Keynote Speaker: Jennie C. Stephens, Dean's Professor of Sustainability Science and Policy at Northeastern University

Jennie C. Stephens is a feminist climate justice scholar-activist with a environmental science and engineering background. She is the Dean’s Professor of Sustainability Science and Policy at Northeastern University in Boston and a 2023-2024 Radcliffe-Salata Climate Justice Fellow at Harvard University. She is an international expert on climate justice, energy democracy, and climate obstruction, focusing on the urgent need for coordinated fossil fuel phaseout and justice-centered policies. Her research reveals the dangers of “climate isolationism,” the common framing of the climate crisis as a scientific problem needing technical solutions. She is the author of Diversifying Power: Why We Need Antiracist, Feminist Leadership on Climate and Energy (Island Press, 2020), and Climate Justice and the University: Shaping a Hopeful Future for All (Johns Hopkins University Press, forthcoming in 2024). In-Person Expo.

Annalise McDonnell, Development and Communications Associate at Nurturing Minds

Annalise McDonnell is a Development and Communications Associate at Nurturing Minds, a non-profit organization dedicated to empowering at-risk girls in Tanzania by providing entrepreneurship skills and education. Driven by a fervent commitment to social impact and the empowerment of women through education, Annalise brings a background in journalism and a deep passion for global communities to her work. She excels in forging connections and nurturing relationships that drive positive change. In-Person Expo.

Mar Rosati, Executive Director at Proyecto Florecer

Thought leader, visionary, serial dreamer, and world traveler, Mar Rosati calls upon three decades of experience as a sales and marketing executive in the technology industry, along with years of international volunteering in crisis relief work and community food bank and soup kitchen management, to lead Proyecto Florecer through the maze of international finance and donor relations. Mar cultivates the foundation’s relationship with global corporate giants like the United Nations, Microsoft, and UPS while mobilizing a small army of worldwide advisors, partners, and volunteers. She is the driving force behind Proyecto Florecer’s entrepreneurial programs, like STEMprendimiento, an entrepreneurship education program for teens based on Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics. In-Person Expo.

Farah Samawi, Development Coordinator at Islamic Relief USA

Farah Samawi is a dedicated advocate with a background in psychology. She received her Bachelor's degree from Smith College, where she majored in Psychology, focusing on Community Ethics and Social Change. Upon graduating, Farah served as a research coordinator at the Center for Mindfulness and Compassion before transitioning to being a qualitative research specialist in the field of consumer insights. Now, as the Development Coordinator at Islamic Relief USA, she blends her academic foundation and research skills with a passion for positive change, leading fundraising initiatives to support humanitarian efforts. In-Person Expo.

Katy Troyer, Executive Director at Kibera Girls Soccer Academy Foundation

Katy Troyer is the Executive Director of the KGSA Foundation, which provides financial and technical support to the Kibera Girls Soccer Academy, a free high school that serves 150 girls in the Kibera slums of Nairobi, Kenya. She worked with a Mayan women’s association in Guatemala for two years and is passionate about girls’ empowerment and local solutions. Prior to becoming KGSA’s Executive Director, Katy worked at Global Dental Relief for a decade, coordinating pediatric dental projects in India, Nepal, Cambodia, Guatemala, Mexico, and Kenya. She received a Bachelor of Arts in Spanish and Latin American Studies from Kalamazoo College and a Master of Arts in International Development from the University of Denver. In-Person & Virtual Expo.

Khaleda Popal, Founder & Director of Girl Power Organisation

Khalida Popal is the Founder and Director of the Girl Power Organisation. She is also the former captain of the Afghanistan National Women’s Football Team and played a pivotal role in establishing the team. Popal is a dedicated women’s rights activist passionate about greater inclusion and integration of refugees. She has been awarded numerous awards, including the Leaders in Sports U40 Class of 2019 Award, the UEFA Equal Game Award, and The Lantos Human Rights Prize, which was presented by the Lantos Foundation. In-Person & Virtual Expo.

ElsaMarie D’Silva, Founder and CEO of Red Dot Foundation

ElsaMarie D’Silva is an Indian gender activist, founder and CEO of Red Dot Foundation (Safecity), and President of Red Dot Foundation Global. Safecity is a platform that crowdsources personal stories of sexual harassment and abuse in public spaces. This data gets aggregated as hot spots on a map indicating trends at a local level. Since Safecity started in December 2012, it has become the largest crowd map on the issue in India, Kenya, Cameroon, and Nepal. ElsaMarie is listed as one of BBC Hindi’s 100 Women and has won the Vital Voices Global Leadership Award, Female Entrepreneur of the Year Award, Niti Aayog’s #WomenTransformingIndia award and SheThePeople’s Digital Woman Award in Social Impact. In-Person & Virtual Expo.

Bob Hall, Board Member of The Community Bots

Bob Hall graduated from the University of Mass School of Public Health in 1995 with a Master of Science in Epidemiology. He works for VA Boston Healthcare Research as an Informatics/Data Analytics scientist, where he manages a group that employs Artificial Intelligence in clinical trials. He has many years of experience in public health, epidemiology, medical writing, and data analytics to improve health and support research innovation. He’s worked with The Community Bots Board for the past 5 years, guiding the Bots with data collection and analysis of student and teacher surveys they collect during their summer programs. Bob also works as a museum educator at the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum in Boston. In-Person & Virtual Expo.

