WASHINGTON (March 18, 2024)—World Resources Institute is pleased to announce that Sharan Burrow, Visiting Professor, Grantham Institute on Climate Change and the Environment, London School of Economics; Johannes van de Ven, Managing Director, Good Energies and Board Chair, WRI Brasil; and Cecilia Martínez, Former Director, UN-Habitat and Board Chair WRI Mexico have joined its Global Board of Directors.  

“We are thrilled to welcome three new members to our Global Board, each bringing with them the leadership, passion and deep expertise which underpin WRI’s many areas of work,” said Ani Dasgupta, President & CEO, WRI. “Sharan brings experience in advancing labor, gender and equity goals to the Board and has long been a strategic partner for WRI. Johannes and Cecilia’s election highlights our commitment to advancing equity and connectivity across WRI’s global governance network.” 

Sharan Burrow was the first woman General Secretary of the International Trade Union Confederation and began her collaboration with WRI through her role as a member, and eventually as a Co-Chair, of the Global Commission on the Economy and Climate, and its flagship project The New Climate Economy. She also serves as a Food and Land Use Coalition (FOLU) Ambassador. Sharan brings to the Global Board a deep expertise in just transition that will inform the people-centered approach central to WRI’s strategy. In addition to her track record on human rights, Burrow is well known for her international advocacy on issues of employment, industrial relations and corporate responsibility. 

Sharan is currently a Visiting Professor in Practice at the Grantham Institute on Climate Change and the Environment, a research institute at the London School of Economics and Political Science. 

“Having worked with WRI on critical issues related to climate and economics, just transition, food production and land-use change, I am honored to build on this work as a member of the Global Board,” said Burrow. “WRI’s strategic focus on people, nature and climate is a critical lens in which to view and overcome today’s interconnected issues, and I’m excited to contribute to this mission.” 

Johannes van de Ven currently serves as Chair of the WRI Brasil Board and has been the Managing Director of Good Energies Foundation since 2014, where he focuses his efforts on climate mitigation, investing in clean and renewable energies, natural ecosystem restoration and reforestation. 

Van de Ven also sits on the Boards of the Climate and Land Use Alliance and Arapyaú Institute, and is an Advisory Board member of SELCO Solar Light (India) Ltd. He started his career at Brazil’s investment bank Bozano, Simonsen, in Rio de Janeiro. More recently, he served at the World Economic Forum’s Global Agenda Council on Forests. His academic formation is in moral theology, business ethics and development economics, with graduate studies at the Jesuit PUC-Rio de Janeiro, and he holds a Ph.D. from Catholic University of Louvain. 

“I have witnessed the power of WRI to advance work to protect both the planet and its people,” said Van de Ven. “I’m looking forward to working across the WRI global network to advance our strategy and to ensure that the issues and priorities of Brazil continue to be promoted on a global level.” 

Cecilia Martínez is the former director of the UN-Habitat office in New York and currently serves as Chair of the Board, WRI Mexico. Retired in 2013, Martínez has extensive expertise in housing, urban planning and design, as well as collaborating with diverse stakeholders within local communities, academia, and federal and local government in Mexico and Latin America. 

During her professional career Martínez has held high-level positions including being a member of the Mexico City Social Organizations Platform and the Board of FINCOMÚN. She is founder of the first association of microentrepreneur of Mexico City and worked as urban planning and design professor at the Faculty of Architecture at the National Autonomous University of Mexico. Martínez also worked as advisor to the Director of Housing and Urban Planning and the Undersecretariat for Urban Development of the Secretariat for Human Settlements and Public Works (SAHOP). 

“To achieve and maximize change on a global level, we must first prioritize and uplift local communities,” said Martínez. “During my time chairing WRI’s Mexico Board, it has been evident that this a top priority across the organization, and I am pleased to contribute my expertise in urban planning and local engagement in Mexico and Latin America to cultivate global change across WRI’s portfolio.” 

Burrow, Van de Ven and Martínez all began serving on WRI’s Global Board in March 2024. Find a complete list of WRI’s Global Board Directors here. 

About World Resources Institute   
WRI is a trusted partner for change. Using research-based approaches, we work globally and in focus countries to meet people’s essential needs; to protect and restore nature; and to stabilize the climate and build resilient communities. We aim to fundamentally transform the way the world produces and uses food and energy and designs its cities to create a better future for all.  Founded in 1982, WRI has nearly 2,000 staff around the world, with country offices in Brazil, China, Colombia, India, Indonesia, Mexico and the United States and regional offices in Africa and Europe. More information at www.wri.org or on Twitter @WorldResources.