Sebastien Boulay is a physical oceanographer and Director of Business Development at Sofar Ocean. With a background as an offshore hydrographic surveyor and project manager, Sebastien was previously responsible for the worldwide marine forecast services at the New Zealand MetService. 

Muhammad Ichsan is the Technical Program Manager of the Regional Secretariat of CTI-CFF. He earned his Bachelor's Degree in Marine Science from Padjadjaran University, Indonesia, and a Master's Degree in Conservation Biology from the University of Queensland, Australia. He previously worked with the private sector in marine tourism and international conservation NGOs focusing on threatened marine species and international development projects in Sustainable Fisheries.

Hotta holds Dphil in International Relations from the University of Sussex in 2004. Since joining IGES in 2005, he has been involved in various policy initiatives and research projects in relation to resource efficiency and circular economy such as G8’s 3R Initiative, Working Group for 3R Policies for Southeast and East Asia as well as Regional Knowledge Centre for Marine Plastic Debris at Economic Research Institute for ASEAN and East Asia (ERIA), and OECD’s Working Party on Resource Productivity and Waste.

Shuji Sonoda is in charge of the sustainability of packaging for the Suntory group in Tokyo. He is an R&D expert, experienced in delivering beverages for a global market. He has held leadership in varied projects related to Sustainability and the Environment. He is leading to making Suntory beverage packaging sustainable to achieve a circular economy in the global market by collaborating with internal and external stakeholders.

Robin is an award-winning social entrepreneur based in Japan, recently recognized by M.I.T. Technology Review in its inaugural "Top Innovators Under-35" Japan awards.

He is Co-founder of mymizu - an initiative to reduce the consumption of single-use plastics and is also Co-founder of Social Innovation Japan - a platform for social good focusing on the UN Sustainable Development Goals.

Gab Mejia is a Filipino conservation photographer, environmental storyteller, and engineer. His work focuses on stories on the climate crisis, endangered wildlife, and the intersectionality of culture and the environment. He is a National Geographic Explorer, Nikon Asia Ambassador, and an Emerging League Fellow in the International League of Conservation Photographers, and has published stories on National Geographic, Nikon, World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF), United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), CNN Philippines, and other international platforms.