Canadian Foodgrains Bank and Citizens for Public Justice (CPJ) are hosting a joint webinar to share insights from COP29 and discuss the critical decisions Canada must make to fulfill its climate responsibilities and support vulnerable communities around the world.
Join us on February 13 at 5:30 p.m. CT for an informative discussion on climate finance and Canada’s contributions, a timely webinar exploring the outcomes of COP29 and Canada’s role in addressing the climate crisis through international finance. Featuring activists and experts in Canada and the Global South who were on the ground in Baku for COP29, this discussion will examine the UN COP process in driving meaningful climate action and provide insights into Canada’s future contributions to global climate finance in light of recent political changes.
Don’t miss this opportunity to engage with community and faith leaders as well as advocates shaping the dialogue on climate justice.
Meet our panelists:

WILLARD METZGER
Willard Metzger is the Executive Director of Citizens for Public Justice, where he leads engagement and advocacy efforts for CPJ’s policy focus areas: climate justice, poverty eradication in Canada, refugee and migrant rights, and Indigenous reconciliation. In 2024, he attended COP29 in Baku, Azerbaijan as the only member of a faith-based organization in the official accredited Canadian delegation.

NAOMI JOHNSON
Naomi Johnson is Senior Policy Advisor on climate change at Canadian Foodgrains Bank and co-chair of the Canadian Coalition on Climate Change and Development (C4D), a coalition of over 50 Canadian organizations working and advocating to address the impacts of climate change in developing countries. She specializes in climate finance and food security and has worked to improve policies for vulnerable populations for over a decade.

KEHKASHAN BASU
Kehkashan Basu is an iconic global influencer, educator, environmentalist, champion of women and children’s rights, TEDx speaker, Climate Reality Mentor, author, musician, and peace and sustainability campaigner. She is the Founder-President of global social innovation enterprise Green Hope Foundation, which works at a grassroots level in 28 countries to empower vulnerable communities in the sustainable development process.

MESFIN MATHEWOS
Mesfin Mathewos is a Senior Program Manager at Canadian Foodgrains Bank where he works with the Nature Positive Food System program, based in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. His work supports implementing partners and stakeholders towards practical and sustaining collaboration, learning and network building.

MEAGAN SILENCIEUX
Meagan Silencieux (she/elle) is a Senior Public Engagement Officer at Canadian Foodgrains Bank. She is passionate about designing popular education, inclusive intercultural dialogue, and movement-building tools and approaches that seek to deconstruct the systems of oppression that allow hunger to persist. Throughout her career she has worked in local movements for just and sustainable food systems, in Canada and for many years in Haiti – focused on human rights monitoring, child protection, gender-based violence, and agricultural livelihoods development.

MARYO WAHBA
Maryo Wahba was born and raised in a financially disadvantaged town in rural Egypt before being awarded scholarships to study and live in Germany, Mexico, and Canada where he obtained his International Relations degree at the University of British Columbia. He is passionate about environmental law reform, international climate justice, and compassionate political advocacy. Currently, Maryo serves as the Climate Justice Policy Analyst at Citizens for Public Justice.