Participants

Assistant Secretary General, League of Arab States

Dr. Abu Ghazaleh holds PHD’s in Education and Psychology, an MA in Educational Counseling and a BA in Psychology and Sociology. Previously, Dr. Abu Ghazaleh was appointed as a Special Envoy for the League of Arab States Secretary-General to the Civil Society, and as a Jordanian Representative to the Arab Women Organization (AWO) and a Member of the Executive Committee. While serving at the AWO, Dr. Abu Ghazaleh was appointed by His Majesty King Abdullah II as Minister of Tourism and Antiquities in 2011 and as a Senator to the Jordanian Upper House of Parliament in 2009. Her Majesty Queen Rania Al Abdullah II appointed Dr. Abu Ghazaleh as a Secretary-General at the National Council for Family Affairs (NCFA), which she held from 2007 to 2011. Dr. Abu Ghazaleh conducted pioneering work for more than 12 years while being the Regional Director of UN Women (previously known as UNIFEM), Arab States Regional Office.

Chairperson of the European Institute for Gender Equality. Director Jean Monnet Chair, University of Cyprus. Founding member of the Mediterranean Women Mediators Network

Dr. Josephides has extensive experience in the field of gender equality at the international, national and regional level, including: management of institutions dealing with gender equality and human rights (former Vice-President of the European Inter University Centre for Human Rights and Democratisation in Venice, EIGE Management Board Member). As an established international expert she has served as academic convener/speaker in high-level international events, providing advice and training for institutions and leaders as well as teaching and research. She holds a PhD in Political Science from the Paris I Panthéon, Sorbonne University.

Head of Women and Gender Unit, Ministry of Social Development. Director of Mehwar Center for Protecting and Empowering Women and Families, Palestine

Ms. Alattrash is a Palestinian activist in women issues who has been working for more than 12 years in protecting and empowering hundreds of women victims of violence. She is a founding Member and Director of “Mehwar Center for Protecting and Empowering Women and Families”, a Palestinian governemental Center that is considered to be the first of its kind in the Middle East, which was established and inagurated in 2007 by the Italian Government. She is also the Head of Women and Gender Unit at the Palestinian Ministry of Social Development, through which she is responsible on developing the women protection sector in the State of Palestine. She is a Member in the National governmental team of implementing and addressing CEDAW convention, a member in the Palestinian Higher National Committee for Combating VAW, a member in the National High Committee for Implementing UN Resolution 1325, a member of the Palestinian National team of Implementing the Palestinian Referal System of women victims of violence, a member of the National Observatory Committee of women victims of Violence and a member of the National team for integrating the 5th goal of the SDGs in the National Polices.

Secretary General, Peace Track Initiative, Yemen

Yasameen Al-Nadheri is an expert in youth and gender policies, a social activist, as well as development campaigner. She has worked for more than nine years with international organizations and in the private sector. She currently works for the German International Cooperation (GIZ), where she coordinates the “Training for Water and Energy Efficiency Development” project, focusing on youth employment in Jordan. Yasameen has led projects to promote girls’ education, specifically in technical and vocational training in Yemen. She also campaigned to promote women’s rights, including campaigns challenging gender stereotypes in Yemen’s conservative culture.

Secretary General, Alwaleed Philantropies, Saudi Arabia

HRH Princess Lamia Al Saud is Secretary General and member of the Board of Trustees at Alwaleed Philanthropies. Princess Lamia was appointed Secretary General in 2016, having previously served as Executive Manager of Media & Communication at the foundation. In 2003, HRH started the publishing company, Sada Al Arab, operated from Cairo, Beirut and Dubai. She is also a notable fiction writer of several books, including “Sons and Blood” which was published in 2010. HRH received several awards and honors, including the "Change makers" and "Arab women of the Year” both accrued in 2017. In 2018, Princess Lamia appointed as the first Saudi to join the UN Women as a “Global Champion” for gender data equality.

Co-founder and Co-Director, Center for Civil Society and Democracy, Syria

Ms. Rajaa Altalli is the Co-Founder and Co-Director of the Center for Civil Society and Democracy (CCSD), a Syrian NGO working to strengthen civil society and democracy. Ms. Altalli designed and initiated CCSD’s Women for the Future of Syria program, trained countless civil society activists in leadership, and conducted research on the role of women and civil society in peace processes. Ms. Altalli has documented human rights abuses in Syria and has acted as a liaison between grassroots networks and international decision-makers in tens of different regional and international forums. She currently serves as one of the 12 Syrian women appointed by the UN Office of the Special Envoy to the Women’s Advisory Board. Ms. Altalli is Fulbright Alumni 2009.

