“Climate Change, Leaders Needed!” Empowering the next generation of leaders
This session brings together inspiring young leaders from across the globe who are shaping the future of sustainability in diverse and innovative ways.
Representing different cultures, disciplines, and perspectives, these changemakers work in diverse areas, from climate action to entrepreneurship and circular economies.
Despite their varied paths, they are united by a shared purpose: building a more just, resilient, and sustainable world. Through dynamic conversation, they will explore how collaboration across borders and sectors can amplify impact, overcome systemic barriers, and inspire collective action, with this bold ambition : you joining the coalition !
Speakers
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Adhitya RaghavenEntrepreneur and EngineerAdhitya Raghaven
Entrepreneur and Engineer
Adhitya Raghavan is an Indian entrepreneur and engineer focused on building scalable ventures that drive social impact through technology and sustainability. Raised in Srivilliputhur, a small village in South India, his early exposure to unreliable infrastructure and limited economic mobility shaped his belief in the power of environment, education and access. His family’s journey—from farming to working abroad—showed him how opportunity can transform generations. He studied Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering at Princeton University, where he built off-grid renewable energy systems for his senior thesis. He began his career at Bain & Company, advising Fortune 500 clients on strategy and operations, and later contributed to the design of a €100 million ocean-focused impact investment fund. Now pursuing his MBA at Harvard Business School, Adhitya is building a startup at the intersection of AI and manufacturing—focused on helping factories in emerging markets improve productivity, reduce waste, and operate more sustainably. Long-term, he hopes to create a liberal arts institution that expands access to transformative education. Across his work, Adhitya is guided by a simple belief: where you're born should never define how far you can go.
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Rachel ClausingHead of Initiatives and Special Advisor to the Vice President
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Shirley BinderMarine BiologistShirley Binder
Marine Biologist
Shirley Binder is Panamanian Marine Biologist that works in partnerships, integrating governments for marine conservation policy outcomes. She uses science for conservation, especially for 30x30 implementation in the ocean and migratory species management. Currently a Senior Officer at Pew Bertarelli Ocean Legacy, that seeks to create marine protected areas. In 2019 Shirley was hired by the Ministry of Environment of Panama in different roles, including Director of Protected Areas and Biodiversity, where she led the expansions of Marine Protected Areas (MPA) to achieve 54% of Panama’s Exclusive Economic Zone under some protection, with 27% of highly and fully no take zones. In 2022 Shirley coordinated the technical and political aspects of the CITES COP19, being the lead negotiator of the successful shark proposals that were adopted. Through her leadership, more than 100 sharks became listed in appendices of CITES. She works closely with the Corredor Marino del Pacifico Este Tropica (CMAR initiative with Panama, Colombia, Costa Rica and Ecuador). At PBOL, she oversees implementation of some of the policy work she started in the government of Panama, especially with regards to management plan implementation and shark conservation work.
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Xananine CalvilloCo-FounderXananine Calvillo
Co-Founder
Jna TsioXananine Calvillo comes from the Ngiwa indigenous peoples in Puebla, Mexico. She is the cofounder of “Jna Tsjo" a women and youth-led initiative to protect traditional knowledge and native ecosystems in the Valley of Tehuacán. As a community organizer for the youth climate movement in Mexico, Xananine leads territorial engagement in Legado Gaia (LEGAIA), a climate justice collective that focuses on amplifying environmental defenders' participation in climate advocacy. Internationally, as part of the Global Indigenous Youth Caucus and International Indigenous Youth Forum on Climate Change (IIYFCC). Committed to protecting the ancestral food systems biocultural heritage of indigenous peoples, Xananine works on the defense of agro-ecological and bio-centered food systems in Latin America campaigning as a youth ambassador of the StopFinancing Factory Farming Coalition (S3F). Xananine is majoring in Latin American Studies at the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM), researching experiences of community-led climate justice and land defense movements in Latin America. Harnessing the potential of a social science that is committed and participatory of the global movements facing the threat of our time: the climate crisis.