Egils Levits
President of the Republic of Latvia
Egils Levits is the President of the Republic of Latvia, assuming office in 2019 after a distinguished legal and diplomatic career. Levits served as a Judge at the European Court of Justice from 2004 to 2019, where he left an indelible mark. Prior to that, he was a Judge at the European Court of Human Rights from 1995 to 2004. Levits also served as a Conciliator at the Court of Conciliation and Arbitration within the OSCE, as well as a member of the Permanent Court of Arbitration. Before his judicial career, Levits served in several high-level positions in the Latvian government, including as Vice Prime Minister and Minister for Justice, as well as Minister for Foreign Affairs. He also served as an Ambassador of the Republic of Latvia to Germany, Switzerland, Austria, and Hungary.Throughout his career, Levits has authored several publications on various legal topics, including constitutional and administrative law, law policy, law reform, and European Union law. Levits has received numerous international recognitions for his legal and diplomatic acumen, including honorary doctorates from the University of Latvia and the University of Hamburg. He was also awarded the Latvian Order of the Three Stars in 2004 and the Austrian Grand Decoration of Honour in Silver with Star in 2016. Levits graduated in law and political science from the University of Hamburg.
Guy Parmelin
Member of the Swiss Federal Council
Guy Parmelin is a Member of the Swiss Federal Council and has served as Head of the Department of Economic Affairs, Education, and Research since 2019. Parmelin also served as President of the Swiss Confederation in 2021 and Vice-President of the Swiss Confederation in 2020. Before assuming his current role, Guy Parmelin was Head of the Department of Defence, Civil Protection and Sports between 2016 and 2018. First elected to the Swiss Federal Council in 2016, he previously served as a Member of the Swiss National Council from 2003 to 2015 for the canton of Vaud. Originally from Bursins, Vaud, outside of politics and government, Parlemin is a master farmer and winemaker.
Shamma Al Mazrui
Minister of State for Youth Affairs, United Arab Emirates
Since 2020, her Excellency has served as UAE Minister of State for Youth, where she focuses on representing youth issues at the UAE Cabinet, incorporating youth needs into policymaking, and improving their capabilities. Prior, she was named Minister of State for Youth Affairs in February 2016. Her Excellency also serves as Chair of the Emirates Youth Council, Vice-Chair of the Arab Youth Center, and Chairperson for Special Olympics UAE.
Ricarda Lang
Member of the German Bundestag; Co-Leader of Alliance 90/The Greens
Ricarda Lang has been Co-Leader of Bündnis 90/Die Grünen, a German party focused on ecological, economic, and social sustainability, since 2022 and has been part of the national parliament of Germany since 2021. Before her role as Co-Leader, she was the party's deputy leader since 2019 and led the party's youth organisation Grünen Jugend from 2015-2019. Ricarda's political agenda focuses on social justice and climate policy.
Desmond Lee
Minister for National Development & Minister-in-charge of Social Services Integration, Singapore
Desmond Lee is the Minister for National Development and Minister-in-Charge of Social Services Integration for the Republic of Singapore. In July 2020, Mr. Lee was elected a Member of Parliament (MP) for the West Coast Group Representation Constituency (GRC). He co-chairs the Singapore Together Movement, the Emerging Stronger Taskforce, the Singapore-Tianjin Economic and Trade Council, and the Sino-Singapore Tianjin Eco-city Joint Working Committee. Previously, as an MP for Jurong GRC, Mr. Lee served as the Minister for Social and Family Development from 2017 to 2020 and Senior Minister of State for Home Affairs and National Development between 2015 and 2017. Mr. Lee holds a Bachelor of Law with first-class honours from the National University of Singapore and a Master's degree in law from the University of Oxford.
Ayọ Tometi
Co-Founder, #BlackLivesMatter / Human Rights & Social Justice Advocate
Ayọ Tometi is the Co-Founder of the #BlackLivesMatter movement, digital platform, and chapter-based network. Additionally, from 2013 – 2019, she was the Executive Director of the Black Alliance for Just Immigration, the first immigrant rights organization for people of African descent in the United States. She is a trusted advisor to many foundations, including the Atlantic Fellows for Racial Equity and the Andrew Goodman Foundation. Ayọ Tometi is an internationally recognized voice for human rights and social justice and is known for her thought leadership on race, immigration, and gender issues.
Nicolai Tangen
Chief Executive Officer, Norges Bank Investment Management
Nicolai Tangen is CEO of Norges Bank Investment Management and is responsible for the management of the Government Pension Fund Global of the Kingdom of Norway. Prior to assuming his current position in September 2020, Tangen was CEO and Chief Investment Officer of AKO Capital, which he founded in 2005. He also set up the AKO Foundation in 2013, which supports charitable initiatives to improve education, promote the arts and mitigate climate problems. Earlier, Tangen was a partner and senior analyst at Egerton Capital and an equity analyst at Cazenove & Co. Tangen holds a Bachelor’s Degree in finance from the Wharton School and Master’s Degrees in the History of Art from the Courtauld Institute of Art and in Social Psychology from the London School of Economics.
Mamphela Ramphele
Co-President, Club of Rome
Mamphela Ramphele is a world-renowned figure with an illustrious career as an anti-apartheid activist, medical doctor, academic, businesswoman, and political thinker. She has been Co-President of the Club of Rome since October 2018 and Co-Founder & Global Brand Ambassador of ReimagineSA (RiSA) since 2016. Previously, she served as a Managing Director at the World Bank from 2000 to 2004 and Vice-Chancellor of the University of Cape Town, South Africa, from 1996 to 2000. Additionally, she has chaired many boards and co-founded several organizations throughout her career and is the author of numerous books and publications on socio-economic issues in South Africa. Her latest book, Dreams, Betrayal, and Hope, offers her analysis of 'the state of the nation' in South Africa. She obtained a medical degree from the University of Natal in 1968, where she co-founded the Black Consciousness Movement with Steve Biko and became involved in the South African Students Association (SASO). She also holds a Ph.D. in Social Anthropology from the University of Cape Town, a Bachelor of Commerce in administration from the University of South Africa, and diplomas in Tropical Hygiene and Public Health from the University of the Witwatersrand.
Prof. Thomas J. Jordan
Chairman of the Governing Board, Swiss National Bank
Thomas J. Jordan has been Chairman of the Governing Board of the Swiss National Bank (SNB) since 2012. Dr. Jordan is also a member of the Board of Directors of the Bank for International Settlements (BIS) and of the Steering Committee of the Financial Stability Board (FSB). Additionally, he is the Governor of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) for Switzerland, Chairman of the G10 Central Bank Counterfeit Deterrence Group, a member of the Advisory Board of the Department of Economics at the University of Zurich, a member of the Board of Trustees at the ETH Zurich Foundation, as well as an honorary professor at the University of Basel. Dr. Jordan joined the SNB in 1997 as an Economic Advisor after completing his Ph.D. in economics from the University of Bern in 1993 and conducting post-doctoral research at Harvard University.
Nelly Attar
Founder and Athlete
Nelly Attar is a Lebanese mountaineer, entrepreneur, trainer, and former psychologist born and raised in Saudi Arabia. She is the first Arab woman to summit K2, the world's second-highest mountain, and has also successfully reached the top of Mount Everest in 2019 as one of the first three Lebanese women. In 2017, Nelly founded Move Studio, Saudi Arabia's first dance studio, which enables women across Saudi Arabia to enjoy the beauty of dance and provides a new way of staying healthy and active. In 2020, the Muslim Women Network named her one of the most influential women in sports, while Sports 360 in 2019 named her the female fitness influencer of the year across the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC). She holds a bachelor's degree from the American University in Beirut (Lebanon) and a Master of Research from Kingston University.
Eckart von Hirschhausen
Physican, Science Journalist & Founder, „Gesunde Erde – Gesunde Menschen“
Dame Inga Beale
Chair, Mediclinic
Dame Inga Beale is the Chair of Mediclinic International, on the boards of Willis Towers Watson and NN Group, and previously a Board Director of the Chartered Insurance Institute. From 2014 to 2018, Dame Inga Beale was CEO of Lloyd’s of London, where she developed a culture of innovation and inclusion, launched several diversity initiatives, and was instrumental in changing cultural perceptions within the firm and insurance industry. Before becoming CEO of Lloyd’s, she served as Group CEO of Canopius Group from 2012 to 2014 and as Global Chief Underwriting Officer at Zurich Insurance Company from 2008 to 2011.
