Speakers

Additional speakers to be confirmed soon!

Fredrik Lofthagen
CEO, Interel
Chaiman, Interel Global Partnership 

Fredrik is CEO of Interel and the founder and Chairman of the Interel Global Partnership – a network of best-in-class independent public affairs consultancies with offices in more than 60 global markets. Since his appointment as CEO in 2006, Fredrik has more than doubled the size of the company through organic growth and acquisitions, expanding from its Brussels beginnings to become the leading independent global public affairs consultancy.

Fredrik has been a leading force in the professionalisation of the public affairs consulting industry. He was the first consultancy leader in Brussels to require all his consultants to join the Society of European Affairs Professionals (SEAP) and to sign up to its code of conduct. Many public affairs campaigns conceived and managed by Fredrik have had significant impact on policy and legislation, ranging from corporate governance to disease awareness, environment and external relations. He was the first consultancy leader in Europe to accept the prestigious SABRE award in the category Public Affairs Consultancy of the Year (2004).

Fredrik started his career as a lawyer in Brussels before moving into public affairs. He joined Interel in 1996 and spent his first ten years with the company creating and developing its European Affairs practice.

He holds a Master Degree in Laws (LL.M) from the University of Lund, Sweden.

He speaks English and French, besides his native language, Swedish.
 

Herman Van Rompuy
President Emeritus European Council 
Minister of State
President, European Policy Centre

Session: The New Europe: Challenges Ahead for the EU 

Herman Van Rompuy, President Emeritus of the European Council and former Prime Minister of Belgium, is President of the EPC. He is also President of the Advisory Council . Herman’s presidency of the EPC follows an impressive career in national and European politics.

Elected as the first full-time President of the European Council in November 2009, Herman took office when the Lisbon Treaty came into force on 1 December 2009. In 2012, he was re-elected for a second term starting on 1 June 2012 and running until 30 November 2014.

At the time of his first election, Herman was Prime Minister of Belgium. Prior to that he had served in Belgium as Speaker of the House of Representatives (2007-2008) and in several government positions, including as Vice-Prime Minister and Minister of Budget (1993-1999), Minister of State (2004) and Secretary of State for Finance and Small Businesses (1988).

A former economist at the National Bank of Belgium, Herman began his political career in 1973 as national vice-president of his party's youth movement. He has held various responsibilities within his party and in the Belgian Parliament, serving in turn as Senator (1988-1995) and Member of Parliament (1995-2009).

Herman holds a Bachelor's degree in Philosophy, and a Master's degree in Applied Economics from the university K.U. Leuven.

Eric Stallmer
President, Commercial Spaceflight Federation 

Keynote Session: New Frontiers: Public Affairs & the Commercialization of Space

Eric Stallmer is the President of the Commercial Spaceflight Federation. CSF is the largest trade organization dedicated to promoting the development of commercial spaceflight, pursuing ever-higher levels of safety and sharing best practices and expertise throughout the industry. Under Eric’s leadership, CSF has worked tirelessly to craft the modern Commercial Space Launch Act, as well as to promote innovation as a national policy to spur the economy and create high technology jobs. In addition, CSF works to develop industry standards and encourages further growth in the commercial spaceflight industry.

Eric has been recently appointed to the National Space Council User Advisory Group (UAG), where he has provided testimony at the 2nd National Space Council meeting. He serves as co-chair of the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Airspace Integration Aviation Rulemaking Committee (ARC) and is a member of the Space Launch and Reentry ARC and the Spaceport ARC. Stallmer is also a member of the FAA’s Commercial Space Transportation Advisory Committee (COMSTAC). Eric constantly promotes the industry and CSF member companies through his outreach to high-ranking government officials and high-profile media outlets. His professional comments have been featured in The Washington Post, Wall Street Journal, Bloomberg, NBC Today Show, ABC News, CBS News Radio, Fox News, The BBC, CNBC, SpaceNews and many more. Eric also promotes the mission of CSF through participation at multiple industry conferences throughout the year.

Eric has testified before both the House Committee on Science, Space, and Technology as well as the Senate Commerce committee. He recently testified at a hearing titled, “The Commercial Space Launch Industry: Small Satellite Opportunities and Challenges.” There he encouraged Congress to support policies that will facilitate growth and innovation in the industry, and maintain the American space sector’s competitive leadership. He has served on numerous industry affiliated boards including the Future Space Leaders Foundation and is the former Chairman of the Washington Space Business Roundtable.

