Ossian Smyth TD
Ossian Smyth TD is Minister of State with responsibility for Communications and Circular Economy and Minister of State with responsibility for Public Procurement and eGovernment at the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform. He was appointed to this role in July 2020. He has been a TD for the Dún Laoghaire constituency since the 2020 general election. Following the 2014 Irish local elections, Smyth was elected to Dún Laoghaire–Rathdown County Council for the Dún Laoghaire local electoral area. He served as Cathaoirleach of Dún Laoghaire–Rathdown County Council from 2018 to 2019. Smyth holds a Bachelor of Arts in Computer Science from Trinity College Dublin.
Florika Fink-Hooijer
Florika Fink-Hooijer is the current Director General of DG Environment at the European Commission. She took up her position in September 2020 and was previously the Director General of DG Interpretation (SCIC) between 2016 and 2020. Prior to this Florika was Director for Strategy, Policy and International Cooperation at DG Humanitarian Aid and Civil Protection (DG ECHO) for four years. She is responsible for implementing the European Green Deal focusing on circular economy, biodiversity and zero pollution.
Antoine Oger
Antoine Oger is Head of Programme on Global Challenges and SDGs at the Institute for European Environmental Policy (IEEP). His current research work focuses on the greening of the EU’s trade policy and the coherence of the EU’s internal and external policies related to trade, climate and sustainable development, including on the topic of critical raw materials. He previously worked for over 10 years on the provision of trade-related technical assistance to developing countries, working extensively with DG INTPA and EU Delegations on the delivery of the EU cooperation policy. His recent publications include the “Trade for an inclusive circular economy: A framework for collective action” developed with the Chatham House or an IEEP policy report on “Enhancing sustainability in EU Free Trade Agreements: The case for a holistic approach”. Antoine holds a MA in European Politics with a specialisation on the EU trade policy from the Institute of Political Studies of Rennes in France.
Laura Curtis-Moss
Laura Curtis-Moss is the Director of 2050 Climate Group, an organisation working to empower Scotland’s young leaders to lead action on tackling our climate crisis and committed to building a fairer, more sustainable future. Laura's background is in environmental and outdoor education – working with schools, developing continuing education for teachers as well as community engagement. Despite originally studying fine art Laura has had a varied career – from tagging hen harriers to teaching snorkelling via volunteering with sloths and turtles in Costa Rica and even a stint with the Edinburgh Remakery! Previously she has worked for the RSPB and more recently managed a peatland restoration project in East Ayrshire – surveying peatland sites and monitoring the local wildlife. In her spare time she enjoys scuba diving, walking and camping with her partner and two dogs as well as volunteering with British Divers Marine Life Rescue.
Anthony Costello
After serving as Director of the Department of Maternal, Child and Adolescent Health, WHO Geneva, Anthony Costello returned to University College London in June 2018 as Professor of Global Health and Sustainable Development. Trained in paediatrics, he led the first Lancet Commission on Climate and Health published in 2009 with the strapline "Climate change is the biggest global health threat of the 21st century". In 2015 he conceived and set up the international Lancet Countdown for Climate and Health Action of which he is chair. The Countdown publishes an annual Lancet report that monitors 44 indicators of climate and health progress and involves over sixty institutes and universities around the world. He is also founder and senior adviser to the Children in All Policies 2030 programme supported by WHO, UNICEF and the Lancet. He was a also co-founder of Independent SAGE which aims to bring a greater focus on public health, transparency and public engagement to the UK Covid response.
Niall Ó Donnchú
Niall Ó Donnchú, MPhil, BSc (Econ), C(Dip) AF, is Director General of the National Parks and Wildlife Service and Assistant Secretary General at the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage. He is head of the Heritage Division of the Department and has responsibility for policy on built and natural heritage. He was formerly Head of Arts, Culture and Film Policy at the Department of Arts and Heritage. Prior to that he was Head of E-Commerce and Broadband Policy at the Department of Communications and is also a former Head of Alternative and Renewable Energy at the Department of Energy. Niall is a graduate of Queen’s University Belfast , the London School of Economics and the Harvard University/IPA Adaptive Leadership Programme.
Mike Savage
Mike Savage has a BSc in Ecology and a MSc in Countryside Management. He has been involved in greenspace management for over 40 years, including working as Mersey Valley Chief Warden and Operations Manager for Red Rose Forest. As Green Infrastructure Project Development Officer with Derry City and Strabane District Council he is responsible for the development and delivery of a range of GI projects including greenways, invasive species management and GI masterplans. He also leads on GIS for the GI Team.
Brian Carroll
Brian Carroll is the Assistant Secretary General leading the Climate Action and Environment function at the Department of the Environment, Climate and Communications. He is responsible for national, EU and international environment policy, including in the areas of climate action, air quality, radiation and environmental awareness, as well as oversight of the Environmental Protection Agency. Brian joined the Department in 2008, and within the Department has worked previously as Assistant Secretary General for Natural Resources, Head of Decarbonisation and Head of Finance, Strategy and Corporate Affairs. He has wide experience across the public service, having also worked in the Departments of Finance, Foreign Affairs and Justice.
Oisín Coghlan
Oisín Coghlan is a public policy analyst and advisor, specialising in climate and environment. He currently works with the Stop Climate Chaos coalition, the Irish Environmental Network and The Wheel, Ireland’s national association of charities and community groups. Until recently he was the chief executive of Friends of the Earth, where he led the 14-year campaign for a strong climate law which culminated in the 2021 Climate Act.
Stephen Onakuse
Dr Stephen Onakuse is a Senior Lecturer in the Department of Food Business & Development, Cork University Business School (CUBS), university College Cork and the President of the European Alliance on Agriculture knowledge for Development (AGRINATURA). Stephen is an agriculturist and much of research investigate agricultural systems, value chain analysis for development and sustainable production practices. Dr Onakuse is the Principal Investigator on an Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) project focussing on sustainable production and consumption and the UCC PI on a European Union DeSIRA funded project on Climate Smart Agriculture Research and Innovation Support for Dairy Value Chains in Eritrea.
Kevin O’Sullivan
Kevin O’Sullivan is Environment and Science Editor and lead journalist reporting on climate change with The Irish Times. He served as Editor of the paper from 2011 to 2017. He joined The Irish Times in 1997 as Environmental and Food Science Correspondent. In his current role, he has a particular interest in climate solutions (especially nature-based actions); sustainability (including the pursuit of the UN SDGs), renewable energy and restoring biodiversity.
Hendrik W van der Kamp
Hendrik W van der Kamp is the former Head of the planning school in Technological University Dublin. He is past-president of the Irish Planning Institute and honorary-president of the European Council of Spatial Planners. He has been consulted by the Government on a number of occasions on planning matters and advised the Environmental Protection Agency on international best practice examples of national land use policy. He was member of advisory groups of both the National Spatial Strategy and the National Planning Framework and has acted as facilitator to the Planning Advisory Forum for the First Revision of the National Planning Framework. He is currently planning consultant with RW Nowlan & Associates.
Philip Nugent
Philip Nugent is the Assistant Secretary leading the Circular Economy, Natural Resources and Waste Policy function in the Department of the Environment, Climate and Communications. He has responsibility for leading a cross-Government approach to the circular economy, as well as geoscience policy and regulation (minerals, mining and petroleum), the Geological Survey, inland fisheries, and waste and resource efficiency. Philip joined the Department in 2019 from the Department of Housing, Planning and Local Government where he served in a range of roles across marine and terrestrial planning and housing.
Adrian Smyth
Adrian Smyth comes from an Offaly farming background in beef and sheep rearing. He is a graduate of Waterford Institute of Technology with an Honours Degree in Agricultural Science. The focus of his final year project was on water quality and in creating a design for a low-cost sensor to detect phosphate in water. In June 2017 Adrian was recruited as a development officer by the National Federation of Group Water Schemes. In this role, he was assigned responsibility for servicing the needs of community-owned drinking water supplies across most of Munster. In addition to this, Adrian is also heading up implementing biodiversity enhancement measures on GWS as part of the Federations’ Biodiversity and Climate Action project. He can be contacted by emailing adrian@nfgws.ie
Ainhoa Gonzalez Del Campo
Dr Ainhoa González is an Associate Professor in the School of Geography, University College Dublin. She has over 20 years of international experience as an environmental planner, and as a researcher and educator in sustainability, impact assessment, environmental management and Geographic Information Systems (GIS). She has led and collaborated in many international and national multi-disciplinary research projects, involving private and public sector practitioners. Recent research focuses on developing and applying geospatial analysis tools and methods for assessing environmental change and impacts, to better inform planning and decision-making. She has developed the Environmental Sensitivity Mapping (ESM) web tool and the Local Area Renewable Energy Strategies (LARES) web tool, both in collaboration with the All-Island Observatory. She is currently leading the development of a web tool for cumulative effects assessment in the marine environment in collaboration with the Marine Institute. She has developed several good practice guidance manuals on Strategic Environmental Assessment effectiveness, spatial analysis, alternatives, monitoring and public participation for the Environmental Protection Agency. She is a board member of the Spanish Association for Impact Assessment and she will be co-chairing the International Association for Impact Assessment conference in Dublin in 2024.
