Board Members

Joseph F. Azrack

Principal Owner
Azrack & Company

Joseph Azrack is the principal owner of Azrack & Company, a real estate investment and advisory firm based in New York City. He is a board and investment committee member of Regency Centers (NYSE: “REG”), the Berkshire Group, and Safanad, Inc. Previously, Mr. Azrack was the Chairman and Managing Partner of Apollo Global Real Estate. […]

Joseph Azrack is the principal owner of Azrack & Company, a real estate investment and advisory firm based in New York City. He is a board and investment committee member of Regency Centers (NYSE: “REG”), the Berkshire Group, and Safanad, Inc. Previously, Mr. Azrack was the Chairman and Managing Partner of Apollo Global Real Estate. At that time, he was also a member of the Apollo Global Management (NYSE: “APO”) Senior Management Committee, and Chairman and CEO of Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance (NYSE: “ARI”).

Mr. Azrack has over 30 years experience in real estate investment, management and development. Prior to joining Apollo, Mr. Azrack was Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Citi Property Investors (“CPI”) where he chaired the firm’s Management and Investment Committees and directed investment policy and strategy. While at Citi, he was also a member of the Citigroup Alternative Investments Management and Investment Committees, and a member of Citi Infrastructure Investment Committee. Prior to joining CPI, he was Chief Executive and Chairman of AEW Capital Management, L.P., and Founder and Chairman of AEW Europe. While at AEW, Mr. Azrack was the lead partner and board member of numerous public and private investee portfolio companies and operating platforms.

In 2015, Mr Azrack was appointed by Rhode Island Governor Gina Raimondo as the Chairman of the Rhode Island I-195 Redevelopment District Commission, in which capacity he served until 2018. Mr. Azrack holds an M.B.A. from Columbia University and a B.S. from Villanova University. He is Adjunct Professor at Columbia University’s Graduate School of Business where he created the curriculum for and teaches Real Estate Entrepreneurship. He is a member of, and for many years chaired, the Business School’s Millstein Center Real Estate Advisory Board. Mr. Azrack is a member and past Chairman of the Pension Real Estate Association (PREA), and a member and former Trustee, Officer and Director of the Urban Land Institute. He is also a 2020 Harvard University Advanced Leadership Initiative Fellow.

Country: United States

David Brand

Founder and CEO
New Forests Pty Limited

David Brand has over 35 years’ experience in business management, investment management, science, public policy, public administration, and international affairs working with a wide range of public and private sector organisations in the forestry sector of Canada and Australia. He is founder and CEO of international investment management business New Forests and also is an […]

David Brand has over 35 years’ experience in business management, investment management, science, public policy, public administration, and international affairs working with a wide range of public and private sector organisations in the forestry sector of Canada and Australia. He is founder and CEO of international investment management business New Forests and also is an Executive Director and Chair of the Investment Committees and Management Committees of the firm. He is currently Chair of sawmilling business Timberlink Australia New Zealand, Chair of Tasmanian forestry business Forico, a Director of Forest Trends, and a Trustee of Bangkok-based Inter-governmental organization The Centre for People and Forests. He has published widely on the international forestry sector and speaks at a range of conferences on forests, climate change and responsible investment.

Country: Australia

Sally Collins

Former Associate Chief, United States Forest Service

Sally Collins has spent more than 35 years in natural resource management. She worked for the Department of Interior’s (DOI) Bureau of Land Management in Wilderness, Environmental Planning. and Energy Minerals policy in Colorado, as a land use planner for the Siuslaw National Forest, and as the Forest Supervisor for the Deschutes National Forest in Bend, OR. […]

Sally Collins has spent more than 35 years in natural resource management. She worked for the Department of Interior’s (DOI) Bureau of Land Management in Wilderness, Environmental Planning. and Energy Minerals policy in Colorado, as a land use planner for the Siuslaw National Forest, and as the Forest Supervisor for the Deschutes National Forest in Bend, OR. In 2000, she moved to Washington, D.C. where she served as Associate Chief for the U.S. Forest Service for 13 years. In 2008, she was selected as the first Director of the USDA Office of Environmental Markets, working for the Secretary of Agriculture to promote markets for ecosystem services provided by farms, forests, and ranches across the country. She left the federal government in 2010 and has been consulting for various organizations on international forestry, climate change, and environmental markets. She has chaired the Lyons, CO Watershed and Flood Recovery Board since the 2013 catastrophic flood that destroyed 20% of the town’s infrastructure.

