World-Class
Thought Leaders

Douty Chibamba is the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Green Economy and Environment in the Republic of Zambia and is responsible for offering technical advice to the Honourable Minister on policy and legislative matters; and general administration of the Ministry in terms of financial and human resource management. He has played a key role in the formulation of policy and legislation for climate change and carbon trading in Zambia. Douty previously served as the Director General of the Zambia Environmental Management Agency, whose mandate is to ensure the sustainable management of natural resources and protection of the environment, prevention and control of pollution, and promotion of sustainable development in Zambia. The Zambia Environmental Management Agency also serves as an independent environmental regulator and coordinating agency.

Douty also previously served as a lecturer in the School of Natural Sciences, Department of Geography and Environmental Studies, at the University of Zambia where he taught a number of courses, including climate change and sustainable development, spatial planning, environmental and natural resources management, geo-information and earth observation, and urban geography. His research interests are in land use and land cover change detection, urban sprawl and restructuring, climate change and sustainable development, and renewable energy and sustainable growth. Douty is a seasoned climate change negotiator and has negotiated for Zambia at several United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) Conferences of Parties meetings (COPs), including COP 21 at which the Paris Agreement was signed.

Mr. Albert Halwampa is the Director General for the Zambia Development Agency and a Chevening Scholar with vast experience in International Trade and Investment.

He has led teams in promotion and facilitation, investment and trade in regional and international markets. He has participated in Bilateral and Multilateral Trade Negotiations that include SADC, COMESA, COMESA-SADC-EAC TFTA, AGOA, EU, African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), Middle East and Chinese Market, Angola and Democratic Republic of Congo. Mr. Halwampa has worked over the years to develop export strategies for both the public and private sector.

He sits on the Board of Zambia Export Development Fund, Investment Committee of the ZCCM–IH Board, and Market Transactions Committee of the Securities and Exchange Commission Board. He has been instrumental in organising conferences for Afreximbank, International Trade Centre, World Bank, and Intra African Trade Fair under the African Union.

Mr. Halwampa holds a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Economics from the University of Zambia and Master of Laws in (LLM) International Commercial and Business Law from Bangor University, United Kingdom.

As Regional Representative for Africa and the Middle East in Verra's Legal, Policy, and Markets Department, Heather provides guidance and support to governments and project developers who use Verra programs, standards, and frameworks to achieve climate and sustainable development goals.

Prior to working at Verra, Heather worked in the energy and carbon industries in both South Africa and the State of Kuwait, where the United Nations Compensation Fund commissioned State of the Environment projects to assess damages incurred during the Iraqi invasion, country-to-country rather than company-scale projects. In South Africa, Heather has worked on over 50 energy audits for both small- and large-scale projects, including taking companies to the international ISO 50001 certification. More recently, she has been working in the carbon space, assisting local companies with the newly implemented carbon tax and carbon footprinting.

Heather holds a bachelor’s degree in Geography (Hons) and a Master's degree in Environmental Sciences, as well as numerous energy, carbon, and sustainability certificates, and is currently undertaking a Global Executive MBA at Henley Business School. She recently won the prestigious Female Energy Professional of the Year, awarded by the Southern African Energy Efficiency Confederation (SAEEC), and in 2019, was presented with the Sub-Saharan Energy Professional Development Award from the International Association of Energy Engineers (AEE) in Washington, DC. She is an internationally certified Carbon Reduction Manager (CRM) with the AEE.

In her free time, Heather enjoys hiking, skiing, reading, and sailing. She recently completed a trans-Atlantic trip from Cape Town to Brazil.

Daniel Ngaruiya is the Lead, Business Development for Sustainable Technology Projects at South Pole. He originates a multi-sectoral pipeline of carbon projects spanning biochar, e-mobility, clean cooking, renewable energy, and waste to energy—across voluntary and compliance market frameworks. Daniel is keen on exploring the feasibility and impact of biochar projects in Africa.

Carl Jensen is Co-Founder & CEO of Good Nature Agro, an integrated legume seed and commodity company supporting over 25,000 smallholder, emergent and commercial farmers in Zambia, Malawi, and South Africa. Under his leadership, grower incomes have increased fivefold, and the company has raised significant investment to advance its mission of moving farmers into the middle class. He holds an M.Sc. in International Agricultural Development from UC Davis and has led research, curriculum design, and field programs across Africa, Asia, and the U.S., working across soil science, design thinking, and farmer-centred innovation.

Dr. Elliott Dossou-Yovo is an Agriculture and Climate Change Scientist at the Africa Rice Center (AfricaRice). He leads research on climate-smart agriculture, locally led adaptation, and sustainable rice systems, applying crop modelling, machine learning, and field data to develop scalable solutions that strengthen resilience and livelihoods across West and East Africa.

Mr. Davison Mapiza is the Director of Development Planning in Zambia's Ministry of Finance and National Planning, bringing 30 years of public service experience to coordinate national policies, plans, strategies, and programmes that guide integrated spatial and socio-economic national development.

Dr. Wilfred Kadewa is an environmental and resource management specialist with vast professional experience in environmental management and development and is a distinguished Associate Professor on Environmental Resources Management.

