Global Growth Partners

Salim Amin

Chairman, Camerapix

Salim Amin is Chairman of Camerapix, founder and Chairman of The Mohamed Amin Foundation and co-founder and Chairman of A24 Media.

As Executive Producer and Presenter, Salim finished a documentary chronicling his father’s life in March 2006 entitled “MO & ME” which has to date won ten Awards for Best Documentary in the United States, Canada, India and on the African Continent, including the Grand Jury Award at the New York International Film Festival. The documentary achieved a successful theatrical release in Kenya and was screened at the prestigious British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA), as well as the Cannes Film Festival in 2007. In December 2005, Salim began work on the launch of the first 24-hour pan-African News and Current Affairs Channel. Africa 24 Media, a precursor to the Channel and Africa’s first online Agency for video and stills content, launched in September 2008 (www.a24media.com). In January 2007 Salim was named a Young Global Leader by the World Economic Forum in Davos. He is a fellow of the African Leadership Initiative and a member of the Aspen Global Leadership Network. In 2010 Salim was one of only 150 people around the world invited by President Obama to the Presidential Entrepreneurship Summit in Washington, DC.
In October 2014, Salim launched his weekly Talk Show “The Scoop”, speaking to great African personalities around the Continent, and reaching a global audience of over 300 million people on television, radio and online.

Deema Bibi

CEO, Injaz

Deema Bibi is currently the CEO of INJAZ, a non-profit organization established in 2001 with a mission to inspire and prepare youth to become productive members of their society and accelerate the development of the national economy.

Over the past ten years, Bibi elevated the work scope of INJAZ to new horizons through strategic plans to ensure high-impact, continuous growth and sustainability. Bibi’s insight and directives enabled INJAZ to develop and introduce a wide array of programs promoting Financial Literacy, Work Readiness, Business and Social Entrepreneurship among other essential skills. Under Bibi’s leadership, and by building a strong network of supporters through forging key partnerships with the private and public sectors, INJAZ expanded its operations to reach over one million students all over Jordan, up to date, through a network of over 23,000 qualified volunteers.
Bibi holds a Bachelor’s degree in Digital Electronics and an MBA in International Business. She has over twenty five years of diverse experience; she worked at the United Nations Development Fund for Women – Regional office as the ICT Program Manager, and with the private sector before that on developing and managing ICT projects in the Middle East region.
Bibi is recognized both locally and internationally as a leader and social entrepreneur, with strategic insight that has helped build bridges between NGOs and the private and public sectors through partnerships that contribute to sustainable development. She is a founding member of the Arab Foundations Forum (AFF), a member of the International Women’s Forum (IWF), and the National Committee of the Economic Empowerment Program.
Bibi is a lifetime fellow in global networks, including: Eisenhower, the ASPEN Institute, and Synergos Senior Fellowship global networks.
Stemming from her firm belief in actively contributing to society, she served on the Amman City Council for the term 2007-2011, and currently serves as a board member on the King Abdallah II Fund for Development through a royal decrue issued in 2014. Additionally, Ms. Bibi serves on a number of boards including, Tamweelcom Jordan Micro Credit Company, RunJordan, the Global Thinkers Forum, and Generations for Peace.
Her contributions have been honored with prestigious awards, including the Mosaic Global Social Leadership Award (2008), the Global Thinkers Forum Excellence in Positive Change Award (2012), and The International Alliance for Women World of Difference Award (2012).

Stephen Cole

Chairman, Institute of Diplomacy & Business

Stephen Cole is one of the most experienced and versatile faces of International Television News. He has anchored 24-hour news since 1989 from the studio and from some of the world’s major trouble spots.

Stephen has conducted network interviews with Presidents, Prime Ministers and Movie Stars. He wrote and hosted the Oscars Special programme on BBC World for six years.  

He successfully launched the world’s main news channels, Sky News, CNN International, BBC World and Al Jazeera International in London and Doha. He has specialist knowledge of Middle-Eastern politics and is often asked to speak about the region. One of his most successful ideas was the creation of the IT Show Click Online. 

He developed the format and over seven years took the BBC show around the world to twenty-eight countries. 

Stephen is also a popular Chairman and Moderator at International Global events such as the World Economic Forum at Davos and the Eurasian Media Forum in Astana. 

He also recently chaired at the United Nations setting the five-year agenda for UNESCO. And has twice led Future of Energy Sessions for the Al-Attiyah Foundation.

He has also hosted conferences on education (WISE in Doha), banking and global health and writes travel articles for newspapers around the world.

Stephen’s other interests are horse-riding, tennis and rugby, and Supporting Artist work.

He is a Judge at BAFTA, a Global Growth Partner of the Global Thinkers Forum, he is a former Director of a Premiership rugby club, he is currently Chairman of the Institute of Diplomacy and Business and a School Governor in West London..

According to his sons, he also tells the world’s worst jokes.

Robert Davidson

President, Arundel Consulting Inc

Robert is the President of Arundel Consulting Inc. Arundel Consulting develops business and tax strategies, marketing and communications for entrepreneurs with international ambitions.

It works extensively with professional services firms, with clients in the contemporary arts world, and with leaders in the pharmaceutical and healthcare fields. Robert has founded and run three start-ups, each focused on applying IT to transform business processes in healthcare. The largest of these involved designing, building, and delivering a new Business Planning process for a leading global pharmaceutical company with 1,000 managers in 75 countries. These experiences demonstrated very clearly that to achieve change, effective dialogue is essential. One must balance the radical potential for rethinking business models offered by new technology with the need to communicate that face to face to change hearts and minds. These projects also underlined that while global consistency is vital in key areas of industry, it must accommodate the diversity of local culture and regulation. Robert is also working with doctors, economists, and technology specialists at the Foundation for World Health to look at how changes in science and technology can lead to truly curative healthcare over the next 20 to 30 years. This will involve profound changes in organization, delivery, and funding to make that a reality on a global scale. His core skills are based in finance, with a degree in Economics from The City University, London. Robert is qualified as a UK Chartered Accountant with Price Waterhouse, with whom he worked across Europe for 11 years, and more recently as an IRS Enrolled Agent in the United States. Robert also worked in a variety of business planning and IT roles for Eli Lilly, and has extensive international consulting experience with Robson Rhodes (now part of Grant Thornton).

Susan Foley Rocco

Founder, Producer & Host, Women to Watch™ Media, LLC

Susan Foley Rocco is Founder, Producer and Host of Women to Watch™ Media, LLC – the premier global media platform for women leaders.

With a long-standing, professional background in marketing, communications, sales and advertising, Susan quickly identified the need for a stand-alone multimedia platform to inspire and encourage women to pursue leadership roles worldwide. Initially created as a weekly radio show, Women to Watch™ developed into digital, print, social media, events and video production programs that tell “the real story behind the titles” of some of the most accomplished women in history.

Routinely featuring c-suite executives at companies such as Comcast, Thomson Reuters, The Federal Reserve and IBM; top journalists and anchors including ABC News Foreign Correspondent Martha Raddatz, Gretchen Carlson and Joan Lunden; and activists like Sister Mary Scullion of Project Home, Ingrid Vandervelt, Founder of EBW2020, Attorney Gloria Allred and Dawn Engle, Founder of Peace Jam; Susan has brought attention to not only the successes, but to the challenges, doubts and even failures faced across the board by women trying to make it in their chosen career. Through each intimate interview and personal story shared, Rocco’s primary mission remains to connect, educate and encourage women in order to strengthen their self-esteem and live a purposeful life.

A life-long resident of the Philadelphia area, Rocco received her Bachelor of Arts in Communications from Villanova University. She was recognized in “Women on the Move” by The Philadelphia Business Journal and named one of the “Most Inspirational Women” by EBW 2020 in September 2016. Susan is currently a contributor for Arianna Huffington’s “Thrive Global Journal,” and a Global Thinkers Forum Mentor.  She has also been featured in Huffpost Business, Philadelphia Life Magazine, and Real Women.

