IDD SPEAKERS

Commissioner for Enlargement, European Commission

Marta Kos is the Commissioner for Enlargement. She drives the European Union’s enlargement process forward and develops the EU’s relations with countries in the region, including in the Western Balkans, Ukraine and Moldova. With extensive diplomatic and leadership experience, she previously served as Slovenia’s ambassador to Switzerland, Germany, and Latvia. She was also Vice-President for International Relations at the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Slovenia and Director of the Government Public Relations and Media Office, where she acted as the Slovenian government’s spokesperson.

ALL SESSIONS BY MARTA KOS

19 September

09:05 – 09:15 Keynote Address (video message)

EU Special Representative for Human Rights

Kajsa Ollongren served as Minister of Defence (2022–2024) and deputy Prime-Minister and Minister of the Interior and Kingdom Relations (2017-2022) of the Netherlands.

Kajsa Ollongren started her career in the civil service in 1992 at the Dutch Ministry of Economic Affairs, as an economic policy advisor. On a voluntary basis she trained young politicians from the newly established democracies of Central and Eastern Europe in the nineties. She was head of parliamentary affairs within the ministry until 2001, and director of European Integration and Strategy from 2001 to 2004, and became Deputy Director General in 2004.

In 2007 she was promoted to the Prime Minister’s Office, to become the Deputy Secretary General and in 2011 Secretary General and the most senior advisor to the Prime Minister. In that capacity she was also responsible for the coordination of the Dutch intelligence services.
After the 2014 local elections Kajsa Ollongren became the first deputy mayor in Amsterdam. Her portfolio included economic affairs, seaport, airport, art, culture, local media, monuments and tourism.

On 26 October 2017, Kajsa Ollongren was appointed as Minister of the Interior and Kingdom Relations, dealing with democracy and transparency, constitutional issues, local and regional administrations and budgets, elections, spatial planning, housing and the intelligence service. She was also Deputy Prime Minister in the third Rutte government.
From 10 January 2022 until 02 July 2024, Kajsa Ollongren was the Minister of Defence in the fourth and last Dutch government headed by Mark Rutte, and a leading voice in the support of Ukraine after the large scale Russian invasion.

Positions she took up after her tenure as a minister include the YES-Ukraine board, the MSC advisory board, associate fellow at Chatham House and non-executive board member of the Post Code Lottery.

Kajsa Ollongren studied history at the University of Amsterdam and graduated in contemporary history in 1992. She is an alumni of the Dutch institute on international affairs Clingendael and of the French school for Public administration École Nationale d’Administration (ENA), Promotion Valmy 1996-1998. She finished The Business of AI course at the London Business School in 2025. She is a reservist at the Dutch Royal Air Force, rank colonel.

ALL SESSIONS BY KAJSA OLLONGREN

18 September

17:20 – 17:25 Keynote Address

European Commissioner for the Mediterranean

Dubravka Šuica is a Croatian politician from the city of Dubrovnik, where she served two terms as its first female mayor. In 2006 she was awarded the World Mayor Award.

Having graduated in English and German she started her career in education, first as a teacher and later as Director of the Dubrovnik High School.

She entered politics in the 1990s as a Member of the Croatian Democratic Union and later served three terms as a Member of Croatian Parliament and Vice-Chair of the EU Integration Committee.

Between 2004 and 2009 Dubravka Šuica was a Board Member of the Union of the Association of Towns and Municipalities of the Republic of Croatia, and later served as Councillor of the Dubrovnik-Neretva County Assembly.

For ten years she was President of the Croatian Delegation to the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of the Council of Europe.

Since 2013 Dubravka Šuica has been a Member of the European Parliament, where she has been dealing with the issues of environment, public health and food safety as well as foreign affairs.

ALL SESSIONS BY DUBRAVKA ŠUICA

18 September

14:05 – 14:25 Keynote Address [Video Message]

Former President of Costa Rica

Former President Laura Chinchilla is a political scientist with a master’s degree in Public Policy from Georgetown University.

She was the first woman to be elected president of Costa Rica (2010-2014). Previously, she served as minister of public security (1996-1998), congresswoman (2002-2006), minister of justice (2006-2008), and vice president (2006-2008).