Geoff Doole
Geoff Dooley is Head of Sustainability Services at Antaris Consulting. Geoff supports organisations to align with the rapidly evolving ESG context while integrating stakeholder needs and expectations. With a track record of working in complex and ambiguous environments, Geoff combines his experience and intuition to help leaders and their organisations navigate a sustainable path forward. Most recently, he facilitated the development of the Environmental Protection Agency’s Climate Impacts and Adaptation Strategy and he is the 2023/24 chair of the Sustainable Development Goals National Stakeholder Forum. Geoff holds a primary degree in Environmental Science, an MBA, an MSc in Finance, a Level 9 Diploma in Executive Coaching, and a Diploma in Company Direction. He is a Nuffield Scholar and a member of the Institute of Directors.
Clare Pillman
Clare Pillman is Chief Executive at Natural Resources Wales. Clare returned to Wales to join Natural Resources Wales as its Chief Executive in February 2018. Prior to this Clare was Director of Culture, Tourism and Sport at the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport. In this role she led the work on the Cultural Olympiad and developed new strategies for Sport, Tourism and Culture. She oversaw the delivery of events such as the Rugby World Cup and World Athletics Championships, developed and led the programme to commemorate the Centenary of the First World War and created new models of governance and financing for organisations such as Historic England, English Heritage, the Royal Parks and Visit Britain. From 2004 to 2011, Clare ran the Courts Service in Wales. During this time she chaired the North Wales Local Criminal Justice Board, led the campaign for a prison in North Wales and led Her Majesty’s Court Service Wales to become the first Wales-wide body to receive the Chartermark award for Customer Service. Clare is currently a Board Member of Wales National Opera and prior to this was a Trustee of the Institute of Cancer Research in London for 10 years.
David Greenfield
David Greenfield is Vice President at Circular Economy Institute and is responsible for External Affairs. He is a recognised circular economy expert, having been involved in resource and waste management policy making at local, regional and government levels in his early career, to developing circular economy businesses such as SOENECS and Tech-Takeback, that demonstrate the possibilities of circularity in the last decade. Taking circularity to the next level and recognising that innovation in circularity is essential to adapting and mitigating climate change and environmental pollution, in September 2022, David co-founded etsaW Ventures, a venture studio that accelerates circular material and waste innovation into game changing impact. David has been a volunteer for the CEC and CEI for six years and has run over 50 face to face networking events and spoken at over 25 international events for CEC and CEI. In September 2021, David was appointed as Professor of Circular Economy at the University of Brighton to lecture and work with academics to incorporate circular economy into the curriculum. In June 2023, David was elected by the membership to be Junior Vice-President of the CIWM, this is a four-year appointment and will culminate in David becoming President in 2025.
Danielle Conaghan
Danielle Conaghan is Head of the Arthur Cox Environment and Planning Group, and is a founder member of the firm’s Food and Drink Group. Danielle is noted as a skilled strategist, and is acknowledged as a ‘leading individual’ with almost 15 years’ experience in the environment and planning sphere (Legal 500, EMEA). She takes a pragmatic approach to making all types of infrastructure projects happen and constantly looks to find ways to reduce the risk of successful challenges to projects by objectors. She is especially interested in complex projects; and advises on wind, biomass, battery storage, flood relief, data centre, water, wastewater, telecommunications, SHD and offshore projects. She has a deep understanding of how best to defend multiple sets of civil and criminal proceedings taken against projects during the planning, construction and operational phases. She helps clients defend criminal proceedings, particularly in the waste and food and drink sectors. She specialises in European environmental law.
Mike Savage
Mike Savage has a BSc in Ecology and a MSc in Countryside Management. He has been involved in greenspace management for over 40 years, including working as Mersey Valley Chief Warden and Operations Manager for Red Rose Forest. As Green Infrastructure Project Development Officer with Derry City and Strabane District Council he is responsible for the development and delivery of a range of GI projects including greenways, invasive species management and GI masterplans. He also leads on GIS for the GI Team.
Peter McEvoy
Peter McEvoy is Director of Land Management at Ulster Wildlife where he is responsible for management of Nature Reserves, Agri-environment Group Scheme delivery and advocacy and liaison on land use and agriculture. He is a plant ecologist by background with a PhD exploring impact of large herbivores on woodland and silvopastoral landscapes and has worked on land management, agriculture policy and agri-environment for over 20 years. Prior to working for Ulster Wildlife he worked in the Isle of Man for over a decade, firstly as Senior Biodiversity Officer and latterly as Director of Agriculture for the Isle of Man Government. These contrasting roles and the position of the Isle of Man as a self-governing Crown Dependency, outside of the EU and the UK, provided an unique opportunity to explore the impact and delivery of policy measures on food, farming and biodiversity.
Triona McGrath
Dr. Triona McGrath is the Research and Policy Lead with the National Water Forum (An Fóram Uisce), who are the statutory body established to facilitate stakeholder input to water policy development in Ireland. One of her key roles is to commission and manage research projects to support the Forum to formulate statutory policy advice to the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage, the Water Policy Advisory Committee, Uisce Éireann and the Commission for Regulation of Utilities. Triona leads the development of policy positions and submissions on behalf of the Water Forum on all water related topics, including water conservation, the protection and restoration of Ireland's water bodies and the delivery of water and wastewater services. Prior to joining the Water Forum, Triona's research focused on ocean climate change, completing a PhD and numerous post doctorate projects with the Marine Institute and the University of Galway, assessing carbon and nutrient dynamics in coastal and offshore marine waters of the North Atlantic. She was awarded a Fulbright Scholarship in 2013 to develop skills in marine carbon chemistry at Scripps Institution of Oceanography, San Diego.
J Owen Lewis
J Owen Lewis chairs the IIEA Working Group on Climate and Energy. He is also Emeritus Professor of Architectural Science, UCD Dublin. He is former President of the Royal Dublin Society, and a former member of the Board of the National Gallery of Ireland. Owen was previously Chief Executive of the Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland (SEAI) between 2009 and 2012.Qualified as architect, engineer, and energy technologist, he has practised professionally in Ireland, England and Zambia. He was part-time Executive Director for Innovation and R&D at Bord na Móna between 2006 and 2008.Owen was Dean of the Faculty of Engineering and Architecture at UCD Dublin and later Principal of the UCD College of Engineering, Mathematical and Physical Sciences. In 1976 Owen co-founded the Solar Energy Society of Ireland.
Gavin Smith
Gavin Smith works with the Environmental Protection Agency as a Scientific Officer within the Evidence Programme’s Analytics Team, working with the EPA for 20 years. Gavin specialises in managing the development of new environmental evidence using earth observation and spatial analysis technology. He is the national lead on the European Environment Agency’s “Land Systems” and “Copernicus Land” groups within their EIONET network. Gavin was EPA project co-ordinator for the recently delivered National Land Cover Map, developed in partnership with Tailte Éireann, which his conference presentation will be on.
Imelda Hurley
Imelda Hurley is CEO of Coillte. Imelda Hurley joined Coillte in 2019 and was appointed to the board in January 2022. She has extensive executive and non-executive experience in public company, state owned, private equity and venture capital backed businesses. She has built that experience in multiple geographies including Ireland, UK, Eastern Europe, and Asia, and across a variety of sectors including forestry, agriculture, food, technology related product development and supply chain management. Prior to joining Coillte, Imelda was an executive director and CFO with agri-services group Origin Enterprises plc and, earlier in her career, she held a range of senior leadership positions at PCH International and Greencore Group plc. She has previously served as a non-executive director of Total Produce plc, Valeo Foods and Ervia. Imelda is currently president of Ibec, Ireland’s largest business representative group, and a non-executive director at the world’s leading fresh produce provider, Dole plc. She is also a patron of Chapter Zero Ireland, a community of non-executive directors that lead Irish boardroom discussions on the impacts of climate change. Imelda is a graduate of University of Limerick, a Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants and an alumna of Harvard Business School.
