2026 Speakers

B Consultant | Fractional Sustainability Leaders Collective

Chris’s approach to sustainability is grounded in action—driven by a sense of duty of care and a belief that values must be operationalized to create lasting change. After earning his Bachelor’s degree in Education from the College of Charleston and his Master’s in Recreation Management from Arizona State University, he joined the Peace Corps and served in rural Bulgaria, focusing on environmental education and trail restoration. That experience sparked a lifelong focus on turning good intentions into tangible impact. Following his work in the non-profit sector, Chris helped to establish and build the sustainability program at KEEN—phasing out harmful chemicals, shaping responsible sourcing standards, and aligning business operations with environmental values. Today, he advises companies in his Futurescapes Consulting practice on integrating sustainability into supply chains, compliance systems, and community impact strategies.
Based in Portland, Chris draws inspiration and grounding from Oregon’s wild landscapes—especially time spent surfing and meditating. He has dedicated many years to nonprofit service and currently serves on the boards of Oregon Wild and the Oregon Sustainability Board, bringing both purpose and practice to his governance work.

CEO | Tilting Futures

As CEO, Erin is propelling Tilting Futures into a new era of innovation and impact. She founded the organization's innovative flagship program, Take Action Lab, and launched a systems change strategy with higher education institutions, educational nonprofits, and partners to identify best
practices, build a robust evidence base, and integrate credit-bearing experiential immersive global learning into curricula as a global standard. A recognized thought leader in youth development and global education, Erin listens to young people and develops programming to meet their needs. She fosters a culture of equity and inclusion, earning the organization a top spot on Outside Magazine's Best Places to Work and recognition in COLOR Magazine as an inclusive workplace.
Before joining Tilting Futures in 2014, Erin was the Vice President of School Partnerships at Revolution Foods and the Bay Area Director for Playworks. She has also served as the Board Chair for Oakland Leaf and is a member of the Advisory Board for Rising Sun Center for Opportunity. Erin regularly authors articles about her work and life to publications such as Forbes, Fast Company, Bloomberg, and NBC.

VP Regulations & Compliance | Helen of Troy

Dr. Janice Lao is an internationally multi-awarded environmental scientist and economist working with businesses to operate in a manner that creates holistic value for all. She has over 20 years experience working in the field of corporate sustainability, and in the past 10 years as head of sustainability for several publicly listed companies based in Asia, Europe, and the United States. She is currently VP- Regulatory, Sustainability & Governance for consumer goods company Helen of Troy. At 30, she developed the initial mathematical and economic modeling that was the basis for international aviation’s carbon-neutral growth strategy. She also originated and led some of the “first in the industry” sustainable financial deals, from green bonds to M&A. Her work has been recognized by Forbes Magazine as one of the world’s most influential female sustainability leaders, Fortune Magazine and others, often as the only Asian, and one of the youngest, in their lists. She graduated from the University of Oxford as a British Chevening scholar and at Prescott College with a PhD in Sustainability Education. She also co-wrote a climate change book “Sparky & Benny’s Big Home Mystery” with her daughter, Esther. Her new children’s book “Penguins Can Fly, Right?”, co-authored with her son, Isaac, is now out.

CEO | BloomBox Design Labs

Sofie Roux is a Stanford senior majoring in Sustainable Architecture and Engineering who believes that grand challenges, such as achieving universal access to high quality education in science and technology (STEAM) fields, can be approached with sensitivity, determination, and relentless design thinking. 
She is the Founder and CEO of BloomBox Design Labs, focusing on improving access to high quality STEAM education in low resource environments. Over the past four years, BloomBox Design Labs has designed, constructed, and installed four state-of-the-art computer and design labs, capable of functioning completely off grid, and in austere and rural environments in Malawi. BloomBoxes have brought electricity, access to computers, a spectrum of educational technology, multimedia educational materials, and high-speed connectivity to over 10,000 students, who previously had no or minimal access to electricity. The BloomBox team plans to scale these labs to 300 more schools across the country and within southern Africa in the next 5 years in partnership with the UNHCR and the Government of Malawi. BloomBox Design Labs has been the recipient of the Diana Humanitarian Award, a US Department of Energy award for sustainability, and startup prizes at energy tradeshows across the country and the American Institute of Architects.

Founder | Coastal Range Collective

Laura Kinman is the founder of Coastal Range Collective, a sustainable women’s coastal apparel brand rooted in function, longevity, and thoughtful design. She spent over a decade at Patagonia leading women’s lifestyle product, helping bring to life some of the outdoor industry’s most influential sustainability and social initiatives.
In January 2025, Laura launched Coastal Range Collective to explore how industry-leading practices once implemented at global scale can be adapted to a small, independent business. Through her work, she shares lessons on sustainability, entrepreneurship, and redefining impact beyond traditional measures of scale.

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Fellow | California Forward

Jake Higdon is a fellow at California Forward and Center for Public Enterprise. He most recently served as Senior Advisor at the U.S. Department of Energy, where he worked to implement the Biden-Harris Administration’s industrial strategy, craft Inflation Reduction Act tax guidance, and launch new clean energy manufacturing and infrastructure programs. 

Prior to joining DOE, Jake advanced national energy and climate policy in roles at Environmental Defense Fund, Data for Progress, Columbia University’s Center on Global Energy Policy, and the Obama White House. He holds an M.P.A. from Columbia University and a B.A. from UNC-Chapel Hill.

Associate Teaching Professor of Marketing | University of Oregon

Dr. Yoav Dubinsky is an Associate Teaching Professor of Marketing in the Lundquist College of Business at the University of Oregon, and the operational director of the University of Oregon Olympic Studies Hub. His interdisciplinary scholarship focuses on sports, nation branding, public diplomacy, and country image and especially how countries, cities, and communities try to improve their images and reputations through sports. Focusing on the Olympic Movement, Dubinsky has covered or researched the Olympic Games from Beijing, London, Rio de Janeiro, Tokyo, and Paris. He has been involved with the International Olympic Academy as a lecturer, a coordinator, and a student, using sports as a tool for inclusion in diverse international environments. He is the author of the books Nation Branding and Sports Diplomacy: Country Image Games in Times of Change and A New Olympic Era: A New Olympic Era: Navigating Socioeconomic, Geopolitical, and Environmental Complexities.