Dr. Daniel Fung

Vice Chairman, Salzburg Global Seminar

Daniel R. Fung, SBS, SC, QC, JP, is the first person of Chinese extraction who served as Solicitor General of Hong Kong (1994-8) under Chris Patten, the last Governor of the British Crown Colony of Hong Kong and the Honorable C H Tung, the first Chief Executive of the Hong Kong SAR, is a specialist in complex commercial litigation and in public law, specifically judicial review of legislative and administrative action, supervision of regulated industries including the financial services and the television & broadcasting sectors.

In addition, Mr Fung is a specialist in China-United States relations, specifically the security dimension and military-to-military relations, and in Chinese state-owned enterprises covering both and overseas operations.
A graduate of University College London (LLB 1974, LLM 1978) and made a Fellow of his alma mater in 2005, Visiting Scholar to Harvard Law School (1998-99), Senior Visiting Fellow to Yale Law School (1999) and Distinguished Fulbright Scholar accredited to the United States from Hong Kong (2000), Mr Fung was called to the English Bar (at Middle Temple) in 1975 and admitted to the Hong Kong Bar in 1977. Mr Fung was appointed Queen’s Counsel in 1990. Mr Fung is a National Delegate to the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference (2003-2013), a current member of the Hong Kong Government’s Strategic Development Commission, also serves as Chairman of the United Nations Peace & Development Foundation, member of the World Economic Forum Global Agenda Council on the Rule of Law, President of the International Law Association (ILA) Hong Kong Chapter, Chairman of the Board of International Bridges to Justice (IBJ), Treasurer of the Salzburg Global Seminar (SGS), Vice Chairman of the Salzburg Global Seminar (2006-2011), Vice-President of the Academy of Experts, Member of the Board of Governors of the East West Center (EWC), Council Member of International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS), Council Member of China Law Society (CLS) and Founding Governor of the China-US Exchange Foundation. In 2003, Mr Fung was awarded the Silver Bauhinia Star by for services to constitutional development in Hong Kong and made a Justice of the Peace in 2004. In 2011, Mr Fung was honored by UNDP in recognition of his contribution to the work of UNDP China and the United Nations Millennium Development Goals.

Christopher Gaunt

Chairman, British Chamber of Commerce Turkey

Christopher Gaunt is a highly accomplished and respected businessman with invaluable international experience across a number of key business sectors.

Having graduated in UK with a degree in Modern History, he began his career in 1973 in the Wine and Spirit Division of the Whitbread Brewery Group, and went on to work in prominent UK Beverage companies progressing to senior management positions with HP Bulmer and Allied Domecq.
In 1992 Christopher embarked on his International career and moved to Croatia as a consultant with Coopers and Lybrand to work on a major restructuring project for a newly privatized group of FMCG companies. In 1994 he joined Coca-Cola initially in Croatia, followed by Senior Management/GM positions in Eastern Europe and start-up operations in Central Asia. From 1999 to 2000 Mr. Gaunt served as CEO of Panonska Pivovara Croatia (Carlsberg International) prior to joining the Efes Beverage Group; a subsidiary of Istanbul based Anadolu Holdings, as the General Manager of operations in Bulgaria. He was later appointed President of Efes Invest (Anadolu/Coca-Cola joint venture) in 2001, responsible for Coca-Cola Bottling operations in South Caucasus, Central Asia and Middle East.

Following the merger in 2005 of Efes Invest and Coca-Cola Icecek (CCI) Turkey and the subsequent IPO, he was appointed Chief Operating Officer of the newco. In 2007 Mr. Gaunt was appointed President of CCI International Operations (10 countries) from which position he retired from CCI in 2010. He then set up his own consultancy company “Euroasia Consultancy” based in Istanbul.
In January 2013 Christopher was appointed Vice Chairman of the British Chamber of Commerce Turkey and elected Chairman in July 2013.
Additionally, Mr. Gaunt holds the following positions:

• Board Member British Chambers of Commerce Global Accreditation Board
• President Innovate Drinks Russia
• Board Member Suzer Group Turkey
• Board Member Farazad Investments
• Global Growth Board Member — Global Thinkers Forum

Lucian J. Hudson

Director of Communications, The Open University

Lucian J. Hudson has been Director of Communications of The Open University since 2011, and recently been elected Chair of Earthwatch Europe. 

He has held top communications posts in four UK government departments, including Director of Communication, Foreign and Commonwealth Office, and Director of e-Communications, Cabinet Office - the first holder of this post.  A leading communications director under the Blair and Brown Governments, he conducted the review into No10 communications under the Coalition Government (report published in June 2013).

Lucian was a senior executive and television journalist with the BBC and ITV for 17 years.  As Head of Programming, International Channels, BBC Worldwide, he helped establish the first international television channels as a joint venture between BBC and Discovery.  As Strand Editor, BBC World, he led the transformation of breaking news and live events, which included producing the first six hours of television coverage on the death of Princess Diana.

Lucian was Partner and the first Managing Director of Cornerstone Global Associates, providing international strategic consultancy to governments, businesses, civil society organisations, universities and business schools.

Lucian has been Chairman of three non-profit organisations: Liberal Judaism, Tavistock Institute of Human Relations and Rory Peck Trust.  He is also Chair, Citizens:mk Leadership Group.

An accredited CEDR mediator, Lucian wrote the first international report on the scope and limits of cross-sector collaboration, "The Enabling State: Collaborating for Success" (FCO, 2009) .  His research into cross-sector collaboration is regularly published in academic journals and handbooks , including The Annual Review of Social Partnerships (ARSP), an open access annual journal on cross-sector social interactions.  He is active on social media networks, LinkedIn and Twitter @LucianHudson, and is listed in ‘Who’s Who’ (www.ukwhoswho.com).  He is Fellow of the RSA and Institute of Directors, and a member of the Political Studies Association.

Valerie Keller

Global Leader, EY Beacon Institute / Executive Director, Markets

Valerie Keller has deep expertise in leadership, purpose-driven transformation and innovation. She is global head of the EY Beacon Institute and an executive director of Ernst & Young LLP in its Global Markets group.

As a former chief executive officer, she has established healthcare facilities, housing developments and social enterprises. Valerie was also founder of Veritas and two U.S. coalitions focused on housing and healthcare system reform. She has advised U.S. Congressional Committees and facilitated public-private partnerships across businesses, government agencies and non-governmental organizations.

Valerie is a World Economic Forum Young Global Leader and recipient of JP Morgan Chase's 20 Under 40 and Change Agent Network's Humanitarian of the Year awards. She is an Associate Fellow of the University of Oxford Saïd Business School, where she designs and leads executive education programs.

Valerie serves on the Harvard Kennedy School Women's Leadership Board and the advisory boards of Global Thinkers Forum, World Policy Institute and Womanity U.S. 

She holds an MBA with Distinction Honors from the University of Oxford and completed post-graduate work at the Harvard Business School and Harvard Kennedy School.

Nikos Koumettis

President, Coca-Cola Central & Eastern Europe BU

Nikos Koumettis is appointed President, Central & Eastern Europe Business Unit of The Coca-Cola Company, based in Athens, effective August 1st, 2016.

The Unit will comprise 26 diverse countries, with new additions, Russia, Belarus & Ukraine. He was previously appointed President, Central & Southern Europe Business Unit of The Coca-Cola Company on April 1st, 2011, a unit comprising 23 European countries. He recently led CSE to its first ever Woodruff Cup nomination for 2015 results. The BU achieved the highest ever share in Sparkling beverages. During his tenure, the BU has achieved substantial increases in Corporate Reputation and Employee Engagement. Nikos was appointed President, Coca-Cola, Ltd., based in Toronto, Canada on June 1, 2008. While in Canada, he successfully led the franchise in re-establishing business fundamentals and returning to growth. Under his leadership, Canada grew the Coca-Cola Trademark for the first time in seven years, and a new culture of winning was instilled – resulting in the Business Unit’s first-ever Woodruff Cup qualification in 2009 and again in 2010.
Nikos moved to Canada after leading The Coca-Cola Company’s Adriatic and Balkans Business Unit, based in Bucharest, Romania from 2003-2008. He developed the business in nine diverse countries, including Bulgaria, Romania, Serbia and Croatia. Company brands led all ready-to-drink categories in the territory; volume, revenue, profits doubled in 5 years.
Nikos joined The Coca-Cola Company in 2001, as Southeast Mediterranean Region General Manager with responsibilities for Greece and Cyprus, where he achieved the highest volume and share, and created the first ever Zero product globally – Sprite Zero. Prior to joining the Company, he served in marketing roles with Kraft Jacobs Suchard; sales and distribution roles with a large Greek distribution company, Elgeka; and commercial and logistics functions for Papastratos S. A. / Phillip Morris, the biggest tobacco company in Greece. In December 2015, he undertook additional responsibilities as Global Chairman for Franchise Leadership (Coca-Cola University) with the goal of developing global talent & succession of General Managers/BU Presidents. He is a board member of Canada Goose and is a Trustee on the Board of the American College of Greece. He co-founded Regeneration with the Global Shapers (Athens hub), to address youth unemployment in Greece by creating the largest internship program for talented graduates. From 1989-2000, he taught part-time International Marketing & Sales Management at The American College of Greece and from 1992-2000, Principles of Marketing at Panteion University. He has shared his experience and perspectives on Leadership in a series of lectures to Harvard Graduates. Nikos holds a Master of Science degree in International Marketing from Strathclyde Business School, and a B.Sc. in Business Administration from the American College of Greece. He is a Greek-Cypriot, born in Sudan and raised in Greece. He is married to Sarita Chaim and they have 2 children, Petros (15) & Felicia (13). He is an avid skier and sailor.

Attiya Mahmood

Pakistani Diplomat

Attiya Mahmood has served as a Pakistani diplomat for over 35 years. Her credentials include Ambassadorial posts to the Kingdom of Morocco, Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan and the Republic of Indonesia.

Most significantly, during her tenure in Jordan from 2010-13, she witnessed the transformative events unfolding in the region. Within the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, she has been involved with drawing and implementing an Africa Programme; providing diplomatic, economic, agricultural and educational training to African countries as part of Pakistan Government’s outreach policy for the Continent. She also headed and established the first Human Rights desk at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Her experience further includes participation in HR Council meetings in Geneva and UNGA sessions in New York. Also as Head of the Americas Division in the Ministry, she overlooked bilateral relations with the US, Canada and the whole of Latin America. She travelled to the region and held bilateral meetings with her counterparts in Brazil, Canada and Mexico. Notably, she represented the Ministry in the Pakistan-US Strategic Dialogue meetings held in Washington and Islamabad during 2008-10, a challenging period in Pakistan-US bilateral relations. Besides her diplomatic experience, she also pioneered and organized unique shows and exhibitions to showcase Pakistani culture. She conceived and managed “Rhythms of the Indus” show, performed in the Royal Albert Hall, London in 2002. She also arranged and managed various highly successful music shows and trade exhibitions, including qawali performances; Truck Art shows and paintings exhibitions etc., in Toronto, Ankara, Manila, London, Rabat, Amman and Jakarta. Following her retirement, she has joined Ahemed E.H.Jaffer Foundation, a Not-For-Profit organization in Karachi as its Chief Operating Officer. Besides, she is also the Chief Executive Officer of Pakistan First Initiative (PFI), a civil society forum established in Karachi by former President of Pakistan General Pervez Musharraf. She also serves on the Executive Board of All Pakistan Music Conference (APMC) Karachi, which works for the promotion and preservation of classical music.

Hani Masri

President Tomorrow's Youth Organization (TYO)

A long time advocate for Middle East peace and children’s issues, Mr. Masri founded Tomorrow’s Youth Organization.

