Katie is Founder and CEO of BBC Award-winning charity Pledgeball. Experts in fan engagement on climate, Pledgeball spearheads initiatives that mobilise sporting communities, from grassroots to professional levels, to create meaningful impact for climate and nature.
2023
Rita Nehme
Rita Nehme is the Head of Sustainability at the AFL, where she leads the organisation’s sustainability strategy, climate reporting, and key initiatives, embedding sustainability across one of Australia’s largest sporting organisations. Her work spans climate action, circular economy, social impact, and industry collaboration, with a focus on delivering practical solutions that create lasting environmental and community outcomes.
Before joining the AFL, Rita led sustainability and social impact at the Richmond Football Club and served as Sustainability Venue Manager for the FIFA Women’s World Cup Australia & New Zealand 2023. She has delivered sustainability and social impact initiatives across Lebanon, the United States, and Australia.
Rishi Jain
Rishi’s current position as Director of Impact, sees him being responsible for leading his organisation’s approach to sustainability through the lens of equality, diversity and inclusion and environmental sustainability.
Having worked in football for over 20 years, he has an expert understanding of successfully integrating strategy into businesses and ensuring positive change. Rishi is responsible for The Red Way; Liverpool Football Club’s holistic strategy that encompasses the clubs plans across all areas of business operations and ensuring that sustainability is embedded throughout. Rishi is a driving force for change and successfully works with colleagues and business leaders to ensure progress.
In 2022, Rishi presented at the United Nations in New York City at the launch of the UN’s Game Plan: a document implementing a plan of action to counter hate speech through engagement with sport. He has continued to work in partnership with the United Nations and multiple international organisations to implement this work across the US, UK and beyond, as well as featuring at multiple COPs and New York Climate Week.
In 2023, Rishi was named on the Pride Power List, and has previously been named on the Global Diversity List as a Top 20 Diversity Professional. His work led has to wide-ranging recognition at the European Diversity Awards, North West Football Awards, Inclusive Companies Awards, Sport Industry Awards and most recently, from Front Office Sports. In 2024, his work has been recognised externally no less than six times with recognition from inside and outside of sport, including at the Global Sustainability and ESG Awards where The Red Way was named as ESG Programme of the Year. He has worked consistently to lead the organisations he’s worked for to be awarded with the Premier League Equality Standard Advanced Level on multiple occasions, and the internationally recognised ISO20121 standard.
Prior to joining his current role, Rishi has held roles at Manchester United, Kick It Out and The FA’s Inclusion Advisory Board, where he has worked throughout his career to make a positive impact across society.
Julia Pallé
Julia Pallé is a leading expert on sustainability in motorsport and the international elite sport industry.
In her role at the world’s first all-electric motor racing series, Julia certified the ABB FIA Formula E World Championship net zero carbon since inception – the first sport in the world to achieve the standard.
While developing and implementing the sustainability strategy at Formula E, Julia has overseen a range of significant achievements that establish Formula E’s credentials as a leader of sustainability in tier-one sport.
Julia is also Sustainability Advisor for Extreme E, the all-electric SUVs series, bringing electric racing to some of the most remote corners of the planet to highlight the climate change challenges faced by different ecosystems.
Before joining Formula E, Julia was the Sustainability Executive at Michelin Motorsport.
Jessica R. Murfree, PhD
Dr. Jessica Murfree is an Assistant Professor of Sport Administration and the Hyde Family Foundation Fellow at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where she directs the Action on Climate Change and Environment in Sport Studies (ACCESS) Research Lab. She also serves on the Leadership Team of the Sport Ecology Group. Her research studies the effects of climate change on sport through societal implications of climate risks and environmental disparities. Among others, her work has been featured in Sports Illustrated, Scientific American, The Athletic, ABC, The Guardian, The Television Academy, and The Weather Channel.
At UNC, Dr. Murfree developed and teaches the university’s first course on Sport Ecology, advises the university through the Carolina Sustainability Council, and is an affiliated researcher with the Institute for the Environment. She is a Forbes 30 Under 30 Honoree in Sports, and she earned Yale University’s School of Public Health Certificate in Climate Change and Health
Lindita Xhaferi Salihu
Lindita Xhaferi-Salihu leads business engagement in climate action at UN Climate Change, mobilizing companies and industry leaders to deliver ambitious climate action. She has developed landmark initiatives such as the Fashion Industry Charter for Climate Action and Sports for Climate Action, and brings extensive experience in international diplomacy, stakeholder engagement, and climate policy. Lindita’s academic background combines electrical engineering, international relations, and energy and climate policy.
