Closing Plenary

Mr. Maher Nasser has over 30 years of work experience in the United Nations System during which he has worked in various capacities in Gaza, Jerusalem, Amman, Cairo, Vienna and New York. In the last six years, Mr. Nasser was appointed three times as Acting Under-Secretary-General in charge of the Department of Global Communications. Mr. Nasser took up his current position as Director of DGC’s Outreach Division in February 2011. He first joined DGC in January 2006 as Director of the UN Information Centre in Cairo. Before joining DGC, Mr. Nasser worked in various positions with the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) in Gaza, Jerusalem, Vienna, Amman and New York. From 1992 to 1994, he worked with the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) in Vienna. Prior to joining the United Nations, Mr. Nasser worked with two Jerusalem-based NGOs focusing on development and human rights. Mr. Nasser also attended the Middle East Peace Conference in Madrid in October 1991 and the subsequent bilateral negotiations in Washington DC as the personal assistant to Dr. Haidar Abdul Shafi, the Head of the Palestinian Negotiating Team. Maher Nasser holds a B.Sc. in Civil Engineering from Bir Zeit University in Palestine and a Postgraduate Diploma in Business Administration from the University of Warwick in the UK.

Ms. Amina J. Mohammed was Minister of Environment of the Federal Republic of Nigeria from November 2015 to December 2016, where she steered the country’s efforts on climate action, protecting the natural environment and conserving resources for sustainable development. Prior to this, she served as Special Adviser to Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on Post-2015 Development Planning, where she was instrumental in bringing about the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, including the Sustainable Development Goals. Before joining the UN, Ms. Mohammed worked for three successive administrations in Nigeria, serving as Special Advisor on the Millennium Development Goals, providing advice on issues including poverty, public sector reform and sustainable development, and coordinating programmes worth $1 billion annually for MDG-related interventions. She is also an Adjunct Professor in Development Practice at Columbia University, and served on numerous international advisory boards and panels, including the UN Secretary-General's High-level Panel on Post-2015 Development Agenda, the Independent Expert Advisory Group on the Data Revolution for Sustainable Development, the Global Development Program of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, the African Women’s Millennium Initiative, Girl Effect, 2016 African Union Reform and the ActionAid International Right to Education Project. Ms. Mohammed began her 35-year career in the private sector with architects and engineers responsible for the project management of health, education and public sector buildings.

Aishwarya Narasimhadevara is the youth representative to the Medical Women’s International Association, an NGO based in Vancouver, Canada, dedicated to the empowerment in the field of medicine. She is an individual wishing to make a difference in society like others. She is also involved in youth advocacy related projects and interested in the importance of Education in the field of International Development. She has been involved with various non-government organizations working in the field of education, the environment, and culture. She has a Master’s in International Development from the University of Kent-Brussels School of International Studies in Brussels, Belgium. Travelling is a passion of hers and she enjoys seeing new places. She also enjoys learning, taking photos, and practicing karate.

Baldomero was recognized by the State Department as an Honorary Consul to Spain in March 22, 2001. He currently serves as Vice President for Global Engagement at Utah Valley University. He has dedicated his professional career as a professor of language pedagogy and has presented his teaching philosophy and research in Europe, the Americas and Asia. A native of Spain, Dr. Lago received his undergraduate and post graduate degrees in the US and returned to his home country to complete his doctoral degree in instructional technology. He is the chief editor of the Journal of Learning Styles, a member of the Board of Trustees at the Extremadura Business School in Spain and participates actively in many scientific committees of international organizations. He enjoys travelling and spending time with his family.

Bishop Gérald Caussé, of France, was named the presiding bishop of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints on October 9, 2015. He filled the vacancy created by Gary E. Stevenson, who became a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles on October 3, 2015. Prior to this assignment, Bishop Caussé served as the first counselor in the Presiding Bishopric since March 2012. He previously served as a General Authority Seventy and as a counselor in the Europe Area Presidency. He is the third presiding bishop born outside the United States and the first for whom English is a second language. Bishop Caussé received a master’s degree in business from ESSEC in 1987. His career has been in the food industry, where he worked with several supermarket chains and food distribution companies. At the time of his call as a General Authority Seventy, he was the general manager of Pomona, a food distribution company in France. Bishop Caussé has served in numerous Church callings, including elders quorum president, bishop’s counselor, stake president’s counselor, stake president, and Area Seventy. Gérald Caussé was born in Bordeaux, France, on May 20, 1963. He married Valérie Lucienne Babin in August 1986. They are the parents of five children.

