ADEL Bios

Jerome Cowans is the Social Impact Specialist at Cemex Carib Cement in Jamaica. He leads the development and implementation of national community initiatives that strengthen corporate social responsibility and stakeholder engagement. He is also co-founder of Future Bridge Ja Ltd., a consultancy that connects vulnerable communities with private-sector CSR opportunities.

Mohamed El Dahshan is managing director of OXCON, a research and consulting firm working on issues of economic and social development in the Middle East and Africa, with a focus on fragile and post-conflict countries. He is also a Fellow at Chatham House and the Tahrir Institute for Middle East Policy (TIMEP).

Sadé Abraham is a learning scientist and pipeline initiative strategist committed to supporting the underserved in our education pipeline.

Patricia Ahanda is an analyst specializing in strategy, influence communication, and international affairs. Based in Paris, France, she develops a cross-cutting approach to contemporary power dynamics, political narratives, and global governance.

Ruben Barnabas Djogbenou is currently a consultant for the African Futures Institute and the Bureau of the Special Adviser of the Prime Minister of Senegal. Prior to that he served as Consultant and Project Manager in a consulting firm, where he was in charge of conducting research projects in long term development and strategic planning.

Ana Paula Barreto (she/hers) is the Director of Programs for AfroResistance in New York. She has a masters of Arts in International affairs and she is a fellow of the United Nations Fellowship Program for People of African descent. Ana is an activist and researcher on race, gender, global health and inequalities with special focus on Black women and girls. 

Ana Barufi holds a Ph.D. in Economics from the University of São Paulo and is a Research and Innovation Manager at Bradesco Bank, in Brazil. She is also a visiting assistant professor at the Economics Department of the Federal University of São Paulo. Her research focuses on Regional and Urban Economics.

Laura Basagni is a program coordinator at The German Marshall Fund of the United States (GMF) in Brussels.

She coordinates GMF’s portfolio on North-South and South-South cooperation, focusing on the Mediterranean and the wider Atlantic regions. Her research interests are EU foreign and trade policy, and the future of governance. She leads the organization of GMF’s Atlantic Strategy Group meetings, and coordinates the Brussels chapter of GMF’s Young Transatlantic Network (YTN.)

Dubai based Technology entrepreneur and author, Mohamed is active in the cybersecurity space and in the entertainment industry. 

His cybersecurity companies VUL9 and Project Cypher work with public and private entities across the Middle East, Africa and North America in order to strengthen their resilience to cyber attacks and breaches using world class ethical hackers and advanced cybersecurity R&D.

Ali Belhaj Zahi is an entrepreneur and Tech enthusiast. He is a Co-founder and CEO at Evocraft, a Startup working on including Technology in Education and manufacturing the next-generation of Robots through the use of new technologies such as 3D Printing and Laser cutting.

Andrew Bishop is Deputy Head of Research at Eurasia Group, the world's leading political risk consultancy.

Ayoub Bouafia is a Project Manager, working for OCP Group, precisely for SADV, a subsidiary in charge of the development and planning of OCP’s major urban projects.

Anders Knut Brudevoll is a Fishery and Aquaculture Officer at the FAO Subregional Office for Eastern Africa, based in Addis Ababa. He has more than a decade of experience in public administration and international organisations, gained through FAO, UNDP, UNECE, JPI Oceans, and the Norwegian government. As an expert in blue economy and ocean affairs, Anders specialises in topics such as aquatic food systems, marine science policy, and EU and UN affairs.

Jordan Campbell's career traverses the fields of theatre, education, and arts policy. He is a currently a candidate for the M.Ed Arts in Education Program at Harvard University.

Isabela Carvalho is the Knowledge Director at Ashoka, global organization that identifies and supports leading social entrepreneurs and changemakers. She also serves on the board of the Washington Brazil Office, think tank that bridges advocacy and knowledge between Brazil and the United States.

Aleksandra is in charge of developing and implementing the IEMed´s innovative fundraising strategy and institutional partnerships. She is responsible for securing public and private funding for the IEMed´s programmes, as well as providing quality assurance and oversight of grants.

Julián Colombo is a 31 years old political advisor in the Argentina National Congress, and has 10 years of experience in public administration and public policy.

Julián has an undergraduate degree in Political Sciences from the Catholic University in Argentina and a MA in Policy Management from Georgetown University (Washington, DC).

Mahaut de Fougières is Policy officer at Institut Montaigne since March 2018. She mostly focuses on international issues and studies.

A King's College London and University College London (UCL) graduate in international relations, she also spent a semester at the American University of Beirut (AUB). 

Tosin Durotoye is the CEO and principal consultant at Conselia Advisory Practice – a boutique management consulting firm offering management services for technology startups, private, governmental and non-profit entities. She has over 17 years of public and private sector experience in technology innovation and digitization, project and program management, and strategic partnerships and business development.

Dr. Asmae El Hajji is the Program Director at the Moroccan Institute of Leadership and an Affiliate Professor at the Career Center of UM6P. Since 2015, she has been actively engaged in leadership development and capacity building, designing and implementing training programs and curricula for international organizations.

Ghita El Kasri is the Chief Operating Officer of UnitedCoin, a blockchain ecosystem that bridges the gap between traditional financial system and disruptive cryptocurrency world.

Ahmed Rachid El-Khattabi is an urban planner and an applied environmental economist with expertise in policy-oriented quantitative research and data management. His research focuses on issues at the intersection of economic development and environmental planning, with a particular focus on urban water management. He is currently a postdoctoral fellow at the U.S.