Dilhan Pillay Sandrasegara
CEO & Executive Director, Temasek Holdings
Dilhan Pillay Sandrasegara was appointed Executive Director and CEO of Temasek Holdings in 2021 and is concurrently the CEO of Temasek International, a position he has held since 2019. Dilhan has also held other leadership roles at Temasek, including Head of the Investment, the Portfolio Management, and the Enterprise Development Groups, since joining the firm in September 2010. Outside of Temasek, he is a Member of the Board of Directors at the Peterson Institute for International Economics, Enterprise Singapore, the Future Economy Council of the Ministry of Trade and Industry (MTI), and the National Research Foundation of Singapore. Prior to Temasek, Dilhan was the Managing Partner of WongPartnership LLP. He has over 20 years of legal experience, mainly focusing on mergers and acquisitions, corporate governance, and corporate law. He graduated from the National University of Singapore with a Bachelor of Laws and obtained a Master of Law from the University of Cambridge.
Esther Wojcicki
Vice Chair of Creative Commons, Author, and Journalist
Esther Wojcicki is an internationally renowned educator, consultant, and global best-selling author. She is the Vice Chair of Creative Commons, Founder of The Trick Method, and CEO of Global Moonshots in Education, which is committed to empowering ALL learners with the heart, mindset, and skills necessary to address the challenges and opportunities of the 21st century. Esther has also been intimately involved with Google and GoogleEdu since its inception, where she was one of the leaders in setting up the Google Teacher Academy. Furthermore, Esther has been a consultant for (among others) the U.S. Department of Education, Hewlett Foundation, and Carnegie Foundation for Advancement of Teaching. In addition to her executive and consultancy roles, for over 38 years, Esther has been a teacher at Palo Alto High School, California, where she founded the Media Arts Program at Palo Alto High School and built one of the largest student journalism programs in the United States.
Stefan Paul
CEO, Kühne + Nagel
Stefan Paul has been CEO of Kühne + Nagel International AG since August 2022 and previously served as EVP of Road Logistics and Sales from 2020 to 2022 and EVP of Road Logistics from 2013 to 2020. Paul began his career with Kühne + Nagel, where he worked for seven years before joining DHL. Before returning to Kühne + Nagel in 2013, Paul spent more than 12 years with DHL and served as CEO of DHL Freight Germany from 2010 to 2013 and Senior VP of marketing and Sales from 2010 to 2013.
Janina Kugel
Supervisory Board Member, TUI, Kyndryl, and Konecranes; Senior Advisor, Boston Consulting Group
Janina Kugel is a Senior Advisor for the Boston Consulting Group and a Member of several Supervisory Boards, including TUI and Kyndryl. From 2015 to 2020, Janina Kugel was a Member of the Managing Board and Chief Human Resources Officer at Siemens. Prior to this role, she was Siemens’ Vice President of Human Resources for three years. In her role, she focused on a higher ratio of women in leading positions, diversity, and increasing flexibility in the work environment. She holds a bachelor’s degree from the University of Mainz, Germany, and a master’s from the University of Verona, Italy.
C Vijayakumar
CEO & MD, HCLTech
C Vijayakumar is the CEO & MD of HCLTech, a leading, global technology company that provides transformative solutions and services to forward-looking enterprises. With nearly three decades of experience at HCLTech, Vijay spearheads the company’s strategic blueprint to leverage digitalization, the Internet of Things, cloud computing, cybersecurity, and artificial intelligence, and is widely recognized for his strategic thinking and impeccable execution. Throughout his accomplished career, Vijay has held several other leadership positions at HCLTech, including President of HCLTech's Infrastructure Services Business. He played an instrumental role in designing and implementing India's first fully automated trading network at the National Stock Exchange. Additionally, Vijay is a member of the World Economic Forum's IT Governor's Community and a Board Member of the US-India Business Council. He is deeply invested in promoting sustainable business practices. Vijay holds a degree in Electrical & Electronics Engineering from P.S.G. College of Technology in Tamil Nadu, India.
Sophie Howe
Fmr. Future Generations Commissioner for Wales ('15-'22)
Sophie How is the former Future Generations Commissioner of Wales (2016-2023), where she provided advice to the government and public sector in Wales on delivering social, economic, environmental and cultural well-being for current and future generations. She has also represented Wales at the United Nations, the OECD, and several International Forums. Prior to becoming Future Generations Commissioner, Sophie Howe was the first Deputy Police and Crime Commissioner for South Wales where she led programmes to tackle violent crime and violence against women and girls. She Holds a Bachelor of Laws in Law and Politics from Cardiff University.
André Hoffmann
Vice-Chairman, F. Hoffmann-La Roche
André Hoffmann is Vice-Chairman of the Board of Roche Holding Ltd., and Chairperson of the Supervisory Board of Capitals Coalition, a global collaboration redefining value to transform decision-making. A passionate conservation and sustainability advocate for over 50 years, Mr. Hoffmann is a Member of the Club of Rome, President of Fondation Tour du Valat, and served as World Wildlife Fund (WWF) International Vice-President from 2007 to 2017. Additionally, he is President of the Board of Trustees of the Givaudan Foundation, a Member of the Governing Board of the World Economic Forum, and a Member of the Board of Systemiq. He holds a bachelor’s degree from the University of St. Gallen and an MBA from the European Institute for Management (INSEAD).
Vanessa Nakate
Climate Justice Advocate
Erik Fyrwald
CEO & Executive Director, Syngenta Group
J. Erik Fyrwald is CEO, a Member of the Board of Directors, and a Member of the Sustainability Committee of Syngenta Group. Before becoming CEO of Syngenta Group in 2016, he served as CEO of Univar, a leading chemistry and related services distributor, from May 2012 until May 2016. In 2008, following a 27-year career at DuPont, he joined the Nalco Company, a leading water treatment products and services company, serving as Chairman and Chief Executive Officer until December 2011, when Nalco merged with Ecolab Inc. Following the merger, Erik Fyrwald served as President of Ecolab, a global provider of water, hygiene, and energy technologies. Erik Fyrwald also serves on the boards of directors of Bunge, Eli Lilly, the Swiss-American Chamber of Commerce, and the UN World Food Program Farm to Market Alliance. He is also Chairman of the Syngenta Foundation for Sustainable Agriculture and CropLife International. Fyrwald holds a B.S. in Chemical Engineering for the University of Delaware and completed the Advanced Management Program at Harvard Business School.
Tabata Amaral
Federal Deputy, Brazilian Chamber of Deputies
Tabata Amaral is a Federal Deputy representing the state of São Paulo in Brazil's Chamber of Deputies and a member of the Brazilian Socialist Party (PSB). In the Chamber of Deputies, she has served on the Education Commission, the Commission for the Defense of Women's Rights, and as an alternate member of the Science and Technology, Communication and Informatics Commission. Outside of her responsibilities as a Federal Deputy, Amaral has co-founded several organisations, including Vontade de Aprender Olímpica, which prepares Brazilian students to compete in international olympiads, and Movimento Mapa Educação, which promotes education equality in Brazil. In 2019, she was on the TIME 100 Next List and one of BBC’s 100 most influential women in the world. She graduated magna cum laude in Government and Astrophysics from Harvard.
Leonhard Birnbaum
CEO & Chairman of the Board of Management, E.ON
Leonhard Birnbaum has been CEO of E.ON since 2021, is Chairman of the Board of Management, and has been Member of the Board of Management since 2013. From 2018-2021, he was responsible for the innogy integration project and served as Chairman of the Board of Management of innogy from 2019-2020. Leonhard also holds several leadership positions in the energy sector, including President of Eurelectric, the European Electricity Association, Vice-President of the Executive Committee of the German Association of Energy and Water Industries (BDEW), Vice Chair of the World Energy Council, and a Member of the Executive Committee of the Federation of German Industries (BDI). Before joining E.ON in 2013, Birnbaum was a Member of the Board of Management at RWE AG from 2008 to 2013. Prior, Birnbaum spent 12 years with McKinsey & Company, where he was a Senior Partner for the energy and industrial sector from 2006 to 2008. Leonhard Birnbaum holds a Ph.D. in Chemical Engineering from the University of Cottbus.
Cathryn Clüver Ashbrook
Non-Resident Fellow, Global Public Policy Institute (GPPi)
Cathryn Clüver Ashbrook is the Executive Vice President at Bertelsmann Stiftung and a transatlantic expert who is leading two of the firm’s important initiatives: the German-American Future Forum and a high-level Stiftung strategy group on Europe. She is a former director and CEO of the German Council on Foreign Relations (DGAP). Until 2021, Cathryn Clüver Ashbrook was the Executive Director of the Future of Diplomacy Project at Harvard’s Belfer Center and the Executive Director of the Project on Europe and the Transatlantic Relationship at Harvard Kennedy School.