This non-profit organization provides programs in Technology (IT), Arts, Sports and Health for impoverished children aged 4-8, as well as social and economic development programs for women. TYO is a point of light for under-privileged children and communities in the Middle East. It represents the best aspects of the American people and international goodwill, contributing, managing, and operating essential services and activities for all members of communities afflicted by conflict, isolation, and poverty. TYO is an influence for personal and community development throughout the region. Working in cooperation with the highest quality institutions and organizations, TYO aspires to break ground in non-formal early childhood education and women’s empowerment. TYO pursues this objective through innovative programming as well monitoring and research activities to measure impact in communities where it works. The Nablus flagship opened in March 2008 and additional centers are planned for Egypt, Lebanon and Gaza. In 2009, he co-founded Palestine Note, a blog dedicated to fostering dialogue about all issues related to the Middle East. Mr. Masri is also a board member of the Peres Center in Tel Aviv, a non-partisan organization founded by Shimon Peres in 1997 and dedicated to the promotion of peace in the Middle East. He serves on the Board of Seeds of Peace, a non-profit, non-political organization that helps teenagers from regions of conflict learn the skills of “making peace”. Born in Nablus, Palestine and an American citizen since 1987, Mr. Masri served in the diplomatic service of Jordan as Director of its Foreign Ministry’s United Nations Department and as consul at the Jordanian Embassy in Washington, DC. He received his undergraduate degree from the University of Florida in Gainesville, Florida and his graduate degree from the University of Colorado at Boulder. Mr. Hani Masri is Chairman of Capital Investment Management Inc. based in McLean, Virginia and specializing in fund and investment real estate management in the U.S. He also serves as President of M2 Investors Inc. also based in McLean, specializing in private equity fund investments and international consulting throughout the Middle East and Europe, and is President of Capital Corporation specializing in management consulting. He currently resides in Washington, DC.

George Mavrelis

Senior Executive, Insurance, Coach & Leadership Mentor

George Mavrelis is a senior business executive in Greek insurance industry since the decade of 1990, holding diversified positions in the Commercial and Operational sectors of Insurance Companies.

George currently serves as an International Consultant in the Insurance Industry. In 2005 George joined INTERAMERICAN Group of Companies, part of Achmea, as Chief Commercial Officer. From 2005 till 2012, he managed major achievements such as the creation and development of alternative sales distribution channels, the restructure of sales networks, the design and implementation of the new regulation and remuneration on Sales Distribution Channels and also the design and promotion of new insurance and investment (Unit Link) products. Through these activities, George demonstrated strong competencies such as leadership, communication and influence, result orientation, problems prevention and solution. He held the position of Chief Operating Officer of INTERAMERICAN Group and also the position of Chairman and CEO of Road Assistance, Interamerican Finance and Imperio. Furthermore, George was a member of the Boards of Directors of INTERAMERICAN Group and “SESAE” (i.e. Hellenic Association of Insurance Companies’ Executives and Representatives). George has studied International Business and Business Administration (dual MBA) and has been certified by various programs on expertise areas such as executive management, leadership, financial services and insurance management. Finally, he has been the author of various articles regarding the Insurance Market which have been published by the Greek press.

Dr. Rita Rakus

Aesthetic Medical Practitioner

Dr Rita Rakus MBBS FBCAM Cosmetic Doctor To The Stars – ‘A’ list of celebrity patients includes Amanda Holden, Karren Brady, Lisa Butcher and Annabelle Bond OBE Welcome to the practice of Dr. Rita Rakus who has been named by the media as the ‘London Lip Queen.

She has appeared in ‘Under the Knife’ (ITV), ‘Kitchen Sink to Catwalk’ (Biography Channel), ‘Plastic Fantastic’ (BBC), ‘Lunch-Hour Facelift’ (C4), ‘Celebrity Fat Club’ (ITV) and ’10 Years Younger’ (C4). She is regularly mentioned in articles e.g. Tatler, Harpers Bazaar, Daily Mail, Mail on Sunday, Elle, The Times, Sunday Times, New York Times, London Evening Standard, The Observer, Pashion, Independent on Sunday, Sunday Mirror, Allure, Glamour, Grazia, Hello, Aesthetic Medicine, Wendy Lewis and many other publications.

Dr Rakus has over 20 years of aesthetic medical experience and is a leader in 5 star medispa services, which has developed her practice into the largest solo non-surgical practice in the UK and the 5th largest Thermage® clinic in the world.

Fernando Salvetti

Founder & Managing Partner, Logosnet

Founder and Managing Partner of Logosnet since 1996. As an “edupreneur”, he is a pioneer in the fields of immersive simulation, augmented and virtual reality, knowledge dissemination, communication of science and technology, international and cross-cultural communication, soft-skills development.