In 1998, Congresswoman Barbara Lee was elected to serve California’s 9th congressional district (now the 13th) in a special election. In 2001, Congresswoman Lee received national attention as the only Member of Congress to oppose the authorization for the use of military force (AUMF) in the wake of the horrific events on September 11th. The Congresswoman believed this AUMF would become a blank check for endless war. As of 2013, this authorization had been used more than 30 times to engage in military action without Congressional oversight. Congresswoman Lee is working to repeal this blank check and restore Congress’s constitutional oversight to matters of war and peace. She was also an outspoken opponent of the Iraq War. Congresswoman Lee has long advocated for legislative action to end poverty. In 2007, she worked with a diverse coalition of Members to create the Out of Poverty Caucus. In 2013, she became chair of the Democratic Whip Task Force on Poverty, Income Inequality and Opportunity. As chair, she leads more than 100 Members of Congress in crafting and advancing legislation to lift millions of American families out of poverty and into the middle class. Since her time in the California legislature, Congresswoman Lee has been a fierce advocate for ending HIV and ensuring an AIDS-free generation. Since entering Congress, she has authored or co-authored every major piece of HIV/AIDS legislation including the legislative frameworks for the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) and the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria. Congresswoman Lee’s legislation establishing a USAID special advisor for orphans and vulnerable children was enacted into law in 2009. In 2011, Congresswoman Lee formed the bipartisan and bicameral Congressional HIV/AIDS Caucus, which she co-chairs. Currently, Congresswoman Lee serves on the Budget Committee and the powerful Appropriations Committee, which oversees all federal government spending. She serves on three subcommittees (Vice Chair, State and Foreign Operations; Labor, Health and Human Services, Education; and Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration) of the Appropriations Committee. Congresswoman Lee is the only African American woman in Democratic Leadership, serving as Co-Chair of the Policy and Steering Committee. As Co-Chair, Rep. Lee works to ensure that committees reflect the diversity, dynamism, and integrity of the Democratic Caucus. She also works to advance the policies that comprise the Democratic “For the People” agenda. In addition, she currently serves as the Chair of the Majority Leader’s Task Force on Poverty and Opportunity, Co-Chair of the Pro-Choice Caucus, and Co-Chair of the Cannabis Caucus. She is the former chair of the Congressional Black Caucus (111th Congress) and co-chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus (109th & 110th Congresses).

Born in Sudan, Sarah Benj has lived in Utah with her mother and six sisters since 1999. After graduating from Salt Lake Community College with an associate degree in Social Work, Sarah earned her bachelor’s degree in Social Work from the University of Utah. She is delighted to help make a difference in people’s lives as the new ADA Coordinator. Sarah previously interned for City’s ADA Coordinator in 2017. In her free time she enjoys working out and reading.

Samira Harnish is the Founder and Executive Director of Women of the World. Women of the World is a women refugee, asylum seeker, and immigrant service and capacity building nonprofit that has been in operation in Salt Lake City since 2010. After getting her degree in Civil Engineering, she worked for 17 years as an R&D engineer at the largest domestic manufacturer of semiconductor memory. Samira founded Women of the World to fulfill a lifelong dream of helping women achieve self-sufficiency and her leadership has enabled WoW to become the preeminent women’s refugee service organization in Utah.    Samira has received local, national, and international recognition for her service leadership including: The Enlightened 50 Award from the Utah Community Foundation, the 2014 Salt Lake City Human Rights Award, the 2016 Ruby Award from the Soroptomists of Utah, and the 2017 Emerald Award for Excellence in Civic Engagement. In 2018, she was awarded the America’s Region Nansen Award from the United Nations High Commission on Refugees in Geneva, Switzerland, she was chosen from over 450 international nominees. In April 2019 she was recognized as the 2019 American Red Cross Global Citizenship Hero.

H.E. Ms. María Fernanda Espinosa Garcés has more than 20 years of multilateral experience in international negotiations, peace, security, defense, disarmament, human rights, indigenous peoples, gender equality, sustainable development, environment, biodiversity, climate change and multilateral cooperation. She has served Ecuador as Minister of Foreign Affairs (twice), Minister of National Defense, and Coordinating Minister of Natural and Cultural Heritage. In those capacities she coordinated the Sectorial Council on Foreign Policy and Promotion, which includes the Ministries of Tourism, Culture and Heritage, Foreign Trade, and the Environment. Ms. Espinosa Garcés was Chair of the Group of 77 and China until January 2018 and served as Chair of the Andean Community. At the fifty-sixth session of the Commission on the Status of Women, she promoted the adoption of the resolution presented by Ecuador entitled “Indigenous women: key actors in poverty and hunger eradication”.  She was a chief negotiator at the sixteenth and seventeenth Conferences of the Parties of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change and at the Rio+20 United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development, where she facilitated the adoption of key elements in the outcome document entitled “The future we want”. As Minister of National Defense of Ecuador, Ms. Espinosa Garcés participated in debates on women, peace and security, and promoted the creation of the South American Defense School of the Union of South American Nations, among other initiatives. In 2008, she was the first woman to become Permanent Representative of Ecuador to the United Nations in New York. During that posting, she co-facilitated the Working Group on the revitalization of the work of the General Assembly at its sixty-third session. She also led efforts at the global level towards the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals. As Permanent Representative to the United Nations in Geneva, she led and supported various negotiation processes at the Human Rights Council. She chaired the work of the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC) in Geneva, and at the twenty-first Conference of the Parties (COP 21) on Climate Change in Paris. Ms. Espinosa Garcés was Special Adviser to the President of the Constituent Assembly that drafted the Constitution of Ecuador in 2008 and Regional Director (South America) and Adviser on Biodiversity (Geneva) at the International Union for Conservation of Nature.