During her political career, Mrs. Chinchilla prompted police and justice reform measures to tackle crime and violence, digital and open government, the promotion of women’s rights, and early childhood protection. She also promoted environmental sustainability policies, especially on preserving marine biodiversity, for which she was distinguished with international awards.

Mrs. Chinchilla has worked as a consultant with various international organizations, such as: the Interamerican Development Bank (IDB), the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID). She has been part of the advisory boards of the UNDP`s Human Development Report and the Global Happiness Report and is a board member of the International Olympic Committee, the World Leadership Alliance – Club de Madrid, the Inter-American Dialogue, the Concordia Summit, and the Euro-America Foundation.

Mrs. Chinchilla has headed various Electoral Observation Missions in the Americas and chaired the Kofi Annan Commission on Elections and Democracy in the Digital Age. She has taught at the Institute of Politics and Public Policy of Georgetown University (USA), the Instituto Tecnológico de Monterrey (México), and the Universidade de Sao Paulo (Brazil).

ALL SESSIONS BY LAURA CHINCHILLA

18 September

16:50 – 17:20 Spotlight Session: The EU-CELAC Summit 2025 as an Opportunity for Strengthening Democracy [Keynote speaker]

Member, Political Council & Senior Joint Member Secretary, National Citizen Party, Co-Founder, Shohay Health

Dr. Tasnim Jara is a Bangladeshi political leader and civic educator committed to inclusive democratic reform. As a member of the Political Council, the highest decision-making body of the National Citizen Party, she has been closely involved in shaping Bangladesh’s democratic transition following the 2024 mass uprising. She is a leading voice advocating for women’s political representation and is working to ensure that reserved seats for women in Parliament are filled through direct election.
In the months following the movement, Dr. Jara worked alongside injured protestors and the families of those killed, an experience that gave her deep insight into the aspirations and expectations of citizens who risked everything for change. As Joint Convener of the Jatiya Nagorik Committee, a national citizens’ platform formed to guide democratic reconstruction, she led the drafting of a national roadmap for health system reform. This was submitted to the Health Sector System Reform Commission established by the interim government under Professor Muhammad Yunus.

Before entering politics, Dr. Jara built a large public following as a trusted health communicator and co-founder of Shohay Health, a digital platform that delivers evidence-based medical guidance to underserved Bangla-speaking communities. Her educational content has reached over 12 million followers, earning her recognition as a ‘Vaccine Luminary’ by the UK government.

She holds an MSc with Distinction in Evidence-Based Healthcare from the University of Oxford and has clinical experience across the UK and Bangladesh. Dr. Jara brings to her political work a strong commitment to public trust, social justice, and a new generation of accountable leadership.

ALL SESSIONS BY DR. TASNIM JARA

18 September

14:25 – 15:10 High-Level Opening Session: ‘Democracy for All: Inclusive Democracy as a Pathway to Security and Development’ [Speaker]

Minister of Information and Tech, Namibia

Honourable Emma Inamutila Theofelus is a young, 29-year-old Namibian woman who serves as a Member of Parliament and the Deputy Minister of Information and Communication Technology in the Republic of Namibia. Before her appointment, Honourable Emma had always been policy adjacent and was a Youth Activist around issues of gender, children’s rights, and sustainable development and against youth unemployment. She served as the Deputy Speaker of the Youth Parliament of the Republic of Namibia, Board Member of the National Council of Higher Education and the Junior Mayor of the City of Windhoek amongst other roles. Honourable Emma has been awarded the Laureate in the Individual Category of the United Nations Population Award, 2022 and serves as a board member of the Leadership Council of Africa REACH and council member of Nala Feminist Movement.

