Duncan Mayes is the founder of consulting and technology advocacy firm, Lignutech, based in Helsinki, Finland. In his current role he supports local and international commercial and institutional clients in the field of renewable materials technologies, markets, and circular economy solutions. Clients include: MDF Recovery Ltd, a UK technology company with a unique process to recycle MDF; Fiberdom Oy, a Finnish green-tech who have developed a wood pulp-based replacement to single use plastics, and several larger clients such as Stora Enso, Lunawood and NewForests/Timberlink. He has held senior positions during his long career in the forest industry including SVP of Strategy, R&D & Innovation at Stora Enso, overseeing significant R&D and innovation programs and investment cases. Most recently he worked together with Australian wood products company Timberlink Australia, a NewForests Real Assets Fund Company. Mayes supported them in several major investment opportunities including a Cross-laminated timber (CLT) and Glulam production in South Australia. Mayes is named in a number internationally granted patents. He chairs the Council of Experts Group at the EU funded research Institute InnoRenew Centre of Excellence, Slovenia, and sits on several advisory boards and global expert groups including the International Society of Wood Science & Technology.