Alex O'Dell, Vice President GB & Ireland at VELUX, was appointed as co-chair in March 2023. Sophie Miremadi, VP Global Government Affairs and Public Policy at AVEVA, was nominated co-chair in April 2023. In their roles as co-chairs, Alex and Sophie advise on the strategic development of CLG UK and help to represent the interests and concerns of the group’s business leaders.
Alex O'Dell, Vice President GB&I, VELUX
Alex joined VELUX in November 2022 as Vice President for UK and Ireland, where he oversees the company's core roof window business in the home renovation and construction sector. Alex is keen to drive positive changes in the built environment including promoting development of healthy homes in the new build and retrofit market whilst advocating for improvements in sustainable construction practices and policy.
With a diverse background in consumer technology and FMCG, prior to joining VELUX, he held key leadership positions at Dyson including North Asia MD/President, Global Commercial Director, and UK Sales Director, expanding the company's presence and driving success in these regions. Before his tenure at Dyson, he was Sales Director for Canon UK's consumer imaging business and held various sales and category roles within Unilever.
Alex has degree in Agriculture from Bangor University, and later attained a PhD in Agronomy at the University of London. His academic background led him to join Unilever as a research scientist, where he actively contributed to the company's Sustainable Agriculture sourcing initiatives.
On his appointment as CLG UK co-chair, Alex said:
"As co-chair, I am delighted to join CLG UK and support their initiatives to achieving the UK and Europe's net zero targets. By bringing together leading companies to drive action for sustainable development and policy change, I am looking forward to collaborating with opinion leaders and government teams to take decisive action towards achieving our climate goals.”
Sophie Miremadi, VP Global Government Affairs and Public Policy, AVEVA
Sophie Miremadi is Vice President of Global Government Affairs and Public Policy at AVEVA, a UK headquartered technology company which provides software to the industrial world. AVEVA’s industrial customers span all sectors from power generation, to shipping to manufacturing, but what they all have in common is a strategic focus on the energy transition. AVEVA’s software helps these companies innovate to decarbonise their operations, and to scale up renewable power production and leading-edge net zero technologies.
Sophie leads a team focused at the intersection of digital regulation and environmental and industrial policy, and manages relationships with a wide network of external stakeholders. Sophie draws on experience as a civil servant in the UK government, as a consultant, and in public policy in the financial services sector. She holds an MA in Modern History from Oxford University and an MBA from INSEAD Business School.
On her appointment as CLG UK co-chair, Sophie said:
“It’s so important for businesses to show leadership in taking the concrete steps necessary to decarbonise our economy, and to forge ahead and demonstrate the art of the possible. This is not an easy path, but it’s only through constructive collaboration between governments, universities, businesses and citizens that we can accelerate our rate of progress.
The UK Corporate Leaders Group is a fantastic collection of companies at the vanguard of transformative climate action, and I’m delighted to be co-chair at this critical juncture in the lead up to COP30 in Brazil.”
Previous CLG UK co-chairs:
- Peter Simpson, Chief Executive, Anglian Water (2020 to 2024)
- Colin Matthews, Non-Executive Chairman, EDF UK (2020 to 2022)
