Fantu is C40 City Advisor for Addis Ababa, based in Addis Ababa.
Prior to joining C40, Fantu worked as Climate Change mainstreaming Team Leader and Senior Ecosystem/Biodiversity Researcher, Environmental pollution researcher and Project Monitoring and Evaluation Officer at Addis Ababa Environmental Protection Authority. In these roles, she coordinated the mainstreaming activities of climate change adaptation and mitigation actions into the city sector’s action plan, and delivered training for city officials in different departments and sectors.
Fantu is a focal person for C40’s air quality technical assistance programme, performing different researches on biodiversity and Environmental pollution. She has published research on the assessment of heavy metal accumulation capacity of selected plant species for phytoremediation along the little Akaki River, case of Addis Ababa. Fantu has worked on additional research to be published on impacts of climate variability on vegetable production nexus climate-smart agricultural technologies long the little Akaki river of Addis Ababa.
Fantu also served as Reform Officer at Ethiopian Biodiversity Institute and as a high school teacher in a private school in Addis Ababa. Fantu holds an MSc in Environmental and Climate Change Management from Civil Service University, a BSc in Biology from Addis Ababa University and a Diploma from Kotebe College of Teachers Education.
Fatmata Mary Kanyako serves as C40’s Administrative Assistant at the Freetown Co-Chairs office, in Freetown, Sierra Leone. She worked as Human Resource Manager in the hospitality industry and was later employed by the Tony Blair Institute for Global Change to support the Mayor of Freetown, Yvonne Aki-Sawyerr for the past 6 years as Executive Assistant.
Fatmata is an experienced administrative professional with over a decade of experience supporting leaders in the climate service sector. She has a proactive and results-driven approach to her work, backed by an acute knowledge of office systems and procedures. She has excellent organizational and communications skills, ranging from updating and managing information materials to handling official correspondences in an increasingly technology-focused workforce.
Fatmata is dedicated and passionate about her work and is very supportive in achieving Mayor Aki-Sawyerr’s goal to Transform Freetown – Transforming Lives.
Felipe works as a Regions Delivery Officer in the Regions and Mayoral Engagement department, supporting the core global team on a day-to-day basis with the coordination of various activities, including cross-regional analysis and delivery tracking, as well as sharing regional information globally and vice-versa, helping the organisation to achieve its annual goals. Still at C40, Felipe also worked as a Research Officer in the Climate Finance, Knowledge and Partnerships department, supporting C40’s research team to develop and coordinate projects on different themes, such as healthy and efficient buildings, clean and renewable energy transition, and sustainable urban design and mobility.
Among other relevant previous experiences, Felipe served as a Regional Low Carbon Analyst at ICLEI, supporting the implementation and coordination of international cooperation projects related to sustainable urban development for local governments in South America. His work involved elaborating municipal GHG inventories, climate action plans and energy transition roadmaps.
Felipe holds a bachelor’s degree in Environmental Engineering from the Federal University of Espírito Santo (Brazil) and an MSc in Environmental Management with emphasis on climate change from Kingston University (London), fully funded by Chevening Scholarships, the UK government’s global awards programme.
Fernanda serves as Programme Manager for the Climate Action Implementation team. In this role, she supports the design and delivery of the Accelerated Implementation strategy and facilitates internal coordination across global and regional teams. Previously, Fernanda acted as Programme Manager for the Climate Action Planning Programme in Latin America, supporting the 9 cities of the region in delivering Paris Agreement-compliant plans. Prior to joining C40, Fernanda worked as National Coordinator to the Governors’ Task Force for Climate and Forest in Brazil, supporting the nine states of the Brazilian Amazon in the international and national climate agenda. She also worked as Executive Secretary to the Conservation Finance Alliance. Fernanda holds a BA in International Relations from PUC-Rio and an MSc inDevelopment Studies from the London School of Economics.
Francesco is C40’s Senior Ecological and Wellbeing Economist, providing evidence and analysis for a progressive economic and policy narrative that supports the transformational change needed to achieve 1.5°C, equitable and resilient cities.
Prior to joining C40, Francesco worked as an economist for Homes England, the UK Government agency responsible for housing and urban regeneration, for PwC, a consultancy, and for the Mayor of London.
