Dr. Opondo is a globally respected African leader in the areas of Ethical Trade, Business and Human Rights, Climate Change, Sustainability and Gender Safeguarding. She is passionate about creating awareness on Ethical Trade and Business and Human Rights on African global value chains and continues to make a significant impact in advocating for and driving implementation of ethical trade practices, social and climate sustainability in the Private Sector in collaboration with Governments and Development Organisations.

She has provided technical advisory services to diverse organisations and has been at the forefront of leading execution of multiple, large and complex projects with excellence including work commissioned by: Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO) [former DFID]; Ethical Trading Initiative (UK); various United Nations organizations (e.g. UN Global Compact Office, UNEP, UNFCCC); European Union; Africa Development Bank and United States Agency for International Development (USAID) among many others.

Dr. Opondo’s significant impact on the continent has contributed to a body of knowledge on ethical trade, corporate social responsibility, gender and labour rights in global value chains, trade policy, vulnerability and adaptability to climate change. Her valuable contributions have led to her being selected to contribute her thoughts in various global forums including a strategic brainstorming session for Google’s initiative, Predict and Prevent in 2008, in San Francisco, California. She was also one of the select representatives of the African continent in the World Bank Expert Focus Group Discussion on Climate Change, in Mexico City, Mexico, in 2013. She was a Coordinating Lead Author, IPCC Chapter 13 (Livelihoods and Poverty), of the Working Group II contribution to the Inter-governmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) 5th Assessment Report (AR5) (2010-2014). Dr. Opondo is a founding member of the Institute for Climate Change and Adaptation (ICCA) at the University of Nairobi.

She holds a PhD (Economic Geography) from University of Duesseldorf, Germany and a Master of Arts (Economic Geography) from Kenyatta University, 1989. She has a Bachelor of Education (Education, Geography and Literature) from the University of Nairobi. Dr. Opondo has received multiple awards during her career including the African Career Award Grant for Doctoral Research from the Rockefeller Foundation, among others.