Team

 The Human Impact Pathway (HIP) is a not-for-profit social venture, supported by LSE Innovation and the United Nations’ Trust Fund for Human Security, helping business and communities to work together to manage risks, seize opportunities, and build human security.

Through a unique bottom-up and people-centred multi-stakeholder methodology, HIP provides guidance in local steps to social impact. HIP helps companies and international organisations better understand business footprint in high-risk and volatile contexts. HIP offers research and consultancy in tailored solutions to help design, manage and measure impact, particularly in complex contexts.

Mary Martin 2022

Mary Martin heads the Human Impact Pathway and is senior policy fellow at LSE IDEAS. Her work aims to support companies in meeting due diligence, social impact and sustainability goals through effective action at local level, working with communities particularly in fragile and volatile environments. From 2017-2024 she was Director of the UN Business and Human Security Initiative , working with the United Nations and the private sector to contribute to the fulfilment of Agenda 2030 and the Sustainable Development Goals, through trialling an innovative model of multi-stakeholder partnership, the Human Security Business Partnership Framework.  She has worked with UNDP, UNHCR and the Colombian government on implementation of the 2016 Colombian peace and stabilisation process, with companies in Mexico and Africa to improve their stakeholder engagement strategies. Dr Martin was previously Director of Communications and Research for Human Security at LSE Global Governance, and from 2006-2010, co-ordinator of the Human Security Study Group, which reports to the High Representative of the European Union. She is editor of the Routledge series Studies in Human Security and author of  ‘Corporate Peace. How global business shapes a hostile world’. She has a PhD in International Relations from Cambridge University. 

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Maria Prandi is expert on business and human rights at the Human Impact Pathway and is also in charge of business development and client relations and training. She has over 20 years of experience advising global companies, governments, and international organisations on the topic of business and human rights linking her work with some key United Nations human rights agencies and procedures. She has provided impact assessments, studies and strategy advice in a wide range of sectors and countries over the last decade. She was head of the Business and Human Rights programme at the School for a Culture of Peace from Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona and researcher and lecturer at the Institute of Social Innovation at Esade Business School. She has carried out research on the role of the private sector in relation to human rights, sustainable development and peace-building, and humanitarian crises. She holds a post-graduate diploma (DEA) and a master’s in International Affairs from UAB. She has published several articles and books and has delivered speeches and training on business and human rights globally. She was member of the UNGC expert group on Responsible Business and Investment in High-Risk Areas. She is also founder and director of BHR in Spain.  

Mark Van Dorp

Mark van Dorp is lead field researcher at the Human Impact Pathway as research associate at LSE IDEAS. He is an economist with over 25 years of professional experience in the field of private sector development in emerging markets and fragile and conflict-affected settings. With this experience, Mark is well positioned to advise and support companies and investors in a context of conflict and fragility, enabling them to operate in a conflict-sensitive way and in a way that fosters peace and stability. Key areas of expertise are value chain analysis, responsible business conduct, ESG (environmental, social and governance) risks and impacts, stakeholder engagement, human security, peace responsive investment, conflict analysis and human rights due diligence. He has extensive knowledge of Africa, the Middle East and Latin America, where he has worked to make more resilient and sustainable economies. Mark has worked for multinational companies, universities, NGOs, financial institutions (World Bank/IFC, FMO and KfW), UN agencies (UNDP, UNHCR, IOM, ITC), the Dutch government and the European Union. He holds a master’s degree in economics from the University of Amsterdam. He is also founder and director of Bureau van Dorp and co-founder of Elevate. 

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Gorka Polite is technology co-ordinator at the Human Impact Pathway. He has four decades of hands-on experience in information technology, and is a specialist in deploying a diverse array of technologies across various sectors, combined with managing different corporate reporting formats. He has worked as a board member of a major global company and now runs his own business since 2008. He has extensive experience in consultancy with multinational companies.  

