The Lumsden Leadership Summit - Rethinking Sustainability

We are incredibly proud to announce the seventh edition of the Lumsden Leadership Summit, which will take place online on the 30th of January 2022 at 6 PM GMT.
Previously known as the Winning Women Conference and arm of the Lumsden Club, the summit is a unique platform that aims to inspire and educate the student body and broader community of St Andrews. The conference hosts various female speakers from diverse backgrounds to encourage discussion and spark debate on some of the most pressing issues facing the world today.

This year, our theme is "Rethinking Sustainability", as sustainability has become a popular buzzword across all sectors in this day and age. We wish to shed more light on what it means to work in sustainability and have, therefore, invited accomplished and dynamic women from various professional backgrounds to talk about their experiences and "sustainability in practice". In addition, the summit strives to help students and the broader community further their understanding of what it takes to build a sustainable future in a post-pandemic world and educate and inspire the next generation of leaders to attain these goals.

Our fantastic speakers are:

Caroline Thunstedt: CEO of IDUN Minerals AB
Caroline is a Chemical Engineer with a master's degree in molecular science and technology from the Royal Institute of Technology in Stockholm, Sweden. In 2014, she started her master thesis project at the Royal Institute of Technology with a focus on IDUN Minerals and, since then, she has been in charge of all product development projects at IDUN Minerals. Furthermore, from the beginning of 2018, she became the director of all international sales. In 2020, Caroline entered the role of Chief Operating Officer, and in 2021 she took over as CEO - now in charge of leading the brand towards increased turnover with a continuous focus on internationalisation, digitalisation, and sustainability. Her priorities for IDUN Minerals include sustainable packaging materials and the life cycle of the products with a high emphasis on ingredients and their function on the skin. Aside from her education in chemistry, Caroline is also a makeup artist and the Chairwoman of Scancos, the Scandinavian Society of Cosmetic Chemists.

Nora Eslander: Head of Communications at Renewcell
Nora Eslander is Head of Communications at the Swedish sustain-tech company Renewcell, producing 100% recycled material for fashion. Renewcell has during the past year been named The world’s most innovative company 2021 by Fast Company, made an IPO on the Swedish Exchange market and launched Levi’s most sustainable jeans ever. Nora holds a BS.c from Copenhagen Business School and has a background within PR and communications at global brands like the danish app Tattoodo.

Myriam Zapata : Public Sector Debt Capital Markets ESG specialist
Myriam Zapata is an ESG specialist for the global Public Sector Debt Capital Markets team at BNP Paribas based in London. She has over 15 years of experience in Debt Capital Markets Origination for Sovereigns, Supranationals, and Agencies, and has been originating sustainable finance instruments since the inception of the green bond market in 2008. Myriam has also assisted European and G7 Sovereigns, Supranational organisations and other public sector entities across the globe in their sustainability journey with marketing activities amongst socially responsible investors gathering views from opinion leaders, and helping shape up institutional ESG strategies.

Stefania Bortolami: Owner of Bortolami Gallery
Stefania Bortolami was born in Italy in 1965. She studied Art History at the University of Torino in 1986. At Sotheby’s Institute in London, she attended a post-Graduate program in Contemporary Art. Shortly after graduation, she worked in the Sotheby’s London Valuation and Communication Departments while studying to receive her master’s degree in Cultural Studies from Middlesex University. In 1991 she opened a cutting-edge contemporary art gallery in Barcelona, Spain called the Backspace Gallery. In 1995 she was offered a director’s position at Anthony d’Offay’s London gallery, where she stayed until 1999 when Larry Gagosian offered her a position at his flagship gallery on Madison Avenue in New York City. In 2005, she and another Gagosian director opened a newly renovated ground floor gallery in the Chelsea district of New York City called Bortolami Dayan. Ms. Bortolami took sole ownership of the business in 2007, which has since relocated to the Tribeca neighborhood in New York City. For 15 years Bortolami has been successfully staging exhibitions, represents over 25 internationally renowned artists, and participates in at least 7 International art fairs per year.

Margarita Oliva Sainz de Aja: Partner of DLA Piper, resident in DLA Piper’s New York office.
Margarita Oliva Sainz de Aja serves as Regional Head of Banking and Finance – Latin America. She advises financial institutions and corporations on financing and commercial transactions across Latin America.
Margarita has 25 years of extensive experience in project finance matters, particularly in helping major multilateral agencies, commercial financial institutions, sponsors, project companies, and ECAs to structure and negotiate complex, multijurisdictional infrastructure and energy transactions. She also advises on a variety of general bank finance, capital markets, and corporate transactions, including cross-border mergers and acquisitions, restructurings, and outsourcings. Margarita Oliva Sainz de Aja is a partner of DLA Piper Argentina, a resident in DLA Piper’s New York office.

To facilitate the conference we have Olivia Hagen. Olivia is the current Director of The Lumsden Leadership Summit and a third-year at St Andrews, currently undertaking a major in International Relations. Alongside The Summit, Olivia is also the Vice President of the Carnegie Club of St Andrews.

The Lumsden club aims to support women's and children's charities and promote the arts both locally and abroad. The Club predominantly works alongside Fife Women's Aid, a charity that helps mothers and children who have been the victims of domestic abuse.