A Special Panel hosted by United Nations Association New York, in partnership with RELX Group
Gabriela Cuevas Barron
Senator, Mexican Parliament
Dimitri de Vreeze
Co-CEO and Chief Operating Officer, DSM
Usama Malik
CEO, Fore Biotherapeutics
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Introduction by
Dr. Lily Khidr
Executive Publisher, Elsevier
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Panel Moderator
Robin van Puyenbroeck
Executive Vice President and Treasurer, UNA-NYC
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Tuesday | 22 June 2021 | 9:00 to 9:50 a.m. EST
Note on Registration: When you register with Hopin using this link, you will be registering for a half-day event called “SDG Inspiration Day | Mobilising Business for a Better World: Accelerating Business Action on the SDGs,” which runs from 4:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Ours is one of numerous panels that make up this full-spectrum event, therefore attendees will be free to join any of the other panels in the lineup that are also of interest. When you’re ready to attend an event, just go to the Hopin event page after logging in, and click the link to Enter Event.
The United Nations Association New York, in partnership with RELX Group, invites you to attend
The Future of Global Health:
How Businesses Advance the SDGs with Science and Global Health Diplomacy
for a discussion with innovators, thought leaders, policy makers and sustainability professionals on how to catalyze business into action on the sustainable development goals in the post-COVID world. The panel will explore:
What role do partnerships and international collaboration among policymakers and scientists play in the response to the health, economic, and humanitarian crises?
What is the role of business as a force for good health?
How critical is good health for economic resilience?
What is the relationship between global governance, multilateral cooperation and public health?
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About RELX
RELX is a global provider of information and analytics for professional and business customers across industries. We help scientists make new discoveries, lawyers win cases, doctors save lives and insurance companies offer customers lower prices. We save taxpayers and consumers money by preventing fraud and help executives forge commercial relationships with their clients. In short, we enable our customers to make better decisions, get better results and be more productive.
Panel Moderator
ROBIN VAN PUYENBROECK
Robin van Puyenbroeck is Executive Director of Business Development for the World Trade Centers Association.
Mr. van Puyenbroeck a purpose-driven leader with more than 20 years’ experience in international business development, partnerships, corporate strategy, and non-profit leadership. He most recently served as Vice President-Business Development for Ethan Allen Global, based in Danbury, Connecticut, where he effectively managed and grew a network of international licensees and developed strategies for building alliances and B2B contract business.
Previously, Mr. van Puyenbroeck worked as an international business and partnerships consultant, counseling clients on strategic communications, political and organizational strategies, as well as business transactions that require a deep appreciation of markets and geopolitical context. Leveraging his expertise in the Middle East and Central Asia he advised a wide range of organizations, from emerging market corporations to policy think tanks, on strategic reviews, investment promotion campaigns, market introductions and business development.
Prior to his consulting work, Mr. van Puyenbroeck worked with ING Group where he held progressive leadership roles within the company's Global Management Programme with broad experiences in business development, staff function, client relationship management, finance and project management. Mr. van Puyenbroeck began his career as an attorney for the Ernst & Young law firm in Brussels, and he holds J.D. and L.L.M degrees in international law from Ghent University and Université Libre de Bruxelles in Belgium.
Mr. van Puyenbroeck has leadership experience in the IGO/NGO sector, including his current roles as Under-Secretary-General for the EUCLID Intergovernmental Organization, and as Executive Vice President & Treasurer of the United Nations Association of New York. He speaks five languages (Dutch, English, French, Spanish and German) and has traveled extensively on business in Europe, the Middle East, Central and Greater Asia, and North America.
Guest Panelists
GABRIELA CUEVAS BARRON
Co-Chair of the UHC2030 Committee, Honorary President of the Inter-Parliamentary Union and Member of Parliament at the Mexican Congress
Active in politics since she was 15 years old, she was elected Federal Member of Parliament for the first time at age 21. She has been Federal Member of Parliament three times, Local Member of Parliament, and a Constituent Member of Parliament in the Constituent Assembly of Mexico City. Additionally, she was the first woman to be elected Mayor of the Miguel Hidalgo Delegation. She also chaired the Foreign Relations Commission when she served as Senator.
Currently, she is Co-Chair of the UHC2030 Steering Committee and Co-Chair of The Lancet COVID-19 Commission’s Task Force on Humanitarian Relief, Social Protection, & Vulnerable Groups. She is also part of the Task Force on Global Health Diplomacy and Cooperation, and the Regional Task Force for Latin America. In addition, Ms. Cuevas is a member of the Unite Global Parliamentarians Network to End Infectious Diseases and the International Parliamentary Network for Education. She is also a Fellow of the World Academy of Art and Science.