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Dr Santiago Alvarez is information manager at the Human Impact Pathway. He is data scientist and expert in large-scale data collation, handling and analysis, particularly of time series, indicators, and data for monitoring socio-ecological impacts. He has conducted research in several European institutes, combining global data with local information and particularly integrating indigenous/local adaptations to climate change with data from global models. He holds a PhD in Ecology and Environmental Management from Wageningen University.  

 

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Dr Eneko Sanz is impact measurement analyst at the Human Impact Pathway. He has over 15 years of consulting experience in both public and private sectors across Europe, South America and Asia, including the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE). He specialises in ethics and social impact assessment and evaluation, particularly in complex and conflict-prone environments. He holds a PhD in International Relations from Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona.

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Dr Pieter de Wit is project manager at the Human Impact Pathway and research associate at LSE IDEAS. As researcher and consultant he specialises in the role of business in conflict-contexts, social sustainability, and human security. His background is in international relations and business in society, and he holds a PhD in Management and Organisation. He aims at finding win-wins between business, affected communities, and societies more broadly. 

 

Sabine SELCHOW | European University Institute, Florence | EUI | Research  profile

Dr Sabine Selchow is associate expert at the Human Impact Pathway. She is senior research fellow in the ERC-funded project 20th Century International Economic Thinking and the Complex History of Globalisation at the European University Institute, Florence. Previously, she was researcher at LSE Global Governance and in the Civil Society and Human Security Research Unit at the London School of Economics (LSE), including as research fellow in Mary Kaldor's ERC-funded project "Security in Transition" and in Ulrich Beck's "Methodological Cosmopolitanism: In the Laboratory of Climate Change" (based at LMU, Germany). She has extensive teaching experience, including at the LSE and Sciences Po, Paris. She holds a PhD in Government from the London School of Economics (LSE).

Advisory Board

Advisory Board

The advisory board are all experts in their respective fields. They provide strategic direction and feedback on the programme and its outputs.

Chair: John W.H. Denton AO is the Secretary General of the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC). He is a global business leader and international advisor on policy and a legal expert on international trade and investment.

In 2022, Mr Denton was appointed by United Nations Secretary General to represent the global private sector on the newly formed Steering Committee of the UN Global Crisis Response Group on Food, Energy and Finance.

He currently serves on the WHO Foundation Strategic Advisory Group and the Global Task Force on Refugee Labour Mobility.

Mr Denton is a Board member of the UN Global Compact and Co-chair of the B20 finance and infrastructure taskforce, as well as a founding member of the Business 20 (B20), Co-founder of the Australia–China CEO Roundtable and Patron of UNHCR in Australia. He serves on the Board of IFM Global Investors, a leading institutional investment manager, and is Chair of the Moeller Institute Advisory Board at the University of Cambridge.

He additionally serves on the Boards of the UN Development Programme’s Impact Investing Steering Group and UNICEF’s global education initiative, GenU, and he is a member of the Advisory Board of the African Green Infrastructure Investment Bank (AfGIIB) and the G7 Working Group on Impact Investment. A former diplomat, Mr Denton co-led the Australian Government’s 2012 White Paper on “Australia in the Asian Century” and previously chaired the APEC Finance and Economics Working Group. Prior to joining ICC, he served for two decades as Partner and CEO of Corrs Chambers Westgarth, Australia’s leading independent law firm.

In 2015, Mr Denton was appointed an Officer of the Order of Australia for his services to the business community, the arts and the rights of refugees, including as a founder of Human Rights Watch (Australia) and Teach for Australia.

Saker Nusseibeh is CEO of the international business of Federated Hermes, appointed November 2011, having joined in June 2009 as CIO. He is also a member of the Federated Hermes Executive team. Prior to this, Saker was Global Head of Equities at Fortis Investments, having previously been CIO Global Equities since 2005. Before this, he was CIO of Global Equities and Head of Marketing for SGAM UK. This followed SGAM’s acquisition of Trust Company of the West, where Saker was a Managing Director running global and international strategies. He started his career at Mercury Asset Management in 1987.