She received her BS from the University of Colorado and her Master’s from the University of Wyoming in Political Science and Natural Resource Management.

Country: United States

Linda Coady


Council of Forest Industries

Linda Coady is a subject matter expert on corporate sustainability, with a track record of helping to solve issues with complex social, environmental, and economic interdependencies. She recently retired from her role as Executive Director of the Pembina Institute. Prior to joining the Pembina Institute, she was Chief Sustainability Officer of Enbridge, with responsibility for […]

Linda Coady is a subject matter expert on corporate sustainability, with a track record of helping to solve issues with complex social, environmental, and economic interdependencies. She recently retired from her role as Executive Director of the Pembina Institute.

Prior to joining the Pembina Institute, she was Chief Sustainability Officer of Enbridge, with responsibility for the company’s social and environmental performance at an enterprise-wide level. Linda served as Vice-President of Sustainability for the Vancouver 2010 Olympics. She is also a former Vice-President of World Wildlife Fund Canada (WWF-Canada), and a former Vice-President of Weyerhaeuser Canada.

Ms. Coady’s work on sustainable development has been recognized with awards from Canadian Business for Social Responsibility, the Ecological Society of America, the YWCA, and the Globe Foundation for Business and Environment. From 2010-2012 she was a Distinguished Fellow at the Liu Institute for Global Issues at the University of British Columbia (UBC). She has consulted locally and globally on sustainability issues in the forestry, mining, shipping and sport industries, as well as in the environmental conservation sector.

Country: Canada

Whitney Debevoise

Partner
Arnold & Porter

Whitney Debevoise is a partner at the law firm of Arnold & Porter and a specialist in sovereign finance and US international economic policy. He served as US Executive Director at the World Bank and is a member of the Advisory Council of the Bretton WoUods Committee. He has lived and worked in Argentina, Brazil, […]

Whitney Debevoise is a partner at the law firm of Arnold & Porter and a specialist in sovereign finance and US international economic policy. He served as US Executive Director at the World Bank and is a member of the Advisory Council of the Bretton WoUods Committee. He has lived and worked in Argentina, Brazil, France, and the UK and speaks French, Portuguese, and Spanish. He is the owner of a small wood lot in Vermont. 

Country: United States

John E. Earhart

Chairman and Founding Partner
Global Environment Fund (USA)

John is the co-founding partner of the Global Environment Fund (GEF), a US-based financial advisory group with over $1 billion in global private equity placements since 1990.  GEF focuses investments on businesses that improve the environment, quality of human life, and the sustainable management of natural resources.  Although recently stepping down as firm chairman, he […]

John is the co-founding partner of the Global Environment Fund (GEF), a US-based financial advisory group with over $1 billion in global private equity placements since 1990.  GEF focuses investments on businesses that improve the environment, quality of human life, and the sustainable management of natural resources.  Although recently stepping down as firm chairman, he continues to serve as a director of portfolio companies and on investment committees of GEF-managed funds.  Mr. Earhart served as Managing Director of GEF’s Emerging Markets Forestry Fund and chairs the investment committee of the Africa Sustainable Forestry Fund. He also sits on for-profit and non-profit boards not related to GEF.  Earhart has been active in the international environmental and conservation fields for more than 45 years and has lived and worked in several countries.  He is an environmental resource management graduate of California State University, Sacramento and holds a Master’s of Forestry degree from Yale University.