As the Director General for MEPA, he is charged with leading the protection of the environmental and the protection of life. With a passion for promoting harmony's harmony with nature, Dr. Kadewa has worked extensively on various projects, including vulnerability, assessments, environmental investment planning, and water resources management.

His expertise also extends to environmental and social impact assessments for civil and public building projects.

Afonso Timoteo Sambo is the Executive Director of FENAGRI, Mozambique’s National Federation of Agrarian Associations. He holds a Bachelor’s in Sustainable Agriculture for Rural Development and Extension.

With over 20 years in the sector, he served as District Director of Agriculture and Livestock, Rural Extension Agent, and led post-war livestock restocking and food security programs.

He has championed initiatives in forestry recovery, sweet potato and cassava production, fish farming, horticulture, beekeeping, and the presidential "One Leader, One Forest" program. His work focuses on climate-resilient agriculture and farmer-led innovation.

Catarina Santos works at the intersection of climate finance, sustainability, and international development, helping governments, investors, and communities design climate solutions that deliver both environmental integrity and social impact. She currently leads business development and partnerships at UpEnergy, where she advances high-integrity carbon market initiatives across Africa, including pioneering work under Article 6.2 of the Paris Agreement.

Her career spans corporate strategy, decarbonization, and climate finance—from supporting a FTSE-listed multinational on its net-zero transition to structuring partnerships that mobilize investment for nature- and community-based climate solutions.

Fluent in Portuguese, Spanish, English, and French, Catarina brings a global perspective and a strong track record of building trust across the public, private, and development sectors. She holds a BA in International Relations from Queen Mary University of London and a Master's in International Security and Diplomacy from Sciences Po Paris. A trained Co-Active coach, she is passionate about developing leaders and systems that create lasting environmental and social change.

Tafadzwa Dutoit Nyamande is a Zimbabwean biochar project developer and climate justice advocate based in Harare. As Head of Operations at CarbonConnect GmbH and Founder of ZimbanjeX Pvt Ltd, he launched Zimbabwe's first biochar production operation in 2023, converting baobab husks into biochar across three locations, producing over 700 tonnes annually.

Benny Kabwela is a Research Associate at the Indaba Agricultural Policy Research Institute (IAPRI), leading various projects spanning agricultural value chains, artificial intelligence, and data analytics.

With over 12 years' experience spanning government service and Consulting in international Institutions such as the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI), and the International Fertilizer Development Centre (IFDC) the UN agencies, and the World Bank, across Eastern and Southern Africa. He combines Agricultural Policy expertise with strong quantitative skills.

He holds a BSc in Agricultural Sciences from the University of Zambia and an MSc in Applied Economics from Makerere University and is a PhD candidate researching sustainable intensification among smallholder farmers at the University of Zambia.

Dr. Patrick Chiza Chikoti is the Acting Director of the Zambia Agriculture Research Institute (ZARI). He holds a PhD in Plant Breeding and has more than 25 years of experience in crop pest and disease research. He has published extensively and leads initiatives that advance sustainable agriculture, agricultural innovation, improved crop health, and food security across Zambia.

Mr. Ephraim Mwepya Shitima is the Director for the Department of Green Economy and Climate Change in the Ministry of Green Economy and Environment.

Mr. Shitima is an expert on national and international climate change policy and practice with experience spanning over twenty years in both policy formulation, implementation as well as climate change negotiations under the multilateral UNFCCC process.

He served as Chairman for the African Group of Negotiators from January 2022 to December 2023 presiding over negotiations on behalf of the African continent at COP-27 in Sharm El Sheikh Egypt in 2022 and COP-28 in Dubai, the United Arab Emirates in 2023.

MR. LUNGU is an Enthusiastic environmentalist with over 20 years of experience in policy formulation and environmental and natural resources management. He currently works as Director in the Department of Environmental Management in the Ministry of Green Economy and Environment. He also serves as the Chairperson of the Lake Tanganyika Authority Management Committee, a Committee established under the Convention on Sustainable Management of Lake Tanganyika to coordinate implementation of regional programmes on the development of Lake Tanganyika. He is a key member of the Zambian lead negotiators on Climate change, Lead Coordinator on Capacity Building for the Least Developed Countries under the UNFCCC and a key member of the Least Developed Countries Expert Group on climate change. He coordinates implementation of Lake Tanganyika Development Programme at country level.

Kelvin Saili is the Head of Compliance and Inspections, responsible for ensuring compliance to the Law in Zambia for registering Agricultural professionals and regulating professional conduct.

He is passionate about food safety and quality assurance.

Dr. Kafula Chisanga is an Agricultural Research Scientist at the Zambia Agriculture Research Institute (ZARI), based in Choma, with over 21 years of research experience. He has coordinated numerous local and regional projects focused on soil health, including nutrient management, biochar, conservation agriculture, climate resilience, and agroforestry. Dr. Chisanga currently coordinates all agricultural research activities in Zambia’s Southern Province, providing strategic leadership in advancing sustainable agricultural research and innovation.