Lucy Gaffney
Lucy is a bio-scientist and entrepreneur and has been working within the life sciences sector since 2005. In November 2021, she teamed up with Natural Capital Ireland to lead the development of a national business and biodiversity platform, Business for Biodiversity Ireland, an initiative funded by the Irish Government. The platform aims to help businesses develop meaningful biodiversity strategies and ultimately help Ireland transition to a nature-positive way of working. In January, Lucy was named as one of the Irish Times 50 People to Watch in 2023 for her ongoing work in the business and biodiversity space.
Dr Venkatesh Kannan
Venkatesh Kannan works as the Associate Director at the Irish Centre of High-End Computing (ICHEC), the national centre for high-performance computing (HPC) and data management in Ireland, whose core mission is to deliver HPC and federated data platforms and services to academic, enterprise and public sector organisations on behalf of the Irish State. At ICHEC, he is responsible for defining and implementing the vision, strategy and roadmap of the Centre’s technological solutions related to HPC and federated data and services. This includes leading the design and development of HPC and data platforms and services through partnerships with national and international organisations in academia, industry and public sector.
Kevin Hegarty
Kevin Hegarty is the Director of Green Growth and Climate Action within DAERA leading the development of the NI Executive’s first Climate Action Plan. Prior to this Kevin led on the Executive’s Green Growth Strategy. Kevin joined the team early in 2021 from the Strategic Investment Board where he was Head of the Energy Management Unit and a Strategic Adviser on Energy to the NI Civil Service. Prior to that he was Acquisitions, Development and Policy Manager for ESB. Kevin has held senior roles with Airtricity as Head of Onshore Development and with E-ON North America as Chief Development Officer. Kevin has over 25 years’ experience working in the public, private and utility sectors and has spent his entire career addressing the climate challenge. Kevin holds a BSc in Environmental Planning from Queen’s University Belfast and an MSc in Rural Development also from QUB.
Eimear Cotter
Eimear Cotter is the Director General of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), appointed in March 2026 and served as a Director in the EPA since 2017. As Director General, she is Chair of the Executive Board and operational chief executive of the EPA and is responsible for leading and strategically managing the EPA.
Eimear holds a BA (Mod) in chemistry from Trinity College Dublin, a PhD in atmospheric chemistry from Oxford University and an MBA from UCD Michael Smurfit Graduate Business School. She is a Board member on the Governing Board of the Institute of Art, Design and Technology and the Governance Committee for the MaREI Research Centre. Eimear is a 2019 Eisenhower Fellow. She was formally a Board member on the National Statistics Board (2017-2023).
Aditya Arora
Aditya Arora is Data and Reporting Team Lead at FoodCloud, an Irish not-for-profit that uses technology to enable surplus food rescue at scale. FoodCloud partners with leading businesses in the food supply chain, as well as non-profits and food banks across several countries to help rescue surplus food. Aditya is responsible for implementing and maintaining data and reporting systems at FoodCloud, and worked as an analyst on an EPA funded Carbon Balance project.
Patric Child
Patrick CHILD is currently Deputy Director-General in DG Environment at the European Commission with particular responsibility for the EU’s zero pollution strategy, chemicals legislation, urban agenda, research and innovation for environment and communication. He is also the Mission manager for the Climate-Neutral and Smart Cities Mission, which aims to reach 100 climate-neutral cities by 2030. From 2016-2021, he was Deputy Director-General in DG Research and Innovation (R&I) at the European Commission. Until April 2016, Patrick Child was Managing Director of the European External Service with responsibility for administration and finance, covering human resources policy, security and the budget. Before he took up this post in 2011, he was director in the EC External Relations Directorate-General in the responsible for managing the network of Commission delegations. He has previously served as head of cabinet for External Relations Commissioners Benita Ferrero-Waldner and Chris Patten. With a background in the UK Finance Ministry, he joined the European Commission in 1994, where he started in the Economic and Monetary affairs Directorate General before becoming Commission press spokesman for economic and monetary union from 1995-1999.
Eleanor Roche
Eleanor is the Head of Environmental Regulation & Compliance for Uisce Éireann, responsible for driving environmental regulation within the business, overseeing all drinking water and wastewater compliance monitoring nationwide, as well as regulatory reporting activities for the UÉ asset base. Eleanor is a qualified Environmental Scientist with over 20 years experience. She spent the first half of her career working as a consultant successfully delivering a wide range of projects across waste management, environmental management, and communications before joining Irish Water in 2014. She is also a chartered member of CIWM and an Associate member of IEMA.
Andy Bleasdale
Andy Bleasdale heads up the Scientific Advice and Research Directorate of the National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS), which is an executive agency of the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage. Andy is an ecologist with a PhD in Botany and he has worked in the Scientific Unit of NPWS since 2000 in a variety of roles
Andrew Muir MLA
Andrew Muir is an Alliance MLA for North Down who was appointed as Northern Ireland Minister of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs on 03 February 2024. He previously served as Alliance Party Chief Whip, Finance and Infrastructure Spokesperson and leading party efforts for Restoration and Reform of Assembly and Executive. Aged 47, prior to joining the Northern Ireland Assembly in late 2019 Andrew served for nearly a decade as Councillor including a term as Mayor of North Down 2013/14. Before becoming a MLA Andrew worked for Northern Ireland’s Public Transport provider Translink as a Senior Project Manager overseeing roll out of multi-million pound Future Ticketing System Project. Andrew graduated with a degree in Peace and Conflict Studies at Ulster University in 1999.
Chris Hewitt
Chris Hewitt joined the World Meteorological Organization in 2022 as the Director of the Climate Services Branch, working with organizations around the world to build resilience to climate variability and climate change. Prior to joining the WMO, Chris was employed as Head of International Climate Services at the UK Met Office and Professor of Climate Science at the University of Southern Queensland in Australia, and held an Honorary Professor of Climate Services position at the University of Bristol in the UK. Chris has collaborated worldwide to evolve and build the climate services landscape, ensuring pull-through of science to services for societal benefit and guiding scientific developments to be aligned to societal needs. He has been central to developing the UN’s Global Framework for Climate Services, has led several major European climate service projects, and has been co-chair of three WMO Expert Teams with a focus on user engagement for climate services. He began his career as a climate researcher and climate model developer after he obtained his MSc and his PhD in meteorology from the University of Reading.
Francesca Racioppi
Francesca Racioppi is the Head of the World Health Organization European Centre for Environment and Health in Bonn, Germany. Francesca has more than 30 years of international experience in environment and health policies and science. Her work experience includes sustainable and healthy transport and urban policies and interventions, the promotion of “health in all policies” approaches, climate change, One Health, health impact assessment, violence and injury prevention, and consumer safety. In 2018 she was awarded a Honorary Doctorate by the Swedish School of Sport and Health Science in Stockholm, Sweden, for her leading engagement in environmental health and active transport.
Danielle Conaghan
Danielle Conaghan is Head of the Arthur Cox Environment and Planning Group, and is a founder member of the firm’s Food and Drink Group. Danielle is noted as a skilled strategist, and is acknowledged as a ‘leading individual’ with almost 15 years’ experience in the environment and planning sphere (Legal 500, EMEA). She takes a pragmatic approach to making all types of infrastructure projects happen and constantly looks to find ways to reduce the risk of successful challenges to projects by objectors. She is especially interested in complex projects; and advises on wind, biomass, battery storage, flood relief, data centre, water, wastewater, telecommunications, SHD and offshore projects. She has a deep understanding of how best to defend multiple sets of civil and criminal proceedings taken against projects during the planning, construction and operational phases. She helps clients defend criminal proceedings, particularly in the waste and food and drink sectors. She specialises in European environmental law.