Country: United States

Robert “Bob” Fanch

Owner
Devil's Thumb Ranch

Robert “Bob” Fanch has more than 38 years of experience in organizing and managing businesses, with the longest portion of his career devoted to the telecommunications industry. Mr. Fanch was the founder as well as Chairman and CEO of Fanch Communications, Inc. (FCI). FCI was one of the top fifteen cable television MSOs in the […]

Robert “Bob” Fanch has more than 38 years of experience in organizing and managing businesses, with the longest portion of his career devoted to the telecommunications industry. Mr. Fanch was the founder as well as Chairman and CEO of Fanch Communications, Inc. (FCI). FCI was one of the top fifteen cable television MSOs in the country, managing more than 600,000 customers, including approximately 525,000 subscribers in a joint venture with Time Warner and The Blackstone Group. FCI was purchased by Charter Communications in November of 1999.

In 1996 Mr. Fanch founded FiberNet, LLC, and 1999, Conversent Communications, LLC, each a competitive local exchange carrier (CLEC) that served the mid-Atlantic and northeastern United States, respectively. Mr. Fanch served as Conversent’s Chairman and CEO from June 1998 through the spring of 2000, and as Chairman through the successful sale of the company in June 2006. Mr. Fanch was also Chairman of FiberNet. In 2003 Mr. Fanch acquired Northeast Data Vault, LLC, a commercial data center located near Boston, Massachusetts.

In 2007, Mr. Fanch founded Viridian Capital Partners, an $80 million capital fund with investments in data centers, tower sites, a mobile marketing/technology company, and one of the largest online wedding vendor advertising platforms. He has also engaged in real estate development through various entities, most recently completing redevelopment of one of the last great historic buildings in Denver.

Growing up near the Adirondack Mountains, Mr. Fanch has always admired the great lodges and beauty of the mountains. Disappointed with developers who did not have plans to preserve the beauty of the land, he created Devil’s Thumb Ranch, an environmentally-friendly resort on 6,000 acres in Tabernash, Colorado. Travel + Leisure magazine recently named Devil’s Thumb one of the top 20 “sustainable” resorts in the world and the only resort in North America to be awarded this honor. The mission to use sustainable materials and eco-friendly practices was so successful that in 2004, the US Environmental Protection Agency honored Devil Thumb’s Ranch for measures such as using geo-thermal energy to heat the cabins and other buildings, and building an eco-friendly wastewater treatment system.

Mr. Fanch also spearheaded the creation of the Headwaters Center and Headwaters River Journey located in Winter Park, Colorado. Situated right along the Fraser River, the museum focuses on the local ecosystem, the real issues it faces, such as diversions to the Front Range and rising temperatures, and features local stories of people taking steps to preserve Grand County’s rivers. Visitors are able to learn through reading, watching videos, and interacting with over 30 exhibits such as the Headwaters River Journey. This exhibit takes visitors on a journey to discover where their water comes from, the details of the river environment, how water is used and wasted, and what is being done to protect this precious resource. This Headwaters River Journey is the only off-the-grid exhibit in the country, powered completely by solar, and utilizes local beetle kill wood and old water flumes in the design.

Mr. Fanch is a Certified Public Accountant and has a B.S. degree in Accounting from Clarkson University. He earned an MSBA-Finance degree from the University of Denver.

Country: United States

Lyndon Haviland

Leader, Facilitator, Storyteller, Social Entrepreneur

Lyndon Haviland holds a masters and doctorate degree in public health from Columbia University’s Joseph L. Mailman School of Public Health, and has completed Advanced Management & Leadership training at Harvard Business School. In 1993, she was awarded The John and Kathleen Gorman Public Health Humanitarian Award from Columbia University. With more than 30 years […]

Lyndon Haviland holds a masters and doctorate degree in public health from Columbia University’s Joseph L. Mailman School of Public Health, and has completed Advanced Management & Leadership training at Harvard Business School. In 1993, she was awarded The John and Kathleen Gorman Public Health Humanitarian Award from Columbia University.

With more than 30 years experience in domestic and international public health, Dr. Haviland has worked with a wide range of organizations including UNAIDS, the UN Department of Public Information, the UN Foundation, UN Women, the UN Development Program, the World Health Organization (WHO), the International Organization for Migration (IOM), the International Medical Corps, the CUNY School of Public Health, the American Public Health Association (APHA), Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Services (LIRS), the American Legacy Foundation, Earth Echo International, GAVI, Darkness to Light, Policy Wisdom, Forest Trends, and the Aspen Institute.

