International Coastal Cleanup Day Speakers Biography - The POP Movement

POP Ocean Workshop

Speakers Biography

Introduction and Presentations & Ocean-related issues and projects – an orientation
Ana Hanhausen, POP Ocean and Plastic Oceans Mexico	Mexico	Ana Hanhausen was recently awarded the Youth Medal of Merit by Mexico City’s Congress for her record in fostering climate change awareness and instilling the idea that individual commitment to action is a powerful force for change. She has gained, through work and experience, the capacity to understand the youth’s perspectives on the global environmental challenges we are facing. This has forged her ability to cooperate with people coming from diverse backgrounds and countries. Ana recently graduated with honors as a Chemical Engineer from Mexico City’s Iberoamerican University. Since 2018, she has collaborated with Plastic Oceans Mexico, which is part of an international organization working to minimize plastic pollution in the ocean. In March of 2020, she began collaborating with Protect Our Planet (POP) Movement on its new initiative, POP Ocean, which aims to educate, mentor and support youth-led marine conservation projects. Ana has participated as both speaker and organizer of events and activities to raise awareness on global environmental issues, including the International Sustainability Congress at her university (2017 and 2019) and the World Sustainable Development Forum in 2020, where she presented the perspective of youth on the urgent need for climate action.
Ms. Marisa Lopez, Founder, Bluer Future, M.A. Marine Conservation and Education	St. Thomas	Ms. Marisa Lopez is an Ocean Advocate and a Nonprofit Technology Professional, who weaves her passion for equal representation in leadership into all facets of her career. Inspired by her passion for the ocean, Ms. Lopez founded Bluer Future, a company dedicated to supporting the UN's SDG goals through corporate advisory and consultation. She has been an avid Scuba Diver for more than 20 years and has a Masters in Marine Conservation and Education. Ms. Lopez is the President of Amplify, a nonprofit organization that empowers underrepresented voices to be fearless leaders in tech.
Making your idea a reality
Haaziq Kazi, Ervis Foundation	India	HaaziqKazi is 14 years old and is passionate about the oceans and tackling the plastic problem afflicting oceans and marine life. At the age of 11 he was invited to TED ED talk in New York to talk about his invention, Ervis the Ship, which is designed to clean oceans, with an aim to solve the plastic waste crisis problem. He has spoken on multiple other forums including, TedxGateway Mumbai, TedxJGEC, VJTI college, TedxICEM, Seed and Chips Summit and Economic Times Global Business Summit to raise awareness on the danger of plastic pollution. Haaziq is also a vocal proponent of circular economy and is currently engaged in creating viable solutions on alleviating inefficiencies in current consumption of plastic at a macro level and adhering to the circular economy framework. In addition, Haaziq is working towards creating an awareness campaign and has established an NGO, the Ervis Foundation, wherein he is working with the youthto bring generational change in the way they interact with plastic. Haaziq is currently the Regional Focal Point for SDG14, Youth Constituency for the United Nations Major Group for Children and Youth. He was recently nominated to present his statement on behalf of UNMGCY at the 2020 United Nations session of High-Level Political Forum.
Communicating your message
Sofia Lana Frechilla	Spain	Sofía has a degree in Commerce from the University of Valladolid. She is the co-founder of Verde Agua, an environmental project that has won two national and European entrepreneurship awards, which seeks to reduce the environmental impact of single-use plastics. Within the company, Sofía directs communication and sales.She is also part of the Ocean's Voice movement belonging to YounGo. In addition, she is a facilitator of youth exchange projects financed by the European Commission, and in her final degree project, she dealt with the subject of the Plastics Directive and the market's response to new materials such as compostables. Her goal of climate action is to focus on the environment awareness, having conversations with people from different countries.
Overcoming challenges