Christopher Hammond
Christopher Hammond is the Chief Executive for UK100. UK100 is a cross-party membership organisation that supports the most ambitious councils to go further and faster on their Net Zero and Clean Air targets. Since joining in 2021, the network has doubled and launched two new ambitious programmes. The Climate Leadership Academy and Local Power in Action. In 2023, the Membership Team which he created, was shortlisted for ‘Team of the Year’ in the Edie Sustainable Leadership Awards. Previously, Christopher served as the elected Leader of Southampton City Council from 2018-2021. During his tenure as a councillor (2013-2022), he brokered an agreement that led to the country’s first commercial Shore Power facility and devised a Green City Charter subsequently signed by 75 major city organisations. In 2020, he was shortlisted for ‘Leader of the Year’ at the LGIU Councillor Awards. Born and raised in Dagenham in East London, Christopher was the first of his family to graduate from university. Afterwards, he worked as a race equality advocate and governance and risk manager for Nationwide Building Society. In 2018 he established an award-winning restaurant in Southampton. Christopher holds a degree from Bournemouth University, which named him its 2019 Alumni of the Year.
Laura Díaz Anadón
Laura Díaz Anadón is a Professor of Climate Change Policy and Director of the Centre for Environment, Energy & Natural Resource Governance at the University of Cambridge (United Kingdom). She was recently a visiting scholar at the Harvard Kennedy School of Government of Harvard University, Cambridge (USA) and in 2022 she was awarded a Distinguished Visiting Professorship at Tsinghua University (China). Her research sits at the intersection of climate, energy and innovation policy, with a focus on fiscal and regulatory policy, and on accelerating the development and deployment of novel technologies in the energy sector. Laura Díaz Anadón is Lead Author for the WG III contribution to the IPCC AR6 (chapter on Innovation, technology development and transfer). She was also a member of the Economics of Decarbonisation Advisory Group for the Net Zero Review undertaken by the United Kingdom’s Government in 2020/2021. Laura Díaz Anadón holds a PhD in chemical engineering from the University of Cambridge (United Kingdom).
Claire Downey
Claire Downey is Chief Executive Officer at The Rediscovery Centre. She was previously Policy and Research Director where she led the research team on providing an evidence base for policy development and supporting circular living models within Ireland and internationally. With a background in Chemical Engineering, and over 20 years of experience in the sector, she has delivered multiple circular economy research projects and sits on the National Waste Advisory Group, the National Textiles Advisory Group, is a fellow with the Chartered Institute of Waste Management, and a board member of Green Foundation Ireland.
Kevin O’Sullivan
Kevin O’Sullivan is Environment and Science Editor and lead journalist reporting on climate change with The Irish Times. He served as Editor of the paper from 2011 to 2017. He joined The Irish Times in 1997 as Environmental and Food Science Correspondent. In his current role, he has a particular interest in climate solutions (especially nature-based actions); sustainability (including the pursuit of the UN SDGs), renewable energy and restoring biodiversity.
Lorna McAdoo
Lorna McAdoo is Group Director Environment, Social and Governance at Version 1. Lorna joined Version 1 in 2013 to lead the Northern Ireland (NI) operation; growing the team to over 550 people, and is now responsible for the corporate ESG agenda, driving the organisation on track to meet a net zero target of 2025 within its operations and by 2035 within the supply chain. Lorna has been awarded multiple industry recognitions including Digital DNA Business Personality of the Year and Women in Tech IT Business Leader. She is also Vice Chair of the Software NI.
Conor Murphy
Conor Murphy is a Professor at the Irish Climate Analysis and Research Units (ICARUS) in the Department of Geography at Maynooth University. His research interests focus on hydroclimatology, historical climatology and adaptation to climate change. Conor has been awarded over €6 million in funding as PI or Co-I from National and European sources, including SFI, IRC, EPA, Horizon 2020, JPI Climate. His research engages closely with enterprise, public bodies and communities. He has consistently published in top ranking international journals including; Science, Nature, Nature Climate Change, and was a lead author of Volume 3 ‘Being Prepared for Ireland’s Future Climate’ as part of the Irish Climate Change Assessment Report. Conor sits on the National Climate Change Adaptation Committee advising government on responding to the impacts of climate change.
Mark Horton
Mark Horton is the All-Ireland Director of The Rivers Trust, the umbrella body for the rivers trust movement across the UK and Ireland, and Chief Executive of Ballinderry Rivers Trust, a rivers trust dedicated to the conservation and protection of the Ballinderry River in Counties Tyrone and Derry-Londonderry, the western-shore rivers of Lough Neagh and the Lough itself. Mark has been working in catchment management and conservation since 2004. He has helped establish rivers trusts across the island of Ireland as well as leading on river habitat and species restoration programmes. In recognition of his work, in 2019 Mark was awarded an MBE for Services to Conservation.
J Owen Lewis
J Owen Lewis co-chairs the IIEA Working Group on Climate and Energy. He is also Emeritus Professor of Architectural Science, UCD Dublin. He is former President of the Royal Dublin Society, and a former member of the Board of the National Gallery of Ireland. Owen was previously Chief Executive of the Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland (SEAI) between 2009 and 2012. Qualified as architect, engineer, and energy technologist, he has practised professionally in Ireland, England and Zambia. He was part-time Executive Director for Innovation and R&D at Bord na Móna between 2006 and 2008. Owen was Dean of the Faculty of Engineering and Architecture at UCD Dublin and later Principal of the UCD College of Engineering, Mathematical and Physical Sciences. In 1976 Owen co-founded the Solar Energy Society of Ireland.
Niall McLoughlin
Niall McLoughlin is Principal Officer of the Circular Economy Strategic Policy Division at the Department of the Environment, Climate and Communications, where he is responsible for a range of circular economy initiatives, including developing Ireland’s whole of Government Circular Economy Strategies, the Circular Economy Initiative Grants Scheme, Green Public Procurement, supporting the development of a more vibrant reuse and repair eco-system in Ireland and the delivery of a Circular Economy Communications Platform. Prior to his appointment to this role last March, he was the head of the Air Quality, EU, International and SDGs Division in the Department with responsibility for leading Ireland’s delegation at the annual Climate Conferences of the Parties or COPs.
Susan Hegarty
Susan Hegarty is a geographer at DCU. She began her interests in water while working on the Groundwater Protection Scheme for Kilkenny in the Geological Survey of Ireland, mapping the Quaternary deposits – one of the keys to determining the vulnerability of groundwater to pollutants. Her current research at DCU Water Institute focuses on the role of citizen science for monitoring of water quality in Ireland. Her interest in Irish landscape evolution since the last glaciation has led her to carry out research on the changing climate in Ireland over the Holocene, particularly with reference to the southeast of Ireland. She is passionate about communicating environmental issues to a wider audience, and has been involved in various TV documentaries over the past decade. She is currently Institutional Lead for DCU Futures - a project to radically reimagine undergraduate education at DCU.
Zoe Kavanagh
Zoe is a distinguished leader with almost 30 years of experience in domestic & international markets within dairy and FMCG sectors, and joins Repak following 13 years as CEO of the National Dairy Council. Prior to this, she spent 16 years at PepsiCo, working across numerous briefs and gaining significant insights into the FMCG sector, before concluding her tenure as General Manager for Ireland Beverages in 2010. During her tenure as CEO of the National Dairy Council, Zoe demonstrated exceptional leadership, contributing to the council's growth and enhancing its reputation in the industry. Membership of the organisation grew by 33% and income more than doubled while public trust in Irish Dairy production increased significantly due to robust advocacy and strong public engagement.
Niall Ó Donnchú
Niall Ó Donnchú, MPhil, BSc (Econ), C(Dip) AF, is Director General of the National Parks and Wildlife Service and Assistant Secretary General at the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage. He is head of the Heritage Division of the Department and has responsibility for policy on built and natural heritage. He was formerly Head of Arts, Culture and Film Policy at the Department of Arts and Heritage. Prior to that he was Head of E-Commerce and Broadband Policy at the Department of Communications and is also a former Head of Alternative and Renewable Energy at the Department of Energy. Niall is a graduate of Queen’s University Belfast , the London School of Economics and the Harvard University/IPA Adaptive Leadership Programme.
Venkatesh Kannan
Venkatesh Kannan works as the Associate Director at the Irish Centre of High-End Computing (ICHEC), the national centre for high-performance computing (HPC) and data management in Ireland, whose core mission is to deliver HPC and federated data platforms and services to academic, enterprise and public sector organisations on behalf of the Irish State. At ICHEC, he is responsible for defining and implementing the vision, strategy and roadmap of the Centre’s technological solutions related to HPC and federated data and services. This includes leading the design and development of HPC and data platforms and services through partnerships with national and international organisations in academia, industry and public sector.
