2024 Summit Speakers.
John Elkington
Godfather of Sustainability John is a world authority on sustainability. He was named 4th in an international survey of the top 100 CSR leaders, after Al Gore, Barack Obama, the late Anita Roddick and alongside Muhammad Yunus. A former member of the World Economic Forum, he is the author or co-author of 20 books with the most recent, “Tickling Sharks: How We Sold Business on Sustainability” reinforcing his reputation as ‘The Godfather of Sustainability’. He has helped inspire and incubate global movements including the Dow Jones Sustainability Indexes and the B Team (which includes Sir Richard Branson, Arianna Huffington and Christiana Figueres). In 1994, John created the concept and coined the phrase; ‘Triple Bottom Line’ and in 2021 he received the World Sustainability Award. |
Lucy Siegle
Writer, Broadcaster & International Speaker For 14 years Lucy wrote the first popular sustainability column in a national newspaper, The Observer and is also known for her interviews with high profile environmentalists, from Sir David Attenborough to Bjork. In order to get more eyes on sustainable fashion, Lucy co-founded the Green Carpet Challenge with Livia Firth, working with designers from Armani to Stella McCartney and A-list talent. An accomplished live performer and champion of net zero business and policy, Lucy is in demand as a keynote speaker. Through her work as a journalist Lucy is credited with mainstreaming action on plastic, fossil fuel fibres and the quest to make fashion a cleaner, fairer industry. She is author of five books and is co-producer and stars in the Netflix hit documentary, The True Cost. |
Chris Hines MBE
Serial Change-Maker Chris co-founded 'Surfers Against Sewage' which has grown from a handful of activists to a nationwide movement and one of the UK's most successful campaigning charities. He was also Sustainability Director at The Eden Project where he conceived and delivered “Waste Neutral”, an early version of the circular economy. A sought-after speaker, Chris' clients include Accenture, Comic Relief, BMW and International Schools in the Hague and Geneva. During his career He has addressed the UK parliament, the European Commission, briefed the President of the European Parliament, been a special advisor to the Minister for the Environment and appeared on a wide range of media from BBC World Service and Panorama to CNN. |
Eimear Manning
UN Committee Member Eimear is Ireland’s representative on the United Nations Education for Sustainable Development Steering Committee. She also leads on Youth & Climate Justice for the National Youth Council of Ireland where she oversees youth-led projects centred on issues of climate change, climate justice, and meaningful youth inclusion. An advisor to Government Ministers, Eimear is helping to create a new ‘Council of Europe’ recommendation on Young People and Climate Action. The founder of Turn Tides, Eimear was awarded a Master of Science in Marine Sustainability in 2015 and received a scholarship in 2017 to work aboard a Research Vessel in Florida. Since then, she has worked to bring ocean literacy and stewardship to young people across Ireland and Europe. |
Chris Martin
The Expert (Head of Sustainability at Danske Bank UK) Chris heads up Danske's multi award-winning sustainability team. He is responsible for the development and delivery of a comprehensive sustainability strategy and net zero outcome for Danske Bank’s UK operations. This includes a focus on responding to both the risks and opportunities arising, along with developing solutions to help Danske customers make the transition to a net zero future. This work has seen Danske reduce its own scope 1 & 2 emissions by 76%. Chris regularly contributes to publications focusing on driving sustainability action across Northern Ireland and has spoken on the topics of sustainability and climate change at a variety of conferences and events. |
Katrina Thompson
The Engineer (Artemis Technologies) Artemis Technologies are experts in clean maritime innovation with a mission to lead the decarbonisation of the maritime industry through the design and development of transformative technologies and battery powered vessels which are zero emission in operation. A chartered engineer and graduate in Aeronautical Engineering, Katrina has 30 years of industrial experience across aerospace, telecommunications, and maritime sectors. Katrina is Director of Government Programmes in Artemis Technologies, and she leads the Belfast Maritime Consortium's Strength in Places funded programme which will launch the world’s most advanced high-speed zero-emission passenger ferry. She is an Honorary Professor of Practice in the QUB School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering. |
Ben Craig
The Expert (Carbonfit) As Head of Partnerships and Business Development at Carbonfit Ben works with organisations of all sizes to accelerate their journey to net zero. Using their digital carbon footprint management platform Carbonfit help clients translate information into the right action for clients at the right time. They work with organisations to identify, measure and reduce their emissions and engage their value chain to make collaboration and reporting on scope 1, 2 and 3 as effective and efficient as possible for all. In previous roles, Ben spearheaded initiatives yielding £3.4m savings and 41.9k tonnes CO2e reduction in Northern Ireland and led research into advancing a circular economy on the island of Ireland. An entrepreneur and adventurer, Ben built a coffee company with a triple bottom line 2011–2019 and reached #4 in the world at kayak surfing! |
Ross Moffett
The Event Spaces (Waterfront Hall, Ulster Hall & ICC) BWUH Ltd looks after three of Belfast’s most iconic spaces – The ICC, The Ulster Hall and The Waterfront Hall with the former becoming the first certified Green Meetings venue on the Island of Ireland. Having recently joined the business as a Director, Ross is playing a crucial role in BWUH’s ongoing sustainability journey having gained extensive net zero and renewables experience with Everun. Ross will outline how BWUH will continue to reduce its environmental impact through the enhanced focus on energy consumption, targeted increases in use of environmentally friendly products and development of objectives for suppliers and business partners in delivering against the company vision. |
David Puttnam CBE
Oscar-Winning Film Producer Delivering the annual virtual address, David is best known for a wide-ranging career in film, education and the environment. His films, which include The Mission, The Killing Fields and Chariots of Fire, have won 10 Oscars, 10 Golden Globes, 9 Emmy’s, 25 Baftas and the Palme D’Or at Cannes. He previously founded the National Teaching Awards, served as President of UNICEF UK and as the Chairman of the Joint Parliamentary Committee on the Draft Climate Change Bill which was the world’s first climate change legislation. A former member of the House of Lords, David was awarded a CBE in 1982, a knighthood in 1995, and was appointed to the House of Lords in 1997. He has received over 50 Honorary Degrees, Diplomas and Fellowships. |
Event Details.Date: Wednesday 16th October 2024
Time: 10.00am – 2.30pm (Includes Light Breakfast & Lunch) Venue: In-person at ICC Belfast Booking: |
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Previous Speakers.
Attendee Feedback.
WOW, I was blown away by today's event. It was great to hear the insightful knowledge and experience of the key speakers. It has inspired me to think about how we educate, create awareness, explain carbon in simpler terms and inspire everyone to STOP and MAKE A CHANGE
Victoria Johnston, Farrans Construction A great summit offering hope and practical advice/solutions to take positive action
Wendy McCulla, Aspire Learning and Development Another fantastic event from MLN - great speaker line up with practical actions to take away
Carol Fitzsimons, Young Enterprise NI |
One of the most thought-provoking events I’ve attended where failure is just not an option
Robert McCullough, Danske Bank A call to action that every business needs to hear!
Karl Crockard, CASC LTD Inspirational
Connor Mckiver, McCloskey International Interesting, inspiring, scary statistics and thought provoking
Berina Rice, Portview Fit Out Limited |
What can you and your organisation do to help avert the climate crisis?
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