Director, Together We Build It Organization; Member, Mediterranean Women Mediators Network Libya

Rida is co-founder and director of Together we build it organization (TWBI) that aims to empower women and young women to play a constructive role in promoting WPS agenda. Rida has developed a strong will to participate in peace-building in Libya, grounded in her personal experience of war, as for the last 7 years she has focused on peace-building, mediation and supporting dialogue. In 2015, she has been engaged in the dialogue and conciliation efforts in Libya, as such she participated in women track in Tunisia and Geneva. She gained good experience in conflict, conflict analysis and gender, planning and implementation of WPS agenda; she is an expert on UNSCR 1325 especially in relation to the Libyan context.. She is cofounder of a national network, comprises local NGOs and activists, called “1325 Network in Libya”. She is a member of the Mediterranean Women Mediators Network (MWMN). Furthermore, Rida has a long career as a university professor and researcher. She holds LLM in International Human Rights Law and PhD in Clinical Pharmacology. She has been appointed as an expert and advisor on international relations within the Ministry of Education. Prior to 2011, she served as the Head of the Department of Medicine and Companies Registration in the Ministry of Health, and a member of the High Committee of the Centre of Monitoring Food and Medicines.

President, Egyptian Business Women Association Chair, Mediterranean Network for Business and Professional Women World President, International Federation of Business and Professional Women Egypt

Amany Asfour is graduated from Faculty of Medicine, Cairo University and had her Master Degree & M.D. degree in Pediatrics. In her academic career, she is a Lecturer of Pediatrics at the National Research Center of Egypt. She joined the private sector since she was a student and, within few years, she established her company for Medical equipments. She soon realized the importance of creating an organization targeting Economic Empowerment of Women & Young Women Entrepreneurship Promotion. She established the Egyptian Business Women Association in 1995 with the objectives of promoting young women entrepreneurs & giving guidance to women business owners of Small & Medium Enterprises. The organization supports the mainstream of feminine gender in the Global Market. Amany Asfour than founded Business and Professional Women of Egypt (BPW) with the objectives of promoting women economic empowerment, linking Business Women to the regional and global markets and building the capacity of women owners of SMEs and youth startup businesses. She has been recently elected President of the International Federation for Business and Professional Women.

Co-Founder and Director, March Lebanon

Lea Baroudi is a Lebanese activist working to foster cultural and religious pluralism through peace-building activities that focus on art, culture and human rights. She is a founding Member and Director of MARCH, a Lebanese non-profit organization that seeks to strengthen civil rights, engender tolerance, foster diversity and social stability, and promote equality in Lebanon. Ms. Baroudi’s efforts to fight for women’s rights have received praise from the Euro-Mediterranean Women’s Foundation which named MARCH as one of the most successful organizations for advocacy and policy dialogue in the Mediterranean region. A certified professional mediator, Ms. Baroudi specializes in inter-faith and sectarian mediation and has initiated and worked actively on peace-building projects that use art, culture and economic development to resolve conflict and counter radicalization among youth in Lebanon. She was recently a fellow at the National Endowment for Democracy In Washington DC.

Secretary General, Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, Italy

Ambassador Belloni started her diplomatic career in 1985 serving at the Foreign Ministry’s Directorate General for Political Affairs and then at the UNIDO in Vienna in 1986. From 1989 to 1992, she returned to the Directorate General for Political Affairs to follow the Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe (CSCE), and was appointed Deputy Head of the CSM (Confidence and Security Building Measures) Delegation in Vienna and later member of the Italian Delegation at the CSCE Follow-Up Conference in Helsinki. From 1993 to 1996 she was First Secretary of the Diplomatic Mission to International Organizations in Vienna and she then served at the Italian Embassy in Bratislava until 1999. She returned to Rome in 1999 to work at the Russian Office of the Directorate for Political Affairs. In 2000 she was appointed Head of the Secretariat of the Directorate for the Countries of Europe and in 2001-2002 she was designated Head of the Office for the Countries of Central Eastern Europe. From 2002 to 2004 she was appointed Chief of Staff of the Undersecretary of State for Foreign Affairs. In 2004 she became Head of the Foreign Ministry’s Crisis Unit.

Senator; Advisor on Mediation, CITpax and Member, Mediterranean Women Mediators Network, Algeria

Hafida Benchehida is a Senator, member of the Senate of the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria since 2013, where she served on the Foreign Affairs Committee until 2015. Since January 2016, she is Vice-President for Legal and Administrative Affairs and the Senate Human Rights Committee. She is a member of the Network of Arab Women Parliamentarians initiated by UN Women, Mena Media Monitoring. Hafida Benchehida is laureate cum laude of the University of Geneva in parliamentary translation in four languages. She was an official interpreter at the United Nations, as well as UNIDO, World Bank, IMF, G8, G15, OIC, OPEC, AU, EU, and BDA, inter al. Proficient in six languages, fluent in three other languages, she was the interpreter of the President of the Republic of Algeria Abdelaziz Bouteflika during his state visits and during visits of foreign heads of state to Algeria. Hafida Benchehida participates in symposiums and conferences on issues of societal and economic development, and women's empowerment. On the theme of women, peace and security, she cooperated with the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe, in discussions with the Mediterranean countries, for the participation of African women in governance.

