Who We Are

Lauri Tammiste has been working as the Director of the Stockholm Environment Institute (SEI) Tallinn since 2016. He has extensive and interdisciplinary experience in climate, energy, energy efficiency and innovation policy instruments analysis, design, and implementation. 

During his 7 years at the Estonian Ministry of Economic Affairs and Communications he was, as Director of Energy Department, responsible opening Estonian electricity market, transposing EU energy law, for shaping the national renewable energy plan and designing and launching new support programs for energy efficiency and renewable energy. As the Director of Economic Development Department at ministry, he was overseeing the design and implementation of national R&D and entrepreneurship strategies, coordinating and carrying out ex-ante and ex-post policy evaluations, international cooperation and representing Estonia in various European Commission, OECD, IEA and Nordic-Baltic working groups.

Lauri has also served as a member of the management board of the Estonian Environmental Investment Centre (EIC), which as a government-owned foundation is responsible for financing sustainable environmental projects both from national and EU funds. His main tasks involved helping to shape new financing instruments for resource and energy efficiency, renewable energy. Also, he oversaw carrying out impact assessment of financed projects and also improving the communication and marketing activities of EIC. 

While at SEI, Lauri lead in 2019 a study assessing the potential and for reaching climate neutrality in Estonia, which provided the evidence base for Estonian government to support EU wide climate neutrality goal. In 2021-2022, Lauri served as the Chairman of  High Level Green Policy expert group, which supported Prime Minister Kaja Kallas government by delivering a special report  on how to frame green transition, what are the key areas Estonia needs to focus upon (ranging from energy, mobility, adaptation to just transition, food systems, biodiversity, ecosystems etc), what are main bottlenecks in those focus areas and what are the key policy recommendations to remove those bottlenecks and speed up the transition. In addition to that, Lauri has overseen several decarbonization modelling studies in electricity, heating and cooling, gas and hydrogen sectors. 

Before SEI, Lauri held numerous leadership positions including: Member of the Executive Board for the Estonian Environmental Investment Centre; Director of Energy and Green Economy for the Estonian Development Fund; Chairman of the Supervisory Board for Elering (Estonian Transmission System Operator); Director of Energy Department for the Republic of Estonia Ministry of Economic Affairs and Communications; a Member of the Supervisory Board for the Tallinn Technology Park Tehnopol; Director of Economic Development Department, Republic of Estonia Ministry of Economic Affairs and Communications; and Head of Economic Analysis Division for the Republic of Estonia Ministry of Economic Affairs and Communications.

Lauri has graduated from the University of Tartu, Estonia (Public Administration) and spent a semester at Maastricht University.

Tatiana Echim is Senior Expert Advisor for the “Green Agenda for Armenia, Georgia, Moldova, and Ukraine” project at the Stockholm Environment Institute (SEI). Within the Green Agenda project, she supports the team in Moldova by overseeing the implementation of the project and acting as a liaison between SEI, governmental institutions in Moldova (ministries, agencies, etc.), international/national research experts, group leads, stakeholders, and other actors which contribute to the Green Agenda’s overall thematic development and project implementation. 

Tatiana has more than 14 years of providing consultative support and national expertise to international organizations, businesses, public authorities, and civil society during the process of implementation and compliance with environmental protection legislation. She is knowledgeable and experienced in a variety of sectors, such as: the integrated management of waste and chemicals; environmental infrastructure; good governance and environmental reporting and evidence data; environmental information resources; and training and education in the field of environmental protection. Tatiana also has more than 10 years of experience in managing environmental projects for the implementation of national strategies, and provisions of international treaties and European Union directives. 

Tatiana holds a master’s degree in Environmental Management and International Relations from Moldova State University. She also holds numerous certificates under topics such as: Chemicals and Hazardous Waste Management under the Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear Risk Mitigation (CBRN) Project 67; Persistent Organic Pollutants (PoPs) Chemicals Inventory; training in European Neighbourhood and Partnership Instrument (ENPI) policy on waste management elaboration; and completed courses on EU acquis Communautaire transposition into environmental legislation.