Before working at CSF, Eric served as the Vice President of Government Relations at Analytical Graphics Inc. (AGI). He joined AGI in 2002. While there, Eric oversaw all Washington Operations and represented AGI’s commercial off-the-shelf products and technology to defense, intelligence, Congress and civil government sectors within the aerospace industry. He came to AGI from The Space Transportation Association (STA), a non-profit, industry trade organization providing government representation to companies with a vested interest in the U.S space launch industry. Prior to that, Eric worked on Capitol Hill in the office of then Congressman Tom Coburn.

For more than two decades, Eric has served as an Officer in the United States Army and Army Reserves. He was awarded the Bronze Star Medal for meritorious service while engaged in combat operations during Operation Iraqi Freedom. He is currently assigned to the Pentagon in the office of the Deputy Chief of Staff Army for Logistics, G-4.

Eric holds a Master of Arts Degree in Public Administration from George Mason University and a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Political Science and History from Mount Saint Mary College.


Ann Mettler
Head, European Political Strategy Centre 
European Commission 

Is Technology a Threat to Democracy & World Order?

Ann Mettler is the head of the European Political Strategy Centre (EPSC), the in-house think tank of the European Commission.

Prior to assuming this position in December 2014, she was for eleven years executive director of the Lisbon Council, a Brussels-based think tank she co-founded in 2003. From 2000-2003, she worked at the World Economic Forum, where she last served as director for Europe.

Ann Mettler holds Masters Degrees in political science and European law and economics, and graduated with distinction from the University of New Mexico, USA, and the Rheinische Friedrich-Wilhelms-University in Bonn, Germany.
 

Shada Islam
Director of Europe & Geopolitics 
Friends of Europe 

Dinner Speaker: The Future of Public Affairs

Shada Islam is responsible for policy oversight of Friends of Europe’s initiatives, activities and publications. She has special responsibility for issues related to the Future of Europe, Migration, the Asia Programme and the Development Policy Forum.

Shada is a Visiting Professor at the College of Europe (Natolin) where she teaches Asia-Europe relations and has been selected as a fellow by the Vrije Universiteit Brussel (VUB). She has been named as one of twenty most influential women in Brussels by Politico. Shada is the former Europe correspondent for the Far Eastern Economic Review and has previously worked on Asian and Migration issues at the European Policy Centre. She is one of the authors of Friends of Europe’s much-read “Frankly Speaking” commentary and is sought after as a speaker, commentator, columnist and moderator at high-level European and global events. Shada also continues to write on EU foreign and security policy, EU-Asia relations and trade and development issues for leading Asian, European and international publications and academic journals.

Claus Haugaard Sorensen
Senior Advisor, Interel
Former European Commission

Session: Public Affairs in a World of Finite Resources: Water Scarcity  

Claus has long and deep experience in EU affairs from a number of top assignments. Most recently he was senior advisor to the European Commission's President Juncker on Crisis Management and Humanitarian Response, not for Refugees from Syria and in support to Greece and Italy.

As Director General for the Humanitarian Aid and Civil Protection Department, ECHO, Claus became a driver for more efficient response to man-made and natural disasters. He was involved in all major crises around the globe. He assisted UN OCHA and the WHO in improving their disaster response. Prior to that he managed the European Commission's Communication department which includes the Spokesperson Service, Corporate Communication, the EUROPA website and EUTV (EBS), the Commission representations in Member States and engaging in debating Europe.

Claus joined the Delors 2 Commission in 1990 working on the EURO, the reunification of Germany, Enlargement with Austria, Sweden and Finland and Social and Environmental issues. He later became involved with the EU Internal Market, the fight against international organised crime and labour market issues. He was instrumental in the further enlargement of the EU to the East. Claus also influenced EU policy as Director for Climate and International Environmental issues, Head of Cabinet for Agriculture and for Development working respectively on reform of the Common Agricultural Policy and Aid efficiency.

Earlier on Mr. Claus was posted at the OECD in Paris and at the Permanent Representation to the European Union, dealing mainly with International Finance and Trade.

Mr Sørensen holds a Master in Economics from Aarhus University and is lecturing at the University of Lund, Kings College and Copenhagen University.
 

