2025 Speakers

Mac McKenzie

CEO / Co-Founder | Bridge Institute

  • The Bridge Institute is a charity that brings senior leaders of governments, corporates, and civil society together to make breakthroughs in thinking and action on pressing societal challenges. It is based on the belief that the world's biggest challenges are all deeply systemic, which means no government, no business, no civil society lead, or philanthropist can solve on their own - it means we need to come together, for the long-haul.

    Current and recent societal challenges the Bridge Institute has taken on include the combatting of human trafficking and gender-based violence in South Asia, carbon removal from the atmosphere in the UAE, peacebuilding in Kashmir, sustainable food in South-East Asia and the Afghan refugee crisis in the United Kingdom.

    Mac is a dedicated sportsman and mountaineer and is passionate about the role of sport in a healthy and thriving society. He has been a mountain guide for Raleigh International.

    He graduated from Oxford University with a Masters in Engineering, Economics and Management. He is trained and qualified in Neuro Linguistic Programming, the Leadership Development Framework, Transactional Analysis, Myers Briggs, Design Thinking and Systems Thinking."

Brandon Rogers

CEO | PakTech

  • Brandon Rogers is the Chief Executive Officer of PakTech, a renowned company celebrated for its innovative and sustainable packaging solutions. Since joining PakTech in 2016 as Chief Financial Officer, Brandon’s strategic leadership and creative vision propelled him to the helm of the company in 2020.

    With over a decade of experience in the financial services industry, Brandon brings a wealth of expertise and passion for driving change. A proud alumni of the University of Oregon, he holds both a bachelor’s degree and an executive MBA, equipping him with the tools to lead PakTech’s mission of advancing the circular economy, reducing plastic waste, and leadership through innovation.

    Under Brandon’s guidance, PakTech has made remarkable strides in sustainability, recycling over a billion plastic milk containers into 100% recyclable and reusable packaging. His leadership has solidified PakTech’s reputation as a leader in sustainable packaging, setting new standards for environmental responsibility within the industry.

Daniel Jacobs

Managing Director | Jacobs Sustainability

  • Drawing on his experience as a government official, business professor, and practicing attorney, Daniel Jacobs combines business acumen with legal savvy in advising businesses on their sustainability practices. He consults with companies around the world seeking to develop business practices that maximize profits while minimizing risk. As founding director of the first interdisciplinary graduate program in sustainability management in a U.S. business school, Dan led American University to a #1 national ranking in sustainability education by Bloomberg Businessweek. An expert on the root causes of corporate disasters, he is the author of BP Blowout: Inside the Gulf Oil Disaster (the #1 featured title of the Brookings Institution Press in Fall 2016), and The Volkswagen Diesel Emissions Scandal and Accountability” (the cover story of the July 2019 sustainability edition of The CPA Journal).

    Prior to joining academia, Dan had an equally distinguished career in public service. An award-winning lawyer at both the Justice Department and the State Department in Washington, D.C., he also served at State as an office director and senior negotiator in the Bureau of Economics, Energy, and Business. In those capacities, he handled a variety of domestic and international sustainability issues impacting a cross section of major industries both in the U.S. and abroad.

    Dan is a popular speaker who has lectured to corporate, academic, and public sector audiences on five continents. He also has appeared as a commentator on sustainability issues on the BBC World News, and regularly in the Wall Street Journal, New York Times, Financial Times, Washington Post, London Times, and Guardian. He attended the historic Rio Earth Summit at which the original Framework Convention on Climate Change was adopted, and most recently attended the U.N. Climate conferences in Baku (COP29) and Bonn (SB58).

    Dan earned degrees from Duke Law School (J.D.), Cambridge University (M.Phil.), and Middlebury College (B.A.). While completing his degree requirements, he studied three foreign languages and competed in four club sports.

Linda Tang

Founder | Contingenci®, by Good Human LLC

  • I founded Contingenci®, by Good Human LLC, in 2020 to respond to the Covid-19 pandemic. We produce sustainable, performance reusable masks that have reached their end-of-life phase and are being upcycled into pet beds for the veterinary and pet industry. We also create energy-efficient and pet-comfort products for veterinarians. Our company specializes in sustainable upcycling solutions and pet soft goods using leftover waste (deadstock). 280 Billion dollars annually are left in warehouses and end up in landfills; we partnered with major outdoor apparel industry brands (The North Face, Marmot, Specialized Bicycles) & are the first carbon-neutral circular manufacturing facility in San Jose, CA, & last 3 % of US Apparel manufacturing.