Saker is founder of the 300 Club and was an inaugural member of the CFA Institute’s Future of Finance Advisory Council from 2013 until 2019. He is a member of the IIRC Council, the FCA-PRA Climate Financial Risk Forum, the United Nations Environmental Programme Financial Initiative Steering Committee, the Banking Standards Board, the Institute for Fiscal Studies, and the advisory Board of the National Youth Orchestra.

In 2018, Saker was named CEO of the Year at the Financial News Asset Management Europe Awards and was named as European Personality of the Year for 2020 at the Funds Europe Awards. He has a BA and PhD in Medieval History from King's College, University of London.

Saker was awarded a CBE (Commander of the Order of the British Empire) in the Queen’s 2020 New Year's Honours list for services to Responsible Business and Finance.

Melissa Powell is the Chief of Staff of the United Nations Global Compact, the world’s largest voluntary corporate sustainability initiative. A valued member of the Executive Management Committee, Ms Powell joined the UN Global Compact shortly after its launch in 2001. Ms Powell has been involved in virtually every aspect of the programme, building the initiative to where it stands today — with over 10,000 corporate participants and non-business stakeholders from 160 countries.

In 2016, Ms Powell assumed the role of Chief of Staff. Reporting to the CEO & Executive Director, she is responsible for managing day-to-day operations, as well as key strategic initiatives. Her responsibilities include overseeing the governance of the initiative, including Board Relations and Integrity. She also oversees Strategic Planning, the Compact’s strategic relations with Governments as well as partnerships across the United Nations System, including with the Executive Office of the UN Secretary-General. 

In her previous role as Head of Strategy and Partnerships for the UN Global Compact, Ms Powell led a range of strategic initiatives including those focused on connecting companies with the United Nations. She also led the development of “Business for Peace”, an initiative that supports companies to operate responsibly and contribute to development and peace in high-risk areas of the world.

A graduate of the London School of Economics, where she earned a master's degree in International Relations, Ms Powell also holds an honours bachelor's degree in Political Science from Queen’s University, Canada.

Lutfey Siddiqi is an Adjunct Professor at the National University of Singapore (Risk Management Institute), a Visiting Professor in Practice at the London School of Economics (LSE IDEAS) and a Distinguished Fellow at Policy Research Institute Bangladesh. He was previously Global Head of Emerging Markets for Foreign Exchange, Rates & Credit at UBS Investment Bank and, prior to that, a Managing Director at Barclays Bank in charge of a business-line across Asia Pacific.  

Antonio Fuertes Zurita is ESG Senior Advisor at Business and Human Rights (BHR), a consultancy company specialized in promoting Human Rights in the business context and at Specialisterne, a Danish company which aim is to integrate persons with autism in labour markets.

Antonio has 30 years of experience in the energy business, 16 of them as a Global Head of Sustainability at Naturgy leading the Human Rights project for 10 years and the social impact projects of the company in different countries. He coordinated the Sustainability Plans that led the company to be a world leader at of Dow Jones Sustainability Index and FTSE4Good and to get outstanding positions in Sustainability Rating Agencies (Sustainalytics, Vigeo, and MSCI).

Antonio was a Board Member of Bettercoal from 2015 to 2019, an initiative launched by the main European utilities to commit to the international purchase of coal under ESG criteria. He is a member of the ESG Working Group of the European Confederation of Directors Associations (ecoDa) and a member of the Spanish Institute of Directors, where he is a professor on Sustainability for Board Members. Antonio is a member of the Executive Committee of the Spanish Association of Sustainability Directors since 2021.

In 2007 he co-authored the book “The challenges of CSR: An industry approach” published by IESE Business School. He has education on Good Corporate Governance by the Institute of Directors of Spain, on Energy Business by ICADE/Spanish Institute of Energy Business, on Accounting and Finance by IESE Business School and on Sustainability by IE Business School. He started his professional career at Accenture.

Mehrnaz Mostafavi is the Chief of the Human Security Unit (HSU) at the United Nations. Since joining the HSU, she has been instrumental in establishing the strategic vision of the HSU and its operational activities in over 90 countries; developing the HSU as the centre of excellence and knowledge on human security; strengthening the policy basis for human security within and outside of the United Nations; and expanding the resources of the HSU and the UNTFHS.