María Liliana Mor, Director of Development and Strategic Partnerships of Pro Mujer

María Liliana Mor is the Director of Strategic Partnerships and Development of Pro Mujer. She fosters alliances and structures financial vehicles to promote women’s financial inclusion, impact investing, entrepreneurship, and health in the region. Her knowledge focuses on vulnerable communities, community-based growth, humanitarian assistance, and the future of work. María has worked at The Trust for the Americas-Organization of American States for 12 years. She led the implementation of innovation, open government, economic opportunities, and technology for good social programs in 21 Latin American and Caribbean countries. In addition, Mor directed the institutional initiative to bring gender and accessibility perspectives to all of these projects. In-Person & Virtual Expo.

Patricia Bermudez, Co-Founder of Hopeful Hearts 4 Haiti

Patricia Bermudez is the Co-Found of Hopeful Hearts 4 Haiti, and was born in Port-au-Prince, Haiti. Her studies include a Master’s in Business Administration and a Ph.D. from Seton Hall University. She has vast experience in Pharmaceutical, Biotechnology, and Innovative Medicine. She leads a happily married life with three well-settled kids in Pennsylvania. She has taught her kids her values and is a philanthropist who loves to keep in touch with organizations helping humanitarian causes globally, especially in Haiti. She is also a Board Member of the Estates of Great Bear Associations and a proud member of the NAACP. In-Person & Virtual Expo.

Mary-Elizabeth Estrada, Research and Policy Associate of Women's Earth and Climate Action Network

Mary-Elizabeth (Mary Liz) Estrada is a Latinx woman born and raised in Florida with ancestral roots from Cuba, Ireland, and Hungary. She received her MA in Global Sustainability with a concentration in Sustainability Policy from the University of South Florida and holds certificates in Spirituality and Agroecology from Florida International University. As the Research and Policy Associate for WECAN, she focuses on divestment from fossil fuels, eco-feminist policies, Indigenous and new economy principles, the global Just Transition movement, and supporting the work of frontline women and gender diverse leaders. Virtual Expo.

Xiomara Acevedo, Director of Barranquilla+20

Xiomara Acevedo is dedicated to climate and gender justice activism, conservation, and social entrepreneurship. She is the founder and director of Barranquilla+20, a women-led and youth-focused non-governmental organization that embarked on its mission in 2012. Their purpose is to educate and celebrate the leadership of women, children, and youth in the realms of climate change, gender justice, biodiversity, and water-related issues in Colombia and throughout the Latin American and Caribbean region. Barranquilla+20 has reached over 30,000 individuals through a multitude of campaigns, projects, and initiatives. Barranquilla+20 Foundation has been selected as one of the 10 Generation Equality youth grantees by the Gates Foundation. In 2023, the organization was awarded the Intercultural Innovation Award from the United Nations Alliance for Civilizations and BMW Foundation. Virtual Expo.

Mona Behl, Co-Chair of Professional Development for Earth Science Women’s Network

Mona is a memeber of the Associate Board for Earth Science Women's Network. She serves as the associate director of NOAA's Sea Grant Program at the University of Georgia, where she also holds public service and academic appointments. She is responsible for providing administrative and financial leadership to Georgia Sea Grant that includes developing the program’s strategic plan, directing its research and education portfolios, building partnerships, and demonstrating the relevance and impact of Sea Grant’s work in Georgia. Mona is a national award-winning teacher, who co-led the development of Sea Grant's 10-year diversity, equity and inclusion vision, and is the founding member of the American Meteorological Society’s Early Career Leadership Academy. She earned her BSc and MSc in Physics from Panjab University, and PhD in Physical Oceanography from Florida State University. Virtual Expo.

Rehemat Bhatia, Co-Chair of Member Events for Earth Science Women’s Network

Rehemat is a memeber of the Associate Board for Earth Science Women's Network. She's been exploring research council life in the UK over the past few years, facilitating panels and peer reviewing for various environmental science themed funding calls. Currently, she is adventuring in the world of strategy and planning. Outside of her work life, Rehemat loves taking part in science outreach activities, talking to the public and school/community groups about the awesomeness of earth & ocean sciences and foraminifera. Rehemat received her PhD in Earth Sciences from University College London. Her research focused on using the geochemistry of deep time planktic foraminifera to understand more about their palaeoecologies and responses to dramatic climate change. Rehemat also holds an MSci in Geoscience from Royal Holloway (University of London). Virtual Expo.

Lucy McCray, CEO of The Freedom Story

Lucy is passionate about preventing abuse and exploitation before it happens in a holistic way. In her role as CEO of The Freedom Story, an organization preventing child trafficking in Northern Thailand, Lucy helps connect those with a passion for preventing children from experiencing exploitation with those who are vulnerable and in need of support. Lucy holds a Master’s degree in Development Studies from the London School of Economics and an MA in English Literature and History from the University of Edinburgh. When she isn't working, Lucy enjoys hiking in Thailand’s beautiful mountains with her dog, reading, and eating great food with friends. Virtual Expo.