David Rosenberg, CEO, AeroFarms

Co-Founder and CEO of AeroFarms, a global leader in vertical farming, David is also a  Board Member of Aspire and Clara Foods. An expert entrepreneur with over two decades of experience building change-the-world companies, he’s Co-chair of the Young Global Leaders Circular Economy Taskforce at the World Economic Forum and member of the B20 Sustainable Food Systems Taskforce.

Jane Kearns, VP Growth Services, MaRS Discovery District

Jane is a  recognized leader in sustainable innovation and has extensive experience growing successful companies at the intersection of business and sustainability. She co-founded, grew and profitably sold a renewable energy company, and leverages over 20 years of experience in venture capital, cleantech and sustainability to help build businesses that matter. Jane is a co-founder of the CanadaCleantech Alliance, sits on the board of Clear Blue Technologies International (TSXV: CBLU), is an advisory board member for StandUp Ventures and Amplify Ventures, and is a member of the Expert Panel on Clean Growth for the Canadian Institute for Climate Choices. She is a Cleantech and Energy faculty member at Singularity University, and holds an MBA from Columbia University.

Laurel Buckner, Managing Director, WestRiver Group

Laurel co-leads the Pacific Northwest Technology sector, an early stage venture fund, with Managing Director Anthony Bontrager. The two work with companies in the region’s thriving ecosystem at their formative stages, bringing capital, strategic relationships and operational guidance to help them succeed.

Prior to WRG, Laurel was Senior Vice President, Managing Director of ATN Ventures, where she focused on investments in new technologies and business models. Laurel also founded and ran GCI’s corporate venture fund and was on the Board of the Blue Box Group (sold to IBM); Telesphere, (sold to Vonage); and ZipWhip. Her career began at the law firm of Davis Wright Tremaine in Seattle and she has extensive experience in corporate law, mergers and acquisitions.

Maria Buitron, Investor, Piva Capital

Before joining Piva, Maria was a consultant at Schlumberger Business Consulting, later acquired by Accenture Strategy Energy. Maria helped clients address complex problems in the Oil and Gas industry while working on projects in the Upstream, Midstream, and Downstream sectors. Maria was also part of energy storage provider Stem Inc’s Business Development team where she focused on expanding into international markets and new product offerings.

Maria is passionate about technology and diversity in the energy space. She firmly believes in the value of investing as a driver to help address some of the world’s most pressing challenges.

Maria received her Bachelor of Science in Chemical Engineering with top honors from Tecnologico de Monterrey and holds a Master of Business Administration (MBA) from UC Berkeley Haas School of Business and was recognized as Forbes 30 Under 30 in the energy category.

Mark B. Baudler, Partner, Corporate, Wilson Sonsini

Mark represents technology innovators in key transactional matters, including IPOs, M&As, strategic alliances, and other dispositions. He has advised on high-profile IPOs and other offerings for benchmark technology companies, such as Dolby Laboratories, Seagate Technology, and Tesla. Mark has worked with clients in a diverse range of industries, including mobile, cloud, digital health, energy, fintech, SaaS, big data, and other emerging sectors.

Nathalie Nebelius, Senior Events Manager, Cleantech Group

A leader in global cleantech events and community engagement, Nathalie is also relationship manager at Toniic, the global community for impact investors with a focus on family offices, ultra high-net worth individuals and foundations. An impact advisor for Planet A, an original multi-season TV series driving impact through media for the countries with the greatest need, Nathalie has a global network of investors, corporates, foundations and SMEs and is often asked to be a door opener, facilitator and advisor for initiatives.

Bob O'Connor, Partner, Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati

Robert (Bob) O’Connor is a corporate partner with Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati. Bob’s global practice focuses on the representation of high-growth enterprises, with an emphasis on those innovating in the energy, infrastructure, mobility, consumer products, and sustainability sectors, as well as the representation of venture capital and private equity firms, corporate venture groups, family offices, and impact investors that finance them. Bob serves as a strategic partner to his clients and their boards of directors through a broad range of complex financing and strategic corporate transactions at all stages of their development, from inception through exit.

Jordan Kanis, Managing Director, Silicon Valley Bank

My job is to help innovative companies develop and deploy technologies that mitigate climate change.

SVB’s deep experience allows us to design the right financing solutions for our diverse base of clients, including emerging and established private and public companies.

Richard Youngman, CEO, Cleantech Group

Since January 2016, Richard Youngman has been CEO of Cleantech Group. Before that, he spent seven years driving the company’s growth in Europe, Israel, and Asia. He also brings extensive experience in  venture capital markets and start-ups across Europe and the world. He is a regular keynote speaker at major cleantech events and is the driving force behind the annual Global Cleantech 100, a list of the world’s most promising private cleantech companies. His background in finance and research make his insights into investment trends invaluable for entrepreneurs, investors and corporates.