Jen is a marine biologist with particular expertise in marine plastic pollution, undertaking some of the first research on microplastics in the Galapagos Marine Reserve. She joined GCT in 2011, and after several roles, including setting up GCT’s very first projects, was appointed Chief Executive in 2023. Jen is passionate about collaborating for conservation impact, from grassroots to government, and has recently contributed to the negotiations on a future UN Global Plastics Treaty. A major advocate for education and fair access to nature, Jen has driven GCT’s work with the local community, working to support the Islands’ future stewards. 

David was born and brought up in Scotland. His father was a minister, who went on to be a professor of theology at Aberdeen and Fuller Seminary in California. His mother was a teacher of music and a homemaker. He has two sisters.

Educated at local schools in Bearsden and Aberdeen, he went on to study at the Queen’s College, Oxford and won a scholarship from the North of Scotland Rotary Club to take an MBA at Stanford University.

He is married to Ursula Barnes and has three grown-up children.

David’s interest in Responsible Investment and Corporate Governance dates back to 1990 when he joined the board of PIRC as a non-executive. PIRC was then alone and radical voice in the field. In 1992, PIRC became the chief advocate for the Cadbury Report, now recognized as a milestone in corporate accountability.

By the mid-1990s David was an advisor to Hermes Fund Managers which was pioneering new approaches to shareholder stewardship. In 1999 he joined them as director of their Focus Funds and went on to be CEO of the funds. These were Europe’s first ethical activist funds, explicitly seeking to use shareholder powers to improve company performance. 

Ruston has 40 years of experience in the pension fund and investment industry. He was the former Group Pensions, Insurable Risk and a People Director at Tesco and CEO of Tesco Pension Investment Ltd – FCA-approved in-house investment manager. Ruston is now the Chair of the Tesco Pension Fund (DB and DC) and FCA-approved Tesco Pension Investment Ltd, Independent, and Chair of the Funding and Investment Committee for the BAE Pension Fund, Non-Exec Chair of JP Morgan Asset Management Ltd (UK and EMEA), Non-Exec Chair of Smart Pension Ltd, Non-Exec Chair of the Asset Management Exchange ICAV, Non-Exec Chair of Guiide, Non-Exec Chair of the Pensions Management Institute and Chair of GroceryAid, an industry charity. Ruston was on the DC Patient Capital Steering Committee and the Bank of England, Treasury, and FCA’s Steering Group on Investment in Productive Finance and now sits on the Expert Panel for the British Venture Capital Association. He was a former Chair of the PLSA, Co-Chair of the DWP’s 2017 Auto Enrolment Review Board, led the Simpler Annual Statement initiative (now a regulatory requirement), chaired the cross regulator and industry ‘Standardised Assumptions Group’, led the Members’ Costs and Charges Initiative and co-leads the Lifetime Savings Initiative. MBA with distinction and a Fellow of the Pensions Management Institute, the Chartered Management Institute, and the Royal Society of Arts. 

H.E. Nayef Falah Al-Hajraf was appointed secretary general of the Gulf Cooperation Council on February 1, 2020. He previously served as Kuwait’s 19th minister of finance. Al-Hajraf has over` 15 years of experience in public and private sector management, education, and financial consulting. Before his appointment, Al-Hajraf served as the country’s chief regulator of marketable securities in his capacity as the chairman of the Board of Commissioners and managing director of the Kuwait Capital Markets Authority from 2014 to 2017. During his tenure, the Capital Markets Authority matured into a world-class regulator and oversaw the privatization and development of Boursa Kuwait Securities Company, the operator of the country’s only stock exchange. Al-Hajraf previously served as Kuwait’s minister of finance for a brief period in 2012 and minister of education and minister of higher education from 2012 to 2014. He was also a member of the First Board of Commissioners of the Capital Markets Authority in 2010 and a member of the Supreme Petroleum Council. He holds a PhD in accounting and finance from the University of Hull, United Kingdom. 

Sandro Salsano has been at the forefront of successful initiatives in investments, philanthropy, and education for more than two decades. Forbes called him the Warren Buffett of Central America on its cover and one of the world’s most iconic visionary and financial titans. The World Economic Forum named him Young Global Leader for his exceptional vision,  courage, and influence to drive positive change in the world. 

In 2014 he formalized his philanthropy by co-founding the Salsano Shahani Foundation to focus on education.  He is a Chairman of Global Dignity, Member of the Judging Academy for the World’s  Best School Prize, Partner of Tent Partnership for Refugees, Member of Academy for  Global Teacher Prize, Steering Committee member of 1640 Society, and pledged his support to TerraCarta.