Highly respected as a leader, moderator, speaker, author, and fundraiser, Lyndon has advised heads of state and agency leaders on maternal and child health, access to vaccines, sexual and reproductive health, tobacco control, and health promotion/disease prevention. She is a passionate advocate for human rights and is dedicated to bringing individuals and organizations together to achieve lasting social change.

Country: United States

Miguel Serediuk Milano

Chairman, Board of Directors
Instituto LIFE

Miguel is the Chairman of the Board of Directors of Instituto LIFE (Brazil), Director of Permian Global in Brazil, and also owner and director of consulting firm Milano Consultoria & Planejamento. A former professor of Universidade Federal do Parana and visiting professor at Colorado State University, he is also member of the governing boards of […]

Miguel is the Chairman of the Board of Directors of Instituto LIFE (Brazil), Director of Permian Global in Brazil, and also owner and director of consulting firm Milano Consultoria & Planejamento. A former professor of Universidade Federal do Parana and visiting professor at Colorado State University, he is also member of the governing boards of FUNBIO (the Brazilian Fund of Biodiversity), Fundo Vale, Fundação Neotropica do Brasil, and environmental news website Associacao O Eco.

Miguel holds a bachelor’s degree in Forest Engineering and master’s and doctoral degrees in Forest Science, all from the Universidade Federal do Paraná. Miguel’s main areas of work include natural resources conservation and protected areas management, land and open space planning and management, urban forestry, and sustainability more broadly. As a coordinator, consultant, or member of technical teams he worked on over 35 projects dealing with those issues, including projects for the World Bank, FAO, UNDP, GTZ, and Kreditanstalt fur Wiederaufbau (Germany). He has also authored or co-authored more than 80 published papers, and advised close to 30 Msc Thesis and Doctorate dissertations while a professor at Universidade Federal d Parana (1981-2004).

Country: Brazil

Yuejia Peng

Founder & Director
hub101.earth

Yuejia has over two decades of experience across private sector finance, consulting and research at Goldman Sachs, IHS Market and S&P Global. She has worked with a diverse set of clients in over 20 countries on corporate and climate strategy, developed key decision-making and carbon-pricing economic models, authored top-rated reports on environmental policy and markets, […]

Yuejia has over two decades of experience across private sector finance, consulting and research at Goldman Sachs, IHS Market and S&P Global. She has worked with a diverse set of clients in over 20 countries on corporate and climate strategy, developed key decision-making and carbon-pricing economic models, authored top-rated reports on environmental policy and markets, as well as designing and delivering bespoke training workshops focusing on carbon, nature and environmental topics.

Yuejia specializes in the economic and social incentives that drives climate, biodiversity and development goals. Her areas of expertise include global compliance and voluntary carbon markets and pricing, climate and nature-based financing and policy, with a special focus on innovation and improving accessibility.

In late 2023, she founded hub101.eartha not-for-profit global open access hub for capacity building and knowledge sharing in climate, nature and people-centred solutions for Global South audiences and youth groups. She believes that empowering people to make better decisions – big or small – is the only way to scale progress.

Yuejia is Chinese-Zimbabwean – she lives in London with her husband, three kids, two cats and a dog. She holds a Bachelor of Science in maths and economics and a Master’s degree in gender and development from the London School of Economics, as well as a Master’s degree in economics from Cambridge University, United Kingdom.

Country: United Kingdom

Manuel Pulgar-Vidal

Climate Chief
WWF

Manuel Pulgar-Vidal is the Global Leader of Climate & Energy at WWF. He has more than three decades of experience in environmental law and policy and served as Minister of the Environment of Peru (2011 to 2016) and President of the Twentieth Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change […]

Manuel Pulgar-Vidal is the Global Leader of Climate & Energy at WWF. He has more than three decades of experience in environmental law and policy and served as Minister of the Environment of Peru (2011 to 2016) and President of the Twentieth Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change – COP20 in 2014.