René Obermann
Chairman, AIRBUS SE; Managing Director and Co-Head of Europe, Warburg Pincus
René Obermann is Chairman of the Board of Directors of Airbus SE and Managing Director of Warburg Pincus Deutschland GmbH. Additionally, he is Deputy Chairman of the Supervisory Board at IONOS Group SE, a leading European web hosting and cloud company, and a Member of the Board of Directors at ISAT Connect Bidco Limited (the holding company for the Inmarsat group). Prior to joining Warburg Pincus as an investment partner in 2015, Mr. Obermann was CEO of Ziggo BV in the Netherlands (2014) and CEO of Deutsche Telekom AG from 2006-2013, one of the biggest telecommunication companies in the world. René Obermann has also previously served as a member of the Board of various companies, including Allianz Deutschland AG, Spotify, and Telenor. In 2013 Mr. Obermann was appointed Officer of the French Légion d'honneur.
Bineta Diop
Member of the Board, The Hunger Project; Founder, Femmes Africa Solidarité
Bineta Diop is the Founder and President of Femmes Africa Solidarité, an international NGO dedicated to promoting peace, security, and development in Africa, and a Member of the Board of the Hunger Project. Since 2014 Madame Diop has served as the Special Envoy of the Chairperson of the African Union Commission on Women, Peace and Security. Ms. Diop has led numerous peace-building programmes to enhance women’s participation in peace processes. She played an instrumental role in achieving gender parity within the African Union Commission in 2003, the adoption of the Solemn Declaration on Gender Equality in Africa (2004), and the adoption of the Protocol to the African Charter on Human and People’s Rights on the Rights of Women in Africa (2003) by the African Union. Ms.Diop studied Management in Paris, France and Public Relations and Communication in Lausanne, Switzerland. She received an Honorary Doctorate from the United Nations-mandated University for Peace in 2012 and an Honorary Doctorate from the University of Middlesex in London, UK, in 2014.
Axel P. Lehmann
Chairman of the Board of Directors, Credit Suisse
Axel Lehmann is the current Chairman of the Board of Directors at Credit Suisse, serving as Chair of the Governance and Nominations Committee since 2022 and as a Member since 2021. Prior to his role at Credit Suisse, Axel worked at UBS from 2009 to 2021, serving as a Member of the Group Executive Board of UBS Group AG from 2016 to 2021. He was the President of Personal & Corporate Banking, President of UBS Switzerland from 2018 to 2021, and Group Chief Operating Officer from 2016 to 2017. Before joining UBS, Axel worked at Zurich Insurance Group Ltd. from 1996 to 2015. He was a Member of the Group Executive Committee from 2002 to 2015 and served as Group Chief Risk Officer from 2009 to 2015. Axel began his career at the Institute of Insurance Economics at the University of St. Gallen, where he served as Vice President, Head of Consulting and Management Development from 1990 to 1995. He holds a Ph.D. in Economics and Business Administration from the University of St. Gallen.
Prof. Miriam Meckel
Co-Founder & CEO, ada Learning
Sal Khan
Founder, Khan Academy
Sal Khan is the Founder and CEO of Khan Academy, a nonprofit educational organization, since 2008. Khan Academy has more than 145 million registered users and has been translated into more than 50 languages. Sal is also the Founder of Khan Lab School, Co-Founder of Schoolhouse.world, and Co-Founder of Khan World School, all of which are focused on making world-class, personalized mastery education accessible. In his book, The One World Schoolhouse, Sal outlines his vision for the future of education. He holds three degrees from MIT and an MBA from Harvard.
Lisa Yasko
Member of Parliament, Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine
Lisa Yasko is a member of the Ukrainian Parliament (Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine), where she serves as Head of Interparliamentary Cooperation, Bilateral and Multilateral Relations, and is a member of the Committee on Foreign Affairs. She is also a member of the Ukrainian delegation to the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) and served as Head of the Ukrainian delegation from 2019 to January 2021. In addition to her governmental roles, Ms. Yasko is the founder of Yellow Blue Strategy, an NGO that supports Ukraine's recovery and promotes the development of Ukraine's cultural diplomacy, creative economy, creative education, and public policy. Relatedly, she has over 10 years of experience advocating for Ukraine through public diplomacy projects abroad, including those that have received international awards such as Cannes Lions, Sabre, and others. In 2016, she was a scholar of the Caux Scholar Program, Initiative of Change, in Switzerland. From 2014 to 2015, Ms. Yasko was a scholar of the European Forum Alpbach and represented Ukraine at a Clinton Global Initiative University international young leaders program in 2014. Ms. Yasko was the first Ukrainian to earn a Master of Public Policy from the Blavatnik School of Government at the University of Oxford and served as President of the Oxford University Ukrainian Society from 2016 to 2017. In addition to her degree from Oxford, Ms. Yasko also holds an MA and BA in Political Science from the Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv.
Keith Enright
Chief Privacy Officer, Google
Keith Enright has been the Chief Privacy Officer of Google since 2011. He has over two decades of senior executive experience in data privacy/protection, information management, online advertising, and online and offline retail. His specialisations include, among others, information management, privacy program development and management, privacy law and policy compliance, and security compliance. Mr. Enright is a frequent public speaker and guest speaker at Harvard Law School’s Berkman Center for Internet and Society, Stanford Law School, and MIT. He holds a bachelor’s degree from the University of Massachusetts Amherst and a Juris Doctorate from The George Washington University Law School.
Peter Maurer
Fmr. President, International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC)
Peter Maurer is a Member of the Board of Trustees of the elea Foundation for Ethics in Globalization, President of the Board of the Basel Institute on Governance, and a leading voice internationally on humanitarian and related issues. He joined the Basel Institute in October 2022, after serving as President of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) for over ten years. Before joining the ICRC, Peter Maurer was the Swiss Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, in charge of five directorates and around 150 diplomatic missions around the world. Among other positions he held during his distinguished career with the Swiss diplomatic Service, Peter served as Ambassador and Permanent Representative to the United Nations in New York for five years, where he worked to integrate Switzerland into multilateral networks. Peter Maurer is a Member of the Advisory Council of the International Institute for Strategic Studies and a Member of the Board of Directors of Zurich Insurance. Peter Maurer holds a Ph.D. in History and International Law from the University of Bern.
Daniel Grieder
CEO, Hugo Boss
Daniel Grieder has served as CEO of Hugo Boss since 2021 and is also Chairman of the Management Board. As part of a new growth strategy, Greider is redefining Hugo Boss' brands to make them more relevant among young consumers and new markets and aspires to make Hugo Boss one of the top-100 global brands. Before assuming his current position, Grieder spent 23 years with Tommy Hilfiger and was CEO of Tommy Hilfiger Global and PVH Europe from 2014 to 2020, CEO and President of PVH Europe from 2013 to 2014, and CEO of Tommy Hilfiger Europe from 2008 to 2013.
Richard David Precht
Philosopher and Author
Richard David Precht is a German philosopher, author, television host, and podcaster. He is an Honorary Professor of Philosophy at Leuphana University of Lüneburg and an Honorary Professor of Philosophy and Aesthetics at Hanns Eisler University of Music in Berlin. His 2007 bestselling book “Who am I? And if so, how many?” was translated into 40 languages. Since 2012 he has been the host of the philosophy television series “Precht” on German TV channel ZDF and, since 2021, part of the popular podcast “Lanz & Precht” with journalist and talkshow-moderator Markus Lanz. Precht discusses current societal and political questions on both his television show and podcast. He holds a Ph.D. in German studies from the University of Cologne.
Thomas Buberl has been CEO and Director of AXA since 2016. He started his professional career at the Boston Consulting Group and held various executive positions on the management boards of AXA Group and several AXA sub-companies. Thomas Buberl is a member of the Supervisory Board of Bertelsmann and a member of the Directors and Corporate Governance Committee of IBM. Thomas Buberl holds a Ph.D. in Economics from the University of St.Gallen, a Master of Economics degree from WHU Koblenz (Germany), and an MBA from Lancaster University (UK). In 2022, Buberl joined the St. Gallen Symposium’s Board of Trustees.
Yasuhito Hirota
CEO, President, COO & Representative Director, ASICS Corporation
Yasuhito Hirota has been the President, CEO, COO, and Representative Director of ASICS since 2018. Previously, Yasuhito was Representative Director for Mitsubishi Corporation. He received an undergraduate degree from the School of Political Science & Economics at Waseda University.
