Sostenuto FCVLC/Speakers

*In alphabetical order
	Raúl Abeledo Doctor in Economic Sciences and Master in Environmental Strategies and Management. Specialized in local development, sustainability and cultural planning and author of the thesis "The Agenda 21 as a Strategy for Local Sustainable Development: From Environment to Culture". After seven years of consulting experience in the private sector, he became part of the Cultural Economics Research Unit (Econcult), University of Valencia, where he has been directing the European Projects area since 2006.	Mercedes Acitores Ms. Acitores is Master in European Policies by the University of Valencia. Currently she works as Liaison Officer of the MED Programme with the Mediterranean Basin neighborhood programme (ENPI CBC MED) connecting both programs and trying to find synergies between the projects and activities developed in the European Territorial Cooperation and the EU neighborhood policies. Her experience in Structural Funds comes since 1998 managing ESF projects, collaborating as expert in twinning and currently in the MED Programme Structure.
	Pascal Brunet Current director of Relais Culture Europe, a French resource centre on Europe and Culture. He has held various positions related to the performing arts: executive director of the Centre Choréographique National de Rennes et de Bretagne, co-director of the choreographic development project Isadora and Secretary General of the Groupe de Musique Experimentale de Bourges. He has been involved for several years in European and international cultural cooperation and is a member of the IETM and FEMEC networks.	Pavel Gantar Dr. Gantar, sociologist, graduated from the Faculty of Social Science in Ljubljana and obtained a PhD in the Department of Sociology at the University of Zagreb (Croatia). From 1974 to 1994, he was a full-time lecturer and researcher at the Faculty of Social Sciences. From 1994 to 2004, he served as Minister of Environment and Spatial planning and Minister for the Information Society. He was a Member of Parliament at the National Assembly of the Republic of Slovenia from 2004 to 2008 and acted as its President (Speaker) from 2008 until earlier this year. Dr. Gantar was engaged in various democratic social and urban movements in the 70s and the 80s and his professional interests lie in urban sociology and urban-regional development.
	Nevenka Koprivšek Ms. Koprivšek was trained at École Jacques Lecoq. She started as an actress, then became theatre director and later on artistic director. In 1997 she established Bunker and since then she has acted as the company´s director, as well as artistic director of the Mladi Levi international festival and Stara Mestna Elektrarna, an old power plant converted into a performing arts centre in Ljubljana. Nevenka is involved as a member or co-founder in many international networks and exchange projects.	Stevan Kordić Mr. Kordić is a mathematician and photographer living in Kotor, Montenegro. He works at the Maritime Faculty of Kotor (University of Montenegro) and as a freelance photographer and graphic designer. He is special interest in photography of the historic architecture and cultural heritage in general. He is a member of several NGOs dealing with cultural heritage, including Expeditio and Europa Nostra.
	Catherine Lalumière Ms Lalumière, Doctor of Public Law and Political Science, chairs a number of European-oriented associations: Relais Culture Europe , la Maison de l’Europe de Paris, la Fédération Française des Maisons de l’Europe and l’Association Européenne des Écoles d’Études Politiques du Conseil de l’Europe. She was the French Secretary of State for European Affairs from 1984 to 1986, acted as Secretary General of the Council of Europe from 1989 to 1994 and held the vice-presidency of the European Parliament from 2001 to 2004.	Maïté Mazel Ms. Mazel is the director of the European City of Artcrafts & Design (CITEMA), which she created in 2006 after undertaking a Master Degree in European Cultural Management in the Sorbonne Nouvelle University (Paris) and working as a cultural program manager at several cultural centers in Africa.
	Tony R. Murphy Mr. Murphy, expert in cultural policies, is the managing director of the cultural consulting firm Culturalink Consultores and president of the Canarian Association for Cultural Management Professionals. He has directed and participated in projects of cultural cooperation for development in Latin America and Africa. Recently, he has acted as technical director of the First Strategic Plan for the Canarian Cultural Sector. Mr. Murphy has also been technical assistant to Namibia’s Ministry of Culture in the implementation of the Strategic Plan on Culture and has directed training courses for cultural administration technicians in Equatorial Guinea.	Alin-Adrian Nica Mr. Nica is the President of the EDUC Commission of the Committee of the Regions. He is also the Mayor of the Romanian Municipality of Dudeştii Noi and the Vice-president of the Romanian Association of Communes. Mr. Nica is 30 years old and has a background in engineering.
