Salvatore Rizzello is Full Professor of Economics at the University of Salento, Department of Human and Social Sciences, and Director of the Scuola Superiore ISUFI at the University del Salento (Excellence Interdisciplinary School). He holds a Degree in Philosophy from the Università di Lecce and a PhD in History of Economic Thought from the Università di Firenze. Rizzello is the author of several books and numerous articles published in internationally refereed journals on topics such as Cognitive Economics, Institutional Economics, Experimental Economics, the History of Economic Thought, the Economics of Innovation and Creativity, and the Relationship between Economics and other disciplines.
He possesses extensive and profound experience in the educational field, having held the position of Dean of the Faculty of Law, University of Piemonte Orientale. Subsequently, he served as the Director of the Department of Law, Political, Economic, and Social Sciences at the same university. He was also involved in different scientific boards, such as the “Vilfredo Pareto PhD School in Economics” at University of Turin, and the board of "The European Tradition of the History of Economic Thought PhD" at University of Macerata.
He maintains a very active international presence, having taught in PhD programs and participated in the final discussion committees of PhD theses at the Universities of Turin, Rome (Sapienza), Macerata, Florence, Pisa, Nice-Sophia Antipolis (France), Rotterdam (the Netherlands), and Valencia (Spain). As a speaker, he has been invited to numerous seminars and conferences in Italy, Germany, France, Switzerland, Spain, Portugal, the Netherlands, Sweden, Romania, the United States, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand.
With an impressive curriculum, Rizzello has held several prestigious positions, including General Secretary of the Italian Association for the History of Political Economy, General Secretary of the Italian Association of Cognitive Sciences, Council Member of the European Society for the History of Economic Thought, and Secretary of the European Network "Human Reasoning and Decision Making" for the European Science Foundation.
Alan Salzenstein is Professor at DePaul University in Chicago where he directs the MFA/Arts Leadership and Performing Arts Management programs. Salzenstein is an international correspondent advisor to the board of ENCATC and past president of AAAE (Association of Arts Administration Educators). He has held various Executive Director positions for a wide array of arts organizations over the past thirty-five years, with a long history of theatrical producing, devising and presenting many special events, membership on various arts boards, and as an arts consultant. He is a frequent invited speaker on topics related to arts management and legal issues in the arts, having presented across North America, Europe and Asia. Salzenstein is also an attorney, focusing on issues related to the performing arts industry.
Carmine Moccia is a Ph.D student in Digital Transformation and Sustainability, in collaboration with Lutech. His academic training has solid roots in economics and finance, having obtained a three-year degree in Economics and Finance from the University of Salento (L-33). This foundation allowed him to develop fundamental skills in economic analysis and financial management.
Subsequently, Carmine continued his studies with a Master's Degree in Economics, Finance and Insurance (LM-56), which allowed him to further delve into the dynamics of financial and insurance markets. During this period, he acquired an integrated and advanced vision of economic systems, with a particular focus on sustainability and innovation.
In his doctoral path, Carmine focuses on the impact of climate change on the financial system and the evaluation of sustainability practices. Through the collaboration with Lutech, he has the opportunity to combine theory with practice, working on concrete projects that aim to facilitate the digital transition of companies, while promoting sustainable practices.
Dan is Director of the Master of Entertainment Industry Management Program, Carnegie Mellon University. He has worked in TV production on several programs including “ER,” “The Sopranos,” “Party of Five,” “Time of Your Life,” “Fantasy Island,” “The Adventures of Brisco County Jr.,” “She TV” and “The West Wing.” Dan directed the pilot “Munhall” starring George Wendt (“Cheers”) and Tom Atkins (“Law and Order”). As a theatre director, Dan has had worked produced in New York, Chicago, and Los Angeles. As a Casting Director, Dan cast “The Kennedy Mystique: Creating Camelot” for National Geographic Channel. He also cast “Nixon in China, 72” for Central Chinese Television (CCTV), Beijing, China. His Ph.D. dissertation centered on first-generation student experience at private universities in China using cultural capital as a lens. He is a board member of the Association of Arts Administration Educators and is co-chair the International Committee. In addition to his work with ENCATC, Dan is a member of the Academy of Television Arts and Sciences and Hollywood Radio & Television Society.
Davide is a senior project manager and coach at the Tecnopolis Science and Technology Park, where he has been directly involved in the restructuring of its business support processes. As CPO, Davide is responsible for all Tecnopolis’ project-based operations. Among other things, he is responsible for the project area, director of the training department, and manager of the incubator. Davide has been working permanently at Tecnopolis since 2012, where he has been able to be responsible for numerous cross-border cooperation projects, giving him extensive experience of best practices in international business support. Davide has managed numerous project management and business creation laboratories and is a professor on project management in a master’s degree program at the University of Bari and at the LUM University. Over the years, Davide has gained significant experience in technology transfer of research results, business creation, and incubator management.
