Alex is part of the Ekman Pulp Sales team and is based in Zurich, Switzerland. Alex has a background in Forestry having completed his undergraduate degree at the Forestry Department at The University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada. Alex has been working in the industry for nearly 10 years starting out by designing cut-blocks in the forests of British Columbia before moving into a pulp sales role that has taken him across the world from Canada to Hong Kong and now to Switzerland. Today, he conducts sales of both paper grade pulp and dissolving pulp grades in Asia.

Anna Ronngard is the Commercial Director of TextileGenesis where she plays a central part in enabling traceability in the fashion and textile industry. Anna has 15+ years’ experience working with global fashion brands on their traceability and sustainability agenda. She is passionate about accelerating the betterment of the textile supply chain and believes transparent and verified data will be the key enabler in achieving it.

30 Plus years within the forest products industry from Printing, to paper and the last 10 years in Dissolving Pulp specifically within the Textile industry.
Passionate about Inclusive Sustainability where each aspect of Sustainability – People, Planet and Prosperity – requires commitment and focus to ensure a tomorrow that is better than today

‘You have to leave the city of your comfort and go out into the wilderness of your intuition. What you will discover will be something wonderful. What you will discover will be yourself’ – Alan Alda

Brooke is an experienced and respected journalist, consultant and author. She is a leading voice in the fashion and textile industries and her role as senior sustainability contributor at Forbes has earned her a reputation for authoritative analysis and reporting. Brooke recently authored a book charting the past 20 years of sustainable fashion initiatives in which her interviewees included Ryan Gellert, CEO of Patagonia; Annie Leonard, Executive Director of Greenpeace US; and Delman Lee, Vice Chair of TAL Apparel.

In addition to her work at Forbes, Brooke is the founder of Techstyler, which provides sustainability and communications consultancy to brands, manufacturers, fibre and textile producers, NGOs, and investors. Techstyler’s clients to date include Pangaia, Swarovski, FibreTrace, Worn Again, Textile Exchange and Bluesign.

Brooke has prior industry experience in knitwear design, development and production, coupled with a previous career in diagnostic radiography (medical imaging), resulting in a unique skill set for analysing, interpreting and prioritising sustainability solutions for materials, technologies and supply chains.

Caterina Tonda is the Ready to Wear Sustainable Development Manager of the Kering Material Innovation Lab, which supports the integration and implementation of sustainable and innovative solutions into the collections and supply chains of Kering’s Houses.

After graduating from the Polimoda Fashion School of Florence, this Italian designer spent a decade pursuing a career in product and fabric development for Ermanno Scervino and Burberry. During this time, she focused on sustainable textile sourcing and development as well as embracing regenerative and circular materials re-imagined as innovative.

Giancarlo Maroto joined Aditya Birla Group and the Pulp & Fiber Business in July 2023 as the COO Pulp. He is responsible for the Domsjo mill in Sweden, the Athollville, Nackawick and Terrace Bay mills in Canada and for Forestry operations in New Brunswick.

Previously, Giancarlo worked for multinational companies like DS Smith and Mondi where he held several P&L leadership positions across Europe, Asia and North America.
Giancarlo is Industrial Engineer, holds a Master in Management & Marketing, and a MBA in Finance.

Halit Gümüşer was born in 1978 in Maraş which is a main hub for textile industry. He has studied chemical engineering in Istanbul Technical University. After the engineering education he moved to NY to study MBA at Pace University/Lubin School of Business. In order to stay connected with the fashion industry and keep in touch with key customers in Europe to develop sustainable projects, Halit spends half of his time in London, UK. He is at the factory for the rest of the time. Knowing both market and the production gives a different perspective.

Before becoming the Managing Director and Board Member of Kipaş Holding, Halit set up a New York branch of Kipas Textiles from 2000-2002. Afterwards he returned to his hometown and a new chapter in his career began. Within Kipaş Holding, Halit’s responsibilities include developing and implementing strategic plans and company policies, maintaining an open dialogue with stakeholders, and driving organizational success. He provides strategic advice and guidance to the chair and other members of the board, to keep them aware of developments within the industry and ensure that the appropriate policies are developed to meet the company’s mission and objectives and to comply with all relevant statutory and other regulations.

He initiated Technical Textiles category for Protective clothing industry.

Halit is also one of the co-founders of ‘Sustainability Talks Istanbul’ platform.