Thomas Boué
Director General, Policy — EMEA
BSA | The Software Alliance

Session: Brave New World: Cybersecurity, AI & Privacy 

Thomas Boué oversees the BSA |The Software Alliance’s public policy activities in the Europe, Middle East, and Africa region. He advises BSA members on public policy and legal developments and advocates the views of the ICT sector with both European and national policy makers. He leads on security and privacy issues as well as broader efforts to improve levels of intellectual property protection and to promote open markets, fair competition, and technology innovation in new areas such as cloud computing.

Prior to joining BSA, Thomas served as a consultant in Weber Shandwick where he advised clients on a wide range of technology and ICT-related policy issues and represented them before the EU institutions and industry coalitions. In this role, he also served as policy and regulatory adviser for both EU and US telecom operators. Prior to that Thomas worked for the EU office of the Paris Chamber of Commerce and Industry where he was responsible for the lobbying activities towards the EU Institutions in the areas of trade, education, and labor, as well as for the organization and running of seminars on EU affairs for SMEs and business professionals.

Thomas holds a Master of Business Administration from the Europa-Insitut (Saarbrücken, Germany), a Certificate of Integrated Legal Studies - trilateral and trilingual Master’s degree in French, English, German, and European Law, from the Universities of Warwick (UK), Saarland (Germany) and Lille II (France) - as well as a Bachelor of Arts in Law from the University of Lille II, France. He is based in BSA’s Brussels office. 
 

Paul Jordan
Managing Director, Europe
IAPP

Session: Brave New World: Cybersecurity, AI & Privacy 

As the European Managing Director based in Brussels, Paul Jordan is responsible for implementing the strategic planning for Europe and leading the efforts in expanding IAPP's European presence.

A native of Dublin, Ireland, Paul has been living and working in Brussels for most of his life and has an in-depth knowledge of European Public Affairs, having managed large international projects for the European Commission, Deloitte Europe, and other leading European consultancies.

Since 2007, Paul has delivered business management services to a variety of associations, including the Supply Chain Council (SCC), the International Society of Pharmaceutical Engineers (ISPE) and the Project Management Institute (PMI), overseeing their European operations. Specific responsibilities included membership development strategy, PR / communications, events and organizational governance.

Paul holds a degree in Business Economics with a Human Resources Management specialization from Boston University and the Vrije Universiteit Brussels. He is fluent in French, with passive knowledge of other European languages.


Xavier Cardoso
Director of Marketing

Nalco Water

Session: Public Affairs in a World of Finite Resources: Water Scarcity 

Xavier has a Master in Chemical Engineering, and has worked in the paper and chemical industry for the last 30 years, in R&D, Sales and Marketing roles in different locations (Spain, Netherlands, China, Switzerland). Currently he is Marketing Director at Nalco Water (an Ecolab company) for the Chemical, Power and Primary Metal industries in Europe. The main tasks of his team are to continuously understand the market needs and trends, and to bring innovations to the market that deliver incremental value to customers, helping them to minimize water, maximize production results and optimize total operational costs. Xavier is a people focused, energetic and results oriented professional in the marketing arena.
 

Barbara McCormack
Vice President of Education,
Freedom Forum Institute (formerly Newseum Institute) 

Session: Does Truth Matter Anymore? Alternative Facts, Fake News, and Reality 

Barbara McCormack is vice president of education at the Freedom Forum Institute, formerly Newseum Institute. Barbara leads the team responsible for creating NewseumED: quality, educational resources and programs on First Amendment freedoms and media literacy.

Barbara is a sought-after speaker on topics such as media literacy and navigating the challenges of a free press for students and adults internationally.  She has made appearances and issued thought leadership for high-profile platforms including SXSW, C-SPAN, Reuters, MisinfoCon, and The Guardian.

Barbara works to promote access to literacy resources as a member of the steering committee for the North American subchapter of GAPMIL, UNESCO’s effort to promote media and information literacy worldwide. She also serves on the board of the SYTA Youth Foundation, which helps at-risk students participate in educational travel programs.

Barbara, a former middle and high school teacher, and her team have been recognized by the Journalism Education Association, the National Council for the Social Studies, and the Education Commission for the States for their contributions to the teaching of history and news and media literacy.
 

Chris Curtis 
Project Manager - International Projects, YouGov

Session: Does Truth Matter Anymore? Alternative Facts, Fake News, and Reality 

Chris is the international Project Manager at YouGov and has worked in London on the company's General Election and Referendum polling for the past three years. He has provided media commentary on topical issues for the BBC and Channel 4 and regularly writes about polling and elections for publications such as the Guardian, New Statesman, and the Times. 