Honourable Emma holds an LLB Honours Degree from the University of Namibia where she served as secretary General of the Student Union; a diploma in Business Management and a diploma in Afrikan Feminism and Gender Studies from the University of South Africa. She is currently a Master’s Candidate in ICT Policy and Regulation at the University of Witwatersrand and is preparing to sit for the bar exams at the Board of Legal Education in Namibia. Honourable Theofelus is recognised as the BBC 100 Most Influential Women in the World 2021; named as Avance Media 100 Most Influential Young Africans in 2020, 2021 & 2022 and named as Avance Media 100 Most Influential African Women 2020 & 2021. She is further named as the New African 100 Most influential Africans of 2020; Reputation Poll 100 Most Reputable Africans 2020; named as the Emerging African Young Leader by the African Leadership Magazine 2022 and nominated for the One Young World Politician of the Year Award 2020 & in 2021. Honourable Emma is regularly invited as a speaker at international fora in the areas of politics, technology, law, sustainable development, climate change, education and health.

ALL SESSIONS BY EMMA THEOFELUS

18 September

14:25 – 15:10 High-Level Opening Session: ‘Democracy for All: Inclusive Democracy as a Pathway to Security and Development’ [Speaker]

Deputy to the Director for Human Development, Migration, Governance and Peace directorate in DG INTPA, European Commission

Chiara Adamo, Deputy to the Director for Human Development, Migration, Governance and Peace directorate in DG International Cooperation and Development (DG INTPA) in the European Commission, has more than 20 years of European Commission’s experience on human rights, democracy, justice and security related issues in both internal EU and external policies. She is currently the head of the “Human Rights, Gender and Democratic Governance” unit in DG INTPA. She studied International and Diplomatic Relations in Gorizia (Italy) and specialised in European affairs in Rome and at the College of Europe, Bruges. Before joining the Commission, she worked in the European Parliament, for civil society organisations and local administrations.

ALL SESSIONS BY CHIARA ADAMO

19 September

09:25 – 10:25 Session III: ‘What Future for Democracy Support? Innovative Approaches to Put Democracy at the Centre of External Policies’ [Speaker]

Executive Director, European Endowment for Democracy

Jerzy Pomianowski has worked in international affairs for almost 30 years as Deputy Foreign Minister of Poland, Director of OECD-UNDP’s Partnership for Democratic Governance and Poland’s Ambassador to Japan. In 2013, he led the establishment of the European Endowment for Democracy (EED) and has since served as its Executive Director. Pomianowski began his career as a civil servant in 1990, just after the fall of communism, first in the Ministry of Education, and then in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. He oversaw the launch of Poland Aid (2006-2008) and served as Director General of the Polish Foreign Service (2005-2006). Before 1989, Pomianowski was an active member of the democratic opposition in Poland. He was Chief-Editor of the Independent Publishing House at the Warsaw University, his Alma Mater. In his free time, he serves as president of the European and Polish Aikido Federations.

ALL SESSIONS BY JERZY POMIANOWSKI

19 September

11:10 – 11:45 Session IV: ‘Democracy Matters: Values as Strategy, Security as Outcome’ [Speaker]

Deputy Executive Director of Al-Jumhuriya Collective

Sara Ajlyakin is a Syrian sociologist and political theorist, currently serving as Deputy Executive Director of Al-Jumhuriya Collective, an independent Syrian media platform founded in 2012. She also sits on the organization’s editorial board.

ALL SESSIONS BY SARA AJLYAKIN

19 September

11:10 – 11:45 Session IV: ‘Democracy Matters: Values as Strategy, Security as Outcome’ [Speaker]

President – Economic Inclusion Group

Jorge Jraissati is a Venezuelan economist and President of the Economic Inclusion Group, a global coalition advocating for financial reforms and youth representation in policy-making. His work on the “right to banking” and protection against de-banking has been supported by the OECD, Council of Europe, and Financial Action Task Force. A researcher at IESE Business School and Florida Atlantic University, his research has been published in the Brookings Institution and Foreign Policy, and presented at Harvard and Cambridge. He also leads the Venezuelan Alliance, addressing his home country’s humanitarian crisis through policy advocacy.

