Focus: Government/Politics
Laura Alonso
Laura Alonso has an extensive and unique cross-sector career promoting democracy, transparency, and citizen participation. She has previously held positions as Head of the Anti-corruption Office in Argentina, twice elected member of the National Congress, and CEO of the domestic chapter of Transparency International. Because of her leadership in integrity and anti-corruption policies, Argentina reached its highest score in the Index of Transparency International in 2020. Laura co-chaired the G20 Anti-corruption Working Group, and she was chief of the official delegation to the OECD Anti-Bribery Working Group. She has been a British Chevening Scholar, an Eisenhower Fellow, a Draper Hills Fellow at Stanford University, and most recently a Regan-Fascell Fellow…
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Hussain Nadim
Hussain Nadim is a renowned policy expert, innovator, and a published author. He pioneered the use of data analytics and digital technologies to transform the policy sector and assist policy leaders in Pakistan with evidence-based decisions that serve public good. Hussain has held key policy positions, including serving as Executive Director of the Islamabad Policy Research Institute at the Prime Minister's Office of Pakistan and as Special Assistant to the Federal Minister for Planning & Development & Reforms. He was also a member of the Prime Minister's Special Committee on Digital Media and Forensics and Chief Minister’s Committee on Web 3.0. Additionally, Hussain has served as a Senior Policy Expert…
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Kirsten Rulf
Kirsten Rulf has been working as a senior advisor for digital, technology, and innovation policy to former German Chancellor Angela Merkel and current Chancellor Olaf Scholz since 2019. She is Head of Division for General Digital Policy Issues and “Nerd-in-Chief” at the Federal Chancellery of Germany in Berlin. In her strategic leadership position, Kirsten is shaping Germany’s and Europe’s role in the geopolitics of tech. What does European digital sovereignty mean in a global context? How should Germany navigate the Great Power competition between USA and China? Kirsten first started to think about these issues during her decade-long career as an award-winning journalist: as current affairs correspondent for Germany’s flagship…
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Martin Inthamoussú
Martin Inthamoussú is a Consultant in Creative Economy and Cultural Public Policy. He is currently working at the Interamerican Development Bank at the Creativity and Culture Unit. He was President of SODRE in Uruguay, the oldest cultural institution in the country dedicated to culture and art promotion, arts education, and growth of traditions, taking its services to the whole country and beyond borders. Within the institution, Martín was commissioned to create the Contemporary Dance Department of the National Dance School, of which he is the founder. He has also developed different programs working on public policy towards access to culture for citizens in the whole country as a means of…
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Xolani Zitha
Xolani Zitha is National Advisor at Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH in Zimbabwe where he focuses on managing projects focused on building the institutional capacity of the Zimbabwe Human Rights Commission (ZHRC) and Zimbabwe Anti Corruption Commission (ZACC). Previously, Xolani was Director of the Office of the Speaker for the Parliament of Zimbabwe and an independent governance consultant. He also previously served as Chief of Staff to Lovemore Moyo, the Speaker of the House of Assembly in Zimbabwe from January 2009 to June 2013. He advised the Speaker on efforts to modernize Zimbabwe’s Parliament and strengthen its policy functions. Xolani previously directed the Crisis in Zimbabwe Coalition, an…
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Temuri Yakobashvili
Ambassador Temuri Yakobashvili is President of TY Strategies, a boutique consulting firm advising governments, non-governmental institutions, and businesses across the U.S., Europe, and Eurasia. He also Founder and President of the New International Leadership Institute, non-for profit organization, dedicated to reforms, good governance, and anti-corruption. Temuri was previously Executive Vice President of the global strategy consultancy, PASS, LLC. Until fall of 2014, he held position of the Senior Transatlantic Fellow at the German Marshall Fund of the US. From early February 2011 to March 2013 he served as an Ambassador of Georgia to the United States. Prior to his posting, he was Deputy Prime Minister and State Minister for Reintegration…
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Cristina Vélez Valencia
Cristina Vélez Valencia is currently the Vice president for Public-Private Partnerships of the Chamber of Commerce of Bogotá and is in charge of programs to foster regional integration and economic development, as well as the Chamber's knowledge management among other programs involving public and private sectors. Until June 2019, she served as the Secretary for Social Integration in the Mayoralty of Bogotá. She oversaw a department with over 9500 employees and a budget in excess of $360 million. The department defines and implements social policy in a city of over 7 million residents and is responsible for comprehensive programs for early childhood, aging populations, homelessness, youth, people with disabilities, and…
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Oyungerel "Oyuna" Tsedevdamba
Oyungerel "Oyuna" Tsedevdamba is an author, public speaker, and human rights activist based in Mongolia. She formerly served as Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism for Mongolia and served as president of the Democratic Women's Union of Mongolia and as non-staff advisor to Mongolian President Elbegdorj Tsakhia. During her 15 years in public service, she has worked on the country’s privatization efforts and social insurance reform, and served as advisor to the prime minister and a member of parliament. As the co-founder and Executive Director of the Liberty Center, a human rights watchdog, Oyuna has developed a reputation as a tireless advocate for democracy and gender equality in Mongolia. As the…
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Heather Stevens
Heather Stevens is a career civil servant, whose most recent posting was Director of Workforce Policy in the Department of Health, Northern Ireland, where she was responsible for advising government Ministers on all matters relating to the health and social care workforce including the numbers of health professionals trained, regulatory matters, and terms and conditions including pay negotiations. Prior to that she was head of the Office of the Civil Service Commissioners, the regulatory body for recruitment to the Civil Service, following a spell in the voluntary sector working as a Director in the National Youth Agency in the United Kingdom. The Agency aims to promote the voice and influence…
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Igor Shevchenko
Igor Shevchenko has played a major role in bringing the rule of law to Ukraine by founding and leading the Ukrainian Bar Association from 2002 till 2007. He is also the founder and former managing partner of Shevchenko Didkovskiy & Partners, the leading law firm in Ukraine (rebranded as Asters in 2008). Igor left his legal practice in 2008 to concentrate on politics and civil service. In 2014-2015 he served as a Minister of Environment and Natural Resources of Ukraine and was a presidential candidate in 2019 elections. He currently leads Successful Ukraine political party and heads the Institute for State Efficiency, a think tank conducting research on world’s best practices of public governance for further use in Ukraine and promoting meritocracy as the most efficient way…
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