Karen Pflug joined Ingka Group in August 2021. In her role, she leads the sustainability centre of expertise which supports the company to deliver towards the ambitious commitments set out in the IKEA people and planet positive strategy. Throughout her career, Karen has led major business transformation and change initiatives, with a strong emphasis on innovation, sustainable design and retail. She has held a range of senior leadership roles at Ingka Group, Inter IKEA Group, Nike, Reebok, Triumph International and Australian sportswear brand Skins. Karen holds a BSc in Textile Design and Design Management from the University of Manchester. She is a keen sportswoman and lover of the outdoors, with passions for cycling and kayaking. She lives in the Netherlands with her husband, daughter and son.
Wayne is responsible for helping London’s boroughs to reduce waste and increase recycling rates, and accelerating the development of a low carbon circular economy by supporting circular businesses. He has been working for ReLondon since 2008. Prior to this he was the head of waste policy at the Greater London Authority. Wayne is a trustee on the board of the Chartered Institution of Wastes Management and a trustee of the international development body, Waste Aid. He has over 25 years’ experience in the waste and resource management industry.
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Quentin Drewell
Director
World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD)
Quentin is responsible for mobilising collective action with WBCSD members to drive circular economy impact at a global scale. Having joined in September 2023, he oversees projects within the Products and Materials pathway, and is partner representative to the Circular Electronics Partnership. Quentin has extensive experience in managing complex multi-stakeholder sustainability projects in an international context, having previously led Accenture’s circular economy work. He has also been project advisor to the World Economic Forum on the circular economy and sustainable production, having set up the annual circular economy awards programme, “The Circulars”, and worked on the development of the Platform to Accelerate the Circular Economy. Quentin holds an MA from the University of Cambridge, a Post Graduate Diploma from the University of Portsmouth and an MBA from the University of Bradford. He is a full member of the Institute of Environmental Management and Assessment (IEMA) and is a Chartered Environmentalist. Quentin lives in Kent UK with his wife and two sons.
Helene works for Arup’s foresight, strategy and insights team in Berlin. She is a structural engineer and sustainability manager by training. She uses her knowledge on structural engineering and corporate sustainability management to guide clients through sustainability challenges in the built environment. Prior to joining Arup, her work centered around systems thinking and material flow mapping. She is particularly knowledgeable in the circular economy, regenerative design and Arup’s Circular Buildings Toolkit. Previously she has worked on developing circular assessment frameworks for corporations.
Martin leads Arup’s foresight, strategy and innovation team based in Germany. He specialises in transitioning the built environment for a sustainable and decarbonised future. He has worked for over 12 years in the architecture, engineering and construction (AEC) sector, with a focus on making cities more innovative and liveable by advocating for evidence-based strategies to achieve a circular economy. As part of these objectives, Martin has developed Arup’s Circular Buildings Toolkit and other circular tools, indicators and methodologies to support innovation in the AEC sector.
Nora Eslander leads marketing at Colorifix, a company pioneering the world's first entirely biological solution for producing, fixing and depositing pigments onto textiles. Colorifix was recently named as a finalist for the Earthshot Prize 2023 in the category “Build a waste-free world”. Nora works with world-leading fashion brands to create a new narrative around dyeing textiles. She has a background in fashion innovation at textile recycling company Renewcell and holds a BSc in Economics from Copenhagen Business School.