Prof. Xue Lan
Cheung Kong Distinguished Chair Professor and the Dean of Schwarzman College, Tsinghua University
Xue Lan is an esteemed scholar who currently serves as the Cheung Kong Chair Distinguished Professor and Dean of Schwarzman College at Tsinghua University. He was previously the Dean of the School of Public Policy and Management at Tsinghua University from 2008 to 2018. Xue Lan is highly regarded for his expertise in public policy analysis, science and technology policy, crisis management, and global governance, and has published extensively on these topics. In addition to his academic work, Xue Lan has played a prominent role in Chinese government and international organizations. Among other roles, he is currently he Chair of the National Expert Committee on AI Governance, and a member of the National Committee for Strategic Consultation and Comprehensive Review. He also sits on the Advisory Group of STI Directory of OECD and serves as a Co-Chair of the Leadership Council of the UN Sustainable Development Solution Network (UNSDSN). Xue Lan has been recognized with numerous awards for his contributions to the field of public policy, including the Fudan Distinguished Contribution Award for Management Science and the Distinguished Contribution Award from the Chinese Association of Science of Science and S&T Policy. He holds a Ph.D. in Engineering and Public Policy from Carnegie Mellon University, has also taught at George Washington University, and is an adjunct professor at Carnegie Mellon University.
Gerald Butts
Vice-Chairman & Senior Advisor, Eurasia Group
Gerald Butts is the Vice Chairman and a senior advisor of the Eurasia Group. Prior to his current position, Gerald Butts served as Principal Secretary to the Prime Minister of Canada, Justin Trudeau, from 2015 to 2019, where he was responsible for providing executive direction on the government's agenda. From 1999 to 2008, he served as Policy Secretary and Principal Secretary to the Premier of Ontario and from 2008 to 2012 as CEO of WWF-Canada, where he was responsible for global projects to decarbonize the supply chains of multinational companies. He holds undergraduate and graduate degrees from McGill University.
Prof. Bernhard Ehrenzeller
President, University of St. Gallen
Bernhard Ehrenzeller has been President of the University of St.Gallen since 2020 and Full Professor for Public Law since 1997. Previously, he was Vice-President for Research at the University of St.Gallen from 2003 to 2011. Prof. Ehrenzeller is a member of various academic associations in Switzerland and abroad and has close connections to legal practice. Since 2011, he has held the post of judge at the State Court of the Principality of Liechtenstein.
Christina Keller
CEO, Cascade Engineering Family of Companies; President, Noble Polymers
Christina Keller is CEO of Cascade Engineering Family of Companies, a family-owned business based in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Cascade is internationally known for its Triple Bottom Line Report (People, Planet and Profit), inclusive culture, and community engagement. Chistina is also President of Noble Polymers. Noble Polymers is a custom compounder of plastic pellets and a valued partner within the circular economy with operations in West Michigan and Budapest, Hungary. The Institute of Scrap Recycling named Cascade Engineering’s EcoCart as its 2021 Design for Recycling Award Winner, which contains up to 50 percent recycled content. Keller is deeply involved in the Grand Rapids community and received the Equity Champion Award in 2022 for her efforts to bring greater health equity to all Grand Rapids residents. She has also delivered multiple TEDx talks on entrepreneurship and sustainable business. Keller holds an MBA from Cornell University, with a BA from Boston College.
Peter Voser
Chairman of the Board of Directors, ABB
Peter Voser has served as Chairman of the Board of Directors at ABB since 2015 and as Chairman of the St. Gallen Foundation for International Studies since 2013. Previously, Mr. Voser was CEO and Member of the Group Executive Committee of ABB from 2019 to 2020, CEO of Shell plc from 2009 to 2013, and its CFO from 2004 to 2009. Peter Voser is a Member of the Board of Directors of IBM Corporation, a Member of the Board of Temasek Holdings, and Group Chairman of the Board of Directors of its subsidiary PSA International Pte Ltd. From 2011-2019, he was a Member of the Board of Directors of Roche Holding Ltd., and from 2005-2010, a Member of the board of Directors of UBS AG. He holds a degree in Business Administration for the University of Applied Sciences, Zurich, Switzerland.
Aditya Ghosh
Founder, Homage Ventures
Aditya Ghosh is the Founder of Homage Ventures and currently sits on the Board of Directors of Fabindia - India’s largest retail platform; and OYO, one of the world’s leading hospitality chains with a presence across 80 countries. Most recently, he was the CEO at OYO Hotels & Homes- India & South Asia. Aditya is also one of the Founders of Ashoka University, a Member of the Circle of Sponsors, and a Member of the Advisory Board at the Centre for Creative Leadership, the world’s leading education provider in leadership development. Aditya has a keen interest in philanthropy and creating social impact in the areas of Education; Diversity & Inclusion; Health & Well-being; and Art & Culture.
Eric Li
Founder and Managing Partner, Chengwei Capital
Eunice Zehnder-Lai
Board Member, Julius Bär; DKSH Holding; Geberit
Prof. Jean-François Manzoni
President and Professor of Leadership and Organizational Development, IMD Business School
Anahita Thoms
Partner & Head of International Trade Practice in Germany, Baker McKenzie
Anahita Thoms heads Baker McKenzie's International Trade Practice in Germany and is the Global Lead Sustainability Partner for the Industrials, Manufacturing and Transportation Industry Group. She is a Board Member of Atlantik-Brücke, serves on the National Committee of Unicef Germany and advisory board member of the Sustainable Finance Council of the German Federal Government. Anahita has won various accolades for her work, including 100 Most Influential Women in German Business (manager magazin), International Trade Lawyer of the Year (Germany) at the Client Choice Awards and Young Global Leader of the World Economic Forum.
Prof. Manuel Ammann
Director, Swiss Institute of Banking and Finance, University St. Gallen
Prof. Manuel Ammann is a renowned scholar in finance, currently serving as a Professor of Finance and Director of the Swiss Institute for Banking and Finance at the University of St. Gallen. With a focus on derivatives, asset management, financial markets, and risk management, Prof. Ammann is widely recognized for his significant contributions to the field. In addition to his academic work, Prof. Ammann is a respected business leader, serving as the Chairman of the Board of Directors at Algofin AG and Neue Bank AG, as well as a member of the Board of Directors of the St. Galler Kantonalbank. Prof. Ammann holds an undergraduate degree in computer science from Simon Fraser University in British Columbia, and a doctorate in finance from the University of St. Gallen. He has also served as the Dean of the School of Finance at the University of St. Gallen and as a visiting professor at esteemed institutions such as New York University and the University of California-Berkeley.
Lord Brian Griffiths of Fforestfach
Conference Co-Chair, St. Gallen Symposium
Dominic Barton
Conference Co-Chair, St. Gallen Symposium
Dominic Barton is Conference Co-Chairman of the St. Gallen Symposium and has been Chair of the Board of Rio Tinto since 2022. Additionally, Mr. Barton is Chair of LeapFrog Investments and Chancellor of the University of Waterloo. Prior to his current roles, Mr. Barton served as Canadian Ambassador to the People's Republic of China from 2019-2021 and Global Managing Director of McKinsey & Company from 2009 – 2018. He holds a Master of Philosophy in Economics from Oxford University, where he studied as a Rhodes Scholar, and a Bachelor's degree in Economics from the University of British Columbia.
Fabienne Kinzelmann-Opel
Editor/International Correspondent, Handelszeitung
Fabienne Kinzelmann-Opel has been an editor and international correspondent for the Swiss newspaper Handelszeitung since 2022. Previously, she worked as a foreign editor at Ringier AG for four years, wrote for Blick and SonntagsBlick, was a live reporter for Blick TV, and authored a US-related newsletter on the most important topics of US politics. From 2006 to 2018, Fabienne Kinzelmann-Opel was an Independent Journalist for Der Spiegel, Frankfurter Allgemeine, and Deutsche Presse Agentur.
Andreas Brandstetter
President, Insurance Europe
Andreas Brandstetter is President of Insurance Europe, the European Insurance and reinsurance federation, and has been CEO of UNIQA Insurance Group AG since 2011. Prior to becoming CEO, Mr. Brandstetter held various management positions within UNIQA. Before entering the insurance business in 1997, he was head of the EU office of Österreichischer Raiffeisenverband. Andreas Brandstetter graduated from the University of Vienna in 1994 with a doctorate in political science and holds an Executive MBA from California State University, Hayward.
Cathy Desquesses
Group Chief HR Officer & Head of Corporate Services, Swiss Re
Raynald Aeschlimann
President & CEO, Omega
Florian Brokamp
Co-Founder & CEO, Thinksurance
Florian Brokamp is Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer at Thinksurance, a leading data analytics platform and technology consultant for Germany’s insurance sector. Mr. Brokamp and Thinksurance have received numerous awards, including CEO Today’s “Top CEO Global Award 2021” and Finance Monthly’s 2021 “Insurtech Firm of the Year”. In addition to his executive leadership, Mr. Brokamp is an active member in several entrepreneurial and mentorship/scholarship organisations. Before founding Thinksurance, he worked as a Senior Consultant for McKinsey. He holds degrees in Law and Business Administration from Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München.
