Mr. John Kautoke works as an Advisor and Legal Researcher at the Micronesian Center for Sustainable Transport based in the College of the Marshall Islands. He acts as Technical Advisor to the Delegation of the Kingdom of Tonga at the IMO and assists in all aspects of the GHG negotiations. He has previously worked as an Advisor to the High Commissioner for the Kingdom of Tonga, in London, who is the Permanent Representative of Tonga to the IMO.
Yasunobu (Nobu) Kawanishi is the Chair of the Sustainability Standards Board of Japan (SSBJ) and the Chair of the Accounting Standards Board of Japan (ASBJ). He has extensive experience in standard-setting, working as a staff member of the ASBJ, the U.S. Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) and the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB). He became a Board member of the ASBJ in April 2016 and became Chair of the ASBJ in April 2022. From 2019 to 2022, he chaired the International Forum of Accounting Standard Setters (IFASS), a global network of standard setters. He became the inaugural Chair of the SSBJ when the SSBJ was established in July 2022.
Ms. Joanna Kazana-Wisniowiecki has over 20 years of experience in international development cooperation. Prior to her current post, she was the UN Resident Coordinator in the Republic of Belarus where she led the UN response to COVID-19 and supported the UN system’s action for refugees and migrants.
Before that, Ms. Kazana-Wisniowiecki worked for the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Regional Bureau for Europe and the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) in New York, providing support to UNDP country offices in Europe and Central Asia and working closely with UNDP’s strategic partners, including the UN Member States’ missions in New York.
From 2005 to 2010, Ms. Kazana-Wisniowiecki served as UNDP Deputy Representative in Ukraine, and created one of UNDP's largest local development projects “Community Based Approach to Local Development in Ukraine”.
She began her professional career in Poland where she worked as a UNDP National Programme Officer in Warsaw, then as an international consultant for the United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS), and as an Advisor on international programme development and harm reduction for the Soros Foundation. She has facilitated South-South cooperation and knowledge transfer on HIV/AIDS prevention and care.
Mr. Nagamori Kazumasa, is Director of Climate Change Observation Research Strategy Office, Ministry of the Environment, Japan.
He is a climate and environment policy specialist with 20 years of experience at the Ministry of the Environment, Japan, and expertise in JCM (Joint Crediting Mechanism) expansion, GHG observation satellites (GOSAT series), and Blue Carbon policy, and international climate negotiations (UNFCCC), and experience working with UNIDO – with a strong focus on bridging science, technology, startup, and policy for decarbonization and global environmental cooperation.
He holds a Master’s degree from the Australian National University (ANU) and the University of Melbourne.
Nicole Kearse has a diverse career in law, finance, and consulting, with a focus on Africa's development. She began her legal career in 2003 at Curtis, Mallet-Prevost, later moving to Baker McKenzie and then Shearman & Sterling LLP as a finance associate.
In 2010, she became Deputy Managing Director at DaMina Advisors. By 2015, Ms. Kearse co-founded Krescent Consulting LLP and led Learning and Development at ILFA, also serving on its board. Her financial sector experience includes a secondment at Citibank's Latin America and Caribbean Division.
Since 2018, she has worked at the African Development Bank Group's African Legal Support Facility, currently heading the sovereign finance sector.
Ms. Kearse holds a JD from Georgetown, an MA from Columbia, and an MA (law and diplomacy) from the Fletcher School at Tufts. She is a Solicitor in England and Wales and admitted to the New York Bar.
Mr. John R. Keeler is the Founder and CEO of Blue Star Foods Corp., which was founded in May 1995. Blue Star Foods Corp “NASDAQ:BSFC”. is an integrated ESG seafood company that processes, packages and sells refrigerated pasteurized Blue Crab meat, and other high-value RAS aquaculture seafood products.
He holds a BS in Economics from Rutgers University, he also attended the Harvard Business School Executive Programs focused on supply chain management, negotiations and marketing. Mr. Keeler has successfully taken the company in to the Public Markets & built sales over the past 26 years to $20+ million annually and is recognized as a leader and innovator in the measurable ESG enterprise model within the seafood industry.