In 2017, Gabriela Cuevas Barron became the youngest and the second woman President of the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU). She sought to increase the prominence and prestige of the IPU as the global institution for parliamentarians. She also received the Chevalier de la Légion d’Honneur by the Government of France, and the Cavaliere di Gran Croce, Ordine Equestre di Saint’ Agata on behalf of the Government of the Republic of San Marino.
DMITRI DE VREEZE
Dimitri de Vreeze is Co-CEO and Chief Operating Officer (COO) at DSM and a member of the company’s Managing Board. Since joining DSM in 1990, he has played a key role in transforming DSM into a global purpose-led, science-based company active in Nutrition, Health, and Sustainable Living.
Initially part of DSM’s Finance team, Dimitri later moved into sales and management. He developed his career within the DSM Resins & Functional Materials business group, becoming Business Group Director of DSM Resins in 2010.
Dimitri was appointed to DSM’s Managing Board in 2013. He has led successful efforts to improve the performance of DSM’s Materials businesses, reshaping the company’s Materials portfolio and setting out a clear Materials’ strategy. During his second board tenure, Dimitri has continued to drive the transformation of DSM’s Materials businesses, with a focus on high-growth specialty segments.
As DSM Co-CEO since 2020, Dimitri is able to energetically pursue his twin passions of sustainability and innovation. He believes strongly in the role of ethical and responsible business in realizing global net-zero emissions and tackling major environmental and social challenges.
Dimitri is leading the roll-out of DSM’s Health through nutrition for people and planet agenda to ensure healthy and accessible food and nutrition within planetary boundaries. He has a particular interest in the environmental impact of food production and has played an integral part in DSM’s efforts to support sustainable animal farming and develop non-animal protein sources.
During the recent period, Dimitri has helped oversee the commercial launch of Bovaer®, DSM’s feed additive aimed at significantly reducing cow-related methane emissions, as well as Veramaris®, a DSM joint venture to produce omega-3 fatty acids from natural marine algae. He also maintains a close interest in DSM’s advancement of biobased and recycled materials solutions.
Beyond DSM, Dimitri is a member of the European Chemical Industry Council (CEFIC)’s Executive Committee and Board and chair of the Council’s Sustainability Advisory Forum. He is a member of the Supervisory Board of Sanquin, a Dutch non-profit responsible for ensuring a safe and efficient blood supply, and Chairman of the Young Captain Foundation. A keen sports fan, Dimitri is a board member at the Dutch Olympic Committee Fund, NOC*NSF, and a close follower of DSM’s pro cycling team, Team DSM.
Dimitri holds a master’s degree in Business Economics from the University of Groningen and a postgraduate degree in Finance & Control from Maastricht University.
USAMA MALIK
Usama is the CEO and a board member of Fore Biotherapeutics. In this role, Usama is responsible for working with the board and key stakeholders to build and scale the preeminent precision oncology company that is committed to treating and curing hard-to-treat cancers using its patent-protected functional genomics platform that identifies high unmet need populations with few existing treatment alternatives. Usama recently joined Fore from Immunomedics Inc. As CFO and CBO at Immunomedics, Usama led the day-to-day transformation of the company over four years and concluded a precedent-setting $21 billion transaction to Gilead in 2020.
Usama has over 25 years of experience in the technology, telecoms, and healthcare industries in key leadership roles ranging from corporate strategy, mergers and acquisitions, venture investing, product development, and general management. He has worked on large-scale transformations across Fortune 500 companies, while helping to scale and grow numerous venture-backed and mid-sized organizations. He has led key strategic efforts to bolster company balance sheets, take out costs, generate new revenue streams, raise capital, and lead multibillion-dollar M&A transactions.
Panel Introduction
DR. LILY KHIDR
Dr. Lily Khidr is an academic research scientist and Executive Publisher for Elsevier, a publishing and analytics company specializing in scientific, technical, and medical content. Elsevier is a part of the RELX Group, a company that works in partnership with the global science and health communities to publish more than 2,000 journals, including The Lancet and Cell.
Lily received a BS in molecular and cell biology from UC Berkeley; an MS in physiological sciences from UCLA, and a MS/PhD in biochemistry & cancer genetics from UC Irvine School of Medicine. She has served as an Editor at Nature Genetics and Science Translational Medicine, and has served as an adjunct faculty member in the School of Biological Sciences at Columbia University.
Lily is a Fellow of United Nations Association of New York's Worldview Institute, and is a member of the Board of Directors at the United Nations Association of New York.