Ekaterina Pelevina has been working for the Goethe-Institut since 2020, initially serving as a project manager in the cultural department at the Goethe-Institut in Saint Petersburg. In 2022, she relocated to Brussels to join the EU Liaison Office. Currently, she is part of the Culture Moves Europe project, an artistic mobility scheme funded by the European Commission and implemented by the Goethe-Institut.
Elena Borin is an Associate Professor at Link Campus University in Rome, Italy. She holds a Ph.D. in Economics and Doctor Europeus and her PhD thesis on "Public-Private partnerships in the cultural sector" won the 3rd ENCATC Research Award on Cultural Policy and Cultural Management and the IUSS Best Thesis award. She is member of Scientific Committees of several academic programs and international committees working on the themes of sustainability and the cultural and creative sector, among which the university network “Routes Towards Sustainability” and the international summer school "After the Damages”. Her most recent articles address topics related to partnership, funding and sustainability published by the Journal of Cultural Management and Policy, Journal of Intellectual Capital, Urban Design and in the Springer FGF Studies in Small Business and Entrepreneurship. Her research interests include international cultural governance, multi-stakeholder partnerships, funding and financing for the cultural and creative sector and CCIs in the sustainability paradigm.
Evelina Sarantidi, as the Corporate Marketing & Communications Manager at SNFCC, is responsible for safeguarding the brand profile of the Foundation across local and international channels (e.g., media, sponsorships, stakeholders). She also leads a strategic marketing development plan aligned with the organization’s key mission: to activate public space to enrich the lives of visitors and foster values and practices that will lead to a more equitable, sustainable, and cohesive society. Before joining the SNFCC, Evelina served as a Communications Manager at the FMCG multinational company, Red Bull, for almost 9 years, marking her first professional shift into the marketing business. Prior to that, she worked as a journalist, covering cultural pieces, features, and interviews for the weekly magazine of a Greek Sunday newspaper.
Gaia Danese is an Italian diplomat and a PhD holder in International Relations from the Institut d’Études Politiques of Paris (Sciences Po).. Her diplomatic roles include assignments at Italian Embassies in Lisbon, Montevideo, and Madrid and as Consul General in Barcelona. In recognition of her innovative approach to public administration, Danese received the "Innovation Protagonists" award from the Italian Public Administration Forum in 2009. In 2017 the ITmakES project for cultural cooperation between Italy and Spain, coordinated by Danese, has been awarded the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs Prize for best practices in the promotion of Italy abroad. A the EEAS, as a Seconded National Expert, she is engaged in developing, in coordination with the relevant DGs of the Commission of the EU, the lines of action to implement the EU strategy for International Cultural Relations (ICR) and in concrete actions and projects, such as the participation of the EU as Guest of Honour to the the International book fair (FIL) of Guadalajara (Mexico, November 2023; the development of trainings in ICR for the EU Ambassadors and officials, the promotion and consolidation of the international and global dimension of various EU Cultural projects (among them the New European Bauhaus) and of Team Europe initiatives in Culture.Beyond diplomacy, Danese is a published author of three book of poetry. Her multifaceted career underscores her commitment to diplomacy, cultural cooperation, and co-creation.
Gerald Lidstone, BA MA ATC Dr.h.c FRGS is the Director of the Institute for Creative and Cultural Entrepreneurship at Goldsmiths, University of London and founder of the MA Arts Administration and Cultural Policy and co founder of the MA in Creative and Cultural Entrepreneurship programme and the MA in Cultural Policy, Relations and Diplomacy, the first worldwide. Previously he was HOD of the Department of Theatre and Performance in Goldsmiths, having originally trained as a scenographic and lighting designer as well as a production manager with extensive design and touring experience in Eastern Europe and the USA. For the British Council and other agencies he has also taught Arts Management courses including, Arts Marketing, Arts Education, Fundraising, Copyright and Strategic Planning in over 20 countries. He has worked for over twelve years on behalf of The Ministry of Culture and Information in Viet Nam establishing Arts Management education in Hanoi University of Culture, funded by the Ford Foundation, well as being awarded the national medal for culture in Viet Nam. He was also the director of a four-year British Know-How Fund (Foreign Office) project establishing arts management education in Slovakia. An outcome of this was the publication of the first book on arts management in Slovak and the British Council project Closer to the Museum. He has recently completed a major research evaluation of a dance projects for Sadler’s Wells in the UK using the Five Ways to Wellbeing framework created by the New Economics Foundation.