Chris has a particular interest in "voter flows", analysing how and why voters move between different parties and candidates, whether that is related to behavioural attitues, demographics, or the effects of media consumption. Outside of elections, he manages a number of high-profile research projects for academics, media outlets, charities, and government departments around the globe. 

Dean Muruven
Global Policy Manager Freshwater, World Wildlife Fund

Session: Public Affairs in a World of Finite Resources: Water Scarcity 

Dean Muruven is the Global Policy Manager Freshwater for WWF's International Freshwater Practice. He represents WWF at global policy fora connected with SDGs and climate change agendas and provides support to WWF teams worldwide in their engagement with influencing water policy and governance in their respective countries.

Prior to this role, Dean has been the water source areas programme manager for WWF South Africa. The programme was a flagship for the freshwater team in South Africa and through his work, water source areas have achieved national recognition at the highest political level. Before joining WWF, Dean held positions as a mining and sustainability consultant for a number of mining companies and consultancies working across Africa.

Dean received his BSc. Biological Science at the University of Kwa-Zulu Natal and his MSc in Environmental Science with the University of South Africa. Dean is currently an MBA candidate at the University of Maastricht (Netherlands).
 

Gordon Morrison
Director of Government Relations, EMEA, SPLUNK 

Session: Brave New World: Cybersecurity, Al & Privacy

Gordon Morrison is Director for EMEA Government Affairs at Splunk. Gordon has long term experience in UK public sector. He spent the early part of his career as an engineer and scientist in the UK Ministry of Defence but subsequently worked in technical and senior management roles in the UK tech industry, mainly on National Security, Cyber and Defence programmes. 

Most recently, he was Director at techUK and spent two years with McAfee UK as Director of Government Relations. 
 

Mark Stoop
Co-Owner, Managing Director, Scenarios4Summits

Session: IGP Case Study: Public Affairs War Games! 

Since 2014, Mark Stoop has been co-owner and Managing Director of the company Scenarios4Summits, which specializes in preparing and executing Scenario Based Discussions during summits and making defence and security films for special events.

Prior to this role he spent two decades in the military and defense sector. After the graduating from the Military Academy, Mark served for 10 years in the Royal Netherlands Air Force in Operational Patriot Units. During his military career he completed a master’s degree in Political Science, International Affairs focusing on political decision making of military operations.

Since May 2004 he has been working for TNO, Dutch Institute for Applied Science. From 2004 until 2009, as program manager and project lead for TNO research program on Joint Air and Missile Defence. In this period, he also contributed to the NATO Russian Federation Theatre Missile Defence Interoperability Working Group (2004-2006) and has been involved in supporting the AMD exercise Joint Project Optic Windmill.

In 2009, still for TNO, Mark worked as strategic innovation and policy advisor for the deputy commander of the Netherlands Royal Marechaussee. Then from 2010 he was TNO business developer for weapon systems and munitions and lead for the Design Analysis and Reporting Team (DART) in the Global Missile Defence Campaign Nimble Titan. He had a central role ensuring that 21 nations worked together in this Political and Military Missile Defence wargame. This has contributed to his experiences in designing wargames and crisis games in an international environment.

From December 2013 he was assigned to the Netherlands Ministry of Foreign Affairs as senior advisor Scenario Based Policy Discussion for the Nuclear Security Summit 2014. In this capacity he prepared the interactive policy discussion between 53 Heads of Government.
 

Alex Wirth
Cofounder & CEO, Quorum

Session: Technology Enabled Public Affairs  

Alex Wirth is the Cofounder and CEO of Quorum, a public affairs software platform that enables organizations to launch grassroots advocacy campaigns, manage stakeholder engagement, and monitor dialogue in Washington, Brussels, all 50 states, and thousands of cities around U.S. Quorum was named the top DC startup to watch in 2016, 2017, and 2018 and is used by Walmart, Coca-Cola, Apple, General Motors, Toyota, Lyft, and the United Nations. Alex was named by the Washingtonian as one of D.C.’s Top 100 Tech Leaders and sits on the Government Relations Executives Council, the U.S. National Commission for UNESCO, the Board of Directors of The Public Affairs Council, and the Board of Directors of the Forum for Youth Investment. Alex has spoken at the United Nations, Clinton Global Initiative, World Forum for Democracy, SXSW, and TedxFoggyBottom. Originally from Santa Fe, New Mexico, Alex graduated from Harvard with a degree in Government and Economics and worked in the White House and U.S Senate before starting Quorum. 
 