ALL SESSIONS BY JORGE JRAISSATI

19 September

11:05 – 11:10 Lightning Talk: ‘Are Financial Regulations Failing Democracy?: Europe’s Growing Financial Exclusion and Banking Difficulties’ [Speaker]

Senior Resident Country Director, NDI Ukraine

Dr Walecki has more than 25 years of democracy assistance and governance experience working in roughly 50 countries around the world, implementing programs dealing with democratic governance, anti-corruption and political finance, political party assistance, and parliamentary support. Dr. Walecki served as the NDI Senior Country Director in Ukraine (2022-2025), the Executive Director of the EUROPAEUM (2020-2022), as well as the Head of the Democratization Department with OSCE/ODIHR for over 10 years. He also worked at the European Partnership for Democracy (EPD) as the Executive Director, as a Senior Advisor for political finance for the International Foundation for Electoral Systems (IFES), and as a Senior Expert for the Institute of Public Affairs and Batory Foundation in Poland.

ALL SESSIONS BY MARCIN WALECKI

19 September

11:10 – 11:45 Session IV: ‘Democracy Matters: Values as Strategy, Security as Outcome’ [Moderator]

Director, Democracy, Conflict, and Governance Program; Harvey V. Fineberg Chair for Democracy Studies; Carnegie Endowment for International Peace

Thomas Carothers is director of Carnegie’s Democracy, Conflict, and Governance Program. Carothers is a leading authority on comparative democratization and international support for democracy, human rights, governance, the rule of law, and civil society. He has worked on democracy assistance projects for many organizations and carried out extensive field research on aid efforts around the world. He is the author or editor of ten critically acclaimed books and many articles in prominent journals and newspapers, including most recently, Democracies Divided: The Global Challenge of Political Polarization (Brookings Press, 2019, co-edited with Andrew O’Donohue). He has been a visiting faculty member at the Central European University, Nuffield College, Oxford University, and Johns Hopkins SAIS. Prior to joining the Endowment, Carothers practiced international and financial law at Arnold & Porter and served as an attorney adviser in the office of the legal adviser of the U.S. Department of State.

ALL SESSIONS BY THOMAS CAROTHERS

19 September

12:00 – 12:45 Session V: ‘What Future for Democracy Support? Innovative Approaches to Put Democracy at the Centre of External Policies’ [Speaker]

PhD Candidate, Political Science @ Rutgers Women & Politics

Brit Anlar is a postdoctoral researcher at the University of Amsterdam in the Department of Political Science. Prior to her position at the UvA, she was employed as Research Manager at Future Caucus, the largest nonpartisan organization of young lawmakers in the United States. She was also a 2023-2024 recipient of the prestigious American Political Science Association Congressional Fellowship, where she served as a Policy and Communications Fellow for the Congressional Democratic Women’s Caucus. She has published several academic articles and international reports on young adult political representation in the United States and globally, and is the founder of the Youth Political Representation Research Network. She is also the co-editor of a forthcoming edited volume, Youth Political Representation: A Global Perspective on Young Adults’ Presence in Political Institutions (Palgrave Studies in Young People and Politics). From 2019-2023, she served as the Lead Graduate Researcher on the Young Elected Leaders Project at the Eagleton Institute of Politics. She has received several awards for her research on young adult political representation including the William A. Steiger Fund for Legislative Studies (2024), the Carrie Chapman Catt Prize for Research in Women and Politics, honorable mention (2020), the William Lyon and Meredith Porte Peace Fund (2020), and the Barbara Callaway Award for Research on Women and Politics (2020).

ALL SESSIONS BY BRIT ANLAR

18 September

15:40 – 15:55 Lightning Talk: ‘Measuring Democratic Inclusion: First Global Youth Participation Index’ [Speaker]

British Academy Global Innovation Fellow, Global Order and Institutions Program, Carnegie Endowment for International Peace

Federica D’Alessandra is the British Academy Global Innovation Fellow with the Global Order and Institutions Program at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, where she focuses on questions of international law, policy, and contemporary geopolitics, particularly in relation to multilateral institutions, U.S. foreign policy, NATO and transatlantic relations. She is often called to brief and provide advice to governmental and inter-governmental agencies on strategic and policy issues, and regularly participates to diplomatic conferences, inter-state negotiations, professional and industry gatherings. She has provided expert evidence to several UK Parliamentary Inquiries (Foreign Affairs and International Development Committees in the House of Commons and Defense and International Relations Committee in the House of Lords). Since 2018, she serves as Deputy Director of the University of Oxford’s Institute for Ethics Law and Armed Conflict and Director of its Programme on International