Johan Rockström is one of the world’s leading Earth system scientists, best known for developing the Planetary Boundaries framework — defining the biophysical limits within which humanity can safely operate. He serves as Director of the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research and holds professorships at both Potsdam and Stockholm Universities.

His work has earned him the Prince Albert II of Monaco Climate Change Award, the German Environmental Award, the International Cosmos Prize, and the French Legion of Honour. He advises the European Commission and multiple national academies of science, leads Conservation International as Chief Scientist, and regularly addresses the World Economic Forum and the UN General Assembly. Before Potsdam, he founded the Stockholm Resilience Centre and led the Stockholm Environment Institute.

Vicky Robertson served as Secretary for the Environment and Chief Executive of New Zealand’s Ministry for the Environment from 2015, leading the development and implementation of national environmental policy. Her most significant achievements include the Zero Carbon Act, the Emissions Reduction Plan, and the National Adaptation Plan — binding frameworks for reducing emissions and adapting to climate impacts.

With a background in law and economics and over eight years as Deputy Secretary at the New Zealand Treasury, Vicky brings deep expertise at the intersection of environmental science, governance, and public policy. She is a committed advocate for te ao Māori and diversity and inclusion.

Laure Waridel is a Québec-based environmentalist, author, and activist who helped build the fair trade movement in Canada. She co-founded Équiterre, one of the country’s most influential environmental organizations, and is a co-instigator of Mères au front, a grassroots movement of mothers and allies advocating for climate action and intergenerational justice.

Her books — including Une cause café, Acheter, c’est voter, and L’envers de l’assiette — explore the politics of consumption, food systems, and global supply chains. She holds a doctorate in anthropology and development sociology and serves as a consultant at CIRODD, a sustainable development research center in Montréal.

Jean Oelwang is the founding CEO of Virgin Unite and Planetary Guardians. Over twenty years, she has helped build some of the world’s most ambitious collaborative initiatives — including The Elders, The B Team, The Carbon War Room, Ocean Unite (now ORRAA), and The Caribbean Climate-Smart Accelerator.

Before Virgin Unite, Jean spent seventeen years in mobile telecommunications, leading companies across South Africa, Colombia, Bulgaria, Singapore, Hong Kong, Australia, and the United States. She co-founded the not-for-profit Plus Wonder to foster meaningful global collaboration, and is the author of Partnering.

Justin Winters co-founded One Earth to make the science and strategy of addressing climate change and biodiversity loss accessible to everyone. One Earth’s work spans renewable energy, nature conservation, and regenerative agriculture across the planet’s 185 bioregions — combining research, storytelling, and digital tools to build a broad public movement.

Before One Earth, Justin served as Executive Director of the Leonardo DiCaprio Foundation, where she built a grant-making program that awarded over $100 million across 60 countries.

Matthew Monahan co-founded the Edmund Hillary Fellowship in 2016 — a network activating New Zealand’s Global Impact Visa to connect innovators and visionaries committed to a sustainable future. That same year, he co-founded Mangaroa Farms, a community food hub and resilience education center in Wellington.

In 2023, he co-founded the Biome Trust, a philanthropic entity dedicated to ecological health and balance, and launched Ma Earth, a community-led movement to align economic incentives with planetary regeneration.

Owen Gaffney is Chief Impact Officer at the Nobel Prize. A trained astronautic and aeronautical engineer, qualified journalist, filmmaker, and writer, he has spent over a decade working at the intersection of Earth system science and public communication — translating research on the Anthropocene and planetary boundaries into policy and social impact.

He is a former Director of International Media and Strategy at the Stockholm Resilience Centre and former communications consultant for Future Earth. His writing has appeared in The New York Times, the BBC, Science, and Nature. His collaborative visualizations with Félix Pharand-Deschênes were presented at the UN Rio+20 Summit and the World Economic Forum. In 2018, he became a fellow of the Edmund Hillary Fellowship.

Matthieu Rytz is a filmmaker, producer, photographer, and curator trained in visual anthropology. He documents human and environmental stories through film, photography, and virtual reality — bringing scientific and cultural complexity to broad audiences.

His debut feature, Anote’s Ark (Sundance 2018), won numerous international awards. His second film, Deep Rising (Sundance 2023), features Jason Momoa as executive producer and narrator, and examines the threats of deep-sea mining. His work has appeared on PBS, CBC, The New York Times, The Washington Post, BBC, and Al Jazeera. He joined the Edmund Hillary Fellowship in 2020 and is based in Bali.

Wendy Broadgate leads the Swedish Hub of Future Earth, which hosts the secretariat of the Earth Commission — the scientific body developing science-based targets for a stable Earth system. She also coordinates Future Earth’s policy engagement with the UN climate and biodiversity processes.

With a PhD in marine chemistry and twenty years in global sustainability research, Wendy served as Deputy Director of the International Geosphere-Biosphere Programme (IGBP) for fifteen years and as Director of the Fisheries Secretariat. Her career spans ocean acidification research, the Great Acceleration project, and the Planet Under Pressure Conference — consistently bridging science with policy at the highest levels.

Tim Kelly is Executive Director of Earth HQ, the media platform of the Global Commons Alliance — a coalition of more than 50 forward-looking organizations in philanthropy, science, business, and advocacy. An Emmy Award-winning film producer and former President of the National Geographic Society, Tim has spent his career building platforms that connect planetary science with global audiences.

He co-founded Planet3, a game-based climate education platform, and serves on the boards of the American Prairie Reserve, Mongabay, the Great Plains Conservation Trust, and the US board of the IUCN. As President of National Geographic, he launched the National Geographic Channel, National Geographic Films, and a suite of digital media products.

Kirk Bergstrom is founder and president of WorldLink, a public benefit organization guided by a planetary perspective and regenerative design. He directed the public television special Nourish: Food + Community and its companion Power Shift: Energy + Sustainability, and was senior designer of Interactive Earth, a geospatial learning platform for schools and science centers.

For over a decade, Kirk served as Vice Chair of the Buckminster Fuller Institute. He co-designed and co-instructed the Design for Global Transformation course at UC Berkeley — challenging students to develop planetary-scale strategies for real-world change.

Mark Prain is founder of the Hillary Institute and co-founder and Executive Director of the Untouched World Foundation, focused on youth leadership. A Toi Whakaari/NZ Drama School alumnus, he moved from performing arts to environmental advocacy — working with Greenpeace (1990–1994), then as Executive Director of Sustainable Cities (1995–2000) and the Redesigning Resources Business Leadership Group (2000–2004).

He holds a Master’s (Hons) in International Law and Politics from the University of Canterbury, has authored two books on sustainability, and leads Maven Ltd, a strategic leadership consultancy. He advises the Katerva Challenge and Climate Changers.