Blogger, Tunisia

Ms. Ben Mhenni is an activist, the author of the popular blog “A Tunisian Girl’’, a human rights defender, a former teaching assistant of linguistics at Tunis University (Faculty of Human and Social Sciences), and a freelance translator. Through her blog A Tunisian Girl, which is written in Arabic, French and English, Ms. Ben Mhenni has reported on the overthrow of the Tunisian government, behind the scenes of the Tunisian revolution and the continued threat of corruption in her country. As one of the only sources of uncensored information during Tunisia’s Jasmine Revolution, Ms. Ben Mhenni has been awarded the Deutsche Wells International Blog Award, the El Mundo’s International Journalism Prize and received a nomination for the Nobel Peace Prize in 2011.

Member, Assembly of the Representatives of the People, Tunisia

Member, Assembly of the Representatives of the People, Tunisia

Director, School of Architecture, International University of Rabat, Morocco

Ms. Bennani is amember of the National Council of the Order of Architects and researcher and consultant of Unesco’s “Heritage of modernity in the Arab world” programShe authored the book "L’Habitat menaçant ruine au Maroc, les procédures administratives à l’épreuve des effondrements " éditions L’Harmattan, France and various scientific articles. Imen Bennani previously worked as research professor at ENA, consultant for the project of Rabat's candidature on the World Heritage List, advisor to the Minister of Housing and Urbanism and project manager at Enda maghreb.

Ambassador, Permanent Representative of France to the Food and Agriculture Organisation, the World Food Programme and the International Fund for Agriculture Development France

Delphine Borione is a French diplomat who has held numerous bilateral and multilateral positions in the areas of sustainable development and economic, cultural and educational cooperation. After being Senior Deputy Secretary General of the Union for the Mediterranean (UfM), from 2013 to July 2017, she is now ambassador, Permanent Representative of France to the United Nations organizations in Rome (FAO, WFP and IFAD). She was the first ambassador of France to Kosovo (2007-2009), director of cultural policy and French at Quai d’Orsay and technical adviser to President Jacques Chirac at the Elysée. Delphine Borione is a former student of the Ecole Nationale d’Administration and a graduate of Sciences Po Paris. She is the author of numerous articles on the environment and climate change, culture, the role of women and Kosovo.

Former Leader of UTICA. Winner of the Nobel Peace Prize 2015. Member, Mediterranean Women Mediators Network, Tunisia

Ouided Bouchamaoui is the co-laureate of the Nobel Peace Prize 2015. From May 2011 to January 2018, Ms. Bouchamaoui was president of UTICA, the Tunisian Confederation of Industry, Trade and Handicrafts, the first woman elected to this position. As member of the National Dialogue Quartet, she played a historic and legendary role in helping her country during the Arab spring and move Tunisia to a more transparent and collaborative society. In 2013, under her presidency, UTICA along with the Tunisian General Union of Labour (UGTT) launched the initiative of the National Dialogue. They were joined by the League of Human Rights and the Tunisian Order of Lawyers, forming ‘The Quartet’. For this successful endeavor they were awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2015. Ms Bouchamaoui is also Member of the Oslo Business for Peace Award Committee since January 2016. She is a shareholder and an administrator of the Hedi Bouchamaoui Group.

Senior Industrial Development Office, UNIDO

Monica Carcò is Senior Industrial Development Officer at UNIDO. She has worked as International Civil Servant for UNDP, WFP, UNIDO and the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs for more than 25 years. Having covered representation and management positions, Monica strives to build up public and private partnerships and strategic multi-stakeholder alliances to boost local development. Monica Carcò has run several technical assistance projects in the area of private sector development, women economic empowerment and youth employment through entrepreneurship development and she is currently responsible for a regional programme in the MENA Region aiming at promoting women empowerment for inclusive and sustainable industrial development.

Founder & President of the May Chidiac Foundation – Media Institute

For over more than 25 years as a journalist, May Chidiac fought for freedom for the Lebanese people when few dared to speak against the state of tyranny through her show, “Nharkom Saiid” from 1998 to 2005. Six months after the assassination of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri in 2005, Chidiac was attacked by a car bomb causing her to lose her left leg and arm. After ten months of numerous surgeries and rehabilitation, she returned to the TV screen in a prime time political talk show called ‹Bi Kol Joraa› which translates to ‹with audacity›. Chidiac followed this move with award-winning books: “Le Ciel M’attendra” and “La Television Mise à Nu”. May Chidiac obtained her PhD in “Sciences de L’Information et de la Communication” with high distinction from Université Pantheon Paris II Assas in 2008. She also continued being a professor of Radio/ TV at Notre Dame University-Louaize till present. Throughout her career, Chidiac has received numerous international awards and prizes of which are “Le Prix de la Francophonie pour la Liberté d’expression”, “UNESCO Guillermo Cano World Press Freedom Award” in 2006. Later that year, with the support of the President of USA Bill Clinton, the US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice congratulated Dr. Chidiac for winning the 2006 UNESCO Award and highlighting on her outstanding work as a media personality.