“Being part of an industry that has a significant impact on climate change, natural resources, and human rights, we have the opportunity to become part of the solution. By constantly optimizing our operations, and by seeking innovative solutions and collaborations across the whole value chain, we believe real change happens.”
– Halit Gümüşer.

Howard is a passionate advocate for sustainability in sportwear. Under his leadership, PUMA has made significant strides in reducing its environmental footprint. He has championed initiatives to use sustainable materials, minimize waste, and embrace eco-friendly manufacturing processes, ensuring that PUMA remains a responsible and forward-thinking brand.
Howard is known for his ability to inspire creativity and foster innovation within his team and across the industry. He believes that the power of collaboration and diverse perspectives is key to unlocking the next wave of ground-breaking ideas.

A visionary in her field, Jennie Rosén is dedicated to take fashion forward by encouraging collaborations within and across disciplines. Driven by design, culture and technology her focus is set on innovation to reform the fashion system on a regional and global level.

Swedish Fashion Council (SFC) is an industry organization that aims to guide the fashion industry into the future, establishing Sweden as the global leader of the industry’s new era. Through our thought leadership, initiatives and work with SFC [Incubator], SFC is one of the key players accelerating the transformation of the global fashion industry. With a strong community, SFC works to promote, educate, and innovate the fashion industry to become competitive, sustainable, and relevant in our changing world. SFC is owned by the Swedish Trade Federation.

Jessica has been at the forest owner association Södra since 2021, first as Environmental Manager at the Forest Division and now as Head of Sustainability. She has been working in the forest industry sector for nearly 20 years in different positions with a focus on sustainable forestry, biodiversity, climate neutrality and new business models for ecosystem services.

Johanna Stemberger is the Head of Operations and Business Development for Europe for TOMRA Textiles. Johanna has more than 20 years of experience in building business within digital, tech and finance across Europe and Asia. 

Juan Anzieta represents ARAUCO, a Chilean forest company that is one of the biggest cellulose producers in the world.
Juan is the Head of Forests and Sustainability at Arauco and he holds a forest engineer degree at Austral University in Chile and an M.B.A. at the Catholic University in Chile. He is certified in Psychology of Leadership by Cornell´s University Johnson School of Management.
Juan has worked in different areas of management and administration as well as communications and public affairs inside Arauco for more than 20 years.

Julie Verdich is the Material Innovation Lead at the forefront of GANNI’s Fabrics of The Future program. Alongside GANNI’s CSR team, Julie is leading initiatives to support GANNI’s GAMEPLAN 2.0 and sustainability strategy, with a focus on material innovation, forging partnerships with global innovators, and promoting low-carbon materials at scale.

Karla Magruder is the Founder and President of Accelerating Circularity. She has over 35 years of global experience from fiber to finished garments. In her current role at Accelerating Circularity she leads the organization’s work in enabling the industry’s transition to textile-to-textile circular systems.

Prior to her current role she founded Fabrikology International, a textile consulting company where she worked on material developments and guided both nonprofit and for-profit organizations towards more sustainable textile strategies. Past clients includes, Textile Exchange, USAID, Lenzing and Carhartt.

Previous industry affiliations include the UNFCCC Fashion Industry Charter Steering Committee, Co-Chair of their Raw Material Working Group and a Textile Exchange Governance Board member.

Karla is currently a member of the Cotton Board and the Walmart Lighthouse Advisory Board

Lewis’s passion is working on innovative materials and advanced manufacturing processes that help brands create apparel and footwear more responsibly. He has spent most of the past 15 years in Asia focused on textile innovation and sustainability initiatives for some of the largest sportswear and fashion brands. Today as Head of Innovation at Alpine Group/Paradise Textiles his research is focused on fiber pollution, textile recycling, bio-based fibers/chemistries, and low impact technologies for textile dyeing and finishing.

Ms Wanicka joined AFRY Management Consulting in 2019 and currently leads the textile industry competences at the division. She has more than 8 years of work experience in the biorefinery sector and has previously worked for world leading pulp and textile fibre companies in South Africa and Austria. Ms Wanicka holds a Master of Engineering degree (University of Pretoria) as well as an MBA (Aalto University Executive Education) and is based in Finland.

After 23 years in IT, fulfilling Sales and Marketing roles around Europe, Marieke decided on a change of scenery in 2004. The need to engage in something that would have a positive impact on herself and the planet, while also having the freedom of self-employment. Having no clue what that would be, her journey started toward circularity in textiles by developing a specific concept on behalf of a financial institute. Learning the challenges when it comes to circularity is also what made her fall in love with it, and her passion lies in creating solutions and participating in innovative projects that look for ways to overcome these challenges.

