Vehicles. His involvement in this capacity highlights his commitment to advancing rail transportation and shaping the industry’s future. His dedication to advancing rail technology and driving innovation makes him a significant figure in the railway sector.

Lara Obst is Co-Founder of ClimateChoice, a Berlin-based ClimateTech company empowering businesses to drive climate transformation through scalable supply chain decarbonization. With a strong background in climate, innovation and entrepreneurship, Lara leads companies in their transition towards net zero with the Climate Intelligence Platform, an AI-driven software tool to manage supply chain emission reduction through transparent data and collaborative efforts. Championing the customer base of ClimateChoice as cross-industry ClimateCommunity, she is fostering exchange and best practices through the international ClimateSummit.de and Scope 3 Action Group, guiding companies in navigating their path toward Scope 3 Net Zero targets.