Having obtained a Bachelor’s degree in Economics, Chidera Ezekwesili has gone ahead to work across various Nigerian organisations in the private sector with the aim of honing his leadership skills as well as contributing his quota to each organization’s vision.

Joseph Hammond is an award-winning journalist and fellow with the Center of Media and Peace Initiatives.

Nchimunya Hamukoma is a Researcher at the Brenthurst Foundation, a Johannesburg based think tank. An Economist and Policy Strategist, her work at the Foundation has focused on economic policy development and strategy in Ghana and Nigeria.

Seleman Yusuph Kitenge works as a Communications and Advocacy Officer at the African Union Development Agency-NEPAD. He is a veteran of a decade of campaigning on youth development, peace, and security issues. He was also part of a small team that prepared Tanzania’s National Strategy on Preventing Violent Extremism. 

Maria Lourdes Landivar is a National Senator representing the Department of Santa Cruz for the legislative period 2015-2020 and Secretary of Political Training in Santa Cruz de la Sierra of Demócratas, the main political opposition force in Bolivia.

Hallelujah Lulie is a regional security researcher interested in democratization, regional security, nation and state building & social movements in the Horn of Africa, & the affairs of the African Union. Currently he is a visiting policy fellow at the European Council on Foreign Relations (ECFR).

Nadia is a civil engineer who is passionate about applying her engineering knowledge to solve water, environment, and climate change challenges. She obtained her BE in Environmental Engineering at the Grove School then later her MSc in Civil and Environmental Engineering at Stanford University.

Santiago Martinez Jaramillo is a social entrepreneur, impacting Latin America.

Santiago is the founder of Cómo Lo Cambiarías, an organization that has brought XXI century skills to schools in Colombia and Diseña Tu País, a creative think-do tank that is incubating innovative projects for Colombian pressing issues which was created in alliance with Stanford University.

Davi Miller currently serves as the Head of Strategic Projects and External Engagement at Capital One, Davi leads initiatives related to the company’s $265 billion Community Benefits Plan and fosters partnerships with political, community, and business leaders to address affordable housing challenges across the United States.

Silindile Nanzile Mlilo is a PhD candidate for a Doctor of Philosophy in Migration and Displacement at the African Centre for Migration & Society (ACMS), University of Witwatersrand.

PJ Okocha is a highly energetic Economist, with core knowledge of developmental policies and implementation, and hands-on experience as an executive in the Agriculture, Oil and Gas, Financial and Maritime industries.

Jacob Ouma is the Managing Director at Admedia Communications Limited, a company he co-founded in 2008 based in Kenya which does communications consultancy, production and marketing services across the African region.

Aaron Joshua Pinto is a senior Canadian diplomat and Ontario’s Trade & Investment Representative in New York and the Northeastern United States. He previously served as a Trade Commissioner at the Consulate General of Canada in New York, helping Canadian businesses scale globally and bring strategic investment back to Canada.

Dr Zuzana Podracka is currently an acting head of department focused on implementing performance indicators into university financing at the Ministry of Education, Research, Development and Youth of the Slovak Republic. Her role encompasses running the university students’ and the graduate employers‘ satisfaction surveys, and coordinating a project designed to reform the support system available to university students.

Thomas is the Director for Political Strategy at Avisa Partners, an international political consultancy. He also directly represents German chemicals company LANXESS AG as EU Public Policy Manager vis-à-vis the European Union.

Hamza graduated from HEC in 2016 and spent 2 years developing products for the Africa and Middle East agricultural markets at Parrot AIRINOV.

He implemented decision support tools in +20 African countries and co-authored the landmark report “Drones on the Horizon: Transforming African Agriculture” published by the African Union and NEPAD.

Jo Ann Takyiwah Sackey is the Deputy Country Director and Business Engagement Lead at the UK Department for International Trade in Ghana.

Jo Ann’s career began at Nestlé Central and West Africa Region LTD working as a Cost Analyst in the Costing Centre of Competence for Africa. She progressed to the Africa Centre for Energy Policy as a Senior Policy Analyst where she carried out energy sector related advocacy, research and policy analysis.   

Ibraheem Sanusi is the Citizen’s Engagement Lead and a Governance Expert at the African Governance Architecture (AGA) Secretariat based at the African Union Commission’s Department of Political Affairs.

Daniela Varela currently works as an international affairs adviser at the Secretary for Educational Cooperation and Priority Actions of the Argentine Ministry of Education. Aside from her professional experience at the public domain, Daniela is the Secretary for Institutional Affairs of the Latin American Association for Energy Economics (ALADEE); member of the Argentine Council for International Affairs (CARI); Meridiano Foundation; and an Atlantic Dialogues Emerging Leader 2018.

Scarlett Varga, of Hungarian and Romanian origin, is Deputy Head of Development at Bruegel. Her mission is to nurture existing and develop new strategic partnerships with private foundations and leading research institutes and think tanks, with special focus on Asia, Latin America and the EU neighborhood.

Kevin Vuong is a social entrepreneur and military officer. Teaching at the University of Toronto – Faculty of Medicine’s Translational Research Program, he also leads APSI – a social innovation agency, and serves as an Officer in the Royal Canadian Navy at Her Majesty’s Canadian Ship York.

Nele Wissmann is research fellow at the French Office of the Konrad Adenauer Foundation, a German political foundation. She is also research associate at the French Institute of International Relations.

Carolina Zuheill Rosales is a social entrepreneur, focused on health management and public health. As a medical doctor, she founded GUIMEDIC for the promotion of health as a human right in Mexico, a non-profit that brings Mexican doctors and medically trained volunteers to the most remote areas around Mexico.