Elizabeth Bartz
Founder, President & CEO, State and Federal Communications

Session: Compliance Challenges in a New Era: Political Law & GDPR

Elizabeth Z. Bartz is founder, president, and CEO of State and Federal Communications, Inc. The company provides government compliance information and consulting to Fortune 500 companies, many trade and professional associations, legal and accounting firms, and corporate and contract lobbyists in all 50 states and Canada.
 
She joined State and Federal Associates in Alexandria, Va., in 1983 to manage that company’s government compliance publications. Ten years later, Bartz purchased the compliance publications department from State and Federal Associates and moved its operations to Akron.
 
Bartz is very active in various professional societies, and community and volunteer efforts, sharing her time, talent, and resources. Her government affairs leadership positions include the State Government Affairs Council Executive Committee (SGAC) – the premiere state government affairs association for corporate and trade association executives. She is also a Gold Foundation member of the National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL); associate member of the Council of State Governments (CSG); former president of Washington (DC) Area State Relations Group (WASRG); on the Board of Directors for the Public Affairs Council; Council on Governmental Ethics Laws (COGEL); and, most recently, as Vice President of the National Institute on Lobbying and Ethics (NILE). Locally, she serves as treasurer of the Akron Urban League.
 
The many awards Bartz received include the 2007 Woman Philanthropist of the Year from the Summit County United Way; the 2008 Leadership Award from the Washington (DC) Area State Relations Group; and the Top 100 Women-Owned Business Owners in Ohio from Diversity Business since 2007. In 2010, State and Federal Communications received the Excellence in Business Award from the Greater Akron Chamber and has received the Weatherhead 100 Northeast Ohio's Fastest Growing Companies award 2010 and 2013.  
 

Bastiaan Bruyndonckx
Partner
Lydian

Session: Compliance Challenges in a New Era: Political Law & GDPR

Bastiaan is a partner in the Commercial & Litigation practice, where he heads the Information and Communication Technology (ICT) team.

He specializes in all aspects of Information and Communications Technology (ICT) law, with a particular focus on information governance, technology procurement and outsourcing contracts, electronic communications and internet and e-commerce.

Bastiaan advises companies in a broad range of industry sectors on information governance and data protection (privacy) matters. He has extensive experience in advising on ICT-related transactions, including software licensing, development and implementation projects. He advises both customers and suppliers on various types of outsourcing projects, including offshoring and nearshoring. He advises telecom-sector and other clients on regulatory issues and has broad experience in drafting and negotiating telecom-related agreements. He also advises on internet and e-commerce legal issues. He also regularly advises on long-term technology-driven strategic agreements, including in the framework of M&A transactions.

Having extensive experience in intellectual property, Bastiaan is well-placed to understand and deal with the complicated IP issues that may arise in the context of ICT projects and transactions.

Bastiaan is a regular speaker at seminars and conferences on ICT matters. He regularly authors articles published in (international) legal reviews such as World Data Protection Report, DataGuidance, Computerrecht (Computer Law) and Privacy & Informatie (Privacy & Information).



Jakob Edberg
IGP Japan
President & CEO, GR Japan

Session: Around the World with IGP - Asia Pacific

Jakob Edberg has been deeply immersed in Japan’s politics and policy-making for two decades. As President & CEO of GR Japan, he works and helps clients solve complex political and regulatory challenges in a large variety of sectors and fields – retail, energy, pharmaceuticals, financial services, project financing, foreign policy, and trade just to mention a few.

Before co-founding GR Japan, Jakob was Policy Director at the European Business Council in Japan, where he supervised government outreach and advocacy for over 300 companies in 29 sector committees.  He also served as a senior trade officer at the Swedish Embassy in Tokyo.  Representing international businesses’ interests on ministry and party committees, Jakob has a wealth of experience with the Japanese administration and Diet, on everything from front-page trade issues and technical product standards, to successful campaigns for new legislation and financial regulation.  

Jakob holds degrees in political science and Japanese language and a Master's in International Political Economy from the University of Tsukuba.

He speaks fluent Japanese, English, and Swedish.
 

Luca Gargano
IGP Italy
Partner, FB & Associati

Session: Around the World with IGP - EMEA

After graduating in Law from University “Roma Tre” and successfully qualifying as a professional lawyer, Luca Gargano acquired important experience abroad within international organizations, in the field of European projects as well as in international trade and internationalization of enterprises.