Johannes Teyssen
Chairman of the Board of Directors, ALPIQ
Johannes Teyssen is a German business executive who has been Chairman of the Board of Directors at Alpiq since 2022. Before joining Alpqiq, he was the CEO and Chairman of the Management Board at E.ON SE from 2010 until April 2021 and served as the Chief Operating Officer and Deputy CEO at E.ON SE from 2007 to 2010. Additionally, Teyssen previously held executive positions at E.ON Energie Ltd., including CEO of the European Division from 2003 to 2007 and CFO from 2001 to 2003. Teyssen is also a Director at BP plc in London, Viridor plc in Taunton, United Kingdom, and a Senior Advisor at KKR plc in London. Teyssen holds a Juris Doctor Degree from the Georg August University of Goettingen, Germany, and studied Law and Economics at the Universities of Freiburg and Goettingen, Germany.
Kai Diekmann
Founder, Storymachine
Kai Diekmann is the Founder of Storymachine. For 15 years, Kai Diekmann was Editor-in-Chief of the German newspaper BILD, Germany's most highly circulated newspaper, with over one million copies sold daily. After leaving the Springer-Verlag in 2017, he co-founded Storymachine, a public relations agency in Berlin, as well as Der Zukunftsfonds, a digital asset management company. From 2010 to 2022, he was a Non-Executive Director at Times Newspaper Holdings Limited.
Vivien Jain has been CEO of Aquila AG since 2021 and previously served as Head of Legal Compliance & Risk for the firm from 2014 to 2021. Before joining Aquila, Vivien worked as a lawyer for Pwc in the Financial Regulatory Services department from 2010 to 2014. She holds a Master's in Law from the University of Lucerne, a CAS in Banking, Capital Market and Insurance Law from the University of Zürich, and completed the Swiss Fund Officer Course (Dipl. Swiss Fund Officer FA/IAF).
Klaus Wellershoff
CEO & President of the Board, Wellershoff & Partners
Klaus Wellershoff is the Chief Executive Officer, Chairman of the Board, and Partner of Wellershoff & Partners, an international consultancy firm focusing on global economics, financial markets, and comprehensive risk management that he founded in 2009. He was previously Chief Economist at the Swiss Bank Corporation and then at UBS from 1995 to 2009. Prof. Wellershoff teaches economics at the University of St. Gallen, Switzerland, and holds a number of foundation and board positions in science, culture and sport. Klaus Wellershoff studied economics and business administration at the University of St. Gallen, Switzerland, where he later obtained his Ph.D.
Ali Aslan
International TV Presenter & Journalist
Ali Aslan is an internationally renowned TV presenter and journalist with over 20 years of experience as a talk show host, news anchor, correspondent, and moderator. His journalistic career spans three continents and includes work for CNN in Washington DC, ABC News in New York, Channel News Asia in Istanbul, and Deutsche Welle TV in Berlin. Ali Aslan regularly moderates at high-level global conferences and has shared the stage with top world leaders, including Angela Merkel, Emmanuel Macron, Justin Trudeau, Christine Lagarde, and Bill Clinton.
Mai's Vault
Social Media Influencer and Entrepreneur
Mai Maxwell, known online as maisvault, is a family-oriented, first-generation Egyptian American social media influencer, comedic content creator, and international speaker. As of 2023, her Instagram has over one million followers, and her TikTok has over 2.2 million followers and over 85 million "likes". In addition to her social media presence, Mai hosts a podcast where she interviews some of the most well-known social influencers about their lives outside the limelight. She and her mother have also authored the cookbook, "Cooking with Mama Wafaa", which seeks to bring families together through traditional Egyptian cooking and make cooking easier for young adults.
Marco Alverà
CEO, Tree Energy Solutions (TES-H2)
Marco Alverà is CEO of Tree Energy Solutions (TES), a worldwide champion for green hydrogen and a disruptive innovator in the energy system that is developing the first world-class European Green Energy Hub in Wilhelmshaven, Germany. Before assuming his current position in 2022, Marco was CEO of Snam from 2016 to 2022, where he positioned the company as an international leader in green gas and green gas infrastructure. Between 2005 and 2015, Mr. Alverà held several senior positions at Eni, including Chief Retail Market Gas & Power. He is the author of The Hydrogen Revolution, selected as one of the FT’s best books of the year in 2021, and since 2017 he has been non-executive director of S&P Global, where he is also chair of the Finance Committee.
Prof. Mariana Valente
Professor, University St. Gallen; Associate Director, InternetLab
Mariana Valente is an Assistant Professor for International Economics Law at the University of St.Gallen and an Associate Director of InternetLab, a think tank based in São Paulo that fosters academic debate around human rights issues and internet policy. Prof Valente’s research focuses on the intersection of law, technology, and society, particularly in regulating the digital economy and fundamental rights in the online environment (with an emphasis on gender equality). Prof. Valente has also studied and/or conducted research at UC Berkeley, LMU Munich, and Yale Law School. In addition to her academic work, Prof. Valente is a member of the Brazilian Senate Commission for drafting an Artificial Intelligence regulation. She is a lawyer in Brazil and holds a bachelor's degree, master's degree, and Ph.D. in Law from the University of São Paulo.
Martin Reeves
Chairman, BCG Henderson Institute
Martin Reeves is chairman of the BCG Henderson Institute, BCG’s think tank dedicated to exploring and developing valuable new insights from business, technology, economics, and science by embracing the powerful technology of ideas. Martin is also a member of the BCG Henderson Institute's Innovation Sounding Board, which is dedicated to supporting, inspiring, and guiding upstream innovation at BCG. Martin is a regular contributor to HBR, MIT SMR, Fortune and other management journals on business strategy and management. A regular public speaker and a repeat
[email protected] presenter, Martin is co-author of The Imagination Machine, an executive’s guide to systematically harnessing imagination for corporate reinvention and rejuvenation. He holds an M.A. in Natural Sciences from the University of Cambridge and an MBA from the Cranfield School of Management.
Martina Fuchs
Business Correspondent, Xinhua News Agency
Martina Fuchs is an international TV Anchor, Business Journalist, Event Moderator, and Expert on China and the Middle East. Ms. Fuchs is currently a Europe Business Correspondent for the Chinese state news agency Xinhua, Commentator for China Radio International (CRI), International Consultant for the Lang Lang International Music Foundation, International Advisor for the St. Gallen Symposium, and Media Ambassador for the Montreux Jazz Festival China. Previously, Martina was a TV Anchor for CNNMoney Switzerland in Zurich, CGTN Senior Business Reporter in Beijing, and Reuters Economy Correspondent for the Gulf Arab region in Dubai. She holds a master's in international economic history from the University of Geneva, Switzerland, a Postgraduate Diploma in TV Journalism from the American University in Cairo, Egypt, and a Master of Science in Global Finance (MSGF) from the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST) and New York University (NYU) Stern Business School.
Veit Dengler
Founder, draw.solutions
Veit Dengler is the Founder and Managing Partner of Dengler Rauschütz Alderton Wagner Advisory, a specialized boutique advisory firm focusing on media, communications, entertainment, sports, and technology. Before founding Dengler Rauschütz Alderton Wagner Advisory in November 2022, Veit was a Visiting Fellow at the Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism at the University of Oxford for the first seven months of 2022 in recognition of his expertise and contributions to the field of journalism. An experienced executive, Veit previously served as the COO of Bauer Media Group (BMG) from 2019 to 2021, Chairman of the Digital News Innovation Fund Council at Google from 2016 to 2019, and CEO of NZZ-Mediengruppe from 2013 to 2017, where he oversaw the Swiss media group's operations. Additionally, he is the founder of NEOS, a centrist political party in Austria, and has been a member of the advisory board for the Uniqa Foundation, a non-profit organization that supports social projects in Central and Eastern Europe, since 2018. Veit holds an MPA in Public Administration from the Harvard Kennedy School and a Magister in Commerce from the Vienna University of Business and Economics.
Michelle Gibbons
Director General, European Brands Association
Michelle Gibbons has been the Director General of the European Brands Association (AIM), which represents manufacturers of branded consumer goods in Europe on key issues that affect their ability to design, distribute and market their brands, since January 2018. Previously, she was Senior Vice-President and Senior Partner of an advisory firm in Brussels. She has served on the Board of the American Chamber of Commerce to the EU and, in a personal capacity, supports the Dublin-based NGO Women for Election, which aims for a more balanced representation of women in Irish politics.
