Ma Jun began his career in 1993 working for the media, where his research on China’s environmental problems spurred him to publish the 1999 book China’s Water Crisis. In 2004 he was selected as a Yale World Fellow. In 2006, Ma Jun founded the non-profit organization the Institute of Public & Environmental Affairs (IPE) in Beijing, China.

Ma Jun has led the development and launch of China’s first environmental public database, the China Pollution Map, as well as the Blue Map (Weilan Ditu), a mobile app that helps the public use “micro-reports” against environmental violations and polluting rivers, and facilitate garbage sorting and recycling. In 2020, he led the launch of Blue Map for Zero Carbon, and co-developed provincial and city Carbon Peak and Neutrality Index, as well as a digital solution for corporate climate actions. The green supply chain and green finance program and public supervision he and colleagues initiated has motivated more than 16,000 companies to openly address their violation problems or disclose emission data.

In 2006, he was awarded as China’s “Green Person of the Year” and was named as one of TIME Magazine’s World’s 100 Most Influential People. Ma was also honored with the Magsaysay Award in 2009 and Goldman Prize in 2012 for his environmental protection work in China, as well as the 2015 Skoll Foundation Award for Social Entrepreneurship for his innovative approach to address China’s pollution problems. In 2019, Ma was invited as a Special Observer by the Ministry of Ecology and Environment. In 2021, the Blue Map was selected as one of the 15 Finalists for the Earthshot Prize.

Dr. ZHU Chunquan is leading the Centre For Nature And Climate (CNC) including Green Technology and Green Finance, Friends of Ocean Action, Nature Agenda Actions, One Trillian Trees, Tropical Forest Alliance and The Nature Based Solutions to build communities to leverage public-private cooperation to improve the management of global commons and build sustainable markets for the 2030 agenda, carbon neutral and nature-positive transformational changes in China.

Most recently Dr. Chunquan Zhu served as the IUCN Country Representative for China. Among his accomplishments are the initiation and development of a new concept of Gross Ecosystem Product (GEP), the pilot testing of the national park and protected area systems in China, and the initiation of FSC certification, landscape approach, ecoregion conservation, systematic conservation planning, protected area management and trade of soft commodities in the country.

Yvonne (Jingyi Huang) is the founder and CEO of Bvaluate, a data technology company that provides graph computing engine and Web3.0 presenting innovative solutions in fields such as crypto, carbon trading and ESG modeling.

Prior to founding Bvaluate in 2018, Jingyi worked in the financial services industry. Prior to that, Jingyi led TRS’ Big Data analysis platform, where she helped Fortune 500 companies, government departments, and other organizations build their big-data analysis models.

She graduated with a Bachelor’s degree in Urban Environment from San Francisco State University in the US, and studied industrial engineering in Beijing Information & Technology University in China. She has won several domestic and international robotic competitions.

Alfredo is responsible for overseeing The Economist Corporate Network in Beijing. Based in China since 2013, he has focused on analysing the business implications of policy, economic and political developments for companies investing and operating in China, and in the broader Asian region. This with the aim of distilling complex issues and conveying clear takeaways on how to capture business opportunities and respond to emerging challenges.

Before joining The Economist Corporate Network, Alfredo was Associate Director for KPMG's Global China Practice, where he led and contributed to numerous thought leadership projects, including flagship reports, customised business briefings, and policy proposals for Chinese authorities. He also played a large role in events programming and outreach, including leading the design and coordination of high-profile events aimed at senior executives. Prior to that, Alfredo worked for J Capital Research, Eurasia Group and the Mexican Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Alfredo has a Master of Science in Foreign Service (MSFS) from Georgetown University, and a BA in Political Science and International Relations from Mexico's Center of Research and Teaching in Economics (aka. CIDE).