Since 2004, GiannaLia Cogliandro Beyens is the Secretary General of the European network on cultural management and policy, ENCATC. She is also the administrator of the Thomassen mobility programme and serves on several boards. GiannaLia is an expert in EU affairs and international relations, with more than 30 years’ experience in advocacy, cultural policy, and strategic management, in the context of international cultural NGO. Since 1998, GiannaLia has also successfully designed, drafted, and managed a large number of EU cross-sectorial projects in the field of culture, education, and research.
Former Policy Officer of the Cultural Forum of EUROCITIES, GiannaLia was also Secretary General of the Association of the European Cities of Culture , AECC. Journalist since 1993, she started her career as Press & PR Officer for the N.A.T.O organisation in Rome. For the European Commission, she wrote 10 Reports on social European policy and a major study on the European Cities of Culture of the year 2000. Educated at the University “La Sapienza” in Rome, GiannaLia holds a Degree in Political Sciences - International Relations and two additional masters in European & International Career Studies, and a in European Constitution. Since 1993, GiannaLia is member of the Association of the Former trainees of the European Union.
PhD in “Art History, Theory and Criticism” from the University of Barcelona. He is Lecturer at the Cultural Management Programme of the UB, and Coordinator of the Postgraduate Course on International Cultural Cooperation. He is the Project Manager of CHARTER. He is currently teaching in different Universities and academic programs internationally. Herman combines academic research, cultural management, curatorial practices and artistic methodologies, collaborating with a wide range of networks, projects and organizations internationally.
Javier J. Hernández Acosta has a doctoral degree in business management and development, as well as an M.B.A in international business. For four years, he was director of the Department of Business Administration at Sagrado Corazón University. He is the author of the books titled Emprendimiento Creativo and La Ruta Emprendedora. He has been a consultant on cultural policies and creative industries for multiple cities and international organizations. He was the principal investigator of the World Values Survey for Puerto Rico and co-author of the 2015 Puerto Rico Innovation Survey. He has been a presenter in conferences on cultural policies and creative economy in over 15 countries, and published multiple articles and chapters in academic books and magazines. He is the founder of Inversión Cultural and the Centro de Economía Creativa, non-profit entities that promote creative industries in Puerto Rico.
Before joining academia, Leticia Labaronne studied Performing Arts in the United States, and then went on to work as a professional ballet dancer in Europe for over ten years. She holds a Bachelor of Arts in International Studies from the United Kingdom and a Master of Science in Public and Nonprofit Management from Switzerland.
Since 2009 she has been working with the Center of Arts Management at the ZHAW Zurich University of Applied Sciences. Labaronne directs the executive Master in Arts Management at ZHAW. Since 2019 she serves as a Head of the Center of Arts Management at the ZHAW Zurich University of Applied Sciences.
Her focus with respect to consulting and research is cultural policy, fundraising as well as evaluation in the nonprofit and arts sector. Her current doctoral research relates to evaluation practices in the Performing Arts. The research focus of her doctorate was motivated by her late artistic career. Labaronne is committed to applying her working knowledge of the field to explore new research paradigms that can better capture the complexity of artistic activities, and shed more light on the creative processes in the Performing Arts.
Lluís Bonet is Professor of applied economy and Director of the Cultural Management Graduate program at the University of Barcelona, specialized in cultural economics, cultural policies and arts management. He has been president of ENCATC, board member of many academic and cultural organizations, and coordinator / active participant of many international research projects (H2020, Eramus+, Creative Europe, IADB, National research or Arts councils …). He is the coordinator of the Erasmus+ project CHARTER ('Cultural Heritage Action to Refine Training, Education and Roles').
Ludovico Esposito is a Southern-Italian cultural professional operating on a glocal perspective since 2014. He’s founder and president of Sud Sonico, a music non profit organization that uses music for positive change. The organization aims to generate impact on a social, educational, humanitarian and climate action level, and it persecutes the goals by producing music festivals, capacity-building, humanitarian events, and reforestation initiatives surrounded by sounds and music. The organization’s main projects are AVANT Festival, an avant-garde music boutique event, AVANT Learn, music management capacity-building, and Musica Etica, music fundraising event for good causes. Since 2017, he supports and accelerates music organizations in strategic development, management and fundraising. His goal is to help music operators to relate and cooperate with corporations, foundations and public bodies, augmenting the funding mix and the sustainability of music-cultural projects and organizations.