He also carried out activities of legal research, development and promotion of national policies in the sector of human rights and fundamental freedoms at the “Public Law Center” of Brussels. Later on, Luca successfully attended the Master in European Public Relations in Rome, thus specializing in Public Affairs thanks to a tailored curriculum focused on Institutions, Development Programmes, Stakeholders and Institutional relations at EU level.

He joined FB & Associati in 2006 and is in charge of developing lobbying plans for national and international clients, with a cross-cutting expertise in several sectors, including finance, automotive, chemical, fur, online gambling and tobacco.

Luca is in charge of running the Brussels Office of FB & Associati since January 2013. 
 

Gustavo Almaraz Petrie 
IGP Mexico
Executive Director, Grupo Estrategia Política

Session: Around the World with IGP - Americas

In 2002, Gustavo joined Grupo Estrategia Política (GEP), a firm with more than 18 years of experience and the first one to specialize in political consulting and lobbying in Mexico. Gustavo is currently the Executive Director of GEP, coordinating political consulting and lobbying for national and international companies and organizations, such as General Electric, Nestle, Master Card, Kansas City Southern, Pioneer Du-Pont, the Mexican Council Industry for Consumer Products (CONMÉXICO), the National Oil Dispensers (ONEXPO), the Mexican Association of Insurance Institutions (AMIS), the Mexican Association of Batteries (AMEXPILAS), the National Chamber of Cosmetics Industry (CANIPEC), and the National Association of Coffee Growers (ANACAFÉ), among others. Some of the reforms lobbied and achieved by GEP include: the adoption of reforms in trade to harden piracy laws, the creation of a legal framework for cosmetics, as well as criminalizing acts such as altering or stealing any pieces and parts of the railways. Gustavo is also leading the project “Pro bono,” on the right to identity, in collaboration with AppleSeed Mexico, and UNICEF. Prior to joining GEP, he worked for Guerra González y Asociados, SC, Mexican law firm, as well as litigation firm, Roman and Gordillo, SC, where he specialized in civil and commercial matters.

Gustavo is Vice President for the National Association of Professional Lobbying, (PROCAB) a nonprofit organization founded in 2000, whose mission is to promote the development of ethical professional practices in the lobbying activity. He has participated as a speaker at conferences, conventions, and work tables in the private and public sector, and at educational institutions covering issues related to the political environment. In the Mexico 2013 edition of The Business Year magazine, Gustavo published an opinion piece entitled “Lobbying: A voice for change,” which describes the link between the development of lobbying and the advance of democracy in Mexico. Since 2012, he has participated weekly as a permanent guest in the program MXQ Noticias, the Broadcasting System of the State of Mexico. He also participated as an announcer of Vision Legislative at the same network.

Gustavo has a law degree and a specialization in corporations from the Universidad Panamericana.
 

Ciro Dias Reis
IGP Brazil
Founder & CEO,  Imagem Corporativa

Session: Around the World with IGP - Americas

Former economic journalist and former director of the influential Brazilian association of automobile industry (Anfavea), Ciro runs a variety of activities. In addition to his position at Imagem Corporativa, he is also director of the Brazilian association of PR agencies (Abracom); VP of the global partnership PROI Worldwide; board member of the International Communications Consultancy Organisation (ICCO); member of the AdPR Advisory Council at University of Georgia. 

His agency Imagem Corporativa has offices in São Paulo, Rio de Janeiro and Brasília and provides a variety of PR services for global companies such as Basf, BP Biofuels, Deutsche Bank, Diageo, Embraer, International Paper, Nissan, Pepsico, PwC, Singapore Airlines, among others.
Over the last few years Ciro has led the production of exclusive in-depth surveys focusing on different topics: “I See Brazil," which analyzes the coverage about Brazil on the international media;  “IC Crisis Index," an overview of corporate crisis in Brazil; “Index of Business Reputation," a national poll to identify how Brazilians evaluate corporate commitments on quality, innovation and ethics.



 

Tamas Sardi
IGP Hungary
Managing Partner, CEC Government Relations 

Session: Around the Work with IGP - EMEA 


Tamas is the Managing Partner of the Budapest office of CEC. CEC Hungary has special expertise in the IT & Telecom, Tobacco, Retail, Energy, Defence, Health & Pharma, Public Procurement, Environment, Utilities, FMCG and Finance sectors. At CEC, Tamas has headed accounts with multinational and local clients including Philip Morris, Tesco, Google, SAP, MOL, E.ON, Procter & Gamble, Citadel, Pfizer, PWC, T-systems, SAB Miller and others. He has also executed public affairs campaigns at the European level, working with decision makers in various EU institutions, the European Commission, the European Council, PermReps, and Hungarian MEPs in the European Parliament.

