Tamsin Rose is a facilitator, speaker and trainer interested in sparking new ideas to address big societal challenges. With three decades of experience in communications, advocacy and network building, her clients range from small non-profits to international institutions and everything in between. She led a European platform of public health NGOs, managed an EU programme to twin cities in the west and eastern Europe and now connects citizen experience to the Brussels policy bubble.

Sophia Eriksson Waterschoot is Director for Youth, Education and Erasmus+ at the European Commission's Directorate General for Education, Youth, Sport and Culture. She is in charge of European cooperation on higher education, schools and youth policy, including Europe's flagship programmes, Erasmus+ and the European Solidarity Corps. She has previously held various positions within the European Commission in the field of strategy and investment in education, labour market policy, European Semester and European cohesion funds. In addition, she studied economics, business, political science and EU affairs in Sweden, France and Belgium, including an Erasmus student exchange.

Manuela Geleng works for the European Commission, where she is currently the Director for Jobs and Skills in the Directorate-General for Employment, Social Affairs and Inclusion. She is responsible for Future of Work-related activities, Youth Employment, the implementation of the Skills Agenda and Vocational Education and Training policies. She holds an MSc in Financial Economics from the University of London and a Master in Public Administration and Management from the Solvay Business School (Brussels). She completed her postgraduate studies at the Diplomatic Academy in Vienna.

Vanessa de Oliveira Andreotti is a professor at the Department of Educational Studies at the University of British Columbia (UBC). She holds a Canada Research Chair in Race, Inequalities and Global Change, the David Lam Chair in Critical Multicultural Education, and is the interim director of the Peter Wall Institute for Advanced Studies at the University of British Columbia. Professor Vanessa Andreotti’s research examines historical and systemic inequalities in reproduction patterns and how these limit or enable possibilities for collective existence and global change. She is one of the co-founders of the Gesturing Towards Decolonial Futures Arts/Research collective (decolonialfutures.net), whose work is the basis of her latest book Hospicing Modernity: Facing humanity's wrongs and the implications for social activism. Find out more

Laura Ferro first met ADN – Archivio diaristico nazionale di Pieve Santo Stefano in 2014, as a doctoral student of Philology and Italian literature working on autobiography and autofiction in women writers’ novels. After that, she collaborated on several projects led by ADN, exploring the self-writings of the Italian diaspora, the Second World War, women in politics, migrants, and refugees. Many of these projects led to the realization of websites, conferences, and publications. Find out more

Aline Sierp is Associate Professor in European Studies at Maastricht University. Her research interests cover collective memory, questions of identity and European integration. Before joining the University of Maastricht, Aline Sierp worked as a researcher at the Dachau Concentration Camp Memorial Site, where she was responsible for human rights education in the international office. She has published widely on memory and identity issues. Aline is the co-founder and co-president of the Memory Studies Association. Find out more

Dineke Stam is an independent researcher, historian and curator (imhp.eu), graduated in History at the University of Amsterdam. She loves Life Long Learning while meeting up with people. She has worked at the Anne Frank house and headed the Intercultural Programmes for the Dutch heritage sector at the Netherlands museum association before becoming self-employed. Her fields of expertise are gender and women’s history, WWII and Shoah as well as the history of colonialism and slavery. Find out more

Maija Meiere-Osa is a researcher and curator of educational work at Žanis Lipke memorial in Riga. She is a history and social sciences teacher by education, and she has worked in schools for a short time, but her heart belongs to the museum field. Maija started her carrier in her hometown's museum in Liepaja back in 2006. Since that, she has been a museum professional. Find out more

Micaela Casalboni is an actress, a theatre teacher responsible for international and intercultural projects and co-art director of Teatro dell’Argine, the Italian theatre company she helped to found in 1994 in San Lazzaro di Savena (Bologna). Keywords of the TdA’s work, both on a local and on an international level: theatre as an open, safe and third space, and as a tool for dialogue and relationship between generations, cultures, communities, genders, disciplines, sectors. Find out more

Christin Cieslakis is head of Programmes and Stakeholder Engagement at EAEA. Gerontology and Adult Education/Lifelong learning graduate from Germany, with deep knowledge and working experience in transnational cooperation on a European level. She has worked for four national Agencies, assessed LLLP and E+ applications for over ten years, and was the EPALE CSS project manager. Find out more

İlayda Eskitaşçıoğlu is a feminist human rights lawyer, an attorney-at-law, a youth activist and a PhD researcher specializing in international human rights law at Koç University in Istanbul, Turkey. She is the co-founder of We Need to Talk, which is an NGO fighting against period poverty and menstruation stigma. She has served as a member of the UN Women Generation Equality Youth Task Force, and she is one of the 17 Young Leaders for the SDGs endorsed by the United Nations. Find out more

Xavier Rambla is an Associate Professor of Sociology at the Autonomous University of Barcelona. He has participated in research on lifelong learning policies in the European Union, the Civil Society Education Fund, and Education for All in Latin America. Rambla is co-convenor of the education policy network of the European Educational Research Association. He has been a short-term guest lecturer in the areas of social science and education at different universities in Europe and Latin America. Find out more

Hanna Toiviainen is a Professor of Adult Education at the Faculty of Education and Culture, Tampere University, Finland. Her research focuses on learning in and for change at work, learning networks and spaces, and pedagogic interventions for enhancing expansive learning. In the EduMap project Adult Education as a Means to Active Participatory Citizenship (Horizon 2020), she co-edited the book Young Adults and Active Citizenship: Towards Social Inclusion Through Adult Education (Springer 2021). Find out more

Nika Kovač is the founding director of the 8th of March Research Institute, a movement-building organization that uses storytelling and advocacy to confront gender and economic inequalities across Slovenia. Under her leadership, the 8th of March Research Institute’s advocacy campaigns successfully initiated the legal redefinition of rape in Slovenia, enforcing a new legal precedent for the "yes means yes" consent model and leading the biggest "Go out and vote" campaign in the history of the country. Find out more

Biliana Sirakova has worked for the European Commission since 2010. In her role as the EU Youth Coordinator she aims to strengthen cooperation between Commission services on youth issues and to integrate the youth perspective into all relevant EU policies. Biliana's educational background is in economics and management. She has eighteen years of professional experience across the public, private and non-profit sectors. Biliana's work has revolved around building and managing relationships with diverse stakeholders and communicating for impact and learning. Find out more

Myriam Zekagh is coordinator of the Youth Movement & Campaign Accelerator (YMCA) project, led by European Alternatives: she works with young activists and partner organisations throughout Europe to create a space of learning and practice around organising community building and political activism. Because she believes that decisions are made by those who show up, she focuses on supporting democratic participation in any way possible. Find out more

Jon Harding currently works as the international and education projects manager at Bridgwater and Taunton College. He is also the UK national representative in the EfVET Steering Group Committee and the Vice chairman/Treasure for LLLP. He has over 23 years of experience in vocational education and training. His primary responsibility is to develop and manage all key actions for international and national projects for all curriculum areas across the college's three main campuses. In recent years, he has been involved with coordinating working groups on the impact and developments of mobility for staff and students, both pre COVID-19 and during the pandemic. Find out more

Fabrice Jaumont is a scholar-practitioner, award-winning author, non-profit leader, and education advisor based in New York. He currently serves as Education Attaché for the Embassy of France to the United States, a Research Fellow at Fondation Maison des Sciences de l’Homme in Paris, and an adjunct professor both at New York University and Baruch College. He is President of the Center for the Advancement of Languages, Education, and Communities, a nonprofit publishing organization based in New York and Paris. In addition, he has published seven books on bilingualism and education, philanthropy and higher education, and cinematography. Jaumont holds a PhD in Comparative and International Education from New York University. Find out more

Wilma Greco is a PhD in Humanities with a paper about life in prison and inmates’ resilience. She is currently a teacher in a prison school in Agrigento (Italy) and volunteers for cultural and artistic activities involving detainees. She is an EPALE Ambassador and role model for the resilience stories of people in prison. Regarding education, she got a specialization diploma in the Sociology of deviance, two Master's Degrees in teaching students with special educational needs, and a Degree in Foreign Languages and cultures. Find out more