Italian national, epistemologist, anthropologist and lawyer by background, he is currently based in Turin (Italy), Lugano (Switzerland), and Houston (USA)--used to travel all year round to serve clients based in more than 80 countries. In the past he was mainly based in Paris (France), Berlin (Germany) and Dubai (UAE).

Among his latest achievements there is e-REAL: a cornerstone for interactive simulation, immersive education and visual communication.

As key-note speaker and adjunct or visiting professor, he currently serves as part-time faculty at a number of universities and advanced schools.

Among the latest books that Fernando co-authored there are “Learning 4.0:

Advanced Simulation and Immersive Experiences, Interactive Infographics, Online Learning, Mentoring and Coaching”; “Employability. Knowledge, Skills and Abilities for the Glocal World”; “Glocal Working: Living and Working Across the World with Cultural Intelligence”; “Ethics & Business: Sustainability, Social Responsibility and Ethical Instruments”; “Learn How to Learn!”.

Lucian Sarb

Chief Content Officer, Euronews

Lucian Sarb serves as the Editorial Director and Member of the Board of the global news channel, Euronews. Since 2009 Lucian has been in charge with the editorial strategy of the most viewed news broadcaster in Europe, a multiplex of 24-hour news with 450 journalists from more than 35 different nationalities.

Over the last five years, Lucian Sarb, together with his editorial team, launched five new euronews channels: Euronews Turkish, Euronews Farsi, Euronews Ukrainian, Euronews Greek and Euronews Hungarian. Before Euronews, Lucian Sarb, served as Project Manager and Editorial Director of one of the first business news channels in Eastern Europe, based in Bucharest, Romania.
Prior to this function, he was Head of News at Romania’s public state television, TVR, where he completely re-branded news programmes, the editorial concepts and the budgets. In 2005, he was in charge of the world politics magazine broadcast live every Saturday on TVR1. In parallel to these duties, Lucian Sarb was a member of the Executive Committee Newsgroup of the EBU (European Broadcasting Union).
Following his studies in Communication and International Relations and Politics, Lucian Sârb decided to start a career as a journalist, becoming a news correspondent for Romanian Public Station in 1994. His assignments took him around the world, including the United States, Europe, Asia and the Middle East.

Souad Talsi MBE

Founder, Al-Hasaniya Moroccan Women Centre

Born in Morocco, Souad came to the UK as a young child and has lived and worked here in London ever since. As an active member of her local community, she saw the need for a centre to serve women of Arab origin and founded Al-Hasaniya Moroccan Women’s Centre.

Thirty years on the said centre is still thriving and serving a whole community with a spectrum of needs and challenges. Recognised for her outstanding commitment to the voluntary sector and work within the Arab migrant community of London, Souad was named in the Queen’s Birthday list in June 2011, and was duly awarded an MBE. She is a member of the Council for Moroccans abroad, an appointment made by the King of Morocco Mohamed VI. During Gordon Brown’s government, she was the only Arab woman appointed as a member of the National Muslim Advisory Panel Group. Souad was also an active and regular contributor to the UN global forum on migration and development until recently. She also sat on the Mayors’ Refugee and Migrant’s Advisory Group, in addition to many other committees and trustee boards, she still serves and supports.

Dr. Rebecca Thomley

CEO, Orion Associates

Dr. Rebecca Thomley is an entrepreneur and a licensed psychologist. She is the CEO of Orion Associates and its related companies. Orion Associates provides services for related and unrelated companies, including profit and non-profit organizations.

Orion Associates has been recognized for the last three years as one of the top ten fastest growing woman-owned businesses nationally.  Orion Associates has also been nationally recognized by Inc. Magazine's "500/5000 list for fast growing companies for the past four years. Orion Associates has business operations nationally and in Haiti.

Rebecca is one of the founding members of Headwaters Relief Organization.  Headwaters' volunteers have responded to floods, fires, hurricanes and other natural and manmade disasters in the United States. The organization has also responded internationally to tsunamis, earthquakes, typhoons and most recently the refugee crisis.  Headwaters Relief Organization operates a mental health resource center in New Orleans, and provides on-going services in Haiti.  