Pulgar-Vidal was the Executive Director of the Peruvian Society for Environmental Law, an influential institution in Latin America. He has a law degree from the Pontificia Universidad Católica del Perú, where he is a professor, and has completed studies for a master’s degree in Business Law at the Universidad Peruana de Ciencias Aplicadas. He is a board member of Forest Trends, Amazon Conservation Association and Peruvian Society of Environmental Law and a member of the Assembly of the World Wide Fund for Nature – Colombia.

He has recently been added to the Aspen Institute Management and Leadership Advisory Group and is the chairman of the evaluation council of the French sovereign Green Bonds. He is an active member of different groups aiming to get strong outcomes as a part of the formal climate talks and the non-party stakeholders’ agenda. He has been recognized by the governments of France, Germany, and Spain and by the Royal Scottish Geographical Society for his contribution to the Paris Agreement.

Country: Peru

Carole B. Segal

President
Segal Family Foundation

Carole Segal is the co-founder of Crate and Barrel, the founder and former CEO of Foodstuffs, and the president of the Segal Family Foundation. Mrs. Segal is a trustee of Rush University Medical Center and chairman of the Board of Governors at Rush University. She is a trustee emeritus of Bates College, a life trustee […]

Carole Segal is the co-founder of Crate and Barrel, the founder and former CEO of Foodstuffs, and the president of the Segal Family Foundation. Mrs. Segal is a trustee of Rush University Medical Center and chairman of the Board of Governors at Rush University. She is a trustee emeritus of Bates College, a life trustee of Illinois Institute of Technology, a trustee of Chicago Theological Seminary, and serves on the Board of Overseers of Colorado Mountain College. Carole is also a co-chair of the Illinois Business Immigration Coalition (IBIC) and a co-chair of the American Business Immigration Coalition (ABIC).

Country: United States

Harris Sherman

Former Under Secretary for Natural Resources and the Environment, US Department of Agriculture

Harris Sherman has served as the Under Secretary for Natural Resources & the Environment at USDA overseeing the United States Forest Service and the Natural Resources Conservation Service during the administration of President Barack Obama. He has also served as Colorado’s Director of Natural Resources under two different Colorado governors and represented Colorado on many […]

Harris Sherman has served as the Under Secretary for Natural Resources & the Environment at USDA overseeing the United States Forest Service and the Natural Resources Conservation Service during the administration of President Barack Obama. He has also served as Colorado’s Director of Natural Resources under two different Colorado governors and represented Colorado on many national and interstate councils.

Between his governmental service, Mr. Sherman was Managing Partner of the Denver office of Arnold & Porter, an international law firm, representing clients on a wide range of natural resource issues. He has pioneered methods to streamline environmental reviews at the federal, state and local levels and has initiated innovative public/private partnerships addressing critical natural resource challenges.

Mr. Sherman currently heads the natural resources consulting firm of Harris Sherman & Associates, LLC and co-chairs the Board of Directors of Forest Trends. He received his law degree from Columbia University Law School and his BA from Colorado College.

Country: United States

Sergey Tsyplenkov

Environmental Expert

Sergey was the Director of Greenpeace Russia. From 1993 – 1998 he was a head of its Forest Program. Sergey was a member of and participated in the activities of the World Bank’s CEO’s Forum on Forests from 1998-2000. In 1999 he joined the Board of Directors of the NGO Forest Trends based in Washington, […]

Sergey was the Director of Greenpeace Russia. From 1993 – 1998 he was a head of its Forest Program. Sergey was a member of and participated in the activities of the World Bank’s CEO’s Forum on Forests from 1998-2000. In 1999 he joined the Board of Directors of the NGO Forest Trends based in Washington, D.C. where he currently is Vice Chair. He has been a member of the Council of Biodiversity Conservation Center in Moscow since 1999 and a member of initiator group and member of Federal Head-quarter of first All-Russian environmental referendum since 2000. Between 2005 and 2007, Sergey was one of the initiators of the Civil G8 process in Russia and in 2006 he was member of “National Working Group Civil G8. In 2009 he joined the Presidential Council for Human Rights and Civil Society Development where he is still an active member.