Summer Benjamin, POP Ocean and Eco Eaters, USA	St. Thomas	Summer is an avid diver, sailor, and ocean advocate. She is a bilingual high-school student (Spanish/English) with dual citizenship (Antiguan/American). She is also a glider pilot and has received numerous scholarships and accolades. Last year, she started an environmental club called the Earth Warriors. Along with her friends, she initiated the Eco Eaters, a project to reduce single-use plastic at local restaurants and presented the project at the POP Festival in Nuevo Vallarta last summer. Summer also participated in COY 15.
Caroline Sandberg POP Ocean and Eco Eaters, USA	USA	A student at Tahoe Expedition Academy in Truckee, California, Caroline Sandberg is the Co- Founder and President of Earth Warriors, her high school’s environmental club. The Earth Warriors started a project called Eco Eaters, which is focused on helping restaurants around Lake Tahoe reduce their use of single use plastics and raising awareness among customers. Caroline recently led her school in a climate strike in Reno, Nevada, where she was interviewed by a local news station on raising awareness for climate action through simple lifestyle changes. Also, she is heading a project to build a greenhouse at her school to encourage healthy eating habits andplant-based diets. Caroline believes that lifestyle changes are a crucial first step to fighting the greenhouse effect and saving the planet.
Lauren Sandberg, POP Ocean and Eco Eaters, USA	USA	Lauren Sandberg attends Tahoe Expedition Academy in Truckee, California, and is the secretary of Earth Warriors, her high school’s environmental club. The Earth Warriors started a project called Eco Eaters, which focuses on helping restaurants around Lake Tahoe reduce their use of single-use plastics and raise awareness among customers. Currently, she is working with another eco club member to pass a resolution to make her school a part of the Schools for Climate Action organization which calls on Congress to act on climate legislation. She has recently attended and spoke at a local town meeting to encourage the local ski resort to support the Energy Innovation and Carbon Dividend Act, a policy that taxes carbon, and invited people to join the Protect Our Winters group that supports climate action. Lauren believes that local and subnational initiatives such as these can greatly help limit global warming.
Becoming a leader
Dr. Ash Pachauri, Senior Mentor, POP Movement	USA	Dr. Ash Pachauri has a Ph.D. in decision behavior and a master’s degree in international management. Having worked with McKinsey & Company before pursuing a career in the social development arena, Dr. Pachauri’s experience in the fields of development and public health management emerge from a range of initiatives including those of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the UN, and CDC-funded interventions in the US. Dr. Pachauri has been leading initiatives on climate action and sustainable development and their linkages with public health and human rights through both the POP Movement and the World Sustainable Development Forum. With expertise in the use of information technology for development, research, and capacity building of communities in social mobilization and behavior change communication, Dr. Pachauri has been promoting leadership across every field including youth in every part of the world. Widely published, winner of the prestigious Overseas Research Scholarship, awarded for advanced studies in the U.K. and recognized for his academic achievements, Dr. Pachauri pursues interests in research and teaching through ongoing collaboration with academic institutions. Dr. Pachauri has also been recognized by the United Nations through its flagship publication, Portraits of Commitment. Dr. Pachauri is on the Boards and Advisory groups of several organizations.
Scaling your project
Veta Wade, Ocean Advocate & Founder of Fish 'N Fins Inc. (Caribbean)	Montserrat	Veta Wade is a passionate ocean advocate and outreach specialist, experienced in educating youth via empowerment and adventure. Through her outreach work, Veta has been able to engage the community and volunteers of all ages and abilities in embracing marine conservation and ocean confidence. To date, she has engaged over 1,000 children via Fish 'N Fins' programs. As a SIDS (Small Island Developing State) national living at the front line of climate change, she works towards education and increasing Caribbean youth awareness about the marine life and aims to immerse them and inspire them to be passionate ocean leaders.