Sandro is President of Salsano Group, a multi-billion dollar private conglomerate holding company investing in private equity, real estate, and technology globally and he is President of Salsano Family Office.

Sandro serves as a Trustee for the University of San Diego California and is on the Investment Committee for the Endowment of the University. A graduate of Bocconi University Milan with full grades, he also studied at Harvard, Oxford, and Princeton University.

H.R.H. Prince Ebrahim is a Development Economist, with specialized expertise including Cross-border Investments, Strategy and Intelligence, Risk, Security, and Settlements; Market and Economic Analysis. He successfully led numerous structuring advisory deals in major international development projects financing, public sector enterprise reforms (divestitures, divestment, and privatization); public policy and management (public services and public administration). He is a mandated development Economist and Sovereign Government Advisor serving numerous African Governments, Multi-laterals, Multinationals, and NGOs.

He is a diplomat and bilateral trade negotiator.

As an Africa-focused investor and markets financier, His Royal Highness Prince Ebrahim also serves as chairman and sits on the boards of several companies across Africa with interests spanning agriculture and agribusiness, aviation, commodities, financial services, retail, sports, infrastructure, media, transport and logistics, oil and gas sector, marine, manufacturing, and real estate

His Royal Highness is a precocious Environmentalist and a keen Philanthropist impacting communities and livelihoods not only in Gambia but across the African Continent.

H.R.H. Prince Ebrahim chairs various charitable foundations in Africa. He founded The Prince Ebrahim Future Africa Foundation (PEFAF) an Africa Focused Charitable Foundation whose aim is to uplift and instill in the African people a spirit of self-sufficiency and self-reliance by empowering communities with the tools, knowledge, skills, and resources needed to excel and live a dignified make a better and independent living.

Ahmed Bin Sulayem is the Executive Chairman and CEO of Dubai Multi Commodities Centre (DMCC) and has driven its growth from a start-up of 28 member companies in 2003 to the world’s leading free zone in 2022 with over 24,000 member companies from 180 countries, employing over 80,000 people.

Tasked with enhancing commodity trade flows through Dubai, DMCC has introduced to the market a number of value-added products and services under Ahmed Bin Sulayem’s leadership. In 2023, DMCC was named ‘Global Free Zone of the Year’ by The Financial Times fDi Magazine, for a record ninth consecutive year.

Ahmed Bin Sulayem oversaw the exponential growth of the DMCC Free Zone master development in Jumeirah Lakes Towers (JLT), a 200-hectare business and residential community in Dubai of over 100,000 people living and working in 87 towers. H.E. Bin Sulayem also oversees the development of DMCC’s latest real estate project, the Uptown Dubai district.

Ahmed Bin Sulayem currently serves as the Chairman of the Dubai Diamond Exchange (DDE) and the Dubai Gold & Commodities Exchange (DGCX).

The Kimberley Process officially appointed the United Arab Emirates (UAE) as the first and only Arab country to Chair the Kimberley Process in November 2015. Shortly after, the UAE Ministry of Economy officially appointed Ahmed Bin Sulayem as the UAE’s Chair of the Kimberley Process for 2016. H.E. Bin Sulayem was reappointed Chair of the Kimberley Process for a historic second time, a position he assumed in late 2023.

H.H. Brahmavihari Swami, also known as Sadhu Brahmaviharidas, is a distinguished sadhu affiliated with the BAPS Swaminarayan Sanstha. Initiated by H.H. Pramukh Swami Maharaj, he serves as a global leader and motivational speaker, renowned for his involvement in notable projects such as Swaminarayan Akshardham and Neasden Mandir. Despite academic excellence and opportunities to study at esteemed institutions, H.H. Brahmavihari Swami chose a spiritual path, becoming a Hindu sadhu in 1981. His contributions extend to designing BAPS Temples worldwide, creative projects like Water Spectacular Shows, and the Mystic India giant screen film.

Currently overseeing the construction of the first Traditional Hindu Mandir in the Middle East in Abu Dhabi, Brahmavihari Swami plays a crucial role in guiding devotional, cultural, and humanitarian activities within BAPS. As the youngest member of the BAPS Core Committee, he actively engages in over 160 global humanitarian activities. His commitment to peace and tolerance is evident in his participation in conferences worldwide, including SWFI FORT Dubai 2024. H.H. Brahmavihari Swami’s extensive social and spiritual work, including disaster relief efforts, has garnered him respect and friendship from international leaders, exemplified by collaborations with figures like Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam.