Sophia Kianni

In a world grappling with the escalating consequences of climate change,
Sophia Kianni stands as a beacon of what determined, purpose-driven
entrepreneurship can achieve. As Founder and Co-CEO of Phia—a
pioneering AI-powered climate intelligence platform—she is redefining
what it means to lead a mission-aligned business in the twenty-first century.

A Journey Born from Personal Witness
Sophia’s path to entrepreneurship was forged through lived experience. Born to an Iranian mother
and American father, she spent formative years witnessing the stark environmental degradation
affecting Iran’s landscapes—parched riverbeds, failing harvests, and communities displaced by
drought. Back in the United States, she recognised a glaring gap: crucial climate information was
locked behind language barriers, inaccessible to billions across the globe. At just 16, she founded
Climate Cardinals, a youth-led nonprofit that went on to translate climate science into more than 100
languages, and they reach millions who had previously been excluded from the global conversation. It was
proof—early and unmistakable—that Sophia’s instinct was to build bridges where others saw walls.

Phia: Intelligence in the Service of the Planet
Phia represents the natural evolution of Sophia’s conviction that data and technology must be
harnessed in the fight against climate change. The platform deploys cutting-edge artificial intelligence
to help businesses measure, monitor, and meaningfully reduce their carbon emissions—moving
sustainability, from aspiration to accountability. In an era rife with corporate greenwashing, Phia cuts
through the noise with rigorous, science-backed metrics that companies can actually act upon. Under
Sophia’s co-leadership, Phia has secured high-profile corporate partnerships and is rapidly
establishing itself as an indispensable tool for organisations serious about their environmental
commitments. It is, at its core, a business built on radical transparency.

“We are at a turning point where climate action and business
Successes are no longer in conflict—they are inseparable. Phia
exists to give every organization the tools to be part of the solution, not the problem.”
— Sophia Kianni, Founder & Co-CEO, Phia

A Voice That Reaches the Highest Rooms
Sophia’s influence extends far beyond the startup ecosystem. She has addressed heads of state and
policymakers at the United Nations have been recognised by TIME Magazine among the world’s most
influential young climate leaders, and used every platform to amplify voices—particularly those of
women and youth from the Global South—who are disproportionately impacted by environmental
collapse yet are chronically underrepresented in climate decision-making. Her leadership is defined not by
self-promotion, but by an unwavering commitment to inclusion: she believes the climate movement
will only succeed if it is genuinely representative of those it seeks to protect.

The Womenpreneur as Change Architect
Sophia Kianni’s story is a masterclass in the compounding power of purpose. She did not wait for the
world to hand her a seat at the table—she built the table, set the agenda, and invited the world to join
her. For the next generation of womenpreneurs, her trajectory delivers a profound message: the most
Transformative businesses are not born from market surveys but from moral clarity. Sophia saw
injustice, felt urgency, and chose to respond not with words alone but with infrastructure. Through
Phia, she is turning the climate crisis into the greatest entrepreneurial canvas of our generation—and
She is just getting started.