Speakers for International Coastal Cleanup Day and Launch of the Youth-Led Ocean Action and Advocacy Workshop

International Coastal Cleanup Day

Speakers Biography

September 19th at 7:00 am CST / 2:00 PM CET / 5:30 PM IST

Adv. Afroz Shah, United Nations, Environment Champion of the Earth	India	Afroz Shah is a young Indian lawyer from Mumbai whose name is synonymous with the world’s largest beach clean-up project. In 2016, the UN awarded their top environmental accolade, the Champions of the Earth Award, to Afroz for his work in cleaning up Mumbai’s Versova beach. For more than three years, Afroz has been leading volunteers in manually picking up trash from Versova beach and teaching sustainable waste practices to villagers and people living in slums along the coastline and the creeks leading into it. The movement has grown to see over 70,000 adults and 60,000 students come together over three years to help rid the beach of trash. The increase of volunteers is largely due to Afroz’s efforts on social media, of which WhatsApp is a key vehicle being used across all denominations and social strata - particularly for communicating the dates, time and location of the cleanup. Afroz chooses Broadcast Lists as his favorite feature for communicating the details of the clean-up, which then spreads as recipients pass the message along via their own contacts and groups. The biggest pay-off for the campaign came when olive ridley turtle hatchlings were spotted on the beach. At least 80 olive ridley turtles made their way into the Arabian Sea from nests on the southern end of Versova beach. Not only has the movement brought marine litter to the attention of decision-makers, it is also starting to win back the beach, with less and less trash appearing each month.
H.E. Ms. Ameenah Gurib- Fakim, former President of Mauritius	Mauritius	Ameenah Gurib-Fakim earned a BSc in Chemistry from the University of Surrey (1983) and a Ph.D. from the University of Exeter, UK (1987). She has served as Professor, Dean of Faculty, and Pro Vice Chancellor at the University of Mauritius. Between 2010- 2014, she served as Managing Director at the CIDP for Research and Innovation. She has authored and co-edited 30 books, book chapters and scientific articles in the field of sustainable development. She has been admitted to the Order of the Chevalier dans Ordre des Palmes Académiques by the Government of France in 2010 and the Legion d’Honneur in 2016. She is the recipient of 5 honorary doctorates. Fellow of academies and societies, Ms. Gurib-Fakim received several international prizes including the 2007 L’Oréal-UNESCO Prize for Women in Science and the African Union Commission Award for Women in Science, 2009. On 05 June 2015, she was sworn in as the 6th President and the First Female President of the Republic of Mauritius and served in that capacity until March 2018. In June 2016, she was in the Forbes List of the World's 100 Most Powerful Women and 1st among the Top 100 Women in Africa Forbes List 2017, 2019. She has been honored as one of Foreign Policy’s 2015 Global Thinkers.
Dr. Ash Pachauri, Senior Mentor, POP Movement	USA	Dr. Ash Pachauri has a Ph.D. in decision behavior and a master’s degree in international management. Having worked with McKinsey & Company before pursuing a career in the social development arena, Dr. Pachauri’s experience in the fields of development and public health management emerge from a range of initiatives including those of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the UN, and CDC-funded interventions in the US. Dr. Pachauri has been leading initiatives on climate action and sustainable development and their linkages with public health and human rights through both the POP Movement and the World Sustainable Development Forum. With expertise in the use of information technology for development, research, and capacity building of communities in social mobilization and behavior change communication, Dr. Pachauri has been promoting leadership across every field including youth in every part of the world. Widely published, winner of the prestigious Overseas Research Scholarship, awarded for advanced studies in the U.K. and recognized for his academic achievements, Dr. Pachauri pursues interests in research and teaching through ongoing collaboration with academic institutions. Dr. Pachauri has also been recognized by UNAIDS for his dedication to fighting AIDS through its Portraits of Commitment. Dr. Pachauri is on the Boards and Advisory groups of several organizations.
