Global Cosmetics Summit

Sok-Han gains her industry experience as an independent regulatory affairs consultant, with a focus on Japan, South Korea and other Asian markets. She serves as a conduit between the Japanese market and the rest of the world, assisting industry in navigating through complex compliance frameworks. Her specialty is in food and beverage, food contact, health supplement and cosmetic products. Sok-Han is a fluent speaker of Cantonese, Japanese, Korean and Mandarin.

Dr. James Wakefield graduated from the University of Portsmouth with a BSc in Pharmacology in 2001, before obtaining an MSc in Toxicology at the University of Surrey in 2002 and his PhD at the University of Newcastle in 2006 with a Thesis on dermal absorption and the development of in vitro models for skin irritation.

Junho Lee is a Director at CIRS Group Korea and has 18 years of international experience specializing in the field of chemical regulations, standards and certifications in Korea, China and Europe. He has supported industry on major chemical regulatory updates around the world starting with EU REACH, and now Korea’s K-REACH.

Mohanram Subramaniam is currently Vice President, Public Relations/Communications - ASEAN Affairs, ASEAN Cosmetics Association (ACA). Mohan leads the industry advocacy in the ASEAN region for ACA and represents the cosmetics industry engagement with ASEAN health authorities. He also chairs the Cosmetics Europe – Task Force for ASEAN and is a member of the executive committee of The Cosmetic, Toiletry & Fragrance Association of Singapore (CTFAS). Mohan has over 18 years of experience in regulatory affairs and product safety with majority working in the Asia region while also holding global responsibilities. Currently, he is working for Procter & Gamble as Director, Global Product Stewardship and provides regulatory leadership for the P&G Hair Care & Grooming product portfolio in the Asia Pacific region.

David Ettinger is the Chief Representative in Keller and Heckman’s Shanghai, China office. Mr. Ettinger counsels multinational companies on the import and export of food and food-related products to ensure compliance with regulations in the U.S., Europe, and Asia.

Ms. Yin DAI is an associate of Keller and Heckman LLP and based in Shanghai. She has extensive experience in helping multinational companies ensure compliance of their food, food packaging, cosmetic, and consumer products throughout Asia. Yin assists those companies in product stewardship and regulatory compliance in China, Japan, Korea, and other Southeast Asia countries. In particular, Yin supports cosmetic and personal care producers and distributors in ingredient and finished product registration, recipe and label review, import/export clearance, marketing campaign risk assessment and mitigation under Chinese laws and regulations. Yin is a regular speaker on food and cosmetic related regulatory matters at conferences throughout Asia. She has contributed to numerous articles on cosmetic compliance, cross-border E-commerce, and chemical management.

Ms April Guo works in CIRS Group for more than 14 years and leads the personal and home care team to assist global cosmetic companies and ingredient suppliers in regulatory compliance each year. The team has provided registration and filing services for over 20,000 cosmetics both domestically and internationally. At the same time, the team has obtained dozens of NMPA numbers of new cosmetic ingredients under the new regulations. Ms April Guo maintains good cooperation with cosmetic associations and commerce agencies in countries such as the United States, Canada, France, Italy, Spain, the United Kingdom, Switzerland, Japan, and South Korea, and is regularly invited to participate in cosmetics regulatory seminars around the world, providing training for international cosmetics companies on Chinese cosmetics regulations.

Jyotirmoyee is a Regulatory Affairs Executive at Global Product Compliance with a Master’s degree in Biomedical Engineering. She has previous experience working for CSIR-Indian Institute of Chemical Biology as a Research Fellow and she recently joined GPC.

Hamidah is currently the Director of Global Regulatory Affairs - Asia Pacific for Colgate-Palmolive. Her team is responsible for products stewardship and regulatory compliance for CP in Asia Pacific which includes management of halal compliance. Hamidah who has 29 years experience in regulatory affairs management is the current  VP for Communication / International PR of the ASEAN Cosmetic Association. She had also contributed in leadership roles in cosmetics trade association in Malaysia and has been actively involved in the development of the ASEAN Cosmetic Directive. Hamidah has contributed to the development of the Malaysian halal standards for cosmetics & also to the government efforts in developing national occupational framework and National Occupational Skills Standards for halal.

Ira A. Eddymurthy is a founding partner of SSEK Legal Consultants. She has more than three decades of experience advising multinationals and domestic companies on Indonesia’s complex regulatory environment.  Ira specialises in corporate law and mergers and acquisitions, capital markets, banking law, finance, including project finance, insurance law, and tax law. She is recognised by legal directories as a leading lawyer in Indonesia for banking, capital markets, corporate law and mergers and acquisitions.  Ira graduated from the University of Indonesia Faculty of Law in 1984, was a visiting scholar at the University of California, Berkeley, School of Law from 1990 to 1991, and attended the Academy of American and International Law in Dallas, Texas, also in 1991. She is a member of the International Bar Association and the Inter-Pacific Bar Association (IPBA) and represented the Indonesian jurisdiction of the IPBA from 2002 to 2008. 