	Ana Noguera Ms. Noguera, Doctor in Philosophy, is a member of the Valencian Cultural Council (CVC). She was a deputy at the regional assembly and a councillor at the Valencia City Council. She is also a professor at the National University of Distance Education (UNED) and a member of Valencian Writers Association (CLAVE). She is part of the editorial board of the magazine “Temas para el debate” and contributes as a columnist to the online magazine “Sistema Digital”, published by the Sistema Foundation.	Montserrat Pareja-Eastaway Ms. Pareja has worked at the University of Barcelona since 1993 researching and teaching in Economics. She currently leads the Research Group on Creativity, Innovation and Urban Transformation at the UB. Housing affordability, social cohesion, sustainable housing, urban competitiveness and urban regeneration strategies are some of the key aspects of her research. She was the Spanish coordinator of the ACRE project (Accommodating Creative Knowledge. Competitiveness of European Metropolitan Regions in an Enlarged Europe) an EU project funded under the VIt Framework Programme.
	Jordi Pascual Mr. Pascual is a programme manager and researcher specialized in cultural policies, sustainable development and international cooperation. He is the founding coordinator of the Agenda 21 for Culture process for United Cities and Local Governments (UCLG), whose Culture Committee is chaired by Barcelona's City Council. Mr. Pascual, who he teaches Cultural Policies and Management at Catalonia's Open University (UOC) was member of the Jury for the European Capital of Culture of 2010, 2011, 2013 and 2016.	Tatjana Rajić Ms. Rajić is a Montenegrin architect. Since 1997, she´s been working as a program manager at EXPEDITIO, a non-governmental organization heardquartered in Kotor whose mission is to encourage sustainable spatial development in Montenegro and SEE region through activities in the fields of sustainable architecture, cultural heritage, urban planning and through projects that encourage the overall development of the civil society.
	Pau Rausell Mr. Rausell is an economist, Doctor and professor at the Faculty of Economics (Universitat de València). In 1995, he created the Cultural Economics Research Unit (Econcult ), which specializes in culture and local development, cultural tourism, cultural industries, economic impact and heritage. Since 2006, the unit is part of the Institut Interuniversitari de Desenvolupament Local (IIDL ).	Ferdinand Richard Mr. Richard , who started his career as a musician, is the founder of Aide Aux Musiques Innovatrices (A.M.I.) and was a pioneer of the artistic creation center “La Friche la Belle de Mai” in Marseille. He is the current president of the Roberto Cimetta Fund, working towards the mobility of artists and cultural operators throughout the Mediterranean, and also a member of the European Forum for the Arts and Heritage (EFAH). He is an expert on the United Cities and Local Governments (UCLG) Agenda 21 for Culture commission.
	Pier Luigi Sacco Mr. Sacco is Dean of the Faculty of Arts, Markets, and Heritage and Professor of Cultural Economics at IULM University of Milan. He also teaches Creative Industries at the University of Italian Switzerland in Lugano. He is the Director for the bid of Siena as European Capital of Culture 2019. Has published more than one hundred articles in peer reviewed journals on game theory, cultural economics and policy, culture-led local development processes. Mr. Sacco also works as policy designer and consultant for national and local administrations and cultural institutions internationally.	Samo Selimović Mr. Selimović is a political scientist graduated from the University of Ljubljana (Slovenia). He is currently the manager of the Sostenuto project at Bunker and also a Games Master in the Future City Game project, promoted by the British Council.
	Leandro Valiati Brazilian economist, professor, consultant and researcher on Cultural Economics in several national and international institutions, including the Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul, the Economy and Statistics Foundation of the State of Rio Grande do Sul State , Brazil's Ministry of Culture, UNESCO, and the Organization of Ibero-American States (OEI). He holds an MA in Urban Planning and a PhD in Development Economics. He has recently published the book Economia da Cultura e Cinema: notas empíricas sobre o Rio Grande do Sul (Terceiro Nome).