Iordanca-Rodica Iordanov is the National Coordinator for the Green Agenda regional project in the Republic of Moldova since April 2024.

With an extensive background, Mrs. Iordanov is an Associate Professor at the State University of Moldova's Law Faculty, specializing in teaching Environmental Law and European Environmental Law since 1998. She holds a Ph.D. in Environmental Law from the Academy of Science of Moldova and possesses over 25 years of experience in the field.

Having held the position of Secretary of State since August 2021, and previously serving as the Minister of Environment from November 2022 to March 2024, Mrs, Iordanov is highly regarded as an expert in various aspects of Environmental Law. Her expertise includes the integration of the national legislation into the European Union for environmental protection and sustainable nature management, handling public interest environmental litigations, environmental assessment, legislation on air, water, and waste management (including hazardous waste and chemical substances) public participation, civil society engagement, and the management of natural protected areas. 

Additionally, Mrs. Iordanov chairs the Task Force on Access to Information under the Aarhus Convention Secretariat, and is a member of the PRTR Compliance Committee. Furthermore, she is the co-chair of the OECD Task Force on Green Economy. 

Mrs. Iordanov also possesses extensive knowledge and experience in implementing international conventions and protocols such as the Aarhus, Espoo, Stockholm, Basel Conventions, PRTR, and SEA Protocols. Throughout her career, she has collaborated with international organisations such as the UN, UNECE, WB, EBRD, OSCE, and EU Delegations.

During her tenure as Minister of Environment, Mrs. Iordanov played a crucial roles in the process of integrating the Republic of Moldova into the European Union, specifically in terms of environmental protection and sustainable nature management.

Natalia Guranda is an Administrative Coordinator for the “Green Agenda for Armenia, Georgia, Moldova, and Ukraine” project, in the country of Moldova. Natalia demonstrates proficiency in identifying and assessing potential environmental and social impacts of projects, as well as formulating guiding documents and policy papers for governmental bodies. Moreover, she excels in recommending measures to enhance positive environmental and social impacts, while also devising strategies for mitigating negative effects.

With over a decade of experience in social and environmental analysis and evaluation, Natalia has been the Executive Director of PA EcoContact for more than three years. Throughout her journey from Project Manager to Executive Director at EcoContact, Natalia has amassed extensive expertise across various domains. Her skills encompass the evaluation, drafting, and advocacy of environmental policy documents. She also possesses considerable experience in managing communications with diverse stakeholders and collaborating closely with national and local authorities across all project implementations. 

Natalia holds a master’s degree in Environmental Management from State University of Moldova, a master’s degree in Management of Social Services from the University of Moldova, a master’s degree in International Relations and African Studies from the Autonomous University of Madrid, and a bachelor’s degree in Political Science from the Institute of International Relations of Moldova.

Tatiana Gumene is a National Communications Expert for the “Green Agenda for Armenia, Georgia, Moldova, and Ukraine” project, in the country of Moldova.

With almost a decade of experience in the field, Tatiana has held various positions in public relations and communication. She has honed her expertise through leadership roles in the governmental, corporate, and non-governmental sectors. 

Prior to her current role, Tatiana led communication teams in prominent national institutions such as Moldova’s State Chancellery, Ministry of Health and Ministry of Social Protection. For the past two years, Tatiana has specialised in environmental communication, supporting projects focused on environmental protection, conservation of protected areas, eco-labelling, and environmental justice, among others.

Tatiana's educational background is in the field of communication sciences. She holds a master's degree in Public Relations and Advertising, and a bachelor's degree in Romanian Language and Literature from the Moldova State University. Beyond her professional interests, Tatiana is driven by her passion for literature and theatre. She also holds a bachelor’s degree in Directing from the Faculty of Fine Arts of the State University of Chisinau, Republic of Moldova.