Dr. Wil V. Srubar III is an associate professor of civil and architectural engineering and materials science at the University of Colorado, where he leads the Living Materials Laboratory. Srubar holds a Ph.D. from Stanford University as well as B.S. and M.S. degrees from Texas A&M University and the University of Texas at Austin, respectively. His research integrates biology with polymer science and cement chemistry to create low-carbon, biomimetic and living material technologies for the built environment. To date, his laboratory has received over $12 million in sponsored research funding through the U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF), Air Force Research Laboratories (AFRL), ARPA-E and DARPA’s Biological Technologies Office.
He is a recipient of Engineering News Record’s Top 25 Newsmaker Award, the NSF CAREER Award and the American Ceramic Society’s (ACerS) Cements Division Early Career Award. He has authored over 100 technical journal articles, book chapters and conference proceedings, and his work has been highlighted in The New York Times, National Public Radio and The Washington Post. He remains actively involved in leadership positions for the American Concrete Institute (ACI), the ACerS Cements Division and ASCE’s Architectural Engineering Institute. Srubar is also co-founder of three startup companies, Prometheus Materials, Minus Materials and Aureus Earth, all of which focus on advancing the science and application of novel biological and living materials for decarbonizing the construction industry.
Inna Modja is a Malian-French artist, filmmaker and global advocate for social, gender and climate justice. In her 15-year tenure as an activist, she has dedicated herself to fighting female genital mutilation and climate change. Passionate about social, gender and climate justice, she’s a Goodwill Ambassador for the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification, trying to do her part in finding solutions to fight against desertification and drought, while also telling stories of the communities living on the frontline of climate change.
She starred and served as an executive producer of the documentary “The Great Green Wall,” which showcases Africa’s efforts to restore degraded landscapes in the Sahel and control desert expansion while alleviating food insecurity, conflict, and forced migration. She also co-founded Code Green, a nonprofit harnessing the power of art, technology and web, to support social and climate justice. With Code Green, Modja and her team are exploring the potentials of blockchain, aiming to help artists, communities and collectors contribute to Earth’s healing and green justice.
Jeanne Holm is the Chair of the Claremont Graduate University Board of Trustees and the former Deputy Mayor for Finance and Innovation for the City of Los Angeles.
Holm has deep experience in government and higher education, as well as significant expertise in data technology and civic innovation. During her nearly eight years as Deputy Mayor for Finance and Innovation for the City of Los Angeles, she delivered the most progressive budget in city history and worked to ensure equity in services and procurements. She also oversaw the mayor’s budgeting and performance management processes, personnel, sustainability, and data management.
Serving in the Obama White House, Holm was the Evangelist for Open Data and the architect of Data.gov, which strives to inform decisions, drive innovation and economic activity, and strengthen an open and transparent government. At NASA for 30 years, she led teams building innovative technologies to share knowledge.
As a longtime distinguished instructor at UCLA, she has developed and taught courses in big data, civic innovation, open government, semantic technologies, knowledge management, and information sciences.
Breeha Adnan is a visiting graduate researcher from Pakistan working on the environmental performance of urban green spaces and sustainability.
Evan George is the Communications Director for the Emmett Institute on Climate Change and the Environment at UCLA School of Law. He’s a writer, editor, content strategist and veteran journalist with a passion for addressing the climate crisis through research, policy and storytelling.
Previously, Evan was the News Director at KCRW – the flagship NPR member station in Los Angeles – and an editor at the Daily Journal.
Justin manages Partnerships at XPRIZE with a focus on establishing strategic relationships with third parties to advance towards a shared vision of an abundant future for all. In addition to this role, Justin leads operations for the Health and Pandemic Alliance.
Justin comes to XPRIZE with over 10 years of experience leading programs to drive impact. Most recently, he worked at Propeller, where he led their national engagement program to incentivize individuals to take action for social good. Prior to this, he spent a decade leading environmental advocacy campaigns at Greenpeace USA, where he held a number of roles working on issues ranging from climate change to ocean conservation and forest protection, launching their national frontline volunteer program and scaling it up to drive people-powered campaigns.
Hans Mehn joined Generation Investment Management in 2008 and is a member of the Growth Equity strategy, having served as co-portfolio manager for its first two funds. Previously, Hans worked at Swiss Re and affiliates for 13 years managing private and listed investments and began his career working in Corporate Finance at Smith Barney. Hans received a BA in Economics and Art History from Duke University.
As executive director, Angie collaborates with the board, supports the team, and aligns the foundation’s efforts to shift systems toward a more equitable and just future. Most recently, she was director of programs at the Libra Foundation where she oversaw programs and communications. Previously she held leadership and grantmaking roles at multiple foundations and led a national funder collaborative. Angie has a Master’s of Public Policy from UC Berkeley and an AB in environmental science and public policy from Harvard University.
Marcius Extavour is a scientist and leader working at the intersection of deep tech innovation, business, capital, community and storytelling to help solve problems that matter to people. As Chief Climate Solutions Officer at TIMECO2, he is building a climate action platform to help businesses deploy the highest-quality science-aligned climate solutions by focusing on leadership, nature, and business transformation and decarbonization. A widely published innovation practitioner and speaker, he is an active member of the U.S. National Academies of Science Board on Energy & Environmental Systems, University of Michigan’s Global CO2 Initiative, University of Ottawa’s Institute on Governance, Carbontech Leadership Council of New York University’s Carbon to Value Program, and Neste’s Advisory Council on Circular Economy.
Dr. Extavour’s work has been featured by The Atlantic, New York Times, the Economist, Financial Times, Bloomberg, CNBC, Nature Physics, Physical Review Letters, Applied Physics Letters, PBS NOVA, BNN Bloomberg, Bloomberg Green, and TVO’s The Agenda. He speaks globally on themes including the role of business and investing in solving for climate energy and nature, the role of science technology and innovation in building a net-zero nature positive and socially just world, and exponential technologies. In 2019 he was named a 2019 VERGE Vanguard Fellow as one of 20 dreamers, pioneers, entrepreneurs and others leading the clean economy.
He previously served as Chief Scientist and Executive Vice President of Climate & Energy at XPRIZE Foundation where he developed and led the execution of the foundation’s portfolio of energy and climate change innovation programs, including the $100M XPRIZE Carbon Removal funded by the Musk Foundation, and the NRG COSIA Carbon XPRIZE. His work in the private sector includes roles at Ontario Power Generation, Nortel Networks, and the Council of Canadian Academies. Extavour has also shaped government policies and practices supportive of innovation in clean energy and critical materials as congressional AAAS Science & Technology Policy Fellow in the U.S. Senate Committee on Energy & Natural Resources in Washington, DC. He holds a Ph.D. and MSc. in quantum optics and atomic physics, and a BASc in engineering science from the University of Toronto.
