ADEL Bios

Apefa Adjivon is a social impact and inclusion leader whose work spans corporate strategy, nonprofit leadership, public policy, and international engagement. She develops and implements global inclusion strategies across North America, Europe, and Asia-Pacific, leading initiatives focused on organizational culture, talent development, accessibility, and inclusive leadership.

Rakel Aguirre is Europe Lead for Elections and Regulatory Readiness at Meta. With nearly a decade of experience in the technology sector, her work sits at the intersection of technology, politics, and democracy, focusing on election integrity and regulatory risk management. She leads cross-functional initiatives across Europe, bringing together global teams, policymakers, and regulators to strengthen election preparedness and address emerging regulatory challenges.

Zahra Al Hilaly is a lawyer, journalist and activist working across human rights, climate justice and peacebuilding. As the Julia Gillard Next Generation Fellow, named in honour of Australia's first female Prime Minister, she recently led research into how to engage women in politics beyond election cycles.

Gopalika Arora is Deputy Director at the Centre for Economy and Growth at the Observer Research Foundation, where she leads the Centre’s work on climate and energy. Her research focuses on climate finance, energy transition, adaptation, and resilient and sustainable development pathways.

Gonzalo Bañez Villar is TV anchor, columnist and Head of International News Department at Todo Noticias (TN), Argentina’s leading news network, and a columnist at Radio Rivadavia. He has reported from wartime Ukraine, covered the Middle East crisis from several countries in the region and followed Latin American elections, among other events of global impact, such as the recent earthquakes in Venezuela.

Avery Barnett is the founder of Grid Guard Consulting, whose peer-reviewed Cyclone Impact Model stress-tests energy infrastructure against storm risk. She holds a PhD in Public Affairs (STEP) from Princeton University and holds a BA in Physics from Grinnell College. Her research interests include modeling electricity trading among Caribbean island nations, the sociopolitics of the region's energy transition, and how natural hazard risk shapes future energy mixes.

Alberto is a Costa Rican diplomat, journalist, storyteller, and social entrepreneur serving as Minister Counselor for Public Diplomacy and Political Affairs at the Embassy of Costa Rica in Washington, D.C. He is a children’s books author and the founder of Carretica Cuentera, an educational organization in Costa Rica that uses storytelling and literature to foster creativity, reading skills literacy, and social cohesion among children.

Khawla Benyahya is a governance and peacebuilding practitioner with extensive experience across the United Nations, the African Union, development cooperation and regional institutions. She currently supports regional democratic governance and electoral processes at the United Nations Development Programme Regional Service Centre for Africa in Addis Ababa.

Susanna Biancacci is an International relations specialist at Intesa Sanpaolo, with experience in banking, policy research, and international organizations, including the International Labour Organization in Geneva. She focuses on geopolitical analysis, international sanctions, and institutional relations, supporting global business strategy and market access.

Francisco de Arantes e Oliveira is the Senior Policy Advisor at the Atlantic Centre, where he coordinates engagement with its signatory states and supports cooperation with international organisations, Atlantic institutions and think tanks. He also serves as a Naval Officer for International Relations in the Portuguese Navy Staff.

Giovanni Maria Della Gatta is currently a Research Fellow at the Institute for International Political Studies (ISPI), where he contributes to the Geoeconomics Centre and PolicyLab. Previously, he worked as a Research Assistant at the AXA Research Lab on Gender Equality at Bocconi University. His research interests include international trade, economic coercion, and infrastructure projects.

Cynthia Di Leonforte is currently an International Cooperation and Programme Officer at the French Energy Regulatory Commission (CRE), where she coordinates international cooperation initiatives and the Secretariat of RegulaE.Fr, an international network of 37 energy regulatory authorities. She also manages a World Bank-funded technical assistance programme supporting the institutional strengthening of Burundi’s energy regulator.

Mohamadou Fadel Diop is a Program Manager at Oxfam, where he leads multi-stakeholder initiatives dedicated to poverty reduction, inequality mitigation, social justice and economic resilience. Prior to this, Fadel served as Corporate Development Officer and Country Representative for Genesis Energy Group, driving strategic development for gas and renewable energy projects.

