Dr. Okan Geray has more than 20 years of experience in management consulting in various industries and countries. He has worked in A.T. Kearney global management consulting firm before he joined Dubai Government in 2002. He has worked in Dubai eGovernment, Dubai Smart Government, and more recently in Smart Dubai Office as the Strategic Planning Advisor after its establishment. His responsibilities include Strategic Planning, Strategic Performance Management, Policy Making and Global Thought Leadership. He was the Co-Chair of Enhancing Innovation and Participation Working Group in United for Smart Sustainable Cities (U4SSC) joint global initiative by ITU and UNECE. This working group addressed Smart Governance, Smart Economy and Smart People aspects in smart cities. He has led two deliverables globally in U4SSC; namely “Guidelines on Strategies for Circular Cities” and “City Science Application Framework”. Currently, he is leading “Guiding Principles for Artificial Intelligence in Cities” thematic group. He was the Co-Chair of “Data Economy Impact, Commercialization and Monetization” Working Group in ITU Focus Group on Data Processing and Management. He is also the Co-Rapporteur of ITU Study Group 20 Question 7 on “Evaluation and assessment of Smart Sustainable Cities and Communities”. He is a member of SDG11 Global Council. He holds double major B. S. degrees in Industrial and Computer Engineering from Bosphorus University in Istanbul Turkey, an M.S. and a Ph.D. degree in Systems and Control Engineering from University of Massachusetts in USA. He has published journal and conference papers, book chapters and has been an adjunct lecturer in management for 15 years.

IT Leader with more than 20 years of experience in telecom industry, innovation, R&D and international business development in challenging environments. Working on new startup projects including blockchain hub as advisor and connector to ICT relevant business plans and projects. Proven excellence in delivering increased revenues and profitability on projects using new and emerging technologies like BigData, AI and Blockchain. Specialties: General management, strong technical knowledge in IT and telco areas, corporate finance, project management, advisor to emerging technology startups and developing tech strategy on country level.

Tadej Slapnik is director at HashNET, Co-Chair of High Level Group Blockchain for SDG, expert at UN/CEFACT and technical expert at European Blockchain Partnership. He is a former State Secretary of the Office of the Prime Minister of the Republic of Slovenia, initiator and signatory of Feel the future declaration: Initiative Blockchain Europe. He is actively involved in promotion, development and smart regulation of blockchain and distributed ledger technology for achieving Sustainable Development Goals at national, European and global level.

Sue Lendrum is currently the Managing Director of Karooz Global a South African registered Marketing Agency established to manage her other international brands. Her Executive MBA with the Financial Times (Pearson PLC) was focused on start-ups, people management and financial training for non-financial managers. She has acquired expertise in people management, analyzing markets and opportunities, developing innovative business strategies and driving business goals; relationship building plus extensive marketing and sales experience in South Africa, USA, UK and Australia. She has also worked for FTSE100 companies and been a key member of several successful start-ups.

Roy Zetisky is an expert in photography and film and has worked on various projects where he has hosted several one-man photographic exhibitions, directed and filmed numerous TV commercials, short films, music videos and so on. Additionally he also has photographically illustrated books, magazine covers and fashion spreads as well. Throughout his career, he has won numerous awards, including Best Cinematography, among others. He is recognized as a key player in the development of the film industry in South Africa. He is a master class lecturer at the SAE Institute, the ORMS Film School and the American Documentary School in Cape Town.

Mia Gibson was born in Cape Town and spent 2 years in the USA and 3 years in the UK during the course of her childhood before returning to South Africa where she completed her schooling and tertiary education. She was awarded a Bachelor of Business Science and an LLB at UCT. She has practiced as an attorney, notary public and conveyance for 20 years in Cape Town and has acted for major banks and financial institutions, property developers and real estate funds in South Africa and other African jurisdictions. In addition she has worked in the energy sector, advising on public private partnerships for energy storage and oil to gas pipelines as well as private energy solutions. She has also acted ad hoc as a High Court judge.

Melissa is a communications specialist whose career has spanned traditional advertising, digital marketing and book and magazine publishing. She has worked with global NGO’s, local government and major brands alike during her career, was the editor of Green Home magazine, The Green Economy Journal and is the founding publisher and editor for Life in Balance. She is a published poet, experienced editor of business books, academic papers, opinion pieces and an expert in crafting sustainability strategies and narratives relating to social, environmental and economic regeneration.

Audrey d’Hotman de Villiers - Desjardins has a master’s in clinical social work from Boston College, USA. She is specialized in social policy development and has managed several NGO projects and institutions in the fields of HIV/AIDS, Drug Addiction, Education, Psychology & others. In the last decade, she ran the Corporate Social Responsibility and Sustainability program of the Rogers Group of Companies. She has a wide range of interests in Social and Environmental fields and is currently serving on several boards of organizations namely the National Social Foundation, Lovebridge Ltd and the Business Mauritius CSR Foundation.