Outside of work, Francesco is a steering group member of the Finsbury Park and Stroud Green Neighbourhood Forum, helping to develop a design code and a Neighbourhood Plan for the local community.
Francesco has a MSc in Urban Economic Development from University College London and a BSc in European Economics from the University of Rome Tor Vergata.
Frankie Downy manages the Private Building Efficiency Network at C40, where she works with cities to accelerate implementation of energy efficiency measures in private sector buildings. Prior to C40, Frankie worked as a Development & Project Manager for International Programmes at the Energy Saving Trust. There she managed several European Commission-funded energy efficiency and renewable energy programmes that worked with industry, civil society, national and international agencies throughout Europe. Frankie also chaired a working group for EU member state governments on sharing best practice on effective ways to implement the Renewable Energy Sources Directive. She has a Master’s degree in Climate Change from the University of East Anglia and a Bachelor’s degree in Environmental Geoscience from Cardiff University.
Gabriel Lewenstein serves as Senior Manager for North American Communications and Public Affairs at C40. In this capacity, he works with mayors and cities to use communications tools to advance climate action. This includes liaising with mayoral communications teams, identifying opportunities for action and leadership, and highlighting case studies and stories on climate leadership by cities.
Before joining C40, Gabriel worked in city and state government, serving as Chief of Staff to a state legislator, where he managed a legislative portfolio addressing environmental issues, criminal justice reform, and LGBTQ rights. Prior to that, Gabriel worked at the Institute for Transportation and Development Policy, coordinating with cities around the globe to highlight and advance the creation of sustainable cities.
Gabriel graduated from Tufts University with a degree in International Relations and a focus on urban environmental issues. He is passionate about creating sustainable, equitable, and vibrant cities. In his spare time, he enjoys puns, board games, and baking, and has a lifelong passion for elephants.
Gabriel Tenenbaum is C40 Director of Implementation for Latin America and holds twelve years of experience working with climate action and sustainability in the region. He has a Masters in Transport Engineering from the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, and in Generalist Engineering from École Centrale de Lyon, France.
Gabriel is responsible for the operations of all regional programmes, including UCAP CAI, Laneshift, Breathe Cities, ZEBRA, TUMI, and for ensuring that regional work is coordinated with C40’s global strategy, increasing C40 technical support to cities effectively.
Before this role, Gabriel was C40’s Head of Zero Emission Vehicles, managing The Climate Pledge Laneshift Initiative for freight decarbonisation and the ZEBRA Partnership for zero-emission bus implementation in the region. Gabriel’s relationship with C40 started in 2018 when he joined the organization as Mass Transit Network Manager, and then as the ZEBRA Programme Manager in 2019. He spent 2 years at the Rio de Janeiro Transport Department from 2021 to 2023, leading the promotion of governance reform in the city public transport system before returning to C40. Before C40, Gabriel worked at other public, non-profit and private sector organisations focusing on transport and infrastructure.
Gabriela is the Senior Manager for C40’s Zero Emission Freight programme in Latin America. She holds more than 10 years of experience working with local governments in Mexico, mostly on sustainable urban development, metropolitan governance, and urban mobility policies with a strong focus on gender equality and social inclusion mainstreaming.
Prior to C40s, she led the “TUMI E-Bus Mission” Initiative at the World Resources Institute (WRI Mexico), working closely with Mexican and Colombian cities. Her work contributed to scale e-buses adoption from an inclusive approach, focusing on the social and health benefits for workers and users. Prior to this, as Research and Gender Policy Manager for the Metropolitan Institute of Planning and Development Management of the Metropolitan Area of Guadalajara (IMEPLAN), she led and coordinated the mainstreaming of social inclusion, gender and diversity criteria for the metropolitan planning instruments of nine municipalities.
Gabriela holds a Master’s in Governance, Development and Public Policy from the Institute of Development Studies (IDS) at the University of Sussex and a Bachelor’s in International Relations from ITESO University (Guadalajara, Mexico). She was a fellow of the first program on “Leadership, Urban Mobility and Gender: Women Leading the Change in Latin America”. She is a passionate book reader and loves literature of women writers, food, design and listening to music.
