DLD Nature

Jonathan Ledgard is the co-founder and CEO of Interspecies Money, a startup that seeks to allow other species to hold and spend money to improve their lives. He has been at the forefront of thinking on risk, nature, and advanced technology for decades. As director at the EPFL in Switzerland, he was responsible for the development of several futuristic initiatives, including conceiving and implementing drone delivery of blood and medicines in Africa.

Josef Settele heads the Department of Conservation Biology and Social-Ecological Systems at the UFZ – Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research in Halle, Germany. He holds a PhD in agriculture was previously a professor of ecology at the Martin-Luther-University of Halle-Wittenberg. His research focuses on the intersection of land use, climate and biological diversity.

Kat Bruce is a biodiversity scientist and the founder of NatureMetrics, one of the world’s leading nature technology companies. NatureMetrics helps hundreds of companies to track their impacts and make better decisions for nature across global portfolios of sites.

Prof. Katrin Böhning-Gaese is director of the Senckenberg Biodiversity and Climate Research Centre and professor at Goethe University Frankfurt. She focuses on the effects of climate and land-use change on biodiversity, as well on the importance of biodiversity for human well-being. Prof. Böhning-Gaese is a member of the German National Academy of Sciences Leopoldina and the Academy of Sciences and Literature Mainz.

As Head of Sustainability & Environment at Deutsche Bahn AG, Katrin Habenschaden is responsible for the company’s green transformation. Her focus lies on achieving climate neutrality by 2040 and advancing issues like biodiversity and the circular economy. Before joining Germany’s largest mobility company, Katrin Habenschaden served as the mayor of Munich.

Dr. Katrin Vohland is Director General of the Natural History Museum Vienna. Her research focuses on the interface between science and different public audiences, including policy. She develops Open Science strategically for the collections, the museum and beyond, including Citizen Science where she is active to employ integrative and reflective approaches.

Korbinian Kantenwein is the founder of Nature Wealth, a foundation dedicated to driving targeted investments in nature’s most valuable areas to preserve biodiversity and protect the climate. With a background in renewable energy law, financial and legal innovation and impact investing, Kantenwein’s focus is on developing strategies that link biodiversity protection with economic incentives.

Lena Thiele is Artistic Director of Miiqo Studios in Berlin. She also holds the professorship for Digital Narratives at the ifs Internationale Filmschule, Cologne. For over 25 years, she has pioneered the development of socially relevant and internationally acclaimed immersive media formats, with a focus on environmental stewardship.