With over 15 years of experience in global and regional product conformity specifically focusing on consumer products, food, cosmetics, personal care products, toys etc.. Sithara is the manager of SGS Dubai Certification Center for Product Conformity Programs and the Halal Certification Manager for GCC Halal Scheme.  Sithara has a Bachelors & Masters in Biotechnology from Mahatma Gandhi University, India.

Following an Honours Degree in Biology & Psychology Ray began work for a multinational inspection, product testing & certification company, specialising in the risk assessment of consumer products and household chemicals. During this time he obtained an MSc in Pathology & Toxicology, with research focussing on the carcinogenic potential of essential oils. In 2007 Ray joined a leading supplier of chemical management software and was responsible for reviewing global chemical legislation and liaising with Regulatory Agencies around the world. Ray has been with Delphic HSE since 2009, providing expert advice to clients and staff, as well as overseeing the technical direction & development of the Company and its software systems.

Marie Magnan is a chemical engineer and has 10 years of experience in the cosmetic field. Regulatory affairs manager at COSMED, the French professional association for SMEs in the cosmetic field, she is specialised in cosmetic regulations in the European Union and Asia-Oceania areas. Through Cosmed Regulatory Monitoring, an extensive database on 120 countries, real-time alerts and assistance, COSMED supports cosmetic companies with information about cosmetic regulations worldwide.

Mania brings 15 years of experience in analysis of flavours, flavour materials, essential oils, flavour R&D for oral care products and most recently fragrances for consumer goods. Prior to that, she worked in academic research. Mania has a strong background in organic synthesis and instrumental analytical chemistry. Driven by her passion for continuous exploration and embracing new challenges, recently she is expanding her expertise in the field of flavour and fragrance regulations. In strong collaboration with the Regulatory Affairs, Legal Department and other key stakeholders, she leads the transparency initiatives, monitors the regulatory landscape and develops strategies for portfolio adaptation for flavours and fragrances.

Sarah-Jane Dobson is global products lawyer at international law firm Kennedys LLP, where she is a partner in the London office.   Sarah-Jane acts on regulatory, litigious and policy matters across the full product life cycle in respect of product safety, compliance and product liability issues.   Whilst her practice is focused on multi-jurisdictional matters for corporate clients across a broad range of sectors, her dual qualification in Science (Biomedical sciences) and Law mean that she is particularly well placed to advise on matters in cosmetics, which is a particular expertise of hers. She advises on global product launches and market entry due diligence, regulatory challenges and enforcement, regulatory compliance and global product recalls.

Hans Ingels is heading the Unit responsible for the bio-economy, chemicals and cosmetics in the European Commission's DG for Internal Market, Industry, Entrepreneurship and SMEs. The unit also manages the EU legislation on CLP, fertilising products, toys, detergents, pyrotechnics, civil explosives, Good Laboratory Practice and drug precursors. Before this, he was the head of unit responsible for single market policy, mutual recognition, market surveillance and free movement of goods. Hans Ingels joined the European Commission in 1995 and spent most of his career on files related to the single market for products. He obtained a Law Degree (KULeuven – Belgium), a Degree in Notarial Studies (KULeuven - Belgium), a Postgraduate in Company Law (KUBrussel Belgium) and a Master Degree in European and International Law (VUBrussel – Belgium).

Currently Somia Elazzab is a Eurotox Registered Toxicologist (ERT). She is a member of the Society of Biology and the British Toxicology Society. She has MSc in Molecular Toxicology (With Distinction) from Aston University, Birmingham, UK. She has MSc and MD of Forensic medicine and clinical toxicology from Mansoura Faculty of medicine, Egypt.

Nick's areas of expertise include new product and ingredient safety, risk assessment, hazard identification, global food contact and personal care regulations, and in vitro, in vivo, and human toxicity and efficacy studies to support both internal safety substantiation and regulatory requirements. In addition, has experience completing regulatory submissions for a variety of applications including food contact substances, cosmetic ingredients, biocides, treated articles, medical devices, and chemical inventories with regulatory bodies across the globe including the US EPA, US FDA, ECHA, and Chinese FDA, and EPA.

