Laura Whitford oversees TNC’s global adaptation finance and partnerships efforts. She has worked in Asia Pacific for over 20 years on partnerships, policies and programs focused on sustainable resource management, climate adaptation, equity and economic development. She has graduate degrees in Environmental Management and International Development, Communication and Psychology.

Lulu Zhou is Director of Strategic Partnerships for Climate Resilience, Asia Pacific. Prior to this, she was TNC’s Director, Strategic Partnerships (Asia Pacific) and Hong Kong Program Lead. Before joining TNC, Ms. Zhou worked at the UN Foundation. She holds a BA in Tourism Management MS in Conservation Social Sciences.

Emelyn Bermundo leads the CLARE Project RURBANISE. She is TAMPEI’s Executive Directoir, and a “TAMPEI architect”, a licensed architect contributing to and working with communities to develop plans and housing design in fragile urban settings. She is member of the Board of Trustees of PACSII.

Blanche is a climate adaptation specialist, with expertise in designing and undertaking multidisciplinary research and policy analysis on relevant aspects of climate change adaptation, incorporating physical and socio-economic considerations, as they apply to the local context, leading to robust resilience solutions. She holds an MA degree from Tufts University and a BA from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln.

Arjan is a climate specialist at IDRC responsible for projects in Asia under the CLARE program. His expertise includes supporting southern-based research, and integrating climate and gender equity considerations into policy analysis He led the IDRC GrOW program on women’s economic empowerment and has published widely, including on inequalities and migration.

Amina is a Senior Livelihood and Migration Specialist and leads the work on human mobility and migration at ICIMOD, and the CLARE project SUCCESS. She leads ICIMOD’s intervention ‘Foresight and policy scenarios for adaptation in mountain economies’. She is an interdisciplinary researcher and practitioner working at the intersection of human mobility and climate.

Zahid is program manager at Uttaran, a grassroot organisation in Bangladesh, and leads the CLARE SURF-IT project, with Action Against Hunger and North-South University. Zahid has a MSc in Environmental Change and Management, Oxford University, was a Weidenfeld and Hoffman Scholar, and is Governing Board member, Climate Justice Resilience Fund.

Laura Whitford oversees TNC’s global adaptation finance and partnerships efforts. She has worked in Asia Pacific for over 20 years on partnerships, policies and programs focused on sustainable resource management, climate adaptation, equity and economic development. She has graduate degrees in Environmental Management and International Development, Communication and Psychology. Lulu Zhou is Director of Strategic Partnerships for Climate Resilience, Asia Pacific. Prior to this, she was TNC’s Director, Strategic Partnerships (Asia Pacific) and Hong Kong Program Lead. Before joining TNC, Ms. Zhou worked at the UN Foundation. She holds a BA in Tourism Management MS in Conservation Social Sciences. Olya is a Nature-based Solutions Project Manager overseeing the delivery of the blue carbon and teal carbon workstreams. Olya’s primary focus is working with TNC’s iwi-hapū partners, local communities, researchers and government to showcase Aotearoa’s first coastal wetland and peatland restoration projects, supported by carbon and nature markets.

Dr de Haan is a climate specialist at IDRC responsible for CLARE projects in Asia. His expertise includes supporting southern-based research, and integrating climate and gender equity considerations into policy analysis He led the IDRC GrOW program on women’s economic empowerment and has published widely, including on inequalities and migration.