Dr. Maddy Orr
Dr. Maddy Orr is an Assistant Professor of Sport Ecology at the University of Toronto. She is best known for her work on climate adaptation in the sport sector, and as founder of The Sport Ecology Group. She’s been named a Future of Canada Fellow, a Top 30 Under 30 Environmental Educator, and a Forbes 30 Under 30 awardee. In 2022, she was the lead author on UNEP’s Sports for Nature report and her 2024 book Warming Up: How Climate Change is Changing Sports was named a Top 5 Sports Book of the Year by The Guardian.
Aileen McManamon
Aileen McManamon, is the Founder and Managing Partner of 5 Tool Sports Group, a certified B Corp. She also currently serves as the Board Chair of the Green Sports Alliance, a member-driven coalition of over 300 major leagues, teams, event organizers and their solutions partners, leveraging the cultural and market influence of sports to promote healthier communities where we live, work and play.
As the Chair of the Alliance, she has overseen its strategy evolution and the development of cross-sector and international alliances to accelerate industry and societal climate adaptation.
As a global thought leader in future-proofing the sports industry, Aileen works with major leagues, teams, and brands to align their revenue and partnerships with the environmental and social realities of today. 5 Tool also works with global brands to drive values-aligned, data-driven partnerships. The firm’s Sports Partner Score Card™ is an industry first due-diligence tool for assessing commercial partnership fit.
Aileen brings over 3 decades of expertise in global brand strategy and market intelligence and began her career in Europe, with FIAT and Alfa Romeo, leading their Tour de France and motorsports partnerships. After a 10-year stint in the technology sector, she returned to sport, as a General Manager in Minor League Baseball with the Oakland A’s. In 2008 she founded 5 Tool, working with the Olympic Games, FIFA Women’s World Cup, MLB, NHL, FIA, Indycar and the NFL.
She has been recognized by the UN Global Compact for her work in championing economic diversity and inclusion in sport, and named a Sports Business Journal Gamechanger for her pioneering work in socially and environmentally responsible sports management in the U.S. and abroad.
Norman Vossschulte
Norman Vossschulte is originally from Berlin, Germany. His culturally rich background included 10 years living abroad in Africa, Iraq and Spain before moving back to Germany to finish his Abitur. He studied Biology and Physical Science before deciding to move to New York City in 1996 to attend the Herbert Berghof Institute for Fine Theatre Arts and Drama.
Norman’s work experience is as eclectic as his upbringing. He has worked in the hotel industry, the non-profit industry, as well as both sports and entertainment industries. Twenty-five years of practicing customer and client relations have given him an overview of which techniques consistently enhance guest experiences. Norman has over 20 years of staff training and team leadership experience working with The Walt Disney Company and currently the Philadelphia Eagles.
In 2014, Norman became the Eagles’ official GO GREEN spokesperson. During his tenure leading the “green team,” the Eagles have obtained LEED Platinum certification and were the first sports team in the
world to reach ISO 20121 certification. He organized and later re-branded the program, which included a new slogan “Innovate. Sustain.” and committee (ECO – Engagement, Communication, Operations).
The Eagles are also the first sports team to offset their carbon emissions through seagrass and mangrove restoration efforts, a partnership formed in June 2021 with The Ocean Foundation. Most recently, Lincoln Financial Field became the first stadium in the world to have an onsite hydrogen production and fueling station to power its fleet of maintenance vehicles.
Ellen Jones
Ellen Jones, Head of Environment, Social & Governance (ESG) at Formula 1, joined in January 2022 to help steer the business’ sustainability strategy on the way to becoming Net Zero Carbon from factory to flag by 2030. As a sustainability leader, Ellen works across Formula 1’s ESG agenda to develop strategies and collaboratively deliver change programmes, already making huge progress across the business and wider sport within the first year in position and becoming a vital spokesperson for the sport in the space.
Upon joining F1, Ellen boasted a wealth of experience across a variety of subject areas including: carbon & energy, waste & recycling, packaging, sustainable sourcing and reporting. Her role now entails empowering the business to deliver on its sustainability objectives and manage the governance & reporting requirements. This also requires close communication with key counterparts at the teams, partners and promoters, as the sport as a whole continues to move forward in a positive way to become a sustainable entity. Under Ellen’s stewardship, Formula 1 has again achieved and retained the FIA 3* Environmental Accreditation, the highest level of recognition in this area.
Ellen’s drive and passion for a sustainable future has been long-standing having studied Architecture at Yale University and writing a thesis on how sustainable building practices can be communicated to the public through different media, before doing a Masters in Sustainable Environmental Design.
