Governance & Team

Björn leads the organisation of TFA’s global events and meetings, including the TFA Annual Meeting and sessions at World Economic Forum events, and project manages the development of the Collective Action Agenda. Björn has a background in climate, environment and energy policy and experience working with think tanks, international organisations and NGOs. He holds a Master’s degree in International Affairs from the Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies in Geneva.

Prior to joining the team, Carolina provided global policy analysis and advocacy engagement for the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation in Paris, and support to the Head of Southern Europe, G7 and G20. Carolina has held a number of consulting roles, including as policy analyst for the Organisation of American States in Washington DC, and as Curator of Performing Arts for the Cartography of Human Rights Project at the University of São Paulo Institute of Advanced Studies in Brazil. Carolina holds a Master in International Public Management from the Paris School of International Affairs (PSIA) at the Sciences Po in Paris, and a B.A. in Social Sciences from the University of São Paulo, Brazil.

Justin Adams has spent 25 years championing innovation and sustainability in the private and public sector to address the challenge of climate change. He joined The Nature Conservancy as Global Managing Director for Lands in April 2014 leading a large cross-disciplinary global team, which focuses on building programmes to accelerate action on zero deforestation supply chains; forest restoration; soil health; indigenous people’s rights and carbon finance.

Petra oversees TFA’s strategic partnerships and leads efforts to mobilise private sector engagement in jurisdictional approaches in tropical forest countries. She brings to TFA both private sector and NGO experience, having worked at the World Economic Forum, International Flavors & Fragrances Inc and the Martin Bauer Group as well as the Rainforest Alliance in New York and across Southeast Asia. She has expertise in corporate social responsibility, responsible sourcing and sustainable commodity supply chains. Petra is a World Economic Forum Global Leadership Fellow.

Sharon leads the communications, campaigns and digital engagement of the Alliance. Prior to joining the TFA, Sharon was a communications and project officer at the Geneva Centre for Security Sector Governance. She also worked as a junior policy analyst at the International Telecommunications Union’s (ITU) Corporate Strategy Division. Before that, she was working in broadcast journalism as international correspondent in South Africa, USA, and Argentina. She holds a master’s degree in political science and international relations from the University of Geneva, a Postgraduate Diploma in Media Management, and a Bachelor of Social Sciences majoring in Journalism and Media Studies from Rhodes University.

Ashley coordinates the daily affairs of the TFA logistical needs and provides organizational support to the team. Ashley has a background in financial administration and retail event planning. She holds an honours Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Toronto.

Gianluca supports the communications, campaigns and digital engagement of TFA. Prior to joining TFA, he accumulated experience working for international organizations, think tanks and the Swiss embassy in Chile. Gianluca has a background in physical geography and holds a Master’s degree in International Affairs from the Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies in Geneva.

Dr. Erwin Widodo is a scientist with over 20 years of extensive research in tropical ecology and forest management, where his time was spent on location throughout Asia working with various organizations including ICCTF, WWF, Conservation International, Wildlife Conservation Society, The Nature Conservancy and Yayasan KEHATI Indonesia. Dr. Widodo has a BSc in Biology from Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia and a GLS in Global Policy and Diplomacy from Georgetown University. He obtained a PhD in Bio-resources Production and Energy Sciences from Kobe University.

Lawyer, PhD in Environmental Science by University of São Paulo. Working since 2002 in multi-stakeholder platforms related to value chains and responsible consumption, as FACES do Brasil – Fair and Solidarity Trade Platform, FSC Brazil – Forest Stewardship Council and, since 2016, at TFA Latin America leading the engagement of regional partners in a collective joint action plan towards the reduction of deforestation.

Andrea works as TFA Regional Analyst for Latin America, performing multiple tasks for the completion of workplans, operational and financial management. Andrea holds an MBA in Sustainability Management from FGV and a Bachelor's degree in Biological Sciences from ESALQ/USP.

Joseph Lumumba is The Tropical Forest Alliance Regional Coordinator for Africa since August 2017. He supports the implementation and linkages between the TFA flagship program Africa Palm Oil Initiative (APOI) and the Cocoa and Forest Initiative (CFI). For both programs Joseph engages companies, governments, civil society, donors, banking sector, indigenous people and local communities. TFA Africa also supports partners jurisdictional initiatives. Joseph has as a background in Natural Resource Management (NRM) and has been working for 12 years with IUCN Netherlands Committee from Amsterdam as a senior programme Officer for West and Central Africa. He holds an MSc in Natural Management from the University of Liege in Belgium.

Sylvia is Assistant to the TFA Regional Coordinator for Africa. She is responsible for administration, finance, operations and logistics for TFA West and Central Africa. She holds a Bachelor of Arts Degree in French and Sociology from the University of Ghana and a Commonwealth Executive Masters in Business Administration from KNUST.

Javier has over 20 years of experience with project management, policy development, environmental finance, and rural development. In his previous role at the Global Green Growth Institute (GGGI), he supported the Colombian government in the development of sustainable landscapes, public-private agreements on zero deforestation and the design of environmental instruments for the agriculture sector. Hands-on experience with the implementation of sustainable landscape models, instruments, multi-stakeholder dialogues and agricultural supply chains in the Orinoquia and Amazon. Javier is an economist and holds an MBA.

Cristina is the Global Sustainability Lead for oilseeds and grains at LDC, driving the strategy and execution of LDC’s sustainability ambitions in palm and soy. She has an extensive background in strategy consulting and business transformation, with previous roles at Accenture, Proteus (a boutique consultant), the BBC and AstraZeneca. Cristina holds an MA Joint Honours from the University of Oxford, an MBA from London Business School, and a Post Graduate Certificate in Sustainable Value Chains from the University of Cambridge.

Eduardo has a Bachelor’s degree in Agricultural Engineering from the University of Brasilia –UnB(1993). MSc in Agriculture with a focus on Agricultural Economics from the Obihiro University of Agriculture and Veterinary Medicine, Japan (scholarship from the Japanese Ministry of Education –Monbukagakusho). Has worked as Technical Advisor at the Brazilian Confederation of Agriculture and Livestock (CNA). Until January 2019 worked as Project Manager at the Governmental Brazilian Trade and Investment Promotion Agency (Apex-Brasil). Previously, worked as the Agribusiness Coordinator in Brazil for the North American NGO Conservation International (CI).