Eleni Zenonos is a Project Manager and a translator at the Center for Social Innovation (CSI), where she manages Erasmus+ projects. She holds a BA in Psychology from the University of Cyprus and an MSc in Research Methods in Psychology from the University of Warwick, amongst other qualifications. She is an experienced researcher and data analyst; she is also a qualified English as a Foreign Language (EFL) teacher. Her research interests include but are not limited to emotional intelligence, sustainability, education, teaching methodologies, mental health and wellbeing, innovation, creativity and psychology. Find out more

Puk Witte is a consultant at Sardes (educational services and consultancy) and was in the period 2019-2022 part-time project manager for Stichting ABC. ABC is a volunteer organisation run by and for (former) low-literate people. The goal of her project was to build a local and sustainable network of low-literacy experts by experience (also called: “language ambassadors”) in 14 places across the Netherlands, mostly with municipalities. Find out more

Diana Spiridon works in the European Commission since 2009, and currently leads the Adult Skills team in the Skills Agenda Unit in DG Employment, Social Affairs and Inclusion. Her team works with the Member States, social partners and other stakeholders to open up learning opportunities for adults in Europe, empower them to learn and help them upgrade their skills. Her previous work in the Commission includes policy and funds management in employment, vocational education and training and adult learning. Find out more

Marcella Milana is an Associate Professor at the University of Verona and an Honorary Professor of Adult Education at the University of Nottingham. She researches the politics, policy and governance of adult education and learning from comparative and global perspectives, including in multi-scalar systems like the European Union. Moreover, she is vice-chair of the European Society for the Education of Adults (ESREA) and editor-in-chief of the International Journal of Lifelong Education. Find out more

Pauline Boivin has worked on education and training policies and projects for the past 5 years. She has a multidisciplinary and international background coming from both studies and work experience. She is currently involved in 4 EU-funded projects on the topics of validation of transversal competences, impact measurement, and LLL policies. Pauline holds a master’s degree in European Affairs from the Institute of Political Science in Lille, France. Find out more

Giovanni Emanuele Corazza is a Full Professor at the Alma Mater Studiorum University of Bologna, President of the Fondazione Guglielmo Marconi, and founder of the Marconi Institute for Creativity (MIC), Member of the Board of the International Society for the Study of Creativity and Innovation (ISSCI). His research interests are focused on developing the Dynamic Creativity Framework and the relationship between intelligence and creativity. Find out more

Letizia Rompelberg is creative director at Zout, situated in Breda, the Netherlands. Zout is a cultural company that develops artistic theatre projects around social themes. The work is co created with the target groups, aiming to tell real stories from different perspectives. The performers are real people, thus creating a sincere atmosphere. The projects involve storytelling and theatre training. Performances typically take place outside of the theatre buildings: the stage can be anywhere. Find out more.

Stefan Perceval has been an actor, theater director and coordinator of the theater company HETGEVOLG in Turnhout (Belgium) for seven years. Besides the traditional performances, HETGEVOLG has been making Heart Projects with special target groups: non-native newcomers, young refugees, and people in poverty. Find out more.

Vera Winthagen is an industrial designer working on Design for Policy in the European Commission- applying design methods for new ways of policy making. Her focus is on human-centred design and participatory methods. She is currently working in the New European Bauhaus, a creative and transdisciplinary initiative that connects the European Green Deal to our living spaces and experiences, where sustainability is matched with inclusion and beauty, creating new solutions for the future. Find out more.

Since 1996, Sam Khebizi has been supporting and promoting participatory arts practices through committed action at the crossroads of culture, informal education, and social economy. Building on a large network of artists, our non-profit organisation co-develop participatory artistic projects from the local level to wider partnership in France, Europe, and the Mediterranean area so as to help spread a fresh and positive outlook. Find out more.

Aleksandra is a Senior Online Marketing Specialist at Europeana, Europe’s platform for cultural heritage. Passionate about creative ways to engage people with culture, she firmly believes that art and culture are for everyone. She is the organiser of GIF IT UP - an annual gif-making competition, and of the Digital Storytelling Festival - inviting people to create meaningful stories using digitised cultural heritage content. She also created a series of Europeana Colouring Books on various themes. Find out more