Rebecca's education includes graduate degrees in Psychology and Rehabilitation, Business, Psychopharmacology, Public Health, and a Doctorate in Clinical Psychology.  She serves in volunteer advisory roles in mental health with the American Red Cross and the American Psychological Association's Disaster Resource Network. Rebecca has published, written or edited books on breast cancer and international children’s books related to trauma. She also coauthored studies related to volunteerism and trauma based on her work in New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina and in Haiti after the earthquake in 2010.

Achilles Tsaltas

Vice President International Conferences, The New York Times

With more than 26 years of experience in the media, Achilles Tsaltas is currently the Vice President of The New York Times' successful International Conferences division based in London.

Constantly on a plane visiting potential partners, clients and sponsors, Achilles oversees all conferences outside the Americas and primarily focuses on conference sponsorship and business development, harnessing the full power of the newspaper's global operations and platforms.

Achilles is a proven and established industry leader, responsible for creating and managing strategic partnerships with some of the world's most important media and corporations.

Born in Australia of Greek origin, Achilles started his media career in 1989 when he joined News Corporation at the advertising department of The Australian newspaper.

During his tenure, he launched the business magazine, Business Asia, and relaunched the newspaper's highly respected The Australian Magazine, managing the advertising and commercial side of the operation.

In 1999, Achilles moved to Hong Kong to join the International Herald Tribune as its executive  director (business development) in Asia. A year later he was promoted to the role of deputy managing director, successfully launching print sites and four publishing partnerships for the IHT.

In 2004, he moved to Paris as the worldwide circulation director, becoming a member of the IHT's senior management team. Two years later he was appointed vice president, circulation and development, and a member of the paper's executive committee. In 2012 he was again promoted to the role of senior vice president in charge of conferences, innovation, development and partnerships.

He has a Bachelor of Economics degree from the University of Sydney and a Master of Arts (Sociology) degree from the University of New South Wales.

Tom Wragg

Director, The Association for International Broadcasting (AIB)

Tom Wragg is a Director of the AIB, The Association for International Broadcasting, which is the industry association and global knowledge network for the international broadcasting industry with members from all around the world.

It is a unique centre of information and networking for television, radio, online and mobile media. It was established in 1993 at the instigation of the international broadcasting industry, which at the time had no independent representative association that could lobby, provide networking and offer industry information and marketing support.
Tom has spent his career within the broadcasting and media market starting as a producer and director at the BBC where he rose to become a News board member as BBC News and Current Affairs’ Head of Production and then Head of Operations and Resources. He left the BBC to take up positions within the commercial and investment sector of the media market. He became a Director of the Omnibus Group and then the Autocue Group where he was based in the US. He then moved to Australia to work within the film studio, IES, where he was responsible for financing slates of films. Tom returned to the UK and became CEO of Media Asset Capital, an international investment and consultancy practice based in the UK, US and Canada. He continues to hold a number if International NED Board positions within media companies.

Alireza Zaimi

Managing Director, Global Equity Division Bank of America

Alireza is a Managing Director within the Global Equity Division of Bank of America Merrill Lynch in London.

He heads the Asset Owners Groups in Europe, Middle East and Africa with a mandate to cover the most prominent private investment offices, asset managers and wealth funds for the firm across various asset classes. He is also responsible for the equity derivatives sales force of the firm for the emerging markets. Alireza was previously a Managing Director at Goldman Sachs where he was co-head of the Corporate Equity Derivatives department within the Investment Banking Division of the firm in London. Prior to joining Goldman Sachs, Alireza spent 11 years at Deutsche Bank in London specialising in advising companies in mergers and acquisitions and later serving as a Managing Director and head of the Strategic Equity Transactions Group for France and Benelux. In parallel to his career in investment banking, Alireza served as a Director of the Board of a number of companies including Keolis (Financière Keos), one of Europe’s leading public transport operators established in 15 countries with 60,000 employees. Alireza gained a civil engineering degree from the Ecole Nationale des Ponts et Chaussées in Paris. He is fluent in English, French, Persian and Italian.