Venan A. Sondo is a Sustainable Business & Management Executive with over two decades of expertise in sustainability and climate change consulting with a passion for inclusive impact. With a track record of innovation and impact, he specializes in developing sustainability, ESG, Net Zero and circular economy strategies while taking into account socio-ecological systems and their limitations.
Currently serving as the Chief Stewardship Officer and Principal Consultant of CHAiNT Afrique, a pioneering Change, Innovation & Transformation Hub, Venan leads the corporate vision of enabling a transition towards a circular economy in Africa through strategic projects. Through CHAiNT, he facilitates the adoption of eco-efficiency strategies, and fosters eco-innovation among households, organizations, and communities, promoting inclusive sustainable lifestyles as a solution to responsible consumption and production (SDG12) and climate change. One of their flagship projects NeTCYCLE Africa is on a mission to create a network of blue economy actors across Africa, unlocking access to the global market for next-Life Material, mitigating the impacts of waste fishnets and closing the loop on waste fishnets one country at a time. Project NeTCYCLE Africa received global recognition as the Best Global Plastic Reduction Initiative in 2023.
Previously, Venan led the PwC Ghana Sustainability & Climate Change Consulting Practice for West Africa, where he played a pivotal role in developing the Ghana Sustainable Banking Principles in collaboration with Association of Bankers in Ghana and the Steering Committee for Sustainable Banking in Ghana. He continues to consult for leading entities, focusing on circular plastics, climate mitigation and adaptation strategies, and certified ESG Training.
An advocate for inclusive sustainable choices and circular economy principles, Venan actively contributes to various initiatives, including the National Task Force for Awareness Raising on Plastic Pollution and the development of a Plastic Recycling Standard for Ghana. He represents Ghana in the African Circular Economy Network and serves as the Circular Economy Club Lead for Accra. He was also a member of the Circular Economy Leadership Group for MiT Solve in 2019-2020 and is an Advisor to the Private Finance African Network (PFAN).
Venan is a global award-winning Sustainability Practitioner, recognized as Top Recycler of the year 2022 by the International Recycling Magazine, and also recognized as Sustainability Thought Leader of the Year 2023 for Europe, Middle East, and Africa (MENA) by Environmental Finance Magazine Europe. He is a Certified Sustainability (ESG) Practitioner and leads the Sustainability (ESG) Practitioner Certification in Ghana for the Centre for Sustainability & Excellence (CSE) in Chicago, Illinois, as first CSE affiliate center for ESG Training in Africa.