Veronica Rahneberg, Sales Director, Fujitsu Ireland
Veronica Rahneberg is the Sales Director for Fujitsu Ireland, which is the local arm of Japan’s leading Information and Communication Technology Company. Veronica has worked in IT Services for the past 25 years. In Fujitsu she has worked in a variety of Senior Management roles and she is part of the Fujitsu Ireland Management Team as Sales Director. Veronica is also the Executive Sponsor of the Women’s Business Network @Fujitsu which serves to promote greater diversity and inclusion among our workforce and on a broader scale in promoting careers in ICT for women. With both an Honours Degree in Computer Applications from DCU and being a recent MBA graduate from Trinity, Veronica is passionate about lifelong learning. Veronica specialised in Management and Sustainability in her MBA with both Trinity and the University of Cape Town and is interested in a mutual gains approach for living and working sustainably.
Steven Stoffer, VP of Sustainability & Development, SmurfitKappaAppointed Group Vice President Development in 2005, and since 2008 has been responsible for the Group sustainability activities. He joined the Company in 1990. He was Vice President for Sourcing and Risk & Assurance with Kappa Packaging and joined KNP, the predecessor of Kappa Packaging as General Manager of one of the operating companies. Before joining the Company he was with McKinsey & Company.
Maria Kennedy, Partner, Matheson
Maria Kennedy is a Partner in the Commercial Litigation and Dispute Resolution Department. She is a senior member of the Environmental, Planning and Safety Group and the Life Sciences Group.
Maria frequently advises and represents clients involved in commercial, contract, intellectual property, competition, administrative law, construction and real estate disputes, including in arbitration, expert determination and mediation.
Maria represents clients in judicial review and in procurement challenges, in proceedings involving a number of public bodies, such as the Commission for Communications Regulation and An Bord Pleanála. Maria also represents clients in dawn raids, regulatory investigations and prosecutions including by the Health and Safety Authority, the Environmental Protection Agency and local authorities.
Maria has specialist expertise in environmental, planning and safety law and advises on environmental permitting, liability for contaminated land and waste. She advises on major development projects such as data centres, wind farms and waste-to-energy plants including a number of strategic infrastructure developments. Maria advises at all stages of the planning process with the aim of securing planning permission and reducing the risk of successful judicial reviews. Her role includes advising on EIA/AA requirements at pre-planning stage and representing developers at oral hearings. Maria also advises on life sciences including on the regulation of health products and the pharma industry generally.
Maria leads the advice on planning and environmental risks in M&A and other transactions, including project financing, and the effective avoidance and mitigation of those risks.
Dr Sarah Miller, Chief Executive, Rediscovery Centre, The National Centre for the Circular EconomySarah Miller is CEO of the Rediscovery Centre, Ireland's National Centre for the Circular Economy. An environmental scientist and experienced business development manager, Sarah has overseen the development of the Centre as an ecological centre of excellence. The Rediscovery Centre operates as an innovation hub connecting people, ideas and resources to support sustainable living. To support the transition to the Circular Economy in Ireland, the centre provides training, education and events to engage and inspire low carbon living and as a visitor demonstrates good practice through four reuse social enterprises, an ecostore and an onsite café. In 2019, under a strategic partnership with the EPA, the Centre launched the Circular Economy Academy, a free mentoring and support programme to assist social enterprises and community organisations embrace circularity.
Sarah has a PhD in Environmental Science, a Masters in Business Administration and an Honours Degree in Biotechnology. With over 20 years experience as an environmental professional, in the UK, Ireland and Australia, she has worked primarily with commercial and social enterprise start-ups, ranging from large-scale mechanical and biological waste treatment plants to community development projects.
Sarah has a keen interest in research and has been involved in several European and nationally funded research projects in collaboration with academic and corporate partners.