Yinghua Jiang has extensive experience in the environmental industry. She has been working for Veolia since 2004, and also holds the position of deputy secretary-general in various industrial associations and councils. Prior to this, she also served in Areva, a leading French nuclear industry company. Jiang graduated from the University of International Business and Economics and later obtained a master's in Franco-Chinese international business administration from the University of International Business and Economics, Paris Panthéon-Sorbonne Business School.
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Vidyadhar Rane
General Secretary
Alang Sosiya Ship Recycling & General Workers’ Association
Vidyadhar V. Rane is a staunch believer in a free, independent and democratic trade union movement. He is the founder of the pioneering union of shipbreaking workers in India. He has been working in the organised sector as well as in the unorganised sector since 1989. He is a member of the Bipartite Wage Negotiation Committee constituted by the ministry of shipping of India to revise the wages and service conditions of port and dock workers of major ports. Rane has been instrumental in organising shipbreaking workers in India. The union of shipbreaking workers at Alang, in Bhavnagar district of Gujarat has under his leadership done excellent work for the welfare of the members and their families. Since 2023, Rane has been instrumental in establishing his union as a partner with the ILO in a project called “Promoting OSH in Alang ship recycling and downstream industry”. He is also vice chair of IndustriALL’s shipbuilding and shipbreaking sector.
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Naresh Tyagi
Chief Sustainability Officer
Aditya Birla Fashion and Retail
Naresh Tyagi is a seasoned and dynamic leader with rich experience ranging from apparel, textile and retail industries. With his expertise in heading business units, he boosts teams to develop innovative and strategic initiatives across functions. Through his deep interest in promoting environmental and social causes, he has carved a niche in diverse fields such as sustainability, safety and corporate social responsibility. Tyagi is an active member, co-chair and chair on various prominent global and national industry platforms, including the Cotton 2040, the Ellen MacArthur Foundation, Sustainable Apparel Coalition (SAC), Science Base Target initiative (SBTi), and is part of the steering committees at GIZ, ICCE, CAIF and CII.
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Anjali Taneja
Senior Policy Specialist & Group Head (Sustainability)
Center for Study of Science, Technology and Policy (CSTEP)
Anjali Taneja is an economist and a seasoned sustainability expert. Over the last 15+ years she has spearheaded several sustainability initiatives involving evidence-based research, thought-leadership and policy enrichment with the Government of India (GoI), UNDP, Ashoka University, FICCI and CII. At CSTEP, she leads the Sustainability Vertical, focusing on the circular economy spanning energy, telecom, e-waste, the bioeconomy and lithium-ion batteries, among others. As a principal investigator, Dr Taneja has designed a PAN-India framework for solar photovoltaic waste recycling. She is also serving as a member of the GoI’s Apex Committee on circular economy in telecom and on ICCE’s board as an honorary advisor. Her research has been published widely in India and overseas.
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Shalini Bhalla
Managing Director
International Council for Circular Economy
Shalini Goyal Bhalla is a leading expert in the field of circular economy and sustainability. She is the Founder and MD of International Council for Circular Economy (ICCE), a leading Indian think tank that promotes adoption of circular economy practices both nationally and globally. She is the editor of India’s first journal on the circular economy and wrote India’s first book on the topic. At WCEF, she leads the Global South and North collaboration discussions, representing a cooperation of eight countries.