Mike Grandinetti
Faculty Director for Post Graduate Programme in Innovation Leadership, Brown University & Harvard
Mike Grandinetti is a faculty member at Brown, Harvard, and Rutgers and has been continuously active in the fields of innovation, entrepreneurship, human-centric design, and digital marketing since the beginning of his career in Silicon Valley. Mike has also been affiliated with MIT for over 20 years in various capacities, such as senior lecturer, judge, and instructor. Furthermore, he is part of the MIT Sloan CIO Symposium planning team and a panel moderator. In addition, he has numerous affiliations with UC Berkeley and many cross-Berkeley Innovation programs, most notably as a Program Development Fellow for the Sutardja Center of Entrepreneurship and Technology and as a faculty member and judge for the Engineering Leadership Professional Program. Outside of his academic roles, Mike has served as a C-level executive of 8 successful enterprise tech startups and raised over $1B cumulatively. Mike earned an MBA with distinction from Yale University and graduated magna cum laude from Rutgers University with a B.S. in Engineering.
Özge Aydoğan
Director, SDG Lab, UN Geneva
Özge Aydoğan was appointed as Director of the SDG Lab, led by the United Nations Office in Geneva (UNOG), in November 2022. Özge joined UNOG from the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation within the Swiss Ministry of Foreign Affairs, where she was in charge of multilateral affairs, including Switzerland's strategic partnership and institutional dialogue with UN Women. Before joining the Swiss Government, she worked at several UN organisations (i.e., UNICEF and UNDP) and international financial institutions (i.e., World Bank and European Bank for Reconstruction and Development). Özge is a Co-Creator of the Young UN policy lab on frontier issues and was awarded the Special Joseph Jaworski Next Generation Foresight Practitioners Prize in International Policy in 2018. She holds a Master's in International Affairs from the University of St. Gallen and a Master's in Sustainable Development from the University of Science Po in Paris.
Patrick Awuah
Founder & President, Ashesi University
Patrick Awuah is the Founder and CEO of Ashesi University in Ghana, which focuses on educating its students in ethical and entrepreneurial leadership and equipping them with compassion and courage to transform Africa. Before returning to Ghana and founding Ashesi University, he worked in the United States as a program manager for Microsoft. in 2017, Patrick Awuah was awarded the World Innovation Summit in Education Prize, recognising his outstanding contribution to education. Mr. Awuah holds an MBA from the University of California, Berkeley.
Péter Fankhauser
Co-Founder & CEO, ANYbotics
Péter Fankhauser is Co-Founder and CEO of ANYbotics, which was founded in 2016 as a spin-off from ETH Zurich with the goal to commercialise the technology behind the quadrupedal robot ANYmal. During his doctoral degree at ETH Zurich, Péter developed mapping, planning, and control strategies for legged robots to climb over rough terrain autonomously. In addition to his Ph.D. in Robotics from ETH Zurich, Péter holds an MSc in Robotics, Systems and Control and a Foundations for Business Leadership from IMD Business School.
John W. H. Denton
Secretary General, International Chamber of Commerce (ICC)
John W.H. Denton is the Secretary General of the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC). He is a global business leader and international advisor on policy and a legal expert on international trade and investment. In 2022, Mr Denton was appointed by United Nations Secretary General to represent the global private sector on the newly formed Steering Committee of the UN Global Crisis Response Group on Food, Energy and Finance. He currently serves on the WHO Foundation Strategic Advisory Group and the Global Task Force on Refugee Labour Mobility and is currently chair of the UN Business and Human Security Initiative of the London School of Economics and Political Science’s foreign policy think tank LSE IDEAS. A former diplomat, Mr Denton co-led the Australian Government’s 2012 White Paper on “Australia in the Asian Century” and previously chaired the APEC Finance and Economics Working Group.
Pranjal Sharma
Economic Analyst, Advisor, and Author
Pranjal Sharma is an economic analyst, advisor, and author who focuses on technology, globalisation and media. Pranjal leads public discourse at global and national platforms, including the World Economic Forum (WEF), where he is a member of their Expert Network and served as a member of the Global Agenda Council for eight years. Currently, Sharma is a columnist with Business Standard newspaper and BusinessWorld magazine, among other publications. He has over 25 years of experience in economic and business reporting, mostly in leadership roles with India Today Group, Times of India Group, CNBC Network 18, and Bloomberg UTV India. His new book is India Automated: How the Fourth Industrial Revolution Transforming India.
Russell Napier
Market Strategist and Historian
Russell Napier is Chairman of the Mid Wynd International Investment Trust and a Member of the Investment Advisory Committees of three fund management companies, Cerno Capital, Kennox Asset Management, and Bay Capital. He is a Fellow of the CFA Society of the UK and an Honorary Professor at both Heriot-Watt University and The University of Stirling. In 2014, Russell Napier founded the charitable venture The Library of Mistakes, a business and financial history library in Edinburgh with branches in India and Switzerland. Furthermore, he is the author of “The Solid Ground Newsletter” investment report for institutional investors, Co-Founder of the investment research portal ERIC, and the author of two books: “Anatomy of The Bear: Lessons From Wall Street’s Four Great Bottoms” and “The Asian Financial Crisis 1995–98: Birth of the Age of Debt”. Russell has degrees in law from Queen’s University Belfast and Magdalene College Cambridge.
Vaitea Cowan
Co-Founder & Head of Communications, Enapter
Vaitea Cowan is the Co-Founder and Head of Communications of Enaper, a global energy tech company that manufactures AEM electrolysers to produce green hydrogen through electrolysis. In 2020, she was on the Forbes 30 under 30 Energy list. In 2021, Enapter was one of five winners of the inaugural Earthshot Prize, which seeks to support the most innovative solutions to the challenges posed by climate change. Vaitea holds a Bachelor of Commerce in Marketing with a minor in International Business from Concordia University.
Jan Goetz
Co-Founder & CEO, IQM Quantum Computers
Jan Goetz is a quantum physicist and co-founding CEO of IQM Quantum Computers (IQM), building next-generation quantum computers. Jan is on the Board of the European Innovation Council (EIC), the European Quantum Industry Consortium QuIC, a member of the German Federal Economic Senate (Bundeswirtschaftssenat), and a Digital Leader and Global Innovator at the WEF. In 2020, Capital magazine selected him as one of 40 under 40 in Germany, and he received the prestigious entrepreneurship award from the KAUTE Foundation. Jan holds a Ph.D. from TU Munich, where he did his doctorate on superconducting quantum circuits, and worked as a Marie-Curie Fellow in Helsinki at Aalto University, where he holds the title of docent.
Fridtjof Detzner
Co-Founder & General Partner, Planet A
Fridtjof Detzner is a co-founder and general partner of Planet A Ventures, an impact investment firm that provides early-stage financing and mentoring to highly scalable green technology startups while tracking and projecting their positive environmental impact. He is also the founder and a current board member of Jimdo, a website construction kit that has enabled more than 25 million people to create their own websites, and a Member of the Sustainable Finance Committee of the German government since 2022. In 2017, Fridtjof shot a ten-part TV documentary with "Deutsche Welle" documenting the world's progress toward achieving the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The harsh reality of the climate crisis and human-caused environmental deterioration that he witnessed while making this documentary motivated him to devote his time and energy towards sustainability.
Thomas Bergen
Co-Founder & CEO, getAbstract
Thomas Bergen has been Co-Founder and CEO of getAbstract since 1998, a multinational company providing compressed business knowledge to managers and corporations worldwide. From 1993-1999, Thomas was Managing Director at Migros Bank, and since 2002, he has been a Member of the Board of Trustees and Advisory Council of Einsiedeln Monastery. From 2007-2014, Thomas was a member of the Executive Board and President of the Swiss Management Society, and he has been a Member of Swisscontact's Board of Trustees since 2016. In 2020, Thomas founded the non-profit and non-partisan foundation Hope Now, promoting carbon fees that directly yield carbon dividends to citizens.
Lin Yue
Executive Director, Goldman Sachs Asset Management
Lin Yue has been an Executive Director on the UK institutional business team in Goldman Sachs Asset Management since 2014. She is an industry advocate for enhancing cultural understanding, female leadership, and diversity and inclusion within Goldman Sachs and across the broader business community. Previously, she chaired the prestigious 48 Group Young Icebreakers, leading many high-profile events, including the inaugural Young Icebreakers China event in Beijing. In recognition of her work (among others), she was included in the HERoes 100 Women Future Leaders List for 2021 and 2020 and the EMpower Ethnic Minority 50 Future Leaders list for 2019. Lin holds an MSc in Experimental Psychology from Oxford University with a special focus on Behavioural Finance.
