FOUNDING PARTNER

FOUNDING PARTNER

FOUNDING PARTNER

POLICY DIRECTOR

FOUNDING PARTNER

DIRECTOR

Nicole Itano is the Director of Policy and Engagement at the Yale Center for Environmental Law and Policy and the Director of the Remaking Trade Project. She works at the international climate and development policy, with a focus on reform of the global financial architecture. A former journalist, Nicole has worked for international organizations including WWF, Save the Children and the Climate Emergency Collaboration Group. She has a B.A. from Yale University.

PROJECT MANAGER

Chelceé Brathwaite is a Caribbean-based trade and development professional with expertise in international trade law and policy. She holds an MSc. International Trade Policy (Distinction) and a BSc. in International Business with French, Spanish and Mandarin (First Class Honours). Chelceé has worked with a range of high-impact organisations, including the USAID Eastern and Southern Caribbean Mission, advising on digital economy programming, and the Prime Minister’s Office of Barbados, where she served as Research Lead on the Future Barbados initiatives. She has also worked as a trade researcher at the Sir Shridath Ramphal Centre for International Trade Law, Policy and Services (UWI) contributing to trade policy discussions on digital trade, MSME development, food security, and regional integration.

SENIOR ADVISOR

Dr Ese Stephen Owie is an accomplished public international law, international trade law, trade policy, trade economics, energy and sustainable finance practitioner. In the course of a sterling multi-jurisdictional career spanning over two and half decades, Dr Owie has garnered extensive experience in advising national governments, multilateral agencies, third sector organizations, and private organisations on sustainable trade, regional economic integration, renewable energy and infrastructure optimisation strategies, amongst others.

He is the Co-founder and President of The Cavendish Institute, which provides timely, pragmatic and cost-efficient advice, representation and capacity building in the context of trade negotiations, formulation and implementation of national trade policy, and the settlement of disputes. He previously served as Executive Director & Chief Responsibility Officer of the Centre for International Trade & Policy (CITaP), Geneva, Switzerland; and currently serves as Senior Advisor to the Remaking Trade for a Sustainable Future Project.  

Dr Owie is also currently an Associate Professor of International Trade Law, International Relations, Trade Diplomacy, and Policy at EUCLID (Pôle Universitaire EUCLIDE / Euclid University). He has held Visiting Research Fellowships at leading institutions, including the University of Lincoln (UK), the University of Cape Town (South Africa), and the Lagos Business School, Pan-Atlantic University (Nigeria). He commenced a Visiting Fellowship at the University of Essex Law School (UK) in 2024, with his fellowship advancing among other things, a research and policy agenda on “Integrating Sustainability into the Rules of Global Trade”.

A consistent advocate of the convergence of theory and practice in governance especially in emerging economies, between 2009 and 2011, Dr Owie served as Special Adviser (Cabinet Rank) to His Excellency Governor Adams Oshiomhole of Edo State, Nigeria, and as Executive Chairman (Cabinet Rank) of the Edo State Board of Internal Revenue and a Member of the State Executive Council. He also served as a member of the Federal Republic of Nigeria’s apex tax regulatory statutory body, the Joint Tax Board. 

Dr Owie is also deeply committed to advancing climate action and its intersection with sustainable development. He co-founded Climate Change Africa (CCA), a third sector policy action and research centre that is committed to taking urgent action to cut greenhouse gas emissions, speed the global shift to renewables, and foster a sustainable green economy. He is currently the CEO of the University of Oxford Climate Alumni Network (OxCAN), a UK-registered charity, and spearheads initiatives that mobilise Oxford alumni, academics, and policymakers globally to drive impactful climate solutions. 

Dr Owie earned a DPhil in Public International Law from the University of Oxford (UK), where he was a member of Linacre College. He also holds an LLM in International Law from the University of Hull (UK), where he graduated with distinction and was awarded the Josephine C. Onoh Memorial Prize for the Overall Best Graduating Student. He obtained a Bachelor of Laws degree (LLB) from the University of Benin (Nigeria) and a BL from the Nigerian Law School. In recognition of his visionary leadership and commitment to Africa’s startup and entrepreneurship ecosystem, Dr Owie was invited to join the 2024–25 cohort of the Foundry Fellowship at the Kuo Sharper Center for Prosperity and Entrepreneurship at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).

FELLOW

Janet Macharia is an international trade law and policy practitioner and a Teaching Fellow at Strathmore University Law School, where she teaches International Trade Law and the Law of Business Associations. She also serves as Chief Executive Officer of the Trade Negotiations and Investment Forum (TNIF), a Nairobi-based think tank advancing research, dialogue, and capacity-building on Africa’s trade and investment priorities. 

Janet has advised on trade and investment policy reforms, including contributing to the development of the Kenya National Investment Strategy, and has collaborated with institutions such as ODI Global and the International Institute for Sustainable Development on issues including border carbon adjustment and sustainable trade. She has also engaged in consultancy with the private sector, advising them on the business environment and investment climate in the EAC and COMESA regions, narrowing down on the effectiveness of each country’s incentivized zones.Janet also engages in mentoring young legal minds by coaching the John H Jackson Moot competition, where she has led the teams to the global rounds, and securing their win in the 2024/2025 Edition. 

Her research interests lie in Special Economic Zones, industrial policy, subsidy regimes, and their legal treatment under African regional trade frameworks, particularly the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).