Sergey has authored more than 35 articles and papers on hydrology and meteorology as well as forest, forestry and forest ecology. He has been a participating member of fifteen oceanography, geographical, environmental and forestry expeditions in the Atlantic Ocean, Baltic and Black sea as well as expeditions to around Russia from the Kola Peninsula in the North to Baikal Lake and the Russian Far East. Sergey holds a BA and MA degrees from Moscow State University’s School of Geography.

Country: Russia

Bettina von Hagen

CEO and Managing Director
EFM Investments & Advisory

Bettina helped launch EFM Investments and Advisory and joined as CEO in 2008. EFM has over $200M in capital under management and advisement and manages 130,000 acres in the western US on behalf of investors for carbon sequestration, biodiversity, water protection, timber production, rural job creation and tribal land repatriation, as well as advising on […]

Bettina helped launch EFM Investments and Advisory and joined as CEO in 2008. EFM has over $200M in capital under management and advisement and manages 130,000 acres in the western US on behalf of investors for carbon sequestration, biodiversity, water protection, timber production, rural job creation and tribal land repatriation, as well as advising on natural climate solutions projects globally. A former vice president of Ecotrust’s Natural Capital Fund and commercial banker, Bettina has over 25 years of experience in impact investing, fund management, forest management and conservation finance. She also has significant expertise in emerging markets in ecosystem services, particularly the forest carbon market.  Prior to joining Ecotrust in 1993, she was a vice president and commercial lender at First Interstate Bank of Oregon. Bettina has an MBA from the University of Chicago and a BA from the University of the Pacific. She currently serves on the boards of Forest Trends and Ecotrust Investments.  Bettina was born in Peru and holds Peruvian and American citizenship.

Country: United States

Michael Jenkins

Founding President and CEO
Forest Trends

Michael Jenkins is the founding President and CEO of Forest Trends. From 1989-1999, he was the Associate Director for the Global Security and Sustainability Program of the MacArthur Foundation. In 1998, Michael was in a joint appointment as a Senior Forestry Advisor to the World Bank. Before entering the MacArthur Foundation, he worked for three […]

Michael Jenkins is the founding President and CEO of Forest Trends. From 1989-1999, he was the Associate Director for the Global Security and Sustainability Program of the MacArthur Foundation. In 1998, Michael was in a joint appointment as a Senior Forestry Advisor to the World Bank. Before entering the MacArthur Foundation, he worked for three years as an agro-forester in Haiti with the USAID Agroforestry Outreach Program. Previous to that, he was a technical advisor for a Washington-based development organization, Appropriate Technology International. In the late 1970s, Michael was a Peace Corps volunteer in Paraguay working in agriculture, apiculture, and forestry projects. He has traveled and worked throughout Latin America, Asia and parts of Africa, and speaks Spanish, French, Portuguese, Creole, and Guaraní.

Michael holds a Master’s of Forest Science from Yale University and has contributed to and authored numerous books/publications, including The Business of Sustainable Forestry: Strategies for an Industry in Transition and Capital Markets and Sustainable Forestry: Opportunities for Investment.

In 2010 he received the Skoll Award for Social Entrepreneurship and in 2015 the Social Entrepreneur Award from the Schwab Foundation. Also in 2015, Forest Trends was awarded the 2015 Award for Creative and Effective Institutions from the MacArthur Foundation.

Country: United States

Emeritus Board

Richard Burrett

Partner
Earth Capital Partners

Richard Burrett is a Partner at Earth Capital Partners – a company specializing in investments that address the challenges of sustainable development. He has spent over 30 years involved in international finance. As Global Head of Project Finance at ABN AMRO he was instrumental in the creation of the Equator Principles, a market-recognized standard for […]

Richard Burrett is a Partner at Earth Capital Partners – a company specializing in investments that address the challenges of sustainable development. He has spent over 30 years involved in international finance. As Global Head of Project Finance at ABN AMRO he was instrumental in the creation of the Equator Principles, a market-recognized standard for managing environmental and social risk issues in project financing and went on to become Global Head of Sustainability. Richard is a Fellow of the University of Cambridge Institute for Sustainability Leadership and Senior Adviser to the Earth Security Group. He is a FMO nominated non-Exec Board Director of Union Bank of Nigeria and former Co-Chair of the UNEP Financial Initiative.