David McGee
David McGee is an advisory partner in PwC Ireland’s consulting team and leads the firm’s ESG practice. With over twenty years of experience in the retail sector, David brings a unique blend of industry knowledge and consulting expertise to his role. His career spans industry positions and consultancy work, giving him a comprehensive understanding of the challenges and opportunities in the retail and consumer goods sectors. As a technology specialist, David has been instrumental in helping companies navigate digital transformations and sustainability initiatives. His expertise extends to advising clients on corporate strategy, operational effectiveness and supply chain optimisation. David’s client portfolio includes indigenous firms and multinational corporations, showcasing his ability to address diverse business needs. Before joining PwC in 2008, David held a senior position in a major Irish retail and wholesale company. His leadership of PwC’s ESG practice reflects the firm’s commitment to helping businesses integrate sustainability into their core operations and strategies.
Anna Rose
Rachel Jones is a Principal Consultant at the Local Government Association’s Planning Advisory Service (PAS) specialising in environmental planning and nutrient neutrality. She convenes a network of 74 local planning authorities in England and, through liaising with central government, helps find solutions to the complex and evolving issue of nutrient neutrality. Rachel advises local authorities on how to address the pressures on development management decision-making arising from environmental policy and legislation changes, and also how to plan for a better environment.
Paul Hogan
Paul Hogan is Acting Assistant Secretary – Head of the Planning Division at the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage (DHLGH). He has more than 30 years’ experience of working in planning and development in Ireland and the UK. Paul’s current responsibilities include reform and resourcing of the planning system, through delivery of the Planning Bill 2023 and revision of the NPF to support the delivery of housing, infrastructure and the national response to climate change. Paul’s previous role at the Department of Housing as Principal Adviser included leading the planning and land elements of Housing for All. Prior to joining the Department in 2015, Paul was a Senior Planner at South Dublin County Council for more than 10 years. He has a Master of Regional and Urban Planning degree from UCD (1992), is a Fellow of the Irish Planning Institute and recently completed a higher diploma in Organisational Change and Transformation.
Liam Lysaght is Chief Executive Officer of the National Biodiversity Data Centre, a state-sponsored company established in 2022 to acquire, collate, manage, validate and make available data on Ireland’s biodiversity. He also serves as Chair of the Global Biodiversity Information Facility, an international network of 105 participating nations and international organisations working to make biodiversity data openly available.
Since May 2022 he is the Director in charge of Circular Economy in the European Commission's Directorate-General for Environment.
Between January 2014 and April 2022 he worked as the Director in charge of enforcement, cohesion and the European Semester in the same DG. Before that he was the Director for Equality in the Directorate-General for Justice since April 2011, in charge of equality and fight against discrimination, after having been the Director for Fundamental Rights and EU Citizenship within the same DG and in DG Justice, Freedom and Security since June 2009.
He joined the European Commission in 2009. He holds an LL.M. from the University of Illinois (US) and a Ph.D. from the University of Bucharest (RO).
Paula Kearney is the Biodiversity Officer with Galway City Council. Paula holds a BSc Ecology and Environmental Science, HDip Planning and Environmental Law and is a Chartered Ecologist. In a professional career which spans over 20 years, she has provided strategic advice and managed multi-disciplinary inputs for Environmental Impact Assessments on a wide-range of projects including wind farms, greenways, roads, water treatment and flood relief schemes. In her current role as Biodiversity Officer, Paula is required to facilitate and co-ordinate the implementation of the Biodiversity Action Plan, with priority given to developing biodiversity awareness and supporting attitude change in the general public, Galway City staff and officials, developers, architects, engineers and landowners. She is also involved in the development of nature-based solutions for climate adaptation and assist in the planning process to promote sustainable development.
ecologist
Anja Murray is an ecologist, environmental broadcaster and writer who has devoted her career to the protection and restoration of nature. She is known for her clear, research-based approach to explaining complex ecological challenges through radio, television and print media, including Eco Eye that ran on RTE television until 2023, Nature File on RTE lyric fm, and the documentary series Root & Branch and Feather & Flock. Her bestselling book ‘Wild Embrace – Connecting to the wonder of Ireland's Natural World’, was published in 2023 and has been sparking enthusiasm from critics and readers alike. Her latest book 'Frog, routes, polka-dot newts, and other treasures of Irish Nature' was published in September 2025.
Imelda Hurley is CEO at Coillte. She has extensive executive and non-executive experience in public company, state owned, private equity and venture capital backed businesses. Since joining Coillte in 2019, Imelda has led the organisation through its most commercially successful period of delivery, while also developing a new vision for its forests and lands. As well as her executive responsibilities, she is a non-executive director at the world’s leading fresh produce provider, Dole plc, and a board member and past President at IBEC.
Deputy Secretary of Environment Marine and Fisheries Group
Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs, Northern Ireland
Julie Thompson has recently been appointed as Deputy Secretary in the Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs, Northern Ireland. Julie is Head of Environment, Marine and Fisheries Group and has responsibility for Natural Environment Policy, Environmental Resources including waste management, Marine and Fisheries and oversight of the Forest Service Agency. Julie was previously Head of Climate Change, Planning and Public Transport Group in the Department for Infrastructure and has also held senior roles in the Department of Finance and Department of Health.
Dr. Aura-Luciana Istrate is Assistant Professor in Sustainable Urbanism and Program Director of the MSc Urban Design and Planning at University College Dublin. She is the Primary Coordinator of C-NEWTRAL Doctoral Network funder under the Marie-Sklodowska-Curie-Actions scheme, advancing new approaches for integrated planning of climate-neutral cities through citizen engagement and city governance decision-making. She is co-leading another Horizon Europe project (REALLOCATE) focusing on rethinking the design of streets and public spaces to leverage climate-friendly active mobility in 10 European Cities.
Alma Walsh is a Senior Advisor in the Planning Division of the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage, where she has worked since 2016. Prior to joining the Department, Alma has worked within the local authority planning system and began her career with the private sector. Alma is leading on the revision of the National Planning Framework which is a key delivery priority for the Department and is also responsible for the development of a number of related policy measures. She holds a Masters Degree in Regional and Urban Planning from UCD. Alma is a Board Member of the Maritime Area Regulatory Authority (MARA).
Cillian McMahon leads Business in the Community Ireland’s work on nature and biodiversity. He advises members on understanding their relationships with nature and acting to incorporate nature-positivity into their work. He is also a core member of the team that led our Low Carbon Pledge 2018-2024 and its new iteration Accelerate, The Business Pact on Climate and Nature. Cillian is well-connected in European biodiversity circles and is a regular speaker at international conferences and forums; he has sat on several policy forums for the government of Ireland. Cillian has an MSc. in Environmental Sciences, Policy and Management, awarded through a joint programme involving four European and two North American universities, and a degree from the University of Galway.
Dr Gavan Rafferty is a lecturer at the Belfast School of Architecture and the Built Environment at Ulster University. He is a member of the Association of European Schools of Planning (AESOP), Fellow of the Higher Education Academy, chartered member of the Royal Town Planning Institute (RTPI), and past-chairperson of the RTPI Northern Ireland Branch (2009-2010). His recent research and teaching interests focus on inclusive engagement and health outcomes associated with planning, development and regeneration processes.
Barry Quinlan is the Head of Climate and Environment Policy, Department of the Environment, Climate and Communications, leading on Climate and Environmental Policy, Action Planning, Legislation and Implementation. Barry joined the DECC in December 2021, as part of the re-organisation of energy functions in the Department, from the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage, where he had led the Housing and Local Government Divisions. Prior to that Barry worked in the Revenue Commissioners and the Department of Justice. Working with key delivery partners and stakeholders, and within EU and global frameworks, key priority areas include: the National Retrofit Programme; and Renewable Heat Policy.