Prior to joining CEC in 2002, Tamas worked for the Hungarian Ministry of Economy on a number of investment projects.

Tamas has a Master of Science degree from the London School of Economics and Political Science, where he graduated in European Studies, EU Policy-Making and International Business. He earlier graduated from the Faculty of International Relations at the Budapest University of Economic Sciences with a degree in European Studies and Tourism.

He speaks fluent Hungarian, English and German.

Les Timar
IGP Australia 
CEO & Founding Partner, GRACosway 

Session: Around the World with IGP - Asia Pacific 

Les is CEO and a Founding Partner of GRACosway, with responsibility for the overall management and strategic development of the firm, as well as jointly overseeing its Public Affairs practice. He is one of Australia’s most experienced public affairs practitioners, providing counsel to clients across a broad range of industries in relation to public policy, legislative change, regulatory approvals and government inquiry processes at both federal and state levels. Les broadly contributes to client strategies, in addition to directly managing a number of longstanding client relationships and the firm’s work with several private equity and investment fund clients.

A lawyer by training, Les previously held a senior position with an Australian property and infrastructure development company. He also served as a senior ministerial adviser to the NSW Coalition Government in the early 1990s.

Les is a director of Clemenger Group, the parent company of GRACosway, and the firm’s affiliated Perth business, GRA Everingham. He also currently serves as President of the Australian Professional Government Relations Association (APGRA), the national professional body for government relations practitioners.
 

Hans Vriens
IGP Southeast Asia
Managing Partner, Vriens & Partners 

Session: Around the World with IGP - Asia Pacific (invited) 

Hans is Managing Partner of Vriens & Partners, a firm specializing in government affairs, public policy and political risk analysis headquartered in Singapore with more than 55 staff and 30 senior counselors around South East Asia.The firm has offices in Singapore, Myanmar, Thailand, Malaysia, Vietnam, Indonesia, Cambodia and The Philippines, and advisors in Hong Kong Laos, and Brunei. Hans has lived and worked in Asia since 1990. He is regular commentator on regional issues.

Prior to establishing V&P, Hans was Vice chairman, Asia at APCO Worldwide in South East Asia. Before this he established and served as MD of the Indonesia practice for six years. Prior to this he worked as a political economist at the Political and Economic Risk Consultancy in Hong Kong. Earlier he practiced law at Clifford Chance and was the Asia correspondent for a leading Dutch financial and economic daily. In 1995. He was elected president of the Foreign Correspondents’ Club Hong Kong, then the largest in the world.

Hans is a member of the Secretariat of the Europe ASEAN Business Alliance (EABA). He was Chairman of the Foundation Dutch Education at UWC in SG. Earlier he served on the board of the Eurocham, and was the founding chairman of DutchCham in SG.

Hans graduated from law school in civil and public law of Groningen University. During his studies, he was a research assistant in parliamentary history and public law. In 1982 he took a year off from his studies when he was elected Senatus Rector of the Student Union on the Grote Markt (VAP).

Genevieve Young
IGP Canada
President & CEO, Global Public Affairs 

Session: Around the World with IGP - Americas

Genevieve Young has two decades of experience in public affairs, leading national mandates across jurisdictions and managing multiple stakeholders, government(s) and the media. Genevieve keenly understands the complex intersection between business and policy issues, and is an expert at crafting and executing strategic approaches for organizations across sectors.

As President and Chief Operating Officer of Global Public Affairs, Genevieve is responsible for all corporate functions and works closely with Randy Pettipas, CEO, and Global’s executive leadership team to drive the strategic development and long-term growth of the organization across markets.

Genevieve’s consulting expertise is primarily in transactions as they relate to commercialization initiatives, asset development, rail and air policy sector issues. She is active in the development of Global’s cannabis practice and is engaged in how this industry is evolving in Canada and internationally. She has extensive experience providing strategic counsel to the C-suite of some of Canada’s most iconic companies and organizations.

Prior to joining Global in 2000, Genevieve served the Secretary of State (Asia-Pacific) and the Senate of Canada, providing legislative and political counsel on diverse public policy issues with an emphasis on Western Canadian policy and business issues.