Country: United Kingdom

Martha Isabel “Pati” Ruiz Corzo

Founder
Grupo Ecológico Sierra Gorda IAP

Martha “Pati” Ruiz Corzo is a recognized leader for building a bottom-up civil conservation movement in central Mexico. Located in the Sierra Gorda Mountains, Pati and her husband began organizing concerned citizens for a regional rescue program based on environmental education, economic development, forestry management, and community development specifically directed to women who are the […]

Martha “Pati” Ruiz Corzo is a recognized leader for building a bottom-up civil conservation movement in central Mexico. Located in the Sierra Gorda Mountains, Pati and her husband began organizing concerned citizens for a regional rescue program based on environmental education, economic development, forestry management, and community development specifically directed to women who are the heads of household in the rural extreme poverty communities due to high rates of migration of working age men to the USA.

Through Pati’s leadership, Sierra Gorda became the first natural protected area in the country to be designated in response to a bottom-up consensus. Then-president Ernesto Zedillo designated her as the federal director of the new Sierra Gorda Biosphere Reserve in order to guarantee the involvement of the local communities which number over 600 with a population of 100,000 in a surface area of 1 million acres.

As a social entrepreneur recognized by the Ashoka: Innovators for the Public since 1996, the Schwab foundation for Social Entrepreneurship and the World Economic Forum since 2001, and the Rolex Prize for Enterprise in 2002, and on-going accompaniment of this initiative in the region since 1987, Pati is the leader of a widespread  grassroots movement for almost 20 years, defending the integrity of this mega-diverse region and actively implementing alternatives for social and economic development towards regional sustainable development.

Country: Mexico

Randy Hayes

Executive Director
Foundation Earth

Randy Hayes is Executive Director at Foundation Earth, a new organization rethinking a human order that works within the planet’s life support systems. As a former filmmaker and Rainforest Action Network founder, he is a veteran of many high-visibility corporate accountability campaigns and has advocated for the rights of Indigenous peoples. He served seven years as […]

Randy Hayes is Executive Director at Foundation Earth, a new organization rethinking a human order that works within the planet’s life support systems. As a former filmmaker and Rainforest Action Network founder, he is a veteran of many high-visibility corporate accountability campaigns and has advocated for the rights of Indigenous peoples. He served seven years as President of The City of San Francisco Commission on the Environment, and as Director of Sustainability in the office of Oakland Mayor Jerry Brown (now governor). As a wilderness lover, Hayes has explored the High Sierras, the Canadian Rockies and the rainforests of the Amazon, Central America, Congo, Southeast Asia, Borneo, and Australia. He is a special advisor to the World Future Council. He has been described in the Wall Street Journal as “an environmental pit bull.” Hayes also spent four years working at the International Forum on Globalization, a San Francisco-based think tank tasked with analyzing the cultural, social, political, and environmental impacts of economic globalization. Randy sits on about eight non-profit Boards of Directors and numerous Boards of Advisors. He guest lectures in Green MBA programs at Presidio School of Management and Bard.

Hayes holds a Master’s degree in Environmental Planning from San Francisco State University (Inducted in Alumni Hall of Fame scheduled May 2010). His master’s thesis, the award-winning film “The Four Corners,” won the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences award for Best Student Documentary in 1983. He contributed to Alternatives to Economic Globalization: A Better World is Possible, published in 2004. Not satisfied with short-term thinking, his 500-year plan offers a vision of a sustainable society and how to get there. His corporate campaign activist peers honored Hayes in 2008 with an Individual Achievement Award, given by the Business Ethics Network. His current focus is a strategy to halt the 6th Great Extinction – Nature Needs Half and how do we rebuild post-collapse since humanity doesn’t seem able to solve its serious assault on the planet’s life support systems.

Country: United States