Georgina serves as Senior Business Manager at C40. She leads the operational support to the Management Team to ensure effective strategic and operational planning and decision-making. She supports the Deputy Executive Director across a range of activities, such as fundraising and partnership support, and manages select projects on his behalf. Gina has previously worked on the delivery of C40’s role in the 2018 Global Climate Action Summit, including the development of new sectoral declarations. Before joining C40, Gina worked for the Coalition for Urban Transitions supporting the development of new strategic partnerships and governmental diplomacy efforts and managing engagement activities, such as events at international conferences. Gina was formerly a corporate lawyer in the City of London, with a focus on mergers and acquisitions. She holds an MSc (Environmental Policy and Regulation) from the London School of Economics, postgraduate qualifications in law from BPP Law School and a BA Hons (English and French) from the University of Warwick.
As the Deputy Regional Director for Africa for C40 Climate Leadership Group, Gifti Nadi works closely with the political and technical leadership and climate ambitions of 12 African cities. Previously at C40, Gifti served as City Diplomacy Manager – Global Campaigns focusing on the lead up to the CitiesIPCC campaign and conference held in March 2018 in Edmonton, Canada. Gifti began her C40 tenure as City Adviser for Addis-Ababa where she primarily worked with the political and operational leadership within city government to facilitate the delivery and public engagement plan of the proposed Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) project. Gifti has more than 15 years of experience in the fields of capacity building, media and communications, public policy, gender equality, health and rural development. She has worked with the Ethiopian Development Research Institute and Ethiopian Economics Association as part of the Think Tank Initiative’s Policy Engagement and Communications program. Her previous roles also include time at UNDP’s Africa Adaptation Programme (AAP) in Nairobi, and at the International Women’s Media Foundation (IWMF) in Washington DC, as the Senior Program Officer for Africa. Gifti holds a Master’s degree in International Public Policy from Johns Hopkins University’s School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS) and a Bachelor’s degree in Sociology from the University of Maryland.
As Senior Manager for Climate & Migration, Giovanni is responsible for the delivery of the C40-MMC Global Mayors Task Force on Climate and Migration, in partnership with the Mayors Migration Council (MMC), and other activities related to climate migration and inclusive climate action.
Prior to C40, Giovanni worked as Deputy-Chief Resilience Officer for the City of Barcelona (Spain) – developing the city’s resilience strategy on affordable housing, demographic change, urban migration and environmental stresses, among other issues – and as Urban Resilience Specialist for UN-Habitat, supporting the development and implementation of a City Resilience Profiling Tool.
Giovanni has a BA in Architecture and Planning from the Polytechnic School of Milan; he holds an MSc in Middle East Politics from the London School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS) and a Master in Public Policy from the Pompeu Fabra/John Hopkins University.
Giovanni Tedesco serves as Senior Manager, Business Planning and Reporting supporting the C40 flagship Deadline 2020 Programme around city 1.5°C ambition and Paris Agreement delivery as well as regional and C40-wide data needs. Giovanni works closely with the Global Initiatives team and Regional Directors to deliver locally-specific and valuable data analysis to further enhance C40’s efforts to address climate change mitigation and adaptation. Giovanni holds a degree in Political Science from the University of Bologna and a MSc in Environmental Management from the University of Reading.
Gloriela is the C40 Manager of US Health, Climate, and Equity. In this role, she collaborates with six US cities working on initiatives at the intersection of public health, climate change, and social equity to facilitate peer learning and co-create public-facing deliverables to amplify implementation lessons.
Before joining C40, she co-led and co-designed evaluations of social service programs and provided technical assistance to improve service delivery for low-income people at MDRC as a qualitative social policy researcher. Her work experience covers multiple institutions, including public housing authorities, community colleges, financial counselling centres, and philanthropic organizations. She also served as the Justice, Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion Advocacy Council Chair working with organizational leadership and employees to set and advance goals towards improved workplace practices and equity-centred research methods.
Gloriela has a degree from the University of Michigan – Ann Arbor in Public Policy with a focus on Environmental Justice and Health Policy at the Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy.
Outside work, she loves dancing, practising yoga and mindfulness, walking in nature with friends and family, and being anywhere in her beloved Puerto Rico.
Grace is an experienced strategic leader with a 16-year track record spanning African local government operations and the US private sector. While working at County Government of Machakos (Kenya), she designed and executed sustainable development programmes across multiple departments and stakeholders. She set up the Machakos Climate Change Unit and supported the department in drafting the Climate Act, finance and climate change policies, and securing funding for the financial locally-led Climate Action Program.