Sarah El-Menawi is a Civil-Military Engagement Staff Officer, leading North Africa and Sahel Cell at NATO Strategic Direction – South Hub. With an experience spanning MENA Political Affairs and Security Policy at NATO Headquarters in Brussels, working in Operations with the EU in Egypt, and in charge of the international development portfolios of the governments of the UK, Germany, and Ireland at the Egyptian Ministry of Investment and International Cooperation.

Cheikh is a Mauritanian entrepreneur, industrialist, and Honorary Consul of the Republic of Lithuania in Mauritania. He leads a diversified Mauritanian industrial group with activities in polyurethane foam, mattress, and carpet manufacturing. His work focuses on developing local industry, expanding domestic production, introducing modern manufacturing technologies, and building Mauritanian companies capable of competing regionally.

Ezinne is a leading sustainable development advocate with a decade of experience advancing inclusive growth, climate action, and youth leadership. A former PwC consultant, she has worked across advocacy, strategy, thought leadership, advisory, and compliance, supporting governments, multinationals and family-owned businesses navigate complex challenges and build resilience.

Amanda Etuk is Program Director at Cascador, a Nigeria-based platform that supports African entrepreneurs in building sustainable, impactful, and innovative companies, where she connects growth-stage founders with the capital, partners and markets they need to scale. She previously co-founded and led Messenger.ng, which financed last-mile logistics operators, and served as Director of Supply Chain at 54gene. She is a Top 50 Africa Business Heroes honoree and a Raisina Young Fellow.

Mariana Figueiras is a Project Manager at Generali Portugal. She holds a Master’s degree in management, with a specialization in Strategy and International Business from Nova SBE. She began her career supporting customer loyalty and engagement initiatives and later led projects focused on customer journey redesign, digital adoption, and go-to-market optimization.

Matthew Foldi is the editor-in-chief of the Washington Reporter, a national publication covering Congress and the White House; he is also a contributor and a cohost on Newsmax. Foldi has interviewed President Donald Trump on multiple occasions, and has reported from war zones ranging from Israel to Ukraine. In 2022, he ran as a Republican for the U.S.

Brian George Otieno is a Kenyan business and technology journalist, broadcaster and strategic communications professional at NTV Kenya, where he reports on business, technology, policy and Africa’s economic transformation and hosts Techover, a technology and innovation programme. He has more than seven years’ experience translating complex business, policy and technology issues into accessible stories for broad audiences, and has reported from 28 countries.

Karla Godoy da Costa Lima is a Partner at GF Capital, where she develops innovation, sustainability, and decarbonization projects to attract capital from development banks, multilateral institutions, and public funding agencies. Previously, she served as Executive Director of Economic Innovation at the Pernambuco State Development Agency and Executive Secretary of Sustainability for Pernambuco.

Pedro is currently Strategic Projects Manager for the City of Barrancabermeja (Santander, Colombia). Previously, as Deputy Technical Director of Economic Analysis at Bogotá’s Secretariat of Finance, he consolidated the Fiscal Observatory, positioning the District Capital in the Global Initiative for Fiscal Transparency.

Shalin Jyotishi is the Founding Director of the Future of Work & Innovation Economy at the think-tank New America. He also serves as a Forbes columnist and as a Visiting Scholar at Arizona State University. Jyotishi’s expertise and writing have appeared in the World Economic Forum, USA Today, Washington Post, Politico, Fast Company, NPR, Financial Times, and Politico, and on stages at Davos, the United Nations, and SXSW.

Christina Chikondi Kamwendo is a Political Analyst at the Office of the President and Cabinet in Malawi, where she focuses on political, governance, security, and regional developments. She previously worked with UNFPA, Global Health Corps, FORUS Digital, and JEDSY Drones across communications, development, and digital transformation. She is also a spoken-word poet and writer known as Dark Shadow, exploring identity, culture, power, justice, and human experience through storytelling.