Professor Robbie McDonald FRSB is an ecologist with 30 years’ experience of work at the interface between environmental science, policy and practice. As Chief Insights Officer and Chief Scientist at the Office for Environmental Protection, Robbie directs the evidence and analysis programme of work that supports OEP’s scrutiny of government’s progress in improving the natural environment. He leads a team of analysts with diverse expertise in natural and social scientific research, environmental management, protection, consultancy and regulation. In his research Robbie has used interdisciplinary approaches to identify and test solutions to complex problems of environmental management, particularly wildlife conservation and management, invasive species management, wildlife disease ecology and management, environmental monitoring and data, conflicts about animals, and companion animal ecology. He has published 200 scientific papers and book chapters and has held a Fulbright Scholarship, Jones Fellowship, Royal Society postdoctoral fellowship, and has worked in universities, NGOs and in government agencies. Robbie led Quercus, the Northern Ireland Centre for Biodiversity and Conservation Biology, a partnership between Queens University Belfast and NI Department of Environment. He was then head of wildlife science and Deputy Chief Scientist at the Food and Environment Research Agency. He is a Trustee of the Vincent Wildlife Trust and Fellow of the Royal Society of Biology and currently holds the Chair in Natural Environment at the University of Exeter’s Environment and Sustainability Institute, to which he was appointed in 2011.
Lucie Martin is a Research Officer with the Behavioural Research Unit in the Economic and Social Research Institute. She uses insights and methods from behavioural science to help solve policy challenges. Before joining the ESRI, Lucie worked as a behavioural scientist with the UK Behavioural Insights Team, the United Nations, and UCD Environmental Policy. She has a PhD in Economics from UCD.
Sophie Reynolds is a circular economy and RD&I expert with over 10 years’ experience national and EU policy, research and innovation programmes. As Senior Programme Manager for CIRCULÉIRE - a public-private circular innovation network with a mission to accelerate Irish industry’s circular transition – she has helped shape the strategic direction of the programme, leading high-impact engagements and cross-sectoral RD&I initiatives to support the networks goals.
Matt Crowe joined the Water Forum as Chair in 2022. Before undertaking this role he was employed at the EPA since 1995 and held Directorships with responsibility for Communications & Corporate Services & the Office of Evidence & Assessment. Prior to joining the EPA, he worked in Vancouver, Canada, for five years, conducting contract research in applied environmental sciences. Matt holds a B.Sc. and PhD from University College, Dublin.
Professor Mary Kelly-Quinn is a freshwater ecologist in the School of Biology & Environmental Science, UCD. Her research is primarily based on streams and rivers, but she has undertaken projects on lakes, ponds, canals, hyporheic fauna and riparian zones as well as ecosystem services. The focus of her research is on assessment of land-use and other anthropogenic activities on the ecological quality of surface waters, in particular multiple stressors including those related to climate change.
Paul Roberts is Chief Executive of Community Places, a charity which helps people have a say in how their communities are planned and developed. Paul is an award-winning third sector leader with a distinguished career in community development and social enterprise. He is a Director of the Scottish Community Development Centre and has a Master’s Degree in Voluntary Sector Management. He is an honorary professor in Practice of Planning and Urban Regeneration with Queen’s University Belfast.
Lisa-Nicole Dunne is the founder of Mantra Strategy, an impact creation consultancy dedicated to aligning leadership, culture, and purpose in brands and teams. Lisa-Nicole and Mantra have become trusted advisors to senior leaders across diverse sectors, including charities, social enterprises SMEs, B-Corps, and public organisations and clients include UNHCR, Goal Global, Ecocem, Motability, Vision Green, Vodafone Foundation, Rethink Ireland, PJ Hegarty, Eir, and Comcast. Lisa-Nicole has a BA, MBA, Diploma in Psychology and recently added a Diploma in DEIB. She is judge on the Business and Finance ESG awards, Spiders and Diversity in Tech awards and active volunteer for WorkEqual.
Ioannis Bakas works as a circular economy expert at the European Environment Agency. Ioannis holds a PhD on waste management and life cycle assessment and has more than 15 years of experience working with waste and circular economy issues. Ioannis is the author of various circular economy reports, including on monitoring, secondary material markets, waste prevention and material sourcing and management.
Ali Sheridan is Chair of the newly established Just Transition Commission of Ireland, having been appointed in late 2024. The Commission is tasked with being a public voice and advocate on planning for a just transition, providing the Government with advice to inform policy planning, and supporting the Government and wider societal stakeholders in managing this transition fairly. Ali has spent almost 20 years working across the public, private, and civil society sectors at both domestic and international levels with a key focus on mobilising diverse societal actors towards ambitious and fair climate action. She also currently works with the UN High Level Climate Champions and has held a diverse range of climate leadership positions including at the Fossil Fuel Non-Proliferation Treaty, IKEA, and Bord Bia, as well as previous roles with the Sustainable Agriculture Initiative, and the Green-Schools programme of An Taisce. Ali is an occasional lecturer and has delivered climate education programmes for a range of academic institutions. She holds a MSc in Business Sustainability from UCD, a MSc in Sustainable Development from DCU, and a BSc in Environmental Management from TU Dublin. Ali sits on the EPA’s Advisory Committee, the Advisory Board of the DCU Institute for Climate & Society, and is a board member of the Common Knowledge social enterprise. On a local level, Ali has supported the inception of her local Sustainable Energy Community, and acted as a Public Participation Network rep.
Heidi Redmond is a Circular Economy Adviser for the Strategic Investment Board. She has a background in sustainable development and project manager. Since 2020 she has applied her knowledge, skills and passion to developing Northern Ireland’s first Circular Economy Strategy. Acting as an adviser to the Department for the Economy she has been involved in assembling the evidence base and engaging stakeholders to inform and shape the strategy. She is also a board member of Northern Ireland Reuse and Repair Network (NIRN), which facilitated Northern Ireland’s first repair week earlier this year.
Tadhg O’Mahony is a Senior Scientific Officer for the Environmental Protection Agency. He has worked in has worked with the Environmental Protection Agency in scientific and inspector roles for over 20 years. Since 2004 he has coordinated the EPA’s role as statutory environmental authority for Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA). He has a key role here in promoting awareness of and engagement in SEA across key sectors and government departments. Tadhg represents the EPA on a number national SEA steering and implementation groups. His initial work in the EPA covered waste licensing and enforcement.
Laura Morrison is Head of Responsible Business for Business in the Community Ireland. She oversees BITCI’s advisory services on all aspects of sustainability and social inclusion. Laura personally advises on sustainability leadership and governance, and leads BITCI’s work on Business and Human Rights. Laura worked for many years managing the complex governance and social risks associated with international energy and mining projects. She has been Group Political Adviser for BP in London, and External Affairs Manager for several international BP projects. She has also worked for two specialist international consultancies, ERM and Control Risks Group, advising a range of high-profile clients across multiple sectors.
Levent Ergin
Levent Ergin serves as Chief Climate, Sustainability & AI Strategist and Global Head of Sustainability Partnerships at Informatica, driving global ESG, AI governance, and sustainable data strategies. With over 25 years of experience, he utilizes Agentic AI to enhance ESG reporting, supply chain resilience, and climate risk management. A speaker at COP28 and member of the UN Science-Policy-Business Forum, Levent focuses on harmonizing environmental data and fostering public-private collaboration for net-zero transformation. Previously, he held senior leadership roles at HSBC, Deutsche Bank, and RBS. He is recognized worldwide for his leadership in sustainable data infrastructure, regulatory change, and AI strategy.
Veronica Manfredi
Veronica Manfredi is Director for Zero Pollution, Water Resilience and Green Urban Transition in DG Environment at the European Commission since February 2018. Her Directorate plays a pivotal role in leading Europe towards Zero-Pollution and securing an effective management of Water – it thus significantly contributes to tackle the Climate, Biodiversity and Circular Economy challenges. Under the 2024-2029 Political Guidelines of President von der Leyen, her Directorate is more specifically leading on the European Water Resilience Strategy (including, amongst others, the protection of all EU Freshwater and Marine environments, water reuse, prevention from Floods, compliance with high health standards for Drinking Water), next to contributing, given its oversight on EU laws and policies on Clean Air, Environmental Noise, Industrial Emissions and prevention of Industrial Accidents, to the Clean Industrial Deal, the Ocean Pact and the Vision for Sustainable Agriculture, to name a few. Her Directorate also steers on the sound implementation of the Green City Accord which, in synergy with the Smart and Climate-Neutral Cities Mission, the Covenant of Mayors and other major urban initiatives, aims at tangibly delivering on the European Green Deal goals at local level.
Francis Finnerty
Francis Finnerty is the Wastewater Asset Strategy Manager at Uisce Éireann with responsibility for long term strategic wastewater planning and adapting to risk, policy and legislative drivers. Francis has over 30 years of experience working in the water sector in Ireland principally in the areas of urban drainage and wastewater, from modelling and design to strategic investment planning having previously worked in the local authority sector, with an engineering consultant firm and with survey and network rehabilitation contractors.
