Leslie Durschinger

Founder CEO & CIO, Terra Global

Leveraging 20 years of experience in the financial industry, Leslie Durschinger founded Terra Global in 2006 to attract private-sector capital to NbS. She is a recognized innovator in aligning development values and financially viable approaches to NbS. Under Durschinger’s leadership, Terra has become a leader in GHG quantification and financing commercially viable NbS programs that generate multiple-benefit emission reductions/removals. She launched an investment fund that provides that finances a diverse portfolio of NbS programs in developing countries. Durschinger is on the IETA Council, Verra VCS Program Advisory Group, and served on the REDD+ SES Committee and Verra VCS JNR-Expert WG.

Saurabh Gaidhani

Chief Operating Officer, NO.17 Foundation

Saurabh Gaidhani is the Chief Operating Officer of NO.17 Foundation, a member of TPC (Tsao Pao Chee) Group. Saurabh has 15+ years of experience in the international development and philanthropy sector. During which, he has advised clients from the public, private, and philanthropy sectors on diverse topics such as climate change, circular economy, net-zero, energy transitions, decarbonization, nature-based solutions, urban development, inclusive growth, environmental degradation, and ESG frameworks. Saurabh has an Executive Master of Business Administration and Master of Arts from the National University of Singapore and Executive Education in Public Policy and Sustainable Finance from the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy and the University of Cambridge, respectively. Before joining TPC (Tsao Pao Chee), Saurabh was Regional Head at Resilient Cities Network and Associate Director at Rockefeller Foundation, leading the organization’s strategic engagement, programs, and partnerships in the Asia Pacific region.

Sophia Wood

Senior Sourcing & Partnerships Manager for NBS, Climeworks

Sophia Wood is Senior Sourcing & Partnerships Manager for NBS at Climeworks Solutions, where she leads sourcing and portfolio strategy for nature-based carbon projects. She works closely with project developers, investors, and corporate clients worldwide to identify, evaluate, and scale high-integrity carbon removal and avoidance projects. With nearly ten years of experience in environmental management and carbon project development, Sophia has helped build and manage forest carbon initiatives across diverse geographies and contexts. Before joining Climeworks, she held leadership positions at Pachama and rePLANET, where she focused on developing projects that combine strong climate outcomes with measurable benefits for communities and ecosystems. Drawing on experience from both project development and carbon procurement, Sophia brings a practical perspective on what it takes to build investable, scalable nature-based solutions. She is passionate about creating stronger links between project developers, capital providers, and corporate buyers to help accelerate the growth of a high-integrity carbon market.

Julia Strong

Founder and Executive Director, Symbiosis Coalition

Julia founded and leads Symbiosis Coalition, the more than 20 million tonne advance market commitment to catalyze the next generation of nature-based carbon removal projects. She has worked across the non-profit, public, and private sectors to advance positive impact at the intersection of climate change, nature, and finance. Her experience includes The Nature Conservancy, the California Governor’s Office of Planning and Research, Blue Forest, New Forests, and NCX. Julia's most recent role was as Director of the Climate and Nature Finance Collaborative at ZOMALAB. Julia co-founded and co-hosts the podcast focused on natural climate solutions, “Solving Climate, Naturally.” She received the Mulago Fellowship for her work on Symbiosis. Julia has her MBA and MS in Environment and Resources with a focus on land use from Stanford Graduate School of Business (GSB) and a BA in environmental studies with a focus on biodiversity conservation from Yale University.

MODERATOR

Samantha Taylor

Vice President for Development and Partnerships, Terraformation

Samantha Taylor is VP of Development at Terraformation, where she leads global fundraising and strategic partnerships to mobilize capital for high-integrity, native, biodiverse reforestation. She was formerly VP of Development at Emergent Climate and Managing Director at Bozell Worldwide, and served as Senior Advisor to American Forests, The Nature Conservancy, and Safe Water Network. A native of London and raised in Kenya, Samantha brings more than two decades of international leadership building the partnerships and resources needed to turn ambitious environmental solutions into impact at scale.