Head of the Mediterranean & Middle East Programme, IAI Italy

Silvia Colombo is Head of the Mediterranean & Middle East Programme at IAI. She is an expert on Middle Eastern politics and, in this capacity, she is working on Euro-Mediterranean cooperation, transatlantic relations in the Mediterranean and domestic and regional politics in the Arab World. Among her research interests there are also the relations between the European Union and the countries of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC). She completed a traineeship at the International Secretariat of Amnesty International in London where she worked mainly on Syria and Iraq. She holds a Ph.D. in Comparative Politics from the Scuola Normale Superiore of Pisa (Florence Branch) and a Master's Degree in Near and Middle Eastern Studies from the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS) in London. She speaks Arabic fluently and has travelled extensively in the Middle Eastern region.

Head of Representation of the European Commission, Italy

Beatrice Covassi has been Director of the European Commission Representation in Italy since 2016. In her role she represents the EU Commission and its President Jean-Claude Juncker in Italy. From 2010 to 2014 she was a diplomat at the European Union Delegation in the United States in Washington DC, where she was responsible for the new digital economy portfolio and transatlantic cybersecurity. In 2008 she was an EU fellow at George Mason University (USA) where she gave a course on the impact of new digital media platforms. Since 2000 she has held various positions at the European Commission in Brussels and in Luxembourg with a focus on the digital single market.

Senior Advisor, ISPI, Italy

Sara Cristaldi specializes in journalism and writes op-ed pieces, focusing on foreign affairs, world economy and global cities. She used to work as an editor for "Il Sole 24 Ore", the leading Italian economic and financial newspaper. Until July 2010 she was head of the World Emerging Markets Desk dealing with issues related to globalization. Ms. Cristaldi's career in journalism started in 1978 and she has published extensively as a scholar in international politics and economics. She has also published for magazines such as "Relazioni Internazionali" (1974-1978) and "Mondo Economico" (1978-1984; 1993-1997), and newspapers such as Il Corriere della Sera (1984-1990) and Il Sole 24 Ore (1997-2010), where she also worked as a Managing Editor for the website. Between 2011 and 2016, she worked in the Press Office of the Mayor of Milan where she was in charge of Foreign Media and Expo Milano 2015.

President, WE – Women Empower the World Senior Director of European Affairs, The Aspen Institute Italy

Senior Director of European Affairs at The Aspen Institute and Editor-in-Chief of Aspen Institute Italia’s journal, Aspenia. She was Italy’s Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs from November 2011 to February 2014. She is also a member of the Board of Directors of Finmeccanica, Trevi Finanziaria and Fondazione eni Enrico Mattei. Executive President of Women for Expo and Vice President of The Center for American Studies in Rome. She sits on the Board of Directors of IAI (Istituto Affari Internazionali), as well as on the Board of the International Institute for Strategic Studies in London. She is member of the Advisory Council of the European Policy Centre in Brussels and a member of the scientific committee of the LUISS School of Government in Rome. She is a regular contributor to the Italian newspaper La Stampa and is the author of various books and essays.

Director, WE Women Empower the World

Vichi De Marchi is an Italian journalist and a former spokesperson for the United Nations’ World Food Programme agency (WFP). Nowadays she is Director of WE- Women empower the World, a committee dealing mainly with women in international relations. As a journalist, she worked mainly for the print media. She is also author of many publications included a number of children books. She received the “Colombe d’oro per la pace” award for her commitment to peace. She holds a university degree in Political sciences, lives in Rome, Italy.

Chairman, Tripoli Special Economic Zone. Former Minister of Finance, Lebanon

Mrs. El Hassan served as the Minister of Finance in Lebanon from 2009 to 2011, the first female in the Arab world to assume such a post. Earlier in her career, she was an Advisor to the Minister of Economy and Trade and a program specialist for the Economic Governance and Pro-Poor portfolio at UNDP Lebanon. In the mid 90’s, she supervised the implementation of expenditure management reforms at the Ministry of Finance. She also served as Project Director at the Prime Minister’s Office, working on the elaboration of the Government’s Economic and Social Reform Agenda under the Paris II and III International Donor Conferences for Lebanon. She currently serves on the advisory committees of the Rafik Hariri University-Business School and the Beirut Arab University-Northern Branch.

President, WIIS Italy

Ms. Fellin is senior researcher on gender and security issues at the Istituto Affari Internazionali (IAI), where she primarily works on research projects dealing with the implementation of the United Nations Security Council Resolution 1325 (2000) on “Women, Peace and Security” in the Mediterranean area, in the framework of NATO, OSCE and the UN. She currently works as project coordinator on the establishment of a Mediterranean Women Mediators Network, while also working on education and training programs about the “Women, Peace and Security” agenda. She holds an MA in “Women’s Rights and Gender Issues” from the Middle East Technical University (METU) in Ankara. Prior to joining IAI, she worked as Gender Advisor to the Special Representative of NATO Secretary General for “Women, Peace and Security” and as a consultant at UNDP and UNICEF in Ankara. She is founder and President of the Italian antenna of WIIS – Women in International Security.

Head of ECFR Rome, Italy

Silvia Francescon is the head of ECFR’s Rome Office. Before joining ECFR, Silvia was deputy head of the G8-G20 Sherpa office at the Italian Prime Minister’s Office. She was in charge of co-ordinating the Prime Minister and Sherpa’s G8 and G20 policy dossiers and bilaterals. Silvia also served the United Nations as Co-ordinator of the Millennium Campaign in Italy and is a former negotiator of international and European agreements for the Italian Ministry for the Environment. Previously, Silvia worked at the OECD (Environment Directorate), the WTO (Legal Affairs Division), and the European Commission (DG Agriculture). She was also a research fellow in the International Law Departments of the Universities of Leiden (NL) and Ferrara (Italy). Silvia holds a Masters in International Environmental Law from the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS, London) and graduated cum laude in International Law at the University of Ferrara.

Secretary General, Inter-ministerial Committee for Human Rights, Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, Italy

Ms. Guercio is an Italian Agent of the Management Board of the European Agency for Fundamental Rights, member of the Council of the European Law Institute in Vienna and assistant to Counsel (for victims) before the International Criminal Court, The Hague. She is a practising lawyer in Italy (Rome/Genoa), with experience in other jurisdictions (Great Britain/Republic of Ireland). She is also a professor at the University of Perugia in the department of “International cooperation to development’’. Since 2010, Laura Guercio has been a legal expert in international projects developed in the Mena area, East Europe and Africa. She holds a degree in Law and Political Science), a PhD in Political Science from Trinity College Dublin in conjunction with the University of Genoa, an MA in National, European and international jurisdictions" at the Italian Society for International Organization (SIOI)-University of Rome “Tor Vergata”- University of Camerino.

President, Anna Lindh Foundation for the Dialogue between Cultures. Founding President of Europartenaires

Elisabeth Guigou is the President of Anna Lindh Foundation for the Dialogue between Cultures. Previously she has been former President of the Foreign Affairs Committee of the National Assembly, Vice-President of the National Assembly; Minister of Employment and Solidarity (2000-2002); Minister of Justice (1997-2000); Member of the European Parliament (1994-1997); Minister Delegate for European Affairs (1990-1993); Chargé de mission to the President of the Republic (1982-1990); Advisor to Jacques Delors, Minister of Finance (1981-82); Secretary General of the Paris Club; Administrator at the Ministry of Finance. She has written various books and publications, of which the most recent are: “Europe. The challenges to come of the world's leading power (2014)” and “For a fair Europe (2011)”.

Professor, Department of Social and Political Science, University of Cyprus. Member, Mediterranean Women Mediators Network

Ms. Hadjipavlou is an expert in conflict resolution, gender and conflict, and women, peace and security. Her book ‘Women and Change in Cyprus: Feminisms, Gender in Conflict’ ( I.B. Tauris, 2010) became a reference book. As a scholar and practitioner she has co-founded many peace building and women's organizations across the divide, including GAT. She is a member of the Technical Committee on Gender Equality in peace negotiations. She has promoted peace across the divide in Cyprus for the last twenty-five years and is a trainer in conflict resolution and gender-raising consciousness.

Managing Director, Energy Pioneers, United Kingdom

Dr Elham Hassanzadeh is Founder and Managing Director of Energy Pioneers, an advisory firm providing legal and consulting services to international oil and gas companies and financial institutions on their investments and finance initiatives in Iran’s energy sector. She is also a Visiting Research Fellow at the Oxford Institute for Energy Studies. She is a qualified barrister at the Iranian Central Bar Association, a Visiting Fellow at the Global Subsidies Initiative of the International Institute for Sustainable Development and a political economy advisor to the World Bank on Middle East energy market reforms. She was recently featured by Bloomberg Businessweek as the most influential voice in the development of Iran’s oil and gas sector and has been awarded the industry’s prize for the Outstanding Young Entrepreneur of the year. She holds a PhD in Oil and Gas Law and Policy Studies from the Centre for Energy, Petroleum and Mineral Law and Policy, University of Dundee and an LLM in International Commercial Law from the University of Cambridge.

Assistant Minister on European Affairs, Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates

Ambassador Amal Jadou is assistant minister on European Affairs and head of the European Department at the Palestinian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, where she has worked closely with the diplomatic corps serving in Palestine and with Palestinian diplomats around the globe. Prior to this, she served as the deputy chief of mission in Washington, D.C. Following the 2006 elections, she served as director-general of international affairs for the Office of the President of Palestine and was the only female representative in the delegation to the Annapolis Conference. Ambassador Jadou was the first co-winner of the internationally prestigious Sylff Leadership Prize, an honor she shares with Dr. Egla Martinez-Salazar from Guatemala and Goran Svilanovic, ex-foreign minister of Serbia.

Deputy Head, Syrian Negotiation Commission, Geneva

Ms. Kabawat is a lawyer Director and adjunct professor of Interfaith Peacebuilding at George Mason University's Center for World Religions, Diplomacy, and Conflict Resolution and a visiting fellow at Harvard Law school (PON). She was awarded the Peacemakers in Action Award in 2007 from the Tanenbaum Centre for Interreligious Understanding in New York, and the Public Diplomacy Award from CRDC, George Mason University in 2009. She was a member of the Future of the Middle East, World Economic Forum, Davos in 2009. She is also a founding member of Tastakel, a women's organization dedicated to using non-violence and dialogue to address the ongoing conflict in Syria,. Tastakel runs three education women centers in southern Turkey and Idlib, teaching mediation and peace building to 200 IDPs, refugees and local women

General Manager, Herison Construction Company International Relations Manager, Association of Construction Companies

Maryam Khansari is the General Manager at Herison Construction Company – a family business as a leading Iranian business with tradition in general construction since 1959 working on different fields of infrastructure projects. She is also the International Manager at the Association of Construction Companies of Iran and is teaching as an Instructor at the Industrial Management Institute (IMI) graduate program. Together with her students, she contributes to Iran Constro Networking Team (ICNT) Company that aims to provide business-networking opportunities in Iran.

Former Vice President, Senate and Chairwoman, Glocus, Italy Italy

Graduated in Literature, along her career in Public Administration she covered many different roles: Officer of the Ministry of the Finance; as Officer of the Chamber of Deputies she was chief of the staff of the Budget Committee; Head of Cabinet of the Ministry of the Treasury; Secretary General of the Presidency of the Council of Ministers. She is Professor of Planning and Control of Public Administration. She was actively involved in politics in 1993 when she was appointed Responsible for Economic Affairs and Municipal Companies in the City of Rome's Government. Elected to the Chamber of Deputies in 2006 and 2008, she was a member of the Committee on Constitutional Affairs and of the Bicameral Committee for the Implementation of Federalist Constitutional reform. She was the Minister for Regional Affairs and Local Authorities from 2006 to 2008 in the second Prodi Government. President of Glocus, a think tank on social, economic and political issues. She is Italian Ambassador and member of the Executive Board of the Women Political Leaders Global Forum. Currently she is focused on the issue of women inequalities in the world and especially in Africa. Specifically she supports and follows a project, founded by Italian Ministry for Foreign Affairs, for women leadership and policies in favour of women in few African countries. She is also: Member of the Fondazione Roma Europa Festival Board; Member of the Conseil d’Orientation dell’Institut pour les Relations Économiques France - Italie (IREFI) seated in Paris.

President, CIFE Italie, Tunisia

Ms. Liverani started her career at the IMI Group and, in 1977, actively contributed to setting up Banca Agrileasing (today Iccrea BancaImpresa ) playing a key role in its growth. From 1997 to 2010 she became the Bank’s top manager, heading the Innovation and Development Department In 2008 she set up the first office abroad of the Italian Cooperative Credit, selecting Tunisia as the “Hub” for development in the Mediterranean Region. Chief of M.E.N.A. and Director of Tunis Representative Office until 2013, she created, in May of the same year, LM Consulting, an advisory company active in the North African Region with the mission to support the setup of companies, the selection of partners, equity, and outbound from North Africa to European Countries. Ms. LIverani has always been strongly committed to women proactivity, viewing it as an essential tool to improve social and economic environments. Founder of IDEE, the first Italian Women Association in the banking sector she is currently a member of its Board. In 2016 she started a cooperation in Tunisia with the Conseil International de Femmes d’Entreprise and took over the role of President for Italy.

Chief Stakeholder Officer, Leonardo Italy

Asthe Chief Stakeholder Officer for Leonardo S.p.a. since July 2017, Ms. Luglini is responsible for global external and internal communications, global media relations, digital communication, sustainability, investor relations and credit rating agencies. After obtaining a degree in Economics and Finance from LUISS Guido Carli and an MBA from LUISS Business School, she began her career at ENI as Investor Relations Officer and joined Leonardo in 2001.

Founder, QueenB & Frizzl, Israel

Ms. Mann is the CTO and Co-Founder of Frizzl, a revolutionary mobile app that offers a new way of learning how to code, specifically tailored to generation-Z girls. She studied Computer Science and Design, and interned as a software engineer for Google. During her studies, she founded QueenB, a non-profit aimed at increasing the number of women in the tech industry by teaching middle school girls to code. Noga's goal is re-branding Computer Science and changing the way teenage girls perceive coding. She was recently listed on Forbes' 2018 Under 30 list.

Country Director for the Maghreb and Malta, Middle East and North Africa, The World Bank

Ms. Marie Francoise Marie-Nelly joined the World Bank in 1994 and has held a variety of positions focused on the restructuring of public enterprises, support to private sector development, regional integration, and management of the oil sector. Before assuming the position of World Bank Country Director for the Maghreb and Malta on July 1st, 2015, Ms. Marie-Nelly spent four years as Country Director for Nigeria, and previous to that held a number of posts including Country Director for the two Congo (Brazzaville and DRC) from 2008 to 2011, Director for the World Bank Group Program related to the Chad Petroleum and the Chad-Cameroon pipeline project from 2004 to 2007 and Director for the regional integration program in Africa from 2000 to 2004. She worked for many international firms and was advisor to several governments before joining the World Bank.

Libyan Ambassador for SDG, Libya

Sarah Mizran is an architect, artist and activist. She is a postgraduate student at the University of Kent, as well as a youth activist, advocating for youth empowerment and sustainable development goals in Libya.

Founder, Women of Power and Change Netherlands

Inge Mous is an international businesswoman and politician from the Netherlands. As an active board member for several international profit and non-profit organisations and as a mediator, she uses her skills to build better understanding between people in a given context to get better results. Asthe founder of Women of Power and Change, she is committed to creating possibilities for a better world with an aim to build a global network with women of influence that can open doors in peace processes and cooperation in positive acts of humanity.

Writer, Journalist and Senior Commentator, France Cultural Radio, France

Christine Ockrent is a columnist and writer based in Paris. She writes regularly for Prospect and various European newspapers. She is also the producer and presenter of a weekly radio program about foreign affairs on France Culture, and a frequent contributor to the BBC, CNN and other media organizations. Previously, she was COO of the French Radio and TV World service (France 24 and RFI). She was also editor-in-chief of the weekly news magazine, L'Express. She began her career in broadcast journalism and worked for eight years at CBS' 60 Minutes. She has been awarded several French and international distinctions for her work in TV journalism. and has written 15 books and essays - the most recent being : “ Mohammed ben Salman the mysteries of Arabia” (Robert Laffont 2018), "Russian oligarchs and the Putin system" (Robert Laffont 2014) and "Clinton-Trump: Anger in America " (Robert Laffont 2016). She is on the board of Havas, the French American Foundation, the European Council on Foreign Relations, the Center for European Reform, Human Rights Watch France and Make.Org.

Professor of Sociology, University of Algiers II, Algeria

Fatma Oussedik is a professor of Sociology at the Algiers University of Humanities and Social Sciences. She is member of the Wassila Feminist Network-AVIFE and of several Scientific Committees (Diogéne Journal and Intercontinentales Journal, Paris and RUSEMEG, Barcelona). She published numerous articles and works in various languages on Islam and Muslim societies, women and female identity, life in Cities and urban areas. Her areas of interest are: Ibadism; political Minorities and National State-Building in the Maghreb; Families, Female identity and women’s movements in the Arab and Muslim world.

ASviS Italian Alliance for Sustainable Development Italy

Following her graduation at Enrico Mattei High School in Energy and Environment, she coordinates the Environmental Accounting working group of Agip SpA and realizes the company Environmental Report, among of the first ones published worldwide. In the late 90s, she is appointed Responsible of the HSE and PR department of the Eni Southern Italy Operative District and, after this work “on the ground”, Supervisor of the CSR and Sustainable Management Research Program of Fondazione Eni Enrico Mattei (FEEM). She is nominated Eni Sustainability Senior Vice President in 2006, contributing to Eni international reputation as a sustainable leader company, and then FEEM Executive Director in 2015. Following her triennial mandate in FEEM, she reinforces her commitment to sustainable development and to Agenda 2030 chairing the Italian network of UN SDSN and working as Senior Advisor within ASviS, the Alliance of the Italian civil society for Sustainable Development. She is Chairwoman of the family owned wine-producing company, that dates back to 1558.