Timmy Dooley TD
Timmy Dooley TD is Minister of State with responsibility for the Marine, Department of Climate, Energy and the Environment. Minister of State Timmy Dooley TD is an Irish Fianna Fáil politician who has been a Teachta Dála (TD) for the Clare constituency since the 2024 general election, and previously from 2007 to 2020. He served as a Senator from 2020 to 2024. Following the 2024 General Election he was appointed Minister of State at the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine with special responsibility for Fisheries and at the Department of the Climate, Energy and the Environment with special responsibility for the Marine.
Julie Thompson
Julie Thompson is Deputy Secretary in the Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs, Northern Ireland. Julie is Head of Environment, Marine and Fisheries Group and has responsibility for Natural Environment Policy, Environmental Resources including waste management, Marine and Fisheries and oversight of the Forest Service Agency. Julie was previously Head of Climate Change, Planning and Public Transport Group in the Department for Infrastructure and has also held senior roles in the Department of Finance and Department of Health.
Mark Thuillier
Mark Thuillier is a partner in Arthur Cox’s Environment and Planning Group and advises a wide range of domestic and international clients on planning and environmental issues, including issues of EIA, AA and planning compliance generally. He specialises in contentious and non-contentious environmental, planning and health & safety work and has significant experience in advising on these areas.
Martin Hutchings
Martin Hutchings, Principal Adviser, Performance & Improvement, Planning Advisory Service UK, Local Government Association Martin Hutchings has been with the Planning Advisory Service (PAS), Local Government Association since 2008, managing and delivering various programmes of support for local authority planning teams. He is a principal advisor, performance and improvement. Last year he delivered PAS’s Biodiversity Net Gain programme, and this year is focussed on performance, resourcing and capacity in local planning authorities including how councils can achieve full cost recovery for the work they put into making planning decisions.
Mark Nolan
Mark Nolan is founder and CEO of Biodiversity in Schools - Ireland's nature conservation organisation for young people. He has created some of Ireland's largest & most impactful nature education programmes reaching over 450,000 young people annually. Mark has over 20 years experience studying and working in the biodiversity education space. He has a degree in Environmental Science (TCD) and a Masters in Science Communication (DCU).
Ian Marnane
Ian Marnane leads the Environment and Health Unit at the European Environment Agency in Copenhagen, where the areas of focus include data collection and knowledge development on topics including air quality, noise, chemicals, One Health and environmental burden of disease. He has more than 20 years experience in environment and health, having worked as an environmental consultant in the private sector, with the Environmental Protection Agency in Ireland, and now with the European Environment Agency. Ian is from Dublin and is a graduate of Trinity College where be completed his Ph.D. on air quality monitoring and modelling.
Tom Pickerell
Dr. Tom Pickerell is a marine biologist with over 25 years of experience driving global action for a sustainable ocean. As Global Director of the Ocean Program at the World Resources Institute (WRI) and Executive Secretary of the High Level Panel for a Sustainable Ocean Economy, Tom works at the intersection of science, policy, and innovation to shape a healthy, prosperous ocean future. His career has spanned the worlds of conservation, policy, and industry, from leading sustainable seafood initiatives at WWF-UK, Pew, and the Monterey Bay Aquarium’s Seafood Watch program, to advising governments and building global coalitions for change. Tom has spearheaded pre-competitive alliances in tuna and pelagic fisheries and continues to push for bold, science-based solutions to the climate and biodiversity crises. He is a Fellow of the Marine Biological Association and holds a Ph.D. in shellfish genetics, a master’s in analytical biology, and a degree in marine biology.
Caroline Kuzemko
Caroline Kuzemko is a Professor of the Political Economy of Climate Change at the University of Warwick and a Co-Director of the UK Energy Research Centre. Her work explores the roles of politics and policy in enabling, constraining, and shaping climate change mitigation and ‘clean’ energy transitions. Her publications include books on Climate Politics: Can’t Live with It, Can’t Mitigate without It; The Energy Security-Climate Nexus: Institutional Change in the UK and Beyond; and a special section on ‘New Directions in the IPE of Energy’, in Review of International Political Economy. She previously worked as a Director at UBS, London.
Alex White
Alex White is Chair of the Climate Change Advisory Council. He is a Senior Counsel and Accredited Mediator. He is the Director General of the Institute of International and European Affairs. He is a member of the National Paediatric Hospital Development Board and of the Board of Trinity College Dublin. He was the Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources during 2014 to 2016 and Minister of State at the Department of Health during 2012 to 2014. He has been a TD (Oireachtas Committee chair 2011-2012), a Senator (group leader), and a member of two local authorities. Prior to commencing legal practice in 1994, he was a radio producer with RTÉ. He is a graduate of Trinity College Dublin (Economic and Social Studies) and of the King's Inns.
Dr Lizzy Pinkerton
Dr Lizzy Pinkerton currently serves as Chief Executive Officer of the Belfast Hills Partnership. With an academic foundation in Environmental Biology and a PhD in Plant Science from Queen’s University Belfast, she has spent nearly two decades working at the intersection of conservation, community development, and sustainable land management. Since 2005, Lizzy has built extensive experience across the environmental sector, developing a strong reputation for translating ecological knowledge into practical, community-focused outcomes. Her work is particularly centred on strengthening connections between people and nature, with a focus on how accessible, well-managed green spaces can deliver measurable benefits for both biodiversity and public health. Lizzy is especially passionate about community engagement as a driver for environmental improvement. She champions initiatives that empower local communities to actively participate in the stewardship of their natural surroundings, recognising that long-term habitat enhancement and conservation success depend on inclusive, people-led approaches. Her leadership continues to shape innovative programmes that enhance biodiversity while also supporting wellbeing and resilience in local communities.
Dr. Lisa McNamee
Dr. Lisa McNamee is the planetary health and sustainability lead at the Irish College of GPs. She is the Irish Doctors for the Environment podcaster. She is a medical doctor, practicing GP and researcher. She is currently involved with greentech and sustainability projects across the public and private sectors.
Denise Cahill
Denise Cahill is Healthy Cities Coordinator for Cork Healthy Cities, leading work to improve health, wellbeing, and climate resilience. She delivers local initiatives across healthy & sustainable food systems, biodiversity, active travel, air quality and community resilience, through partnerships such as the Cork Food Policy Council, Climate & Health Alliance and Green Spaces for Health. Nationally, she contributes to policy and knowledge sharing on health promotion and climate action. At European level, she engages with the World Health Organisation Healthy Cities Network, co-leading a Food Systems Taks Force and supporting collaboration, research, and best practice exchange to advance equitable, sustainable, low-carbon, and healthier cities.
Claragh Mulhern
Claragh Mulhern is the Principal Adviser and Chief Planner in the Planning Division at the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage, where she has worked since 2019. Previously Claragh worked in the local government sector in the U.K. for 15 years, including 11 years working for Westminster City Council in Central London on a range of planning projects. In her current role, Claragh has responsibility for the preparation of national planning policy including the National Planning Framework and the development of related national planning policy measures, oversight of the implementation of national policy through the regional strategies and local authority development plans through liaison with the Office of the Planning Regulator, the development of land activation and active land management measures and the provision of professional planning advice in support of Government policy including in relation to housing, infrastructure and renewable energy development. Claragh graduated with a Master’s Degree in Regional and Urban Planning from University College Dublin in 2003 and is a Member of the Irish Planning Institute.
Sophie Reynolds
Sophie Reynolds is a circular economy and RD&I expert with over 10 years’ national and EU policy, research and innovation programmes experience. As Senior Programme Manager for CIRCULÉIRE – Ireland’s Circular Innovation network - she has helped shape the strategic direction of the programme, leading high-impact engagements and cross-sectoral RD&I initiatives to support network goals.
Eva Maria Bille
Eva Maria Bille is in charge of the EEB circular economy team, working with our 195+ civil society member organisations in 41 countries to shape policies that make us rethink, refuse, reuse, recycle our relationship with products, and better manage our waste. She previously spent 10+ years as an EU policy consultant, working with major companies and trade associations in the Brussels bubble. She has also worked for the UN in Lebanon and spent 4 years working in China. She holds a MSc in economics specialising in resources, development and growth from Tilburg University.