Genevieve is a member of the Young Presidents’ Organization (Ottawa Chapter) and a Founding Member of Women for Nature among other community initiatives she is engaged in. She holds a Bachelor of Arts in Canadian Politics and an MBA from the Queen’s School of Business.

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Florence Maisel
Managing Partner, 
France, Interel

Session: Around the World with IGP - EMEA 

Florence established Interel’s office in France in 1989. She is the managing partner of Interel France and also heads up the Food and Drink practice at the Group level.

Prior to joining Interel, Florence spent four years as a political consultant at Michel Bongrand SA.
She began her career in 1984 at Arthur Young where she worked in the local government department.

Florence graduated from the Institut d’Etudes Politiques de Paris (Sciences Po) in 1983, has a Master’s degree in marketing from Sciences Po (1984), and graduated with a diploma in mediation. She is the co-founder of the French Association of Lobbying and Public Affairs Consultants (AFCL).

Florence speaks fluent French, English, and Spanish.

Marcus Weidling
Managing Partner, Germany, Interel

Session: Around the World with IGP - EMEA 

Before joining the Interel team, Markus Weidling served as Head of International and Regional Services, Institutional Sales and General Administration for the German news agency dapd, by then the German partner of Associated Press.

From 2008 to 2010, he was posted as Counselor for Development Affairs to the Permanent Mission of Germany to the United Nations in New York. During the time of the “Great Coalition Government” in Germany, he served as chief press officer and head of the public relations department of the Federal Ministry of Economic Cooperation and Development.  

For many years, Markus worked as editor and correspondent, inter alia for the two large public German TV networks ARD and ZDF. He studied social and political sciences at the Humboldt University in Berlin and at the University of Cape Town, earning a master`s degree in 2001. 

Preeti Bakaya
Managing Partner, India, Interel

Session: Around the World with IGP - Asia Pacific 

With close to 20 years of experience Preeti has worked across organisations in both India and Europe. She started her career as a journalist with Business Today and then moved to Hill and Knowlton, Max Healthcare, Aviva Life Insurance, Microsoft and finally Interel, Brussels. During her career she has been involved in various award- winning Public Affairs and PR campaigns in India and elsewhere.

Her educational qualifications include Bachelors with Honours and a Masters degree in History from Lady Shri Ram College, and MSc in International Management from the University of London.

Preeti speaks fluent English, Hindi and Kashmiri and basic French.
 

Steve Edwards
Deputy Managing Partner, UK and Group Head of Technology, Interel

Session: Brave New World: Cybersecurity & Privacy 

Stephen is Interel UK’s Deputy Managing Partner and Group Head of Technology. He leads Interel’s work on cybersecurity policy and procurement working with a range of corporations and associations. He has advised companies including Intel, Lockheed Martin and QinetiQ on government engagement in relation to cyber, and has also developed market entry strategies for SMEs with an interest in the sector.

Currently Stephen and the Interel technology practice are spearheading a global campaign to restore trust in the Internet for IEEE with a particular focus on security, privacy, and data protection/localisation. He also leads ICT and cybersecurity issue campaigns relating to skills development on behalf of PMI and ISACA, the international society of cyber security professionals. Stephen also works on technology issues related to the growing global sharing economy.

In addition to his role on technology accounts, Stephen provides international public affairs support to a variety of civil and defense companies. Stephen started his career as a researcher at the Foreign Policy Centre, the leading foreign policy think-tank, and at the Highways Agency. He has also worked in local government. Stephen is an award-winning and highly experienced public affairs operator with over fifteen years of experience at both the UK and EU levels. 

He holds an MSc in European Politics and Policy from the London School of Economics.

Vinciane Patelou
Director, Interel EU

Session: Public Affairs in a World of Finite Resources: Water Scarcity
Session: IGP Case Study: Public Affairs War Games! 

Vinciane Patelou spent the past 8 years advising companies and trade associations in the area of food and consumer goods, in Brussels-based public affairs consultancies. Vinciane successfully led numerous advocacy campaigns on behalf of clients, demonstrating her expertise in co-decision and comitology lobbying, awareness-raising campaigns, crisis communications and association management. Her area of expertise mainly is food, ranging from agricultural production to marketing and consumption. Public health and environment are also areas where she has developed an in-depth knowledge.

Vinciane graduated in European Affairs at the Institute of Political Sciences of Lille in France. Besides her French mother-tongue, she is fluent in English and has a good knowledge of German.