Martin Sommerschuh is the Program Manager for the Land & Carbon Lab Summit, where he helps design the conference program and ensures the event creates new partnerships and lasting impact.

Martin joins WRI from the United Nations Development Programme, where he was project manager and program specialist at the Equator Initiative, which advances Indigenous peoples’ and local community solutions to the planetary emergency. He ran its signature Equator Prize, steered the cross-sectoral partnership, facilitated Indigenous and community leaders’ participation in UN mechanisms, and helped scale up local nature-based solutions to sustainable development. Co-leading and contributing to various strategic initiatives, he helped formulate a new 10-year vision for the Equator Initiative and devised a nimble and efficient operations strategy for UNDP’s Global Programme on Nature for Development. He also supported UNDP efforts to improve Indigenous peoples’ access to climate finance.

Martin holds an MA in Political Science from the University of Munich. He lives in Los Angeles, California, with his partner. In his spare time, he can be found outdoors hiking or training for his next marathon.