Sam is UK Science Programme Manager with Cruelty Free International, the leading organisation working solely to end animal experiments worldwide. Sam – formerly a veterinary surgeon – used animal-free approaches including organoid cultivation and ‘omics during her molecular virology PhD, and she now works with regulators, government officials and companies to promote innovative non-animal methods as scientifically robust alternatives to animal tests for protecting humans and the environment from the toxic effects of chemicals and other substances and products. She has a postgraduate certificate in animal welfare science, ethics and law.(https://crueltyfreeeurope.org/save-cruelty-free-cosmetics).

Kate is Senior Director, Science and Regulatory Affairs in the Research and Toxicology Department at Humane Society International. In this role, Kate oversees scientific and policy elements of our global campaign to replace animals in chemical safety assessment and research, work that involves coordinating with regulatory agencies, scientists, and policy makers around the world to facilitate the development and implementation of new scientific approaches for chemical assessment.  Dr. Willett is a global leader in the science of non-animal methods and collaborates broadly in several international initiatives. She works with the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) Test Guideline and Adverse Outcome Pathway Programs where she is a member of several OECD expert and management groups.

Cristina studied Chemistry at the Faculty of Sciences of the University of Porto, Portugal. She worked for several years in regulatory affairs for industrial and consumer goods business, where she gained experience in the EU chemicals legislation (REACH, CLP, biocides, FCMs, electronics, …) and in chemical legislation for other regions such as Latin American countries. She recently joined knoell as a Project Manager for the Chemicals and Product Safety Regulatory Affairs.

Jo Chidley is a chemist and the Co Founder of Beauty Kitchen, a B Corp certified business on a mission to create the most effective, natural and sustainable beauty products in the world. Widely regarded as one of the pioneers of sustainable beauty, Jo is driving the beauty industry forward with better practise approaches, always. She is Beauty Kitchen’s toughest critic, inspecting everything from the efficacy of the products, to the way the ingredients are sourced, right down to the packaging sustainability for each product. Sustainability in packaging is a subject that is close to her heart and has inspired Beauty Kitchen’s Return•Refill•Repeat programme. Implementing Cradle to Cradle design into Beauty Kitchen’s circular approach, Jo is pioneering a Reuse Revolution through sustainable innovation and design by powering the service behind the ground-breaking Return•Refill•Repeat Refill Stations.

David leads Veeva’s Regulatory Strategy practice for the European Chemical Industry. In this role he partners with Europe’s leading chemical companies to help them reimagine how they deliver product compliance with efficiency, speed, and end-to-end transparency. Before joining Veeva, David worked at Novozymes Global Regulatory Affairs where he led the strategy to transition towards a digital operating model. He also worked as a management consultant at Deloitte where he specialized in organization transformation. David holds a MSc in International Business and Politics from Copenhagen Business School where he focused on transnational governance, nonmarket strategy, and regulatory lobbying in the European Union.

Based in Washington D.C., Melanie Rybar supports Enhesa Product Intelligence as the expert on North America regulatory content. She has spent her career in the chemical manufacturing industry, conducting regulatory analysis, risk management reviews, developing new products and processes for companies making surfactants, functional polymers and other specialty chemicals intended for use in consumer products.

Sharon Blinkoff is a Senior Counsel at Locke Lord LLP. Sharon represents manufacturers, marketers, and distributors of cosmetics, dietary supplements, over the counter drugs, and medical devices as well as beauty appliances and other consumer products and luxury goods. She regularly advises clients on compliance with the laws enforced by the FDA, CPSC, and the FTC, and obtaining FDA registrations and 510k premarket clearances.

Jennifer R. Martin is currently Director of Regulatory Affairs for Colgate North America and CP Skin Health for the Colgate-Palmolive Company. In her current role, she determines regulatory vision, strategy and pathways for Colgate’s complete portfolio including cosmetics, drugs, medical devices, natural health products, antimicrobial pesticides, cleaning, consumer and children’s products. Prior to joining Colgate, Jennifer was Global Director of Regulatory, Toxicology and Government Affairs for Edgewell Personal Care, LLC, a standalone company spun from Energizer Holdings.

Karl Palmer leads DTSC’s Safer Consumer Products Program and is responsible for developing, implementing, and enforcing California’s Safer Consumer Products regulations. Karl’s team also implements DTSC’s other toxics in products laws and supports green chemistry initiatives throughout California.  

Emily Dominiak leads the development, implementation, and enforcement of programs regulating chemicals in consumer products at the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation. Ms. Dominiak has expertise in a variety of policy areas including ingredient disclosure, green procurement, and chemical restrictions in consumer products. Ms. Dominiak holds a B.A. in Biological Sciences from Smith College.