Martin Hecker
Founder & CEO, AmaliTech
Martin Hecker is the Founder of AmaliTech, an innovative, social business that connects highly skilled African digital experts with European companies to address the skills shortage and create sustainable employment opportunities for Africa’s youth. Additionally, with Mark Maass and Urich Busch, Hecker founded the Digital Skills Accelerator Africa (DSAA) e.V. at the end of 2019 to build an extensive business network with companies that create training programmes and long-term jobs in the digital sector in Africa. Before founding AmaliTech in 2019, Martin was a Partner at BCG from 2004 - 2020, and CEO of NEORIS, a global innovation consulting company, from 2000 to 2004. He holds a master's degree from the University of Cologne and a degree from RWTH Aachen University.
Prof. Gudrun Sander
Co-Director, Competence Centre for Diversity and Inclusion, University of St. Gallen
Gudrun Sander is a Professor of Business Administration and Senior Lecturer with a special emphasis on Diversity Management. She is currently the Director of the Competence Centre for Diversity and Inclusion (CCDI) and the Research Institute for International Management (FIM) at the University of St. Gallen (HSG). For the past three decades, she has been committed to diversity, equity, and inclusion in research, practice, teaching, and further education. Gudrun initiated the St. Gallen Diversity Benchmarking and the Gender Intelligence Report and launched the management training “Women Back to Business”. In addition to her work at HSG, Gudrun is a member of the Women’s Empowerment Principles Leadership Group (WEPs LG) of UN Women and UN Global Compact, as well as of the Principles for Responsible Management Education (PRME) Working Group for Gender Equality. Gudrun Sander completed her Ph.D. at the University of St. Gallen in 1997 and received the Recognition Award of the Swiss Society for Organisation and Management (SGO) for her dissertation in 1998.
Tycho Onnasch
General Manager, Trust Machines
Tycho Onnasch is Co-Founder of Zest Protocol, an on-chain Bitcoin capital market offering BTC loans for institutional borrowers, and since 2021, General Manager of Trust Machines, which seeks to turn Bitcoin into the settlement layer for the internet of value. Additionally, he is the Co-Founder and, from 2017 – 2021, was the COO of Deedmob, an Amsterdam-based startup that helps organisations and governments to mobilise volunteers. In 2020, Deedmob was used by millions of people and governments globally mobilising communities to fight the pandemic. He also sits on the Amsterdam Economic Board to make Amsterdam one of the world’s most innovative regions. Tycho Onnasch is also an experienced Moderator and served on the governing body of the Oxford Union Debating Society. He holds a Bachelor’s degree from the University of Oxford and has been a St. Gallen Leader of Tomorrow since 2019.
Prof. Julia Binder
Professor of Sustainable Innovation and Business Transformation, IMD Business School
Julia Binder is Professor of Sustainable Innovation and Business Transformation at IMD Business School. She specializes in the intersection between sustainability and innovation. As Director of IMD’s Center for Sustainable and Inclusive Business, she aims to help business leaders find radical and innovative solutions to some of the biggest challenges of our time. Prior to joining IMD in 2021, Binder was Deputy to the Vice President for Innovation at École polytechnique fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) and led the school’s sustainability initiative Tech4Impact. In recognition of her work, Binder was named on the 2022 Thinkers50 Radar list of management thinkers to watch in the coming year. Binder received her Ph.D. summa cum laude from the Technical University of Munich for her thesis on sustainable entrepreneurship, and she continues to research the topic at IMD.
Andreas Neus
Managing Director & Vice President, Nuremberg Institute for Market Decisions
Andreas Neus has been the Managing Director and Vice President of the Nuremberg Institute for Market Decisions (NIM) as well as founder and anchor shareholder of GfK since October 2018. As a non-profit research institute, NIM examines how market decisions taken by consumers and marketers are changing in an increasingly digital world and how the quality of market decisions can be improved. Before joining NIM, Andreas Neus headed the Service Innovation Lab at KIT's Karlsruhe Service Research Institute and was the Media & Entertainment EMEA lead at IBM's think-tank Institute for Business Value in Amsterdam.
Sunnie Groeneveld
CEO & Founder, Inspire 925
Sunnie J. Groeneveld is an entrepreneur, board member, author, and speaker. She is the Founder and Managing Partner of the consultancy Inspire 925 as well as a board member of five medium-sized companies in Switzerland and the Associate Dean of Studies of the Executive MBA Digital Leadership at the HWZ University of Applied Sciences in Zurich. Previously, she worked as the first Managing Director of digitalswitzerland, Switzerland’s largest cross-industry initiative on digital transformation. Moreover, she is the author of the book “Inspired at Work” (Versus Publishing House), was named as one of the “Top 100 Women in Business”, appeared in the list “Top 50 Who is Who in Digital Switzerland” by Handelszeitung as well as in the “30 under 30” list of Forbes magazine. Sunnie graduated in Economics from Yale University.
Prof. Simon Evenett
Professor of International Trade and Economic Development, University of St. Gallen
Prof. Heike Bruch
Director of the Institute for Leadership and HR Management, University of St. Gallen
Philippe Narval
Director, SQUARE, University of St. Gallen
Kristina Lunz
Co-CEO, Centre for Feminist Foreign Policy
Kristina Lunz is co-founder and co-director of the Centre for Feminist Foreign Policy gGmbH, an award-winning human rights activist and former advisor to the German Foreign Office. She was named one of the 30 under 30 (in Europe and DACH) by Forbes, is Handelsblatt/BCG "Thought Leader 2020", Focus Magazine "100 Women of the Year 2020", and was awarded "Young Elite - Top 40 under 40" by Capital Magazine, Additionally, she is an Atlantik Brücke Young Leader, Ashoka Fellow as well as a BMW Foundation Responsible Leader. Her book "The Future of Foreign Policy is Feminist" was published by Econ/Ullstein Verlag in February 2022. She holds a bachelor's degree in psychology, as well as a master's degree in global governance and ethics from University College London and another master's degree from the University of Oxford in Global Governance and Diplomacy. After graduation, she worked for the United Nations in Myanmar and for an NGO in Colombia, among others. Kristina Lunz has (co-)initiated several activist campaigns such as "No means No" and a campaign against sexism in the Bild newspaper.
Marcus Kink
Professional Ice Hockey Player
Marcus Kink is a former German professional ice hockey player who played 17 seasons in the Deutsche Eishockey Liga (DEL), Germany's highest hockey league. Kink is best known as a left-wing player of Adler Mannheim, where he played from 2004 to 2019 and served as captain from 2010 until his retirement. Additionally, he has represented the German National Ice Hockey Team in numerous IIHF World Championships and tournaments and won a silver medal in the 2018 Winter Olympic Games.
Sandra Klein
Partner, Dr. Bjørn Johansson Associates AG
Sandra Klein has been a Partner at Dr. Björn Johansson Associates AG (BJA), a global board advisory firm located in Zurich, since January 2022. BJA has been passionately connecting outstanding Leaders for 30 years. Prior to joining BJA, Sandra gained valuable experience in various positions with Mercedes-Benz AG and Daimler AG, including Chief of Staff to the Executive Vice President of Mercedes-Benz Sales & Marketing and Director of Retail Business Development. In 2000, Sandra graduated from the University of Stuttgart with a degree in business and economics. Currently, she is completing her Executive MBA at the University of St. Gallen in Switzerland.
Prof. Tomas Casas i Klett
Director, China Competence Center, University of St. Gallen
Tomas Casas i Klett is a professor at the University of St. Gallen’s (HSG) Research Institute for International Management (FIM) and Director of Director the China Competence Center whose research connects the new institutional realities, business models, and the technology trends of the 4th Industrial Revolution. He is also the Index Director and co-author with Prof. Guido Cozzi of the influential Elite Quality Index (EQx2022), which provides a unique dataset for academic research, original insight on the human and economic development trajectories of nations, and an applied benchmark for elite transformational leadership. He frequently leads international executive education programmes and courses at leading business schools in China, including Tsinghua SEM, Fudan University FDSM, and Shanghai Jiaotong University Antai. He also works in close collaboration with leading European firms on the St.Gallen Top Team (SGTT) model, aimed at discerning the links between teamwork variables and high firm performance. Tomas graduated with honors from the Wharton School of Business at the University of Pennsylvania, obtaining in parallel a Japanese language degree from Sophia University in Tokyo. He later earned a Master of Science in Management degree at Fudan University in Shanghai and a Ph.D. in economics at the University of St. Gallen.
Aiko Doden
Senior Commentator & Senior Producer, NHK (Japan Broadcasting Corporation)
Aiko Doden is currently Special Affairs Commentator on international affairs and Senior Director at NHK World TV, Japan’s public broadcaster. In this capacity, she hosts “NHK World Newsline In Depth” and comments on global affairs with a focus on sustainable growth, global health, gender, education, and human rights. Aiko is a globally recognized figure in television and broadcasting with over three decades of experience in journalism, covering events from the Great East Japan Earthquake and Tsunami evacuation shelters to international summit meetings to the release of Aung San Suu Kyi. In addition to her roles at NHK, Aiko is a Member of the Thomson Reuters Founders Share Company Board of Directors, the IISS International Institute for Strategic Studies, the UNESCO Mahatma Gandhi Institute of Education for Peace and Sustainable Development Board of Governors, the Japanese Foreign Ministry’s Development Projects Accountability Committee, and the Japanese National Commission for UNESCO. She holds a master’s in international relations from Columbia University and a bachelor’s in foreign studies from Sophia University, Tokyo.