Mara Cerquetti is Associate professor in Management at the Department of Education, Cultural Heritage and Tourism of the University of Macerata. At the same University, she teaches Management and Organization of Cultural Institutions, Cultural Marketing and Tourism and Heritage Management. Her research and publications focus on: cultural management and policy; cultural heritage value, value creation and measurement; cultural marketing; museum visitor studies; museum management; sustainable tourism; the links between cultural heritage and made in Italy.
She has been a member of the Scientific Committee and Editorial Board of the Journal “Il Capitale Culturale. Studies on the Value of Cultural Heritage” since 2010, the Teaching Body of the PhD Programme in Global Studies. Justice, Rights, Politics of the University of Macerata since 2020 and the Board of Directors EUM – Edizioni Università di Macerata (2022-2024). She is also a member of ENCATC, the European cultural management and policy network, and of the Advisory Board of the “European Journal of Cultural Management and Policy”.
She was born in Porto. She has a degree in Philosophy (1982), a Master's in Philosophy/Aesthetics (1986) and a PhD in Aesthetics/Philosophy - Faculty of Philosophy Braga/U. Católica Portuguesa (1998). She is Coordinating Professor - Aesthetics and Education - at the Porto Polytechnic School of Education, where she coordinates the Heritage Management degree and the Heritage, Arts and Cultural Tourism Master's degree. She coordinates the research line on Culture, Art and Education - InED (FCT)/ESE-P.Porto, of which she was director. She is a member of various scientific and editorial committees of scientific journals in Portugal, Spain and Brazil. She is an art critic (member of AICA) and independent curator. Her main lines of research are: Aesthetic Education and Contemporary Art; [In]visibility of women in history: thought, work and action; Travelers: writers and artists in the 19th century; Landscape, Travel and Utopia; Writing, Image and Performance - intermediality. She publishes regularly in scientific journals and is the author of books and monographs.
After the degree in Art History she has been awarded the Diploma of Specialization in Modern Art History; the PhD in Experimental Pedagogy with a thesis on museum education. As member and President of Eccom (1995 – 2008), She has carried out research, consultancy and training regarding the relationship between culture and territory, with particular reference to contemporary creativity, the social role of culture and the educational value of museums and heritage. She worked at the Italian Ministry of Culture first as Director of Educational Services of the National Gallery of modern and contemporary art, and at the General Directorate Education and Research, where she directs the Training and Research Unit. Since to 2018 She is Responsible for Training at the Fondazione Scuola dei Beni e delle Attività Culturali. Martina is part of CHARTER's Working Package 3: Vocational Education and Training and beyond.
Marzia has a background in archaeology and digitisation of cultural heritage. She joined the Italian Ministry of Culture (MiC) in 2002 as a project manager for EU funded projects on digitisation policies and in support of Europeana, the European infrastructure for digital cultural heritage. Now she works at the Fondazione Scuola dei Beni e delle Attività Culturali as culture policy expert. Her experience includes policy advice for digitisation programmes, education and training on cultural heritage, organisation, networking and workflow facilitation of digital cultural heritage collaborative projects across museums, libraries, and archives. Marzia is part of CHARTER's Working Package 3: Vocational Education and Training and beyond.
Dr. Milena Dragićević Šešić, prof. emerita, former President of University of Arts, Belgrade, founder of UNESCO Chair in Interculturalism, Art Management and Mediation, professor of Cultural Policy & Management, Cultural studies, Media studies. Diplomas: D.E.A. Paris-VIII 1977, Mag. University of Arts Belgrade (1981), and Ph.D. in literature and communication University of Belgrade (1990). Commandeur dans l`Ordre des Palmes Academiques (French Ministry of Education) 2002. ENCATC Fellowship Laureate 2019. University of Arts Laureate in 2004 & 2019. Guest Lecturer at numerous world universities. Published 20 books and more than 200 essays: Vers les nouvelles politiques culturelles; Art management in turbulent times: adaptable quality management; Intercultural mediation in the Balkans (both with S. Dragojevic); Culture: management, animation, marketing; Neofolk culture; Art and alternative… Translated in 17 languages. Expert for UNESCO, European Cultural Foundation, Council of Europe. Realized 50 projects & programmes in cultural policy and management (Europe, India, Cambodia, Arab countries, Central Asia).
Nina Luostarinen is a Doctor of Arts from the University of Lapland, Faculty of Arts and Design. She works at Humak University of Applied Sciences in the Department of Cultural Management as an RDI specialist and senior lecturer, with a special interest in combining art with various industries and areas of society. She has a background in puppetry, media art, and cultural management. Both her research and artistic interests intertwine with topics such as imaginary worlds, playfulness, serendipity, connection to places, and facilitating emotions that can foster attachment and empathy.