    As a COVID start-up that has been self-funded And is both women—and minority-owned, we have faced many challenges and learned valuable lessons. We want to invite you to join us in fostering awareness and building actual infrastructure to facilitate a circular economy in California and the future USA. We can do this by advocating for more government incentives, policies, and education on how consumer habits can help heal the planet.

    As a fourth-year Asian female start-up founder (non-VC) in the Bay Area, I would love to share my experience and challenges as a business owner. My goal is to help other aspiring minority female sustainable businesses thrive in California and prove that sustainability can be profitable. Our website has more information about our core veterinary product and carbon-neutral factory, as well as important links, handles, and videos.

    I have always wanted to design and produce high-tech, trendsetting action sports apparel and ergonomically fashionable accessories. My passion for fashion and extreme sports has brought me to The North Face, one of the largest brands in outdoor exploration. I also have experience in the entertainment and sports marketing industry.

Dr. Nejem Raheem

Chair of the Department of Marketing Communication | Emerson College

  • Nejem Raheem is the Chair of the Department of Marketing Communication at Emerson College in Boston. His undergraduate degree is in theater directing from Bennington College and he did his PhD in Economics at the University of New Mexico. He teaches classes on Behavioral Economics, Ecological Economics, Marine Conservation, Rivers, Sustainable Tourism, and whatever else he can gin up. His research is mostly in the area of ecosystem services and traditional or indigenous communities with a big focus on water management. He helps to put together an annual "Teach In on Sustainability" at Emerson, and is part of a group working on a new major in Sustainability Communication. He is one third of the band called The Boundary Objects. 

Dr. Karen Hall

Director of the Ecological Education Program | Institute of Applied Ecology

  • Karen Hall belongs to nature – referring to the version inclusive of humans and more-than-humans alike. This sense of belonging, from a young life growing up in the Southern Appalachians, led to a career in deeply connecting people to nature in myriad ways primarily with systemically disadvantaged audiences.

    After an early diversion from graphic arts, business management, and music, Karen earned her B.S. in Biology at Western Carolina University in North Carolina. Her master’s thesis (Botany) focused on in vitro growth and chemical extraction/analysis of goldenseal (Hydrastis canadensis), an important medicinal plant. She completed this degree and her Ph.D. (Plant Physiology) at Clemson University in South Carolina where she studied ethnobotany with the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians.

    Reluctant to leave the shadow of mountains, Karen designed and ran the Master Naturalist program for SC, was State Coordinator of the Master Gardener program and taught undergrads/grads for many years before leaving for work as an applied ecologist in Texas. When the call of mountains became too loud, she moved with her husband to Eugene, Oregon – serving first as an administrator at a Raptor Center and later in her current job as Program Director of Ecological Education for the Institute for Applied Ecology in Corvallis.

    Her current work focuses on ecological education as the backbone of conservation-based programs taking place in prisons throughout the American West. In eleven prisons in 5 states, incarcerated crews learn about the ecosystems where they are located (most within sagebrush steppe habitat) while they also grow or raise plants or butterflies that can then be used to restore native habitats or save species from extinction. This work takes her through mountains with forests, deserts and wetlands – while also connecting justice-impacted peoples with the nature that surrounds and is a part of them.

Liz Wilson

SVP of Global Product Creation | Rossignol Group

  • Liz Wilson is a dynamic product leader with more than 20 years of global experience in the active and outdoor apparel industry, including Nike and The North Face. Now based in Milan, Italy, she leads Rossignol through a global transformation as their GM of Softgoods. Fueled by her passion for building strong brands, she deeply understands consumer brand loyalty. She has a proven track record of creating product-led innovations within large and mid-sized global companies. Liz embodies a love for products and is dedicated to delivering exceptional consumer experiences while achieving impressive financial results.

    In addition to her product expertise, Liz is committed to mentorship and stewardship. As an eight-year mentor with the Camber Executive Mentorship program, Liz has successfully guided eight emerging leaders through a year-long program that enhances leadership skills and accelerates career growth. Furthermore, as a board member of the Wilderness Land Trust from 2012 to 2022, she played a key role in securing over 50,000 acres for wilderness preservation.

    As a multi-channel executive, Liz has a proven history of driving sales margins and profits, setting and achieving both long- and short-term goals, and developing and executing strategic plans. Her superpower lies in initiating or reimagining new business opportunities, propelling brands, and building teams globally.