Director, Egyptian African Center for Women. Member, Mediterranean Women Mediators Network, Egypt

Soad Shalaby is a career diplomat who has served Egypt for the past 40 years and in2017, was appointed as a mediator for the AU FEMWISE network and the Mediterranean Women Mediators Network. She previously served as the International Cooperation Advisor for the Egyptian National Council for Women, the Director of the Women Business Development Centre and as the Director of the Cairo Regional Centre for Training on Conflict Resolution and Peacekeeping in Africa. Ambassador Shalaby was the first woman to be appointed as Assistant to the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Director of the Institute for Diplomatic Studies. She served as the Egyptian Ambassador to Finland, Estonia, Mozambique and Swaziland for eight years and served as the Secretary-General of the Egyptian Fund for Technical Co-operation with Africa for three years. She has published various articles nationally and internationally on economic and development cooperation, gender and human rights issues, as well as on peace and security in Africa. She is a regular commentator on African issues on Nile TV international.

Deputy Director General for Political Affairs and Security Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation Italy

Francesca Tardioli is an Italian senior career diplomat. Since August 2016 she holds the position of Deputy Political Director and Principal Director for the United Nations and Human Rights at the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation. Francesca Tardioli joined the Italian Diplomatic Service in March 1991. Her education includes a Master Degree in Political Science and other post graduate studies in International Relations. Her posting abroad include Albania, Germany, Saudi Arabia, Libya, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), including as a senior member of NATO civilian International Staff. Francesca Tardioli has longstanding experience in multilateral diplomacy, including on security issues and crisis management. Her current portfolio comprises policy development and oversight of the Italian contribution to: the works of the General Assembly; the reform processes of the General Assembly and of the UN system; the UN budgetary and organizational policies; the UN Peace and Security Architecture including the activities of the UN Security Council; Peacekeeping and Peacebuilding; Human rights, including the Human Rights Council; international humanitarian law; the Council of Europe.

EU Special Representative for the Middle East Peace Process

Since 18 September 2018 Susanna Terstal has been the EU Special Representative for the Middle East Peace Process. The tasks of the Special Representative are to contribute to actions and initiatives leading to a final settlement of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict based on a two-state solution. From 2015-2018 she was Dutch Ambassador to the Islamic Republic of Iran. During the first two years of her posting to Iran she also represented the European Union in the absence of an EU delegation. In 2012 she was posted to Angola as Dutch Ambassador. Prior to this she was deputy head of mission at the Permanent Representation of the Netherlands to the UN in Geneva. Susanna Terstal joined the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Netherlands in 1994. She began her career in the legal directorate, where she held different positions, also working on European issues. Before working for the ministry, she worked in the private sector.

Director, IAI, Italy

Nathalie Tocci is Director of the Istituto Affari Internazionali, Honorary Professor at the University of Tübingen, and Special Adviser to EU HRVP Federica Mogherini, on behalf of whom she wrote the European Global Strategy and is now working on its implementation, notably in the field of security and defence. Previously, she held research positions at the Centre for European Policy Studies, Brussels, the Transatlantic Academy, Washington and the Robert Schuman Centre for Advanced Studies, Florence. Her research interests include European foreign policy, conflict resolution, the Middle East and the Mediterranean. She is the author of several publications of which the most recent are: “Framing the EU's Global Strategy, Springer-Palgrave Macmillan, 2017” and “The EU, Promoting Regional Integration, and Conflict Resolution, Springer-Palgrave Macmillan, 2017 (co-editor)”. Nathalie Tocci is the 2008 winner of the Anna Lindh award for the study of European Foreign Policy.

Executive Director, Business Women ForumPalestine

Doa Wadi is a professional with over 20 years’ experience in business leadership and development. Her credentials include professional high Diploma certificate in MSME’s development in addition to her BA in Business Administration. She worked 11 years in ASALA (MFI) and enabled many women SME's to access finance through lending and grants. Since the year 2008, she assumed the role of the Executive Director of BWF, a nonprofit organization established in 2006 with a mission to strengthen the role of businesswomen and women entrepreneurs as leaders in the Palestinian economy. In her capacity as the ED of BWF, she is a founder member at MENA-WEAM - Regional Business Women consortium consisted of 7 countries. She is a member in many National Committees including Women Employment NCWE with MOL, task force for SME's Financial Inclusion with Palestinian Monetary Authority PMA Ms. Wadi is an active member of Jury and evaluator of Businesses for young Entrepreneurs with NGO’s and banks. Additionally, she acts as a mentor, and a coach for women startups, hence, perceived as a role model for young entrepreneurs.

Peace and Human Rights Activist and Member, Mediterranean Women Mediators Network Cyprus

Magda Zenon is a peace and human rights activist. She now focuses on gender violence and women’s participation and the integration of the gender perspective in the peace process. She is a founding member of Hands Across the Divide, Cyprus’s first women’s organisation and has spent the last 4 years hosting her own online radio programme, aiming to give a ‘voice to the voiceless’. Her projects discuss a range of issues, including gender-based violence, sexual and reproductive rights, trafficking, women and peace and women’s participation in decision-making.