Paolo Montemurro, Director of Materahub, project manager of EU funded projects since 2008, is working since 2010 on capacity building actions for the Creative and Cultural sector and support to young entrepreneurs and startup in the cultural and social sector. Since 2014, he has worked on cross-fertilization between arts and other sector of economy, society and culture. Actively involved in the process of candidature of Matera 2019 European Capital of Culture particularly on the capacity building process for cultural organizations that will develop the artistic and cultural program, he has been working on the topic of internationalization and networking at EU level for the Creative and Cultural sector. Since 2016, he is the person in charge of bringing Materahub in European networks among which the European Creative Business Network, Creative Business Cup Network, European Creative Hubs Network. In this network, he has worked with EC Science HUB JRC on a pilot project to discover how creative hubs can become places to co-design policies to support youth employment through the Creative and Cultural sector. In 2018, he has started a new project focused on supporting faculties of arts & humanities on developing new spaces for innovation, entrepreneurship education for students and academic staff, cross -fertilization with companies.
Philip Meersman (°1971) is a Master in Archeology & Art Sciences (VUB Brussels) and will present his PhD in the Arts at AP University College Antwerp researching the transformation of visual poetry transforming into an immersive XR experience in Fall 2025. He coordinates the Urban Travel Machines project, funded by Creative Europe. Meersman pushes boundaries of poetry in both written and spoken form, drawing on current affairs, sociopolitical and environmental issues, and he is known for engaging with audiences in co-creating instant poetry based on prompts given by the audience. In addition to performing, Meersman also writes and talks about poetry in all its forms and teaches art and art history within the socio- and geopolitical context. He is festival curator for Poetryfest.brussels, Transpoesie.eu, Public Poet Brussels and is president of the ivzw World Poetry Slam Organization aisbl. Books: “This is Belgian Chocolate: Manifestations of Poetry” (Three Rooms Press, NY, NY, USA, 2014, ISBN: 9781941110010) “There Is Blue Somewhere” (Cyberwit, Allahabad, India, 2020, ISBN: 9789390202966) “Het Omstandereffect” (Boekscout Uitgeverij, Soest, The Netherlands, 2023, ISBN: 9789464896381) More on his artistic and organizational work: https://spooninmybrain.org
Shadrach Teryila Ukuma holds Bachelor and Master degrees in Theatre Arts (2006 and 2014, respectively) from the Benue State University, Makurdi-Nigeria, where he also lectures in the Department of Theatre Arts. He is a doctoral degree candidate at the Centre for the Study and Promotion of Cultural Sustainability, University of Maiduguri, Maiduguri, Nigeria. He has special research interests in Cultural Tourism, Performance Studies and Creative Peace-building. His involvement with the Society for Peace Studies and Practice (SPSP), where he is presently the Assistant National Secretary, has exposed him to practical field experiences in Advocacy, Creative Peace-building and Theatre Therapy. In October 2013, he participated in the UNODC/NAPTIP training of trainers’ short course for NAPTIP/NACTAL Counsellors and Social Workers on Basic Counselling & Social Work Skills in the Management of Trafficked Persons (TPs), which training qualified him as a resource person for the training of the NAPTIP/NACTAL staff. He has also served as quality assurance consultant and workshop facilitator for the Foundation for Justice, Development and Peace (FJDP) of the Catholic Diocese of Makurdi, particularly on their MISEREOR funded Peace projects dealing with farmers-herders conflicts in Benue and Nasarawa States of Nigeria. Shadrach Teryila Ukuma also has experience and keen interest in community building/organizing. He has published several articles in the areas of Performance Aesthetics, Cultural Performances and Creative Peace-building as well as Literary Criticism. He is a Research Fellow of the Institute for French Research in Africa (IFRA); and member, African Theatre Association (AfTA), and Society of Nigeria Theatre Artists (SONTA).
Dr. WU Chieh-Hsiang is Professor of the Department of Arts in the National Changhua University of Education of Taiwan, Taipei City. She earned her master and doctorate degrees of sociology and art history in Carl von Ossietzky Oldenburg, Germany. In 2013 and 2014, Dr. WU chaired Taiwan’s Association of the Visual Arts, a nationwide association for the rights and benefits of visual artists. Since 2021, Dr. WU chairs the Taiwan Association of Cultural Policy Studies. In addition to her devotion to cultural policy, Dr. WU is an accredited essayist and art critic; her articles are published in various periodicals and platforms. Her recent research focuses on the culture of memory and art projects reflecting the unjust incidents in the past, as well as the interrelations between the state power and exhibiting institutions.