Passionate about social, political, economic and environmental justice for human development, Maruxa specialises in integrated urban and territorial development. Over her 17-year career, Maruxa has worked with multilateral institutions, national, regional and local governments, NGOs and philanthropy in 33 countries across continents to develop public policies, capacity and implementation projects, and multi-stakeholder partnerships. Maruxa currently serves as Secretary General of the Partnership on Sustainable, Low Carbon Transport SLoCaT. Previously she founded Communitas, the multi-stakeholder coalition which pioneered knowledge-based advocacy for the Sustainable Development Goal on Cities & Human Settlements. Maruxa also served as the Secretary General of the Network of Regional Governments for Sustainable Development (nrg4SD), and during her tenure co-facilitated the engagement of local and regional governments in the UN Rio +20 Conference. She has also held posts as Senior Policy Specialist in Cities Alliance-UNOPS, as well as in local and regional government in the UK and Spain. In 2004-2010, she was Deputy Director of the Representation of the South West of England to the EU, where she led on the sustainability portfolio for a partnership of regional authorities, academia and the private sector. Prolific public speaker and analyst, Maruxa is member of the Future Earth community. In recent years, she has served in the UCL- Nature Sustainability Expert Panel on the Urban Science-Policy Interface and as Adviser on Global Agendas to the Conference of European Peripheral Maritime Regions of Europe CPMR. Her formal training was as a lawyer, as well as in EU law and in development economics.

More than 25-years ago Jackie visited Utah on a ski trip and never left. Like so many people, Jackie fell in love with Salt Lake City’s natural beauty, proximity to the outdoors, the warmth of the people, and the overall quality of life. After that first trip, Jackie knew that Salt Lake City was where she wanted to build her life, raise a family and contribute to her community. Jackie and her wife Betty Iverson currently live with their two sons, Archie and Jack, in the Sugar House neighborhood of Salt Lake City. With a degree in criminal justice from Arizona State University, and a family history of entrepreneurialism, Jackie moved to Utah and began her career by forming her own private investigation firm. After four years in small business, she joined State Farm Insurance to manage their first and third party injury claims. Jackie learned, both as a small business owner and in corporate America, the value that strong and active businesses of all sizes can bring to a community. Business not only builds an economy, it brings diversity to a community and provides opportunity to residents. Salt Lake City needs to be an accommodating place for large businesses to locate and where entrepreneurs can incubate and thrive. After making her home in Salt Lake City for more than ten years, Jackie was elected to a seat in the Utah House of Representatives in 1998, representing the Liberty Wells, Sugar House and Central City neighborhoods of Salt Lake City, and becoming the first openly gay elected official in Utah. Jackie represented the people of her district on Capitol Hill for 13-years. Being the first, openly gay elected official in Utah—and fighting hard to get a seat at the table—instilled in Jackie a commitment to be a voice for change and diversity whenever she had the opportunity. For 13-years on Capitol Hill, Jackie fulfilled that promise by standing up for LGBT families on issues like adoption, the fight for anti-gay bullying legislation to protect students in Utah schools, the battle over Amendment 3, and by being a strong voice for minorities in every committee meeting she was in. Whether the discussion was on sound stewardship of tax dollars, incentive programs to stimulate employment, improved efficiency by state agencies, or legislation governing low-income housing and services for the homeless, elderly, and people with special needs, Jackie was there advocating on our behalf. By earning the respect of her colleagues, on both sides of the aisle, Jackie demonstrated early and often, that though our elected representatives may come from very different backgrounds, they must find common ground and work together to make Utah a better place to live and work. In 2007, Salt Lake County Sheriff Jim Winder asked Jackie to join his leadership team. Recognizing her ability to effectively work with diverse interests, Sheriff Winder made Jackie a senior policy advisor and manager of special projects for his office. Over the course of her 15-year career, Jackie played an integral role in transforming the Sheriff’s office and Salt Lake County law enforcement. Jackie helped manage projects ranging from creating the Unified Police Department, streamlining 911 and other services, building programs to mentor youth cadets, and establishing community outreach projects like the revitalization of the Kearns Pony League Ball Park, and programs to assist and educate refugees. Jackie was elected as Salt Lake City’s 35th mayor in 2015 and was sworn in on January 4th, 2016.

Alison Smale is the Under-Secretary-General for Global Communications, United Nations Department of Global Communications. Chief of Bureau of The New York Times in Berlin since 2013, Ms. Smale brought to the position almost 40-years of journalism experience gained in an international career. She has a proven track record as reporter, editor and senior leader. Appointed Executive Editor of the International Herald Tribune (IHT) Paris, in 2008, she is the first and only woman to have held that post. Ms. Smale went to the IHT in 2004 as Managing Editor from The New York Times, where she had been Deputy Foreign Editor since 2002, having joined The Times in 1998 as Weekend Foreign Editor. Earlier in her career Ms. Smale reported for United Press International and The Associated Press as Bureau Chief for Central and Eastern Europe, Vienna (1986-1998) and Correspondent, Moscow and Bonn (1983-1986, 1978-1983).