Demanding Prosperity for People and Planet – SWF 2012
Speakers
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Director, International Institute for Environment and Development
Camilla Toulmin is Director of the International Institute for Environment and Development, which is celebrating 40 years of ideas and action for sustainable development. An economist by training, she has worked mainly in Africa on agriculture, land, climate and livelihoods, mixing research, policy analysis and advocacy. Her work has aimed at understanding how environmental, economic and political change impact people’s lives, and how policy reform can bring real change on the ground. Her latest book is Climate Change in Africa.
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CEO & President, Gram Vikas USA
Joe Madiath completed his studies in English literature from Madras University. As a student, he was elected as the President of Madras University Students’ Union and founded the Young Students’ Movement for Development (YSMD) to harness positively the student disenchantment prevailing during the period. In 1969, as a student, he journeyed across India, Nepal, Bhutan and Sri Lanka on a bicycle for a year.
In 1971, Joe led 400 YSMD volunteers to manage a number of relief camps for refugees from Bangladesh. Later that year, 40 volunteers along with Joe, moved to Orissa, which had been ravaged by a cyclone and tidal waves. Joe and a few colleagues decided to stay on in the area after relief work to work as development activists. They moved to Ganjam District in southern Orissa in 1976 on invitation from Government, to initiate development activities among the indigenous communities. This resulted in the establishment of Gram Vikas in 1979.
Since its inception, till the end of June 2014 Joe has been the Executive Director of Gram Vikas and now the Chairman of Gram Vikas. Gram Vikas, today, is one of the largest NGOs in Orissa, reaching out to over 100,000 indigenous and poor families living in 1200 rural habitations. Some of the pioneering efforts of Gram Vikas have been in biogas promotion, community forestry, rural habitat development and education. Gram Vikas’ current approach to convergent community action with water and sanitation as the entry point is evolving into a movement influencing local democratic self-governance and poor people’s control over development processes.
Recipient of awards: Shawn Feinstein World Hunger Award; Global Development Network Award (1998); World Habitat Award (2002); Kyoto World Water Grand Prize (2006); Social Life Time Achievement Award by Godfrey Phillips Red and White Bravery Awards (2006); NGO of the Year (2006) by Resource Alliance; Skoll Award for Social Entrepreneurs (2006) by Skoll Foundation, USA
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Clinical Associate Professor, Robert F. Wagner Graduate School of Public Service, New York University
John Gershman is a Clinical Associate Professor of Public Service at NYU’s Robert F. Wagner Graduate School of Public Service. Previously, he served as Co-Director of Foreign Policy in Focus and worked at Food First and Partners in Health. His research focuses on issues of U.S. foreign policy, the politics of IFIs and multilateralism, the political economy of sustainable development, food security and rights-based approaches to development.
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Africa Director, ONE
Sipho Moyo joined ONE in 2010 as Africa Director. She represents ONE’s global work across Africa and helps mainstream the African perspective in ONE’s policy stances. She has 18 years experience from AfDB, UN and the World Bank. Her last position was AfDB Resident Representative in Tanzania, where as Chair of 14 GBS partners, she led country-level Policy Dialogue between government and donors. Previous roles include Special Affiliate on President Bush’s Blue-Ribbon Commission on Affordable Housing, and a Sasakawa Leadership Fellowship.
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Director General, Independent Evaluation, Asian Development Bank
Vinod Thomas reports to ADB’s Board of Directors through the Development Effectiveness Committee. He previously led the World Bank Group’s Independent Evaluation Group. He joined the World Bank in 1975 and began a career that later saw him as Country Director, Brazil, and as Vice President of the World Bank Institute. He holds PhD and Master's degrees in Economics from the University of Chicago. He has authored 14 books and numerous journal articles.