Jacinta Conway
Jacinta Conway is a Partner in Arthur Cox’s Environment and Planning Group. She has played a key role in advising on some of the most complex and significant transactions and litigation in the country. She has a special focus on the renewable energy, waste and natural resources sectors, and specialises in de-risking projects at the outset of their life cycle. Jacinta also has extensive litigation experience in relation to planning and environmental judicial review challenges, planning injunction proceedings and criminal enforcement prosecutions.
Eimear Cotter
Eimear Cotter is the Director General of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), appointed in March 2026 and served as a Director in the EPA since 2017. As Director General, she is Chair of the Executive Board and operational chief executive of the EPA and is responsible for leading and strategically managing the EPA. Eimear holds a BA (Mod) in chemistry from Trinity College Dublin, a PhD in atmospheric chemistry from Oxford University and an MBA from UCD Michael Smurfit Graduate Business School. She is a Board member on the Governing Board of the Institute of Art, Design and Technology and the Governance Committee for the MaREI Research Centre. Eimear is a 2019 Eisenhower Fellow. She was formally a Board member on the National Statistics Board (2017-2023).
Joe Duignan
Joe Duignan is the Group Head of Sustainability at ESB, with more than 20 years of experience in the electricity sector. Previously Joe was the Regulation and Commercial Senior Manager at ESB Networks, leading policy and regulatory development and implementation while working closely with the CRU, government departments, industry stakeholders and customers. Joe also recently served as an Electricity Sector Expert to the Department of Public Expenditure, Infrastructure, Public Service Reform & Digitalisation (DPER) as part of the Accelerating Infrastructure Report & Action Plan.
Maria Fitzpatrick
Maria Fitzpatrick is Executive Director of Business for Biodiversity Ireland and a member of the steering committee of Natural Capital Ireland, where she supports national efforts to better understand, value, and restore nature. Her work focuses on helping organisations recognise that a healthy natural environment underpins economic resilience, societal wellbeing, and long-term sustainability. She leads initiatives to support businesses in understanding their impacts and dependencies on nature, embedding nature-positive approaches into strategy and operations, and strengthening engagement with Ireland’s biodiversity agenda. Maria holds a PhD in Freshwater Ecology, focused on Ireland’s headwater streams, and has worked across consultancy, academia, and applied research, including roles at Queen Mary University of London and the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. She combines scientific expertise with strategic leadership to translate complex environmental challenges into practical solutions, and is passionate about advancing the value of nature as a vital asset for people and the planet.
Martina Hennessy
Martina Hennessy is the Assistant Secretary for Circular Economy & Resource Efficiency in the Department of Climate, Energy and the Environment (DCEE). Martina joined DCEE in 2019 and has had policy and regulatory roles in several areas since then, including petroleum, offshore renewable energy and climate. She also served as a temporary ordinary board member of An Board Pleanála for close to 2 years during this period. Martina joined the civil service in 2016 and has experience of working in both public and private sectors prior to this.
Noel Meehan
Noel Meehan is currently Head of the Water Quality Knowledge Transfer Department with Teagasc, responsible for leading the Better Farming for Water Campaign, provision of the ASSAP advisory service, NMP Online and the translation of scientific research into practical farm advice. He has worked with Teagasc since 2007, initially as an advisor with the Agricultural Catchments Programme and as a drystock enterprise advisor. He was appointed as ASSAP manager in 2018 for 7 years before taking up his current role. Previous to working with Teagasc, Noel worked in both Offaly and Galway local authorities in the Environment Section covering both water quality and waste management.
Enda Murphy
Enda Murphy is Director of the Urban Development and Mobility Department at the Luxembourg Institute of Socio-Economic Research (LISER) and concurrently holds the position of Professor of Planning at the School of Architecture, Planning and Environmental Policy at UCD where he also serves as Programme Director for the Professional Diploma in Foundations of Sustainable Development. He also recently completed a term serving as Chair of the Irish Transport Research Network (ITRN). Outside his core roles, Prof. Murphy is an active Editorial Board Member of PLOS ONE, one of the world’s leading scientific journals and a member of the UN SDSN SDG Academy High Level Advisory Council (HLAC), whose mission focuses on the international development of Education for Sustainable Development He has published widely in the international literature and is the author or co-author of more than 130 academic journal articles, book chapters, conference papers, and reports, as well as co-author of three books including 'Environmental Noise Pollution: Noise Mapping, Public Health & Policy' published by Elsevier and now in it's second edition.
Barry O’Loughlin
Barry O’Loughlin is Biodiversity Officer with Clare County Council, where he leads the integration of biodiversity policy into local planning and cross departmental operations. He collaborates with communities, landowners, and public bodies to advance habitat protection and restoration, including peatland rewetting, community biodiversity initiatives, marsh fritillary conservation projects, and commissioning ecological surveys and datasets for inclusion in the Council’s GIS database to guide strategic decision making to inform service delivery in the area of planning, capital projects, housing delivery, transport and tourism.
Paul O’Neill
Paul O’Neill is head of the Climate Policy, Planning and Implementation section in the Department of Climate, Energy and the Environment and is responsible for oversight of national climate mitigation policy, including responsibility for development of the Climate Action Plan, the management of the climate governance structures including the Climate Action Delivery Board and Climate Action Plan Programme Board and management of the climate action delivery framework, including the climate act and climate litigation. Paul is also responsible for oversight of the Climate Action Fund. He has previously held roles in the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage, responsible for delivery of the Maritime Area Planning Act and social housing delivery. Prior to that he worked in planning consultancy and has led planning and environmental teams on both State and private sector developments.
Irene Rondini
Irene Rondini is an environmental scientist by background, with over 10 years of experience in implementing and communicating sustainability in the construction sector across Ireland and Italy. She has been working with the Irish Green Building Council (IGBC) for the past seven years and currently focuses on projects related to nature and biodiversity in the built environment, including nature-based solutions, communities of practice, and workshops. Her passion for Nature extends beyond her professional work into her personal life, where she actively supports biodiversity through community gardening initiatives in The Liberties, Dublin.
Jessika Roswall
Jessika Roswall started her mandate as Commissioner for Environment, Water Resilience and a Competitive Circular Economy on December 1st 2024. Prior to her nomination for the post of Commissioner she was Sweden's minister for European affairs from October 2022 to September 2024, during which Sweden held the EU presidency. Between 2010 and 2022 she served as a member of the Swedish Parliament, holding the position of second vice-president of its EU affairs committee from 2019 to 2022.
Fiona Simpson
Fiona Simpson FRTPI was appointed the Scottish Government’s Chief Planner and Director of Planning, Architecture and Regeneration in 2021. Prior to that she worked for 15 years in the Scottish Government’s, with responsibility for the independent review of the planning system in 2016, policy input to the Planning (Scotland) Act 2019, and Scotland’s National Planning Framework 3 (2014) and 4 (2023). Fiona has expertise in environmental assessment, having undertaken Strategic Environmental Assessments for a wide range of national policies, and project managing Environmental Impact Assessments as a consultant prior to joining the Scottish Government in 2006. Fiona was educated at Heriot Watt University, and her doctoral thesis was a comparative study of planning in Edinburgh and Prague.
Anne Goggin
Anne Goggin is the Project Manager. Anne trained as a Civil and Structural Engineer, but has worked in the area of Environmental Protection for over 20 years. A large focus of her previous work was implementation of the Water Framework Directive and River Basin Management Plans at local authority level, with particular focus on agriculture, wastewater and industrial discharges. She has strong belief in the power of communities to effect change and was instrumental in establishing the Maigue Rivers Trust.
Catherine Vilquin
Catherine Vilquin is a distinguished urban planner and building architect, and Partner at XMU-Urbanistes. With a career spanning over a decade on projects in vulnerable territories with limited resources, including the Mekong Delta, Haiti, and Peru, she has deep experience in applying thoughtful, contextual design to complex environments. In 2016, she joined XMU to bring that global insight to local Belgian contexts. A deeply committed environmental advocate, Catherine recently earned two certificates in permaculture design (PDC 2022 & 2024), integrating water, soil, biodiversity, and greenery into every mission XMU takes on. Her approach ensures that urban development respects natural systems while enhancing ecological resilience. She also holds significant leadership roles at the European level. Catherine has served on the Executive Board of the European Council of Spatial Planners (ECTP-CEU) as a Belgian delegate from the Chamber of Urban Planners of Belgium (CUB) since 2019, and represents the CUB in relations with IFLA-Europe.
