Jules Pretty is Pro-Vice-Chancellor at the University of Essex, and Professor of Environment and Society at the University of Essex, UK. His 16 books include This Luminous Coast (2011), The Earth Only Endures (2007), and Agri-Culture (2002). He is Chief Editor of the International Journal of Agricultural Sustainability and received an OBE in 2006 for services to sustainable agriculture, and an honorary degree from Ohio State University in 2009.

Stella Williams is from Nigeria, and is a fisheries and agricultural economist with experitse in rural economic development. She has served on many international Boards where she ensures support for women and youth empowerment. She is an advocate for educational development across sub-Saharan Africa.

Camilla Toulmin has studied land tenure, farming strategies and livelihood options in dryland Africa. An economist by training, she is Director of the IIED and a member of the UK government Foresight project.