Nina started her career at Ekman Group in 2005 and has a background in trading derivatives, strategy, business intelligence and business development. Nina is currently heading the Innovare division, which focuses on business development and exploring new business ventures for the Ekman Group. Nina is the initiator of Challenge the Fabric and has been the driving force in growing and developing the CTF initiative since its start in 2018 . Nina holds a Msc degree in Business and Finance.

Oliver is a seasoned industry analyst and consultant, boasting over two decades of expertise in the global pulp and paper sector. Since joining Hawkins Wright in 2007, he has played a pivotal role as one of the editors of Pulpwatch, the firm’s monthly newsletter. He is also the co-author of the Outlook for Market Pulp service and the principal author of the Outlook for Dissolving Pulp. His leadership in consultancy projects spans feasibility studies for pulp mills across Latin America, Russia, and Southeast Asia, and he is a frequent presenter at industry conferences.

Randa Kherba is a designer and researcher based in London.

With a background in Menswear design focused on fabrication and functionality. Her work pushes the limitations of outerwear through material innovation.

Now an Ma Material Futures graduate exploring bio-alternatives to constructing outdoor gear designed for short-term use. Demonstrating a future where gear that protects us from the elements can be created and produced with organisms that are abundant to us.

In response to a rapidly changing climate, Randa’s work focuses on exploring extreme normals. Prioritising world building from beginning to end through meaningful design.

Regina is the Founder and CEO of PYRATEX® and leads the PYRATEX® team members by setting the company’s strategic path.

She was born in Vienna and is 31 years old. After living in several different countries throughout her life and spending most of her childhood in Africa she is trilingual in Spanish, French and English. With these experiences along with a Law Degree, she initiated the R&D path of PYRATEX® back in 2014 collaborating with different European textile institutes with the idea of developing biobased fabrics, bringing performance and well-being to the wearer.

During the development phase, Regina was a part of Fashion Fusion, an incubator program based in Berlin, powered by Deutsche Telekom and Adaidas and then participated in the french program Look Forward by Showroomprivé. In 2018, after 4 years of R&D to develop the first PYRATEX® 5 fabrics and set up a European supply chain for the production of these materials she initiated her first collaborations with brands.

Since then, PYRATEX® has been featured and mentioned in the most prominent fashion magazines worldwide, developed more than 80 fabrics and is the supplier for brands such as Camper, Pangaia, Asics, Ganni, Scotch & Soda, Fiorucci, the Kering Group amongst others.

Rosie Broadhead is a textile researcher specialising in therapeutic materials for fashion industry applications. Founder of material platform SKIN SERIES, and co-founder of probiotic innovation company PHIOME. As a Textile Scientist at Ghent University, Rosie’s research focused on the interaction between skin and clothing, developing innovations between fashion, the skin microbiome and its environment. Her focus is on developing textiles which have health and well-being benefits to the body, which means incorporating probiotics, algae and skin-beneficial actives into clothing.
Rosie is a graduate of Central Saint Martins’ MA ‘Material Futures’ course in 2019 and has a background as a designer and Head of Sustainability at sportswear brand Perfect Moment, Research & Development at Rapha and design at Thom Browne & Aitor Throup. This research into the future of fashion has resulted in peer-reviewed papers and exhibitions including Salone del Mobile Milano, Dutch Design Week, London Design Festival, and London & Gent Design Museum.

As a sustainability consultant for the textile industry, I am offering customer focus and passion for product, paired with my product, marketing, supply chain and ESG expertise of 25+ years. I deliver innovative, individual solutions for strategy, raw material and circular business models. My overall aim is to achieve transformational change in our sector where a company´s success can contribute to a climate friendly future and more social justice. Responsibly sourced and innovation in MMCF can be part of the solution, I am positive.

Tapiwa Nxele works at the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) as a Chemicals Analyst consultant for the Knowledge and Risk Unit. Tapiwa joined UNEP in 2019 and is currently coordinating the Global Component of the GEF 8 Integrated Programme “Eliminating hazardous chemicals from supply chains”. The overall goal of this IP is to tackle chemical pollution, reduce greenhouse gas emissions, promote nature-based solutions, and contribute to biodiversity protection and conservation in the fashion and construction supply chains through integrated solutions.