Mark Minneboo, Regional Director at Plastic Oceans	Chile	Mark Minneboo is one of the world’s foremost experts on plastic pollution and the concept of the circular economy. He serves as the Regional Director of Latin America for Plastic Oceans International, where he has developed a variety of programs based in education, science, and advocacy. Mark is also the co-founder and executive director of Plastic Oceans Chile, where he and his team have worked tirelessly to raise awareness and foster solutions for plastic pollution since 2017. He has played a key role in pushing Chile’s transition towards a Circular Economy, including as a founding board member of the Chilean Plastics Pact. Mark is a frequent speaker, delivering engaging talks to schools, universities, municipalities, corporations and conferences worldwide. He was originally a commercial engineer, and has a Bachelor’s Degree in Education and a diploma in corporate innovation.
Dr. Norma Patricia Muñoz Sevilla, Chairperson, Climate Change Council for the Presidency of the Mexican Republic	México	A renowned biologist, with a PhD in biological oceanography and marine biochemistry specialty, Dr. Norma Patricia Muñoz Sevilla is the head of Climate Change Council for the Presidency of the Mexican Republic. Currently a researcher of the Interdisciplinary Center for Research and Studies on Environment and Development at the National Polytechnic Institute, Mexico she is affiliated with several prestigious environmental organizations. She is a member of the group of ocean experts in UNESCO-IOC, and also of the National Network for Interdisciplinary Research on Climate Change among several other global councils. With around 60 scientific articles and 15 books on coastal zones, environmental deterioration and climate change to her credit, Dr Muñoz also co- authored the National Seas and Coastal Policy of Mexico. In addition to authoring the chapter on ocean, marine ecosystems and their services for the IPCC, Dr. Muñoz has participated in Marine Management of the Gulf of California, Regional Marine Ecological Management of the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea., Regional Marine Planning of the North Pacific and South Central Pacific, Mexico., and National Policy of Seas and Coasts. She is an external advisor for international organizations such as UNESCO, UNEP, UN and UNIDO. She has approximately 41 awards for her professional performance, including the ‘Order of the Academic Palms’, awarded by the Government of the French Republic in 2010.
Dr. Erik Solheim, Founder, World Resource Institute, Washington and Former Executive Director, UNEP	Norway	Erik Solheim is a well-known global leader on environment and development as well as an experienced peace negotiator. He served as the Norwegian Minister of Environment and International Development from 2005 - 2012. During that period, he initiated the global program for conservation of rainforests. He brought Norwegian development assistance to 1%, the highest in the world. Dr. Solheim has been chair of the OECD Development Assistance Committee (the main body of world donors) as well as Executive Director of UN Environment. He led the peace efforts in Sri Lanka as the main negotiator of the peace process and has played a vital role in peace efforts in Nepal, Myanmar, and Sudan. Currently, he is a senior adviser at World Resource Institute and Convener of the Global Coalition for Green Belt and Road and also serves as the CEO of the Plastic REVolution Foundation. The latter is a newly found initiative that aims to eliminate plastic waste and pollution, beginning in Accra, Ghana. Dr. Solheim also advises and leads Green private sector investments.
Commandant M Srivastava, Indian Coast Guard; Research Fellow at National Maritime Foundation	India	Commandant Manoranjan Srivastava joined Indian Coast Guard (ICG) in 1993. The officer is recipient of Director General medal for best all-round performance during training. He has held many prestigious appointments both afloat and ashore. His prominent afloat appointments include Command of Coast Guard Fast Patrol Vessel and Executive Officer of ICG Offshore Patrol Vessel. As Joint director/Director in administration, personnel, training and operations directorate at Coast Guard Headquarters, the officer has been instrumental in various policy formulations and initiatives. The officer hold Master’s degree in Atmospheric Sciences and is a qualified meteorologist. He has represented the 24th Indian Scientific Research to Antarctica in 2004-05. The officer is recipient of Commendation by Director General Indian Coast Guard. Presently, Commandant M Srivastava is with National Maritime Foundation as a Research Fellow.
Johan Ramos, a representative of Warao ethnic group, Venezuela.	Venezuela	Prof. Johan Ramosa is a 23 year-old young man from Warao ethnic group from Delta Amacuro State, Venezuela. He is a Professor of Educational Strategies and Methods for indigenous peoples, computer engineer and specialist in Indian Theology of Latin American Peoples. Executive Secretary of the Indigenous Pastoral of the Warao People, Member of the Panamazonic Ecclesial Network, and defender of Human Rights for the Penal Forum.