Part of Clean Production Action since 2004, Mark has the unique ability to bring together diverse groups and achieve innovative outcomes. In 2006, he founded BizNGO, a unique collaboration of businesses and NGOs working together to advance safer chemicals and sustainable materials. In 2007, Mark co-developed GreenScreen for Safer Chemicals, now the gold standard in hazard assessment tools. And in 2014, he co-founded the Chemical Footprint Project, the first of its kind initiative to benchmark corporations on their overall chemical management performance. His doctorate is in Environmental Policy from MIT.

Mr. Wolf is responsible for ensuring the design of sustainable products at Seventh Generation, Inc., a manufacturer and distributor of ecological household and personal care products. He is also responsible for creating a more sustainable business model, and for creating more sustainable systems of commerce.

Janet Nudelman, MA, Director of Program & Public Policy, draws on over 30 years of experience working in the social change arena as a political organizer and lobbyist on women’s health issues. Under her leadership, Breast Cancer Prevention Partners advocacy efforts are playing an important role in making breast cancer prevention a priority in statehouses and the halls of congress and have resulted in the passage of 15 local, state and federal laws creating the nation’s first municipal precautionary principle ordinance; first statewide biomonitoring program to measure the pollution in people; enacting a California and federal ban on phthalates in kids toys; and securing passage of California legislation that requires the disclosure of the ingredients in professional salon products, cleaning products and fragrance and flavor ingredients in cosmetic products.

Mia is the VP of Sustainability & Impact at Credo Beauty, the largest clean beauty retailer. Mia created the Credo Clean Standard, including the Sustainable Packaging Guidelines-- retail's strongest "clean" formula and packaging standards. Mia co-founded the new nonprofit membership organization Pact Collective to start to make a dent in hard-to-recycle beauty waste, and to bring beauty stakeholders together to move toward circularity.

Laura Duncan provides legal counsel to product manufacturers, importers, retailers and private labelers.  She has extensive experience resolving product and environmental compliance issues and helping companies reduce legal risks. 

Heather Trim, Executive Director. Heather has more than 25 years of experience in environmental work ranging from zero waste to toxic chemicals and habitat issues. At Zero Waste Washington, her focus has been on reducing upstream sources of waste and addressing downstream impacts, getting toxic chemicals out of products, eliminating plastic pollution, and building on the organization’s signature producer responsibility policy initiatives. Previously, at Futurewise, she worked to prevent runoff from entering our waterways and improve shoreline management practices and policies. Heather was at People for Puget Sound for over ten years where she focused on protections for the marine environment. Earlier, she was staff scientist for the Los Angeles and San Gabriel Rivers Watershed Council and worked for the Los Angeles Regional Water Quality Control Board on water quality standards, regulatory permits, pollution assessments, greening the LA rivers and habitat renewal.

Dr Ansell brings extensive experience leading global safety, regulatory and quality initiatives in the personal care products and specialty chemicals industries. Joining the Personal Care Products Council (formerly CTFA) in May 2006 he is currently Vice President - Cosmetic Programs where he is responsible for providing technical support for the Council staff and various committees and task forces addressing the science and regulation of personal care products. Dr Ansell came to the Council from Yves Rocher, a France-based personal care products company, where he served as Director of North American Product Safety and Regulatory Affairs. He previously has been Vice President of Product Safety and Regulatory Affairs at two international specialty chemical companies.

Ms. Caro Tovar is a licensed attorney in Mexico and the United States. She is a Latin America Specialist in environmental, health, and safety issues.

Raissa Havens joined UL as a Regulatory Specialist in 2019, where she focuses on new and existing chemical regulations for Latin America countries and Portugal. Raissa is responsible for maintaining UL’s Chemical Regulatory Database updated and provides advisory services for companies that manufacture industrial chemicals and export products into these countries.

Born and raised in Mexico, Melissa Owen is an international lawyer licensed in the U.S. who speaks Spanish, Portuguese, Italian, French, and English. Her knowledge of the cultural, language, and legal dimensions in both Latin America and the U.S. have made her uniquely suited to guide her multinational clients through the complex and rapidly changing world of environmental, sustainability, and health and safety matters in the region. She began her legal career in the environmental and international departments of a leading national U.S. law firm and then moved into private practice. For over 25 years, she has advised Fortune 100 companies as well as international trade associations on emerging chemical regulations, Circular Economy, Extended Producer Responsibility, product stewardship and a myriad of other regulatory topics. She is a recognized expert on ESG/EHS regulations in Latin America and a frequent speaker at international events about emerging chemical regulations.

Mary Ellen Perkin is the manager of Consumer and Cleaning Products within the Products Division at Environment and Climate Change Canada. Mary Ellen joined the department in 1996 and holds a degree in Chemical Engineering. Mary Ellen’s team is responsible for the administration and development of regulatory controls for substances used in the cleaning, cosmetics, and the adhesives industries.