Ms Mostafavi has in-depth knowledge of global priorities such as: Agenda 2030 and the implementation of the sustainable development goals; bridging the gap between humanitarian assistance, sustaining peace and long-term development; climate change and disaster risk reduction; and responding to the multi-dimensional consequences of today’s crises on peace, prosperity and human dignity. 

Prior to joining the HSU, she worked at the Bureau for Development Policy at the United Nations Development Programme where she provided policy guidance on a wide range of issues including inclusive globalization, pro-poor trade and poverty reduction. In addition to her contributions at the United Nations, Ms Mostafavi has worked in the corporate multinational sector, as well as academia.

Hugh Sandeman is a Visiting Senior Fellow at LSE IDEAS and Project Head of Global Strategies. He was an international banker for 30 years based in New York, Tokyo, London, and Frankfurt, and for the past decade has focused on India. He was previously Tokyo correspondent, international business editor and New York correspondent of The Economist. 

Ketan Patel, CEO Force for Good Initiative. Force for Good is a platform dedicated to delivering a positive impact for the world through capital and ideas, both directly and in partnership with ambitious institutions and individuals seeking to have a material impact for good, galvanizing others to create a movement towards good. Its work has engaged and analyzed 100 of the world’s leading financial institutions.

Former Board Members

Louise Holden is an experienced and innovative leader in technology and payments who creates future business models and inclusive smart technology for partners in the humanitarian, development and government sectors. She designs commercially sustainable partnerships and digital solutions to meet national and multinational partner goals including private sector organisations, Cities, National and Local Governments, UN, IGOs, NGOs, Humanitarian Actors, and Foundations. Louise is currently with Mastercard and her previous career includes American Express and Barclays. She has worked and lived abroad extensively across Africa, Europe and Australia. She is on the Leadership Circle of ARISE, ActionAid, a Governor, FRSA and is passionate about equality. She co-chairs a UK Gender Network and mentors a number of younger executives. Louise’s other interests includes beekeeping, art, competitive squash, property development and her 2 children.

Dermot Ahern is a former Irish Member of Parliament and Government Minister and was a key figure for more than 20 years in the Irish peace process, including in negotiations for the Good Friday Agreement and the St Andrews Agreement. He also has extensive experience at the EU Council level, including as a key negotiator and signatory to the Constitutional and Lisbon Treaties. In 2005, he was appointed by the then UN Secretary General Kofi Annan to be a Special Envoy on the issue of UN Reform.

Ambassador Antonio José Ardila is Colombian Ambassador to the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. Mr Ardila is a graduate from Harvard College and MBA from University of Miami. He has been a businessman for more than 37 years.

Until recently Mr Ardila was Chairman of the Board of Directors of Colombia's largest non-alcoholic beverage company, Postobon, owned by the Organización Ardila Lülle (OAL). He was also member of the Board of Directors of Peldar S.A, Colombia´s largest glass container manufacturer, and Central Cervecera de Colombia (CCC) a joint venture in the brewing industry with CCU of Chile and Heineken. He was Chairman of the Board of other companies, such as Club Atletico Nacional, one of Colombia´s professional football teams, and Chairman of other non-profit foundations.

Mr Ardila is founding member of the Georgetown University’s Latin American Board, a Latin American programme created to promote entrepreneurial leadership.

On 4 March 2019, Mr Ardila was appointed by the President of the Republic of Colombia, H.E. Iván Duque Márquez, as Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary to the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.

Partners

Partners

Our partners assist the programme in creating meaningful research by providing guidance and strategic support.

UN Business and Human Security Initiative Partners

LSE IDEAS brings together academics and practitioners from international companies and NGOs to mainstream the human security approach, and partner with UN agencies to initially implement it in different locations. Our partners include:

The UN Business and Human Security Initiative is supported by the United Nations Trust Fund for Human Security (UNTFHS), established in 1999 to finance projects that translate the human security approach into practical actions and provide concrete and sustainable benefits to vulnerable people and communities threatened in their survival, livelihood and dignity. We are also supported by LSE Innovation.