SPEAKERS

Mr Thierry Carlier was appointed as Ambassador of France in Sweden on March 7th 2025. From 2014 to 2018, he worked at the General Secretariat for Defence and National Security (SGDSN) as Director for international, strategic and technological affairs, managing inter-agency coordination for counter-terrorism, counter-proliferation and export control. Promoted to Lieutenant General, he then went back to the DGA as Director for International Development (2018-2022). He was then promoted to General and assigned as Deputy General Director of DGA (2022-2025).

Married and father of two children, Mr Carlier was awarded the ranks of officier of the Légion ’honneur and commandeur of the ordre national du Mérite, and received the Aeronautics Medal. He was awarded the rank of Commander of the Legion of Merit (USA), Officer of the Order of Merit (Italy), and received the Tamandaré Medal of Merit (Brazil).

He speaks English and German.

Ambassador Caroline Vicini handed over her letters of accreditation to President Macron on September ^1st 2025. She came to France from Kenya where she led Sweden’s largest embassy in the world for 5 years. She was, in parallel, Sweden’s Permanent Representative to United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and UN Habitat, as well as accredited to the Seychelles and the Comoros. She has also been ambassador to Afghanistan.

Caroline has served two tours in Washington D.C. as Deputy Chief of Mission at both the Swedish Embassy and there after at the EU Delegation. Caroline has also been Chief of Protocol at the MFA in Stockholm and hasprepared and led numerous state visits, among them the state visit to France in 2014.

As young diplomat she was posted in Alger, Paris, Rome and Dublin as well as in Stockholm. She has also worked shorter periods for World Food Programme (WFP) and KREAB.

Caroline is passionate about security policy and military affairs, but also having a considerable experience in public diplomacy and trade promotion.

Aurore Belfrage is a tech investor, geopolitical advisor, and sustainability strategist working at the intersection of technology, energy, and global
affairs. She co-founded the green-tech think tank SusTechable and invests in renewables, with a strong bet on geothermal.

Aurore serves on multiple boards, co-hosts the “Cow on the Ice” podcast, and advises AI Sweden and the Swedish Institute. Formerly with EQT Ventures, she’s also a columnist, author, and ex-scrap dealer and the co-author of “Climate and the New World Order” and “Modern Warfare – New Technologies and Enduring Concepts”.

Jesper Brodin is the CEO of Ingka Group. His career with IKEA spans over 20 years, and he stepped into his current role in September 2017. Before being appointed CEO, Jesper was Managing Director at IKEA of Sweden/Range & Supply.

Jesper’s career at IKEA started in 1995 with a purchase manager role in Pakistan; not long after that he became Regional Purchase Manager for South East Asia. In 1999, he took on the assignment of assistant, both to IKEA founder Ingvar Kamprad and to Anders Dahlvig, who was CEO at that time.

As a leader, Jesper is known for his belief in values-based leadership and for his emphasis on togetherness. Jesper’s vision for Ingka Group spotlights sustainable development. He is a member of the World Economic Forum, advocating for wider climate commitments across the global retail sector.

Thierry Coulhon is President of Institut Polytechnique de Paris, a leading science and technology institution bringing together six top French engineering schools.

A mathematician by training, he previously led Université de Cergy and PSL, and advised President Macron on education and research.

He also headed the Mathematical Sciences Institute (ANU, Australia) and chaired Hcéres, the independent public authority responsible for evaluating all higher education and research structures.

Helena Hedblom is born 1973, a Swedish citizen, and has a M.Sc. in Material Technology from the Royal Institute of Technology, Stockholm, Sweden.

Helena Hedblom leads Epiroc, a Swedish company in the mining and construction industries, that plays a crucial role in advancing solutions to the challenges posed by climate change.

With the growing demand for critical metals, the sector is central to the development of renewable energy systems.

As the demand rises for these resources, this industry is also focusing on attracting young, diverse talents to help drive innovation.

Under Helena's five years as CEO, Epiroc - operating in a very male-dominated industry - has worked hard to embrace diversity and attract more women.

Hanna Maurer Sibley is the European Chief Technology officer for Networks in the Market area Europe, Middle East and Africa at Ericsson.

She is responsible for visualizing and advocating technology solutions applicable for the Telecom Industry and its surrounding eco system. Hanna is central in driving the full value of 5G and soon 6G connectivity for Ericsson’s customers. She brings a broad range of experience and deep expertise from across the telecommunications and ICT industry.

During her career at Ericsson, Hanna Maurer Sibley has contributed to creation of the industry-leading mobile broadband solution portfolio. She first started at Ericsson in 1993 and has served in various positions across the US and Europe. Prior to taking up her current position, she headed the global portfolio development of Enterprise offerings. She has also led solution design teams in Europe and Latin America covering over 70 countries.

