By Claire Manuel, with thanks to Miriam Heale, Allen & York
Appointment of the month
UK clean energy pioneer David Green is to head up Australia’s Clean Energy Council (CEC) as its new chief executive officer. Green has been at the forefront of clean energy policy in the UK for more than two decades.
CEC chairman Michael Fraser says: “As Australia moves towards a clean energy future, the Clean Energy Council – under David’s leadership – will play a significant role in working with governments and industry to develop the policy and practice that enables Australia to emerge as a key player in this field.”
Describing his appointment as an honour, Green says: “As Australia and its international partners seek solutions to the challenges of securing clean, affordable energy, I look forward to the CEC growing as an effective advocate of the policies and action needed to secure a cleaner energy future.”
Green was the founding chief executive of the UK Business Council for Sustainable Energy from 2001 to 2012, and is an executive director of the International Business Council for Sustainable Energy
ClimateCare has hired carbon-trading expert Grattan MacGiffin. A respected market commentator, MacGiffin has previously held the position of co-chair of the CMIA Voluntary Markets Working Group.
Samantha Barber has been appointed chairman of Spanish energy group Iberdrola’s corporate social responsibility committee. Barber has been a member of Iberdrola’s board of directors since July 2008.
Giles Bristow has joined sustainability charity Forum for the Future as its first head of energy. Bristow formerly worked as CEO of Carbon Leapfrog.
AIDA Cruises has appointed Monika Griefahn as director for environment and social responsibility. Griefahn is former environment minister of Lower Saxony and co-founder of Greenpeace Germany.
Kingfisher plc, the home improvement retail group, has created a new role to lead its recently launched Net Positive corporate responsibility strategy. Nick Folland has taken up the position of group corporate affairs director: Net Positive. He was previously Kingfisher’s legal and corporate responsibility director and a board member of B&Q.
Philanthropic investment firm Omidyar Network has appointed Malik Fal as managing director, Africa. Fal was most recently managing director of Endeavour South Africa.
The executive board of the Clean Development Mechanism has appointed member José Miguez as chair, and alternate member Pauline Kennedy as vice-chair of the carbon capture and storage working group. The group was established by the board to advise it on matters relating to the implementation of projects that sequester carbon dioxide underground.
C-Quest Capital LLC (CQC) has appointed Mahua Acharya as chief executive officer of CQC’s Indian affiliate, CQC Green Ventures. Acharya led the development of a carbon protocol while in the World Business Council for Sustainable Development and has also worked at the World Bank and Mittal Steel.
Warin Greenway has been appointed corporate social responsibility and marketing manager at Dakro Environmental Ltd. He was previously sustainability officer at the same company.
Elisabeth Harstad and Bjørn Tore Markussen have joined the global leadership team of DNV KEMA Energy and Sustainability. Harstad, executive vice-president and member of the executive board, was formerly managing director of DNV Research and Innovation. Markussen, chief operating officer, Asia Pacific division, was previously managing director for DNV’s Clean Technology Centre in southeast Asia.
Diane Bratcher has been hired by the Principles for Responsible Investment Initiative as its new network manager for the United States. Prior to joining the PRI, Bratcher was the director of the mayor’s pension unit in the New York City department of finance.
The board of directors of Western Climate Initiative has announced that Anita Burke will become the organisation’s first executive director. In 2003, Burke founded the Catalyst Institute and prior to that, she worked on sustainability and climate change issues for Shell.
Shopping centre owner and developer Capital Shopping Centres has appointed Jen MacCarthy as corporate responsibility manager. Previously, MacCarthy spent several years working at Eiris, a leading not-for profit provider of environmental, social and governance research.
Dag Gunnar Andresen is the new chief financial officer of Danish wind turbine company Vestas Wind Systems A/S. Andresen recently held the same position at one of Scandinavia's largest energy companies, Vattenfall AB.
United Nations secretary general Ban Ki-moon has announced the appointment of Safaricom’s CEO Bob Collymore to the United Nations Global Compact board. The appointment is seen as a recognition of Safaricom’s commitment to environmental, sustainability and anti-corruption issues as well as the work it is undertaking to address the Millennium Development Goals 4 and 5 on maternal health and child mortality.
The United Nations Global Compact is a voluntary UN initiative that encourages businesses globally to adopt sustainable and socially responsible policies.
Kathleen Webb has been named as the new chief officer for risk, compliance and ethics at the California Public Employees’ Retirement System (CalPERS) pension fund. Webb joins CalPERS from the California Correctional Health Care Services, where she served as director of policy and risk management services.