Prof. Guido Cozzi
Professor of Macroeconomics, University of St. Gallen
Guido Cozzi is a Full Professor of Macroeconomics at the HSG’s School of Economics and Political Science, where he has been teaching since 2012. Before joining HSG, he held positions at Durham University (UK), University of Glasgow (UK), University of Rome “La Sapienza” (IT), and Cornell University (USA). With an outstanding publication record, his research has been published in leading journals such as the Journal of Political Economy, the American Economic Review, the Review of Economics and Statistics, the Economic Journal, the Journal of Economic Growth, the Journal of the European Economic Association, the Journal of Economic Theory, and more. Prof. Cozzi has supervised many undergraduate and postgraduate students, with several being awarded prestigious prizes. He has also been awarded several research grants and has consulting experience for top institutions and industry associations. Prof Cozzi's research and teaching activities focus on the fields of Macroeconomics, Economic Growth, and Development Economics. He holds a Ph.D. in Economics from New York University and has expertise in Economic Growth, Monetary Economics, Political Economy, Economics of Innovation, IPRs, Dynamic Modeling, and Quantitative Research.
Prof. Naomi Häfner
Assistant Professor for Technology Management, University of St. Gallen
Naomi Häfner is an Assistant Professor of Technology Management at the University of St. Gallen. She has held this position since August 2019 and has been with the university for over nine years. Prior to her current role, Naomi was a Postdoctoral Researcher and Lecturer in Management and a Research Associate at the university. She has also worked as a Research Assistant at the university and as a Design Thinking Researcher for FIFA. Naomi's research interests include open innovation, strategic management, and entrepreneurship. She has conducted field studies in several countries around the world, including the United States, Uruguay, Ethiopia, Comoros, Germany, Czech Republic, India, Bhutan, Cambodia, and Switzerland. Naomi holds a Ph.D. in Strategy and Management, a Master of Arts in Business Innovation, and a Bachelor of Arts in Business Administration, all from the University of St. Gallen.
Stephan Lendi
Speaker and Moderator
Prof. Johanna Gollnhofer
Managing Director, Institute for Marketing and Customer Insight, University of St. Gallen
Johanna Gollnhofer is an Associate Professor of Marketing and the Managing Director of the Institute for Marketing and Customer Insight at the University of St. Gallen (IMC-HSG), where she also serves as Associate Dean for Quality Development. She is an expert in qualitative approaches, particularly ethnography, in consumer research and focuses on future topics in the retail and healthcare industry and the sharing economy. Her research has been published in various international journals, including the Journal of Consumer Research, the Journal of Business Research, and the Journal of Public Policy & Marketing. Previously, she was an Assistant Professor of Marketing at the University of Southern Denmark from 2016 to 2019 and a visiting doctoral and postdoctoral researcher at Aalto University (Helsinki, Finland) from 2015 to 2016. She holds a Ph.D. in Marketing and Customer Insights from the University of St. Gallen and obtained a Master of Science in Business Administration and a bachelor’s in international cultural business studies from the University of Passau.
Prof. Damian Borth
Professor for Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning, University of St. Gallen
Prof. Damian Borth is an accomplished scholar in Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning (AIML), currently serving as the director of the Institute of Computer Science at the University of St.Gallen. His research focuses on large-scale machine learning to mine insights from multi-modal data streams for trustworthy utilization of Artificial Intelligence (AI) through accountability of deep neural networks. Prior to his current position, Prof. Borth was the founding director of the Deep Learning Competence Center at the German Research Center for Artificial Intelligence (DFKI) in Kaiserslautern, where he was also PI of the NVIDIA AI Lab at DFKI. Prof. Borth is an active board member of the German Data Science Society, the advisory committee of the Roman Herzog Institute, the board of Sociovestix Labs Ltd, the advisory board of Avobis Data AG, and the advisory board of the HSG Institute of Behavior Science & Technology. He has also been involved in several steering and program committees of international conferences and workshops. Prof. Borth received his Ph.D. from the University of Kaiserslautern and the German Research Center for Artificial Intelligence (DFKI), and did his postdoctoral research at the International Computer Science Institute (ICSI) in Berkeley, where he was involved in big data projects at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory. During that time, Prof. Borth also stayed as a visiting researcher at the Digital Video and Multimedia Lab at Columbia University.
Priya Ragu
Singer & Songwriter
Ali Miraj
Broadcaster and Commentator
Ali Miraj is a Managing Director in Infrastructure Finance at ING, financing major infrastructure assets across Europe. He regularly appears on leading British television and radio shows, including BBC News and Times Radio, to provide commentary on politics and international affairs. Ali Miraj was elected as a Councillor and stood for Parliament in both the 2001 and 2005 UK general elections for the Conservative Party. From 2005 – 2007, he served as a Board Member on both the Conservative Party’s Policy Commissions on Quality of Life and International and National Security. Ali Miraj is a national Vice President of CPRE, a Board Member of the London Institute of Banking and Finance, and a Liveryman of the Worshipful Company of International Bankers.
Prof. Claudia Franziska Brühwiler
Professor of American Political Thought and Culture, University of St. Gallen
Claudia Franziska Brühwiler is a Professor of American Political Thought and Culture at the University of St. Gallen. Her research interests encompass a broad range of topics including American politics, society, and culture, with a particular focus on issues such as race, gender, sexuality, literature, and popular culture. She is an accomplished scholar who has published extensively in academic journals and edited volumes, and her work has received numerous awards and honors, including the prestigious Dr. Rudolf-Mäder-Preis from the University of St. Gallen. Brühwiler has also held visiting positions at institutions such as the Clinton Institute for American Studies at University College Dublin and the University of Virginia. In February 2023, she will begin a part-time role as a Visiting Professor at Keio University. Brühwiler holds a Venia legendi in American Studies from the University of St. Gallen, where she was awarded the highest distinction, "summa cum laude," for her habilitation thesis on Ayn Rand's Europe and her habilitation lecture on color-blind racism in popular culture. She also earned a Ph.D. in political science from the same institution, where she received the same distinction for her dissertation on political initiation in the novels of Philip Roth. Additionally, Brühwiler has completed a CAS in Higher Education Didactics from the University of St. Gallen and studied for an exchange semester at Sciences Po in Paris.
Prof. James Davis
Director of the Institute for Political Science, University of St. Gallen
Ulrike Zimmermann
Project Manager, ZEIT Verlagsgruppe
Clémentine Robert
Project Manager Sustainability Curriculum Development, University of St. Gallen
Clémentine Robert joined the Sustainability & Responsibility team at IWÖ in August 2021. In her new position as Project Manager for Curriculum Development, she is working closely with Prof. Walls to embed sustainability into courses across institutes, programmes and education levels at the University of St.Gallen. Clémentine will contribute to the HSG vision and Roadmap 2025 to “inspire people acting in an ethical and socially responsible manner” and “take up a leadership position in finding solutions to socially-relevant problems”. Clémentine’s aim is to ensure that HSG prepares the next generation of business leaders and citizens to solve the current and upcoming social and environmental challenges. As former president of oikos International, Clémentine will leverage her local and international experiences as well as her network in the field of sustainability in higher education to help transform the curriculum at HSG. In parallel, she will pursue her studies as a PhD. student at the HSG in the field of sustainable leadership, under the supervision of Prof. Walls.
Jochen Andritzky
Co-Founder, Zukunft-Fabrik.2050
Jochen Andritzky is the Co-Founder and Director of Zukunfts-Fabrik.2050, which focuses on making long-term thinking the basis for political, economic, and societal decision-making. Previously, Mr. Andritzky was Senior Economist at the International Monetary Fund and Secretary General at the German Council of Economic Experts. Currently, he is a Member of the New Bretton Woods Group of the Peterson Institute PIIE as well as the Next Green Macro Group at Bruegel. Mr. Andritzky lectures on macroeconomics at the University of St. Gallen.
Anne Snick
Member of the Club of Rome
John Gilmour
Member of the Club of Rome
Raad Sharar
Programme Coordinator, The Club of Rome
Cyril Flaig
Head of the International Students' Committee
Deborah Walt
Head of the International Students' Committee
Leo Legler
Head of the International Students' Committee
Linn Ehrbar
Member of the International Students' Committee