Hanna Maurer Sibley holds a Master of Science in Engineering, Engineering Physics from the Royal Institute of Technology (KTH), Stockholm. She resides in Stockholm, Sweden with her family.

Pär Olsson is professor of physics and Head of the Physics Department at KTH Royal Institute of Technology in Stockholm since 2020. He was appointed Knight of the Ordre des Palmes académiques by the Prime Minister of France in 2025. He is the Director of the Swedish Sunrise centre on sustainable nuclear energy research, is coordinating the Nexus initiative for nuclear driven decarbonization, coordinates the Nuclear Materials Platform and is representing Sweden on the Euratom Scientific and Technical Committee, as well as in the European Atomic Energy Society. He has a long career working with nuclear energy research in both Sweden, from KTH and Uppsala University, and in France, where he worked at EDF R&D between 2005 and 2011. His research focus is nuclear materials and nuclear engineering, in which he has published over 115 scientific papers, several bookchapters and is Editor in Chief of the journal Nuclear Materials and Energy. His graduates are working in universities, research labs and industry all over the world.

Gîta Paterson is the president of the Swedish Chamber of Commerce in France. She is also the Chairperson of the Swedish-French Language Foundation and board member of the foundation Swedish Youth Abroad. She is the legal advisor of SWEA International, Inc. Gîta Paterson graduated from the School of Law and Graduate School of Management of the UCLA (1975-1978) and Lund University in Sweden, LL.M. (1975). She is an international business lawyer at the law firm FTPA and has solid experiences within the French-Swedish business relations and companies.

Karen Pflug  joined Ingka Group as Chief Sustainability Officer (CSO) in August 2021. In this role, she leads the sustainability centre of expertise which supports the company to deliver towards the ambitious commitments set out in the IKEA Sustainability strategy.

Throughout her career, Karen has led major business transformation and change initiatives, with a strong emphasis on innovation, sustainable design and retail. Prior to joining Ingka Group, Karen was CEO of Ikano Insight, UK, and Global Quality Manager at Range & Supply, Inter IKEA Group. She has held a range of senior leadership roles in fashion and sportswear brands such as Nike, Reebok, Triumph International and Australian sportswear brand Skins.

In 2024, Karen was recognised by TIME100 as one of the top business leaders in climate, highlighting her commitment and contributions to accelerating climate action.

Thomas Reynaud has been Chief Executive Officer and a director of the iliad Group since May 2018. Since 2024, he has also been Chairman of the Board of Directors of Tele2, a telco that operates in Sweden and the Baltic states.

Thomas joined the iliad Group in 2007 as Head of Business Development, tasked with structuring the Group’s growth. He then became Chief Financial Officer in 2008 and Deputy Chief Executive Officer in 2010. He played a key role in the launch of France’s fourth Mobile operator – Free Mobile – in 2012, as well as in the Group’s expansion outside France with the launch of iliad Italia in 2018 and the acquisitions of Play (2020) and UPC (2022) in Poland.

Thomas is a graduate of HEC business school and New York University and began his career in New York in 1997.

Marcus Wandt is a Swedish astronaut, fighter pilot, and aerospace innovator with a distinguished career in aviation and space exploration.

Currently serving as Head of Group and Technology at Saab AB, member of Saab's Group Management, and Special Advisor to the Swedish National Space Agency, he brings extensive expertise in cutting-edge aerospace technology and strategic development.

In 2024, he flew to the International Space Station as a European Space Agency astronaut, contributing to scientific research and technological advancements in space.

With a background as Chief Test Pilot at Saab Aeronautics and a fighter pilot in the Swedish Air Force, Marcus has played a key role in developing and testing advanced fighter aircraft, including the Gripen E. His leadership spans both military and civilian aerospace projects, combining operational experience with a passion for innovation.

Marcus holds a Master of Science in Electrical Engineering from Chalmers University of Technology and has received honorary doctorates and numerous awards for his contributions to science, aviation and spaceflight.

Stéphane Rouault is Head of ZEROe Ecosystem & Value at Airbus, leading a team responsible for stimulating the emergence and readiness of an hydrogen ecosystem for Airbus’ ZEROe project. His focus is on understanding the various challenges of bringing sustainable hydrogen to airports, in the most efficient way, in order to enable commercially viable operations of hydrogen powered aircraft. Prior to this role, he was responsible for Value Assessment of hydrogen powered aircraft technologies. Since the late 90s, Stéphane held various roles in Marketing, Sales, and Sales Financing at Airbus.