Grace holds a Doctor of Business Administration from California Southern University and has a certification in Monitoring and Evaluation. Grace is also passionate about empowering the girl child and actively volunteers in her community, providing mentorship to support young girls. In her spare time, she loves spending time with her family, hiking, and cooking.
Guilherme Macieira serves as C40’s Project Assistant for the Zero Emission Bus Rapid-Deployment Accelerator (ZEBRA) project, led by C40 Cities and the International Council on Clean Transportation (ICCT). In this role, Guilherme supports the coordination and delivery of the programme, through administrative tasks, communication activities, and sharing best practices for deploying zero-emission buses in Latin America.
Before joining C40, Guilherme worked as an Institutional Relations and Advocacy intern at ICLEI South America, where he developed a keen interest in urban climate action, supporting the engagement of mayors and city representatives at COP26 and other international forums and implemented projects focused on climate justice and climate action. Guilherme has also worked at Solidarity Center, an international workers’ rights organisation, implementing cooperation projects with local unions to strengthen the collective voice of workers, especially underrepresented groups, around the world.
Based in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Guilherme holds a B.A. in International Relations from the Federal University of São Paulo, where he focused on international public policies and cooperation.
Guillermo is the Technical Head for Breathe Cities in Latin America, responsible for coordinating the programme implementation in Mexico City, Rio de Janeiro and Bogotá. Before this role, he was the Inclusive Climate Action Senior Manager, UCAP CAI/CFF, supporting the integration of inclusive climate action across different C40 programmes.
Before C40, he worked in different public sector roles in Mexico and Australia. He lived over six years in Melbourne (Australia) where he studied urban planning and had the opportunity to work in designing sustainable transport policies across different government settings, including the Victorian Parliament, Glen Eira City Council, and the Victoria State Government.
In Mexico, he worked for over five years in the departments of the environment at Guadalajara City Council and Jalisco State Government across different policy areas, including waste management, climate change, and air quality.
Guillermo holds a Master’s in Urban Planning from the University of Melbourne and a Bachelor’s in Environmental Engineering from ITESO University (Guadalajara, Mexico).
Gunjan Parik serves as Director for Transportation at C40. Prior to joining the C40, Gunjan worked at Transport for London (TfL), most recently as the Head of Paralympic Transport and Accessibility, where she was responsible for ensuring TfL capacity to operate a robust transport network able to meet the unique challenges of the 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games. She also worked as a Senior Associate at the TfL Policy Unit where she served as an advisor on issues of strategic importance for TfL. Previously, Gunjan was based in India where she worked as a Senior Consultant for Pricewaterhouse Coopers, working across a range of government institutions at local and national levels. Gunjan holds an Masters of Science in Management and Regulation of Risk, and an Master’s of Science in Information Systems, both from the London School of Economics.
Hanie is the C40 City Adviser for Kuala Lumpur in Malaysia.
Before joining C40, she worked with a design association and was leading the James Dyson Foundation in Southeast Asia. To enhance engineering education provision, she has established relevant networking with science, technology, and education ministries, government agencies, engineering bodies, and universities. She collaborated with different non-governmental organisations in Southeast Asia to support engineering education, medical research, and the local community.
Hanie has over a decade of project management experience and specialises in strategic planning, resource allocation, and stakeholder engagement, enabling her to drive projects from conception to successful implementation.
She holds a Masters Degree in Design Technology from Universiti Teknologi Mara.
Hannah Chatterjee manages the C40 Food Systems Network within the Climate Solutions & Networks team. She nurtures relationships with cities across the world who are working on food systems-related climate projects and policies, and helps them share their wisdom and expertise.
Before joining C40, Hannah directed the food policy council in her hometown of Philadelphia, organizing city government officials to be proactive and responsive towards tackling food systems challenges in partnership with residents. She also supports her collective 4DaSoil, which incubates Black & Brown-led food justice projects in Philadelphia. She is deeply committed to promoting cooperative and collective forms of governance, and advancing racial and environmental justice.
She has a BA in History & International Relations from Cornell University, and a MSc in Prosperity, Innovation & Entrepreneurship from UCL.