Damien Pitts

Director of the Center of Diversity and Inclusion | Oregon State College of Engineering

  • Damien grew up in Memphis, Tennessee. After high school, he enlisted as a Human Intelligence Collector/Korean linguist in the United States Army, serving in such places as California, Arizona, Korea, Hawaii, Afghanistan, and Iraq. After ten years of service, Damien attended the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, and earned a Bachelor of Arts in Global Studies and Masters in Sociology, Political Economy concentration. While in Graduate school, he was Graduate Student Senate Vice President and created student events that fostered cross departmental relationships.

    After Graduate School, Damien was a Career Coach/Government Jobs Liaison at the University of Utah. In that position, he provided career support for the College of Social and Behavioral Sciences and Veterans. He worked closely with the Utah Athletics Department to enhance off the field success by hosting workshops collaborating with employers to create avenues for off the field success, leading to higher job placement and graduation rates for athletes. Concurrently, he taught Sociology at Salt Lake Community College.

    For seven and a half years, Damien served Assistant Director of Student Organizations and Diversity Outreach in the Lundquist College of Business, University of Oregon. He advised an average of 1200 Business related students a year and oversaw 17 Business related student organizations. He also taught a First year Intro Course and Cross-Cultural Negotiation. For 5 years he co-led the Summer Academy to Inspire Learning (SAIL) Business camp for high school students. In September 2024, he left UO, and currently serves as the Director for the Center of Diversity and Inclusion for the College of Engineering at Oregon State University.

    Being deeply involved in the Oregon community, Damien advises the Delta Alpha (UO) and Iota Iota (OSU) Chapters of Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, Inc. Additionally, from March 2021-Jan 2023, he served as the second Black City Councilor in Springfield, Or, and pushed for community spaces with BBQ grills to increase connectivity, and was a champion for initiatives to connect the city to cultural entities. A proud Eagle Scout, Damien was a Board member for the Oregon Trails Council of the Scouts of America for six years. Lastly, he is the Vice Chair of the Oregon Department of Education Black/African American Student Success Advisory Board, and member of PNW Chapter of the National Association of Diversity Officers in Higher Education (NADOHE) and NAACP.

Brian Stewart

Co-Founder | Electrify Now

  • Brian Stewart is a co-founder of Electrify Now, a volunteer organization devoted to educating energy consumers and homeowners about the health and economic benefits of electrification and the role that all of us can play to accelerate the world to clean renewable energy and a sustainable future. Brian has over 40 years of experience in product design, engineering, manufacturing and sustainability and held many leadership roles in his career at Nike Inc. including Vice President of Sustainable Innovation.

Noel Kinder

Former Chief Sustainability Officer | Nike

  • Noel Kinder is a thought leader in global sustainability and has over 20 years of experience in general management, strategic planning, supply chain management, and government relations.

    Noel most recently served as Nike’s Chief Sustainability Officer (CSO) where he led Nike’s “Move to Zero” strategy and integrated sustainability across functions, resulting in Nike’s recognition as an industry leader in sustainability.

    Prior to becoming the CSO, Noel was the Vice President of Sustainable Manufacturing and Sourcing.

    Noel was previously the General Manager of Nike Vietnam LLC, one of the company’s largest sourcing countries, where he was responsible for all manufacturing operations and represented Nike as the country’s largest indirect employer to the Vietnamese government.

    He has served as a member of the NYSE Sustainability Advisory Council and currently advises Collab Fund and Greenplaces.

    Noel holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Sociology from the University of Oregon and a Master’s degree in Business from Portland State University. He is fluent in Spanish.

Natalie Hausia-Haugen

Head of Engagement & Belonging | Zillow Group

  • Natalie Hausia-Haugen is a proud Pasifika woman, daughter of an immigrant and a military officer, mom of two college students, and wife of an ER Nurse (her college sweetheart). She is also head of Engagement & Belonging at Zillow Group, where her team is demonstrating the flywheel effect of an engaged team, innovative performance, and blue ocean growth. She has over 25 years of experience in social justice, organizational effectiveness, and corporate culture, including 17 years of kicking ass with Aloha at Fortune 100 brands like Target, Nike, and Amazon. She leads with love but knows it's all business.

More of Our Amazing Speakers:

Rob Hurlbut

Managing Director | Agriculture Capital

Danielle Klinkebiel

Climate Policy Analyst | City of Eugene

Yoav Dubinsky

Operational Director of the Olympic Studies Hub | University of Oregon

Brittany Sierra

Founder and CEO | Sustainable Fashion Forum

T. Bettina Cornwell

Academic Director of the Olympic Studies Hub | University of Oregon