Dr Riel Miller is one of the world’s leading authorities on the theory and practice of using the future to change what people see and do. He is recognized as an innovative and globally experienced project initiator, designer and manager. He is widely published in academic journals and other media on a range of topics, from the future of the Internet to transforming strategic processes. He is an accomplished keynote speaker and facilitator. He has worked as a senior manager in the Ontario public service (Ministries of Finance; Universities; Industry) and at the OECD in Paris (Economics; Science & Technology; Education; Territorial Development; Development Centre; International Futures Programme). In 2005 he founded a consultancy – xperidox to advise clients on how to use the future more effectively. In 2012 he was appointed Head of Foresight at UNESCO. He has been focusing specifically on the dissemination of Futures Literacy throughout the UN system and worldwide ever since.
 

Lina Liakou leads the resilience practice in Europe and the Middle East for the Global Resilient Cities Network (formerly 100RC), working with the 21 member cities across the region in developing their resilience thinking through long term City Resilience Strategies and actionable initiatives. Before joining the Network, Lina was Deputy Mayor and Chief Resilience Officer for the City of Thessaloniki, Greece. As a Deputy Mayor, Lina Liakou initiated collaborations with the European Commission, the EIB and the World Bank. Prior to this, Lina was Chief Executive of the Metropolitan Development Agency of Thessaloniki, an intermunicipal company that coordinates national and international research projects. Lina Liakou is an architect and urban designer from the Bartlett School of Architecture in London.

Epaminondas has a background in Physics, Environmental Studies, International Relations and Foresight, and experience in technology transfer and international research collaboration, coordinating several projects in Europe, Asia, the Gulf peninsula, and Central America, while he has extensively worked in China for over 10 years. Epaminondas is responsible for the Teach the Future hub in Greece, while he is a certified Future Strategist, Vice-Chair of the Foresight Europe Network (FEN), Co-Chair of the Greek Node of the Millennium Project and member of the World Future Studies Federation (WFSF).
 

Maria-Louiza is the project manager of the START fellowship program on cultural management and is based at the Goethe-Institut Thessaloniki in Greece. She monitors every year 15 nationwide projects and helps the program participants to grow as professional cultural managers. She has 15+ years in creative and participatory project management. She translates vision into measurable impact and fights for simple and flexible solutions. She has a blog, she organizes events about Cultural Entrepreneurship and she founded a startup. She is interested in collaboration platforms and disrupting traditional processes efficiently for social and economic growth.