In February 2021, Mr. Keeler was named Best CEO in Sustainable Seafood Industry by European CEO Magazine.
Karin Maria Keller-Sutter is a Swiss politician who has served as President of the Swiss Confederation since 1 January 2025 and concurrently as a member of the Federal Council of Switzerland since 2019.
Prior to her election to the Federal Council, Karin Keller-Sutter held a variety of positions: chair of the board of Pensimo Management AG; president of the board of trustees of the Pensimo Investment Foundation; vice president of the St. Gallen Foundation for International Studies; board member of Bâloise Insurance Group and the ASGA pension fund in St. Gallen; president of the Swiss Retail Federation, and board member of the Swiss Employers Association.
Between 2012 and 2016 she was also a board member of the NZZ Media Group. Following her election to the Federal Council in 2018, Karin Keller-Sutter stepped down from all of these posts.
Ms. Keller-Sutter studied in Zurich, London and Montreal, where she also studied political science.
Clare has served as New Zealand’s Ambassador and Permanent Representative to the World Trade
Organisation since February 2022.
Previously, Clare held the position of Assistant Secretary in the Trade and Economic Group of the
New Zealand Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade (MFAT). She was appointed to the role in April
2017, with responsibility for the Trade Negotiations Division of the Ministry’s Trade and Economic
Group. She also led New Zealand’s trade negotiation with the Pacific Alliance.
From April 2013 to March 2017 she served as New Zealand’s Ambassador to Mexico, with concurrent
accreditations in Central America.
Earlier roles in the Trade and Economic Group of MFAT included as New Zealand’s lead Goods
negotiator for the Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement negotiation.
Clare was posted as Counsellor in the New Zealand Permanent Mission to the World Trade
Organisation in Geneva from 2003 to 2007. Previously, she worked as First Secretary and Consul
General in the New Zealand Embassy in Santiago, Chile.
From 2007 to 2009 Clare worked as a Trade Adviser in the Geneva office of the law firm White & Case
LLP, covering a range of international trade law issues, in particular, trade in services, accessions to
the WTO and WTO disputes.
David Kemei was appointed Director-General of the Competition Authority of Kenya on 7th October, 2024. In this role, he is tasked with championing and spearheading execution of the Authority’s mandate as outlined in the Competition Act CAP 504.
He has a wealth of expertise and knowledge spanning over 30 years in various sectors, including regulatory, financial, academia, health, tourism, energy, commercial and corporate governance, with over fifteen years in senior leadership roles. His skillset includes corporate and financial management, accounting, project implementation, resource mobilization, collaboration with global agencies, and stakeholder management.
Mr. Kemei holds a Master’s degree in Business Administration and a Bachelor’s degree in Commerce from the University of Nairobi. He is a qualified public accountant, a Certified Regulation Specialist, and a certified practitioner in executive coaching.
He previously worked at DGMB Training Solutions Ltd, the Electricity Regulatory Board (now the Energy and Petroleum Regulatory Authority), the Nation Media Group, Windsor Golf Hotels & Country Club Ltd, Kenya Shell (now Vivo Energy) and lectured at five (5) universities, among others. In addition, he has served on public sector Boards as a chairperson and director at Kenya Reinsurance Corporation, Zep Re, Kenya Medical Training College. He has served as the chair of the audit committee at the Commission for Revenue Allocation.
Nathan Kemp is one of a small team of economists at the International Grains Council (IGC), an intergovernmental organization which seeks to further international cooperation in grains trade, including by improving market transparency through information-sharing, analysis and consultation on grain market and policy developments. Mr. Kemp’s main focus is overseeing the Council’s grain production estimates, maize S&D fundamentals and price reporting. He is also a co-editor of the flagship monthly Grain Market Report (GMR). Before joining the IGC, he worked in investment banking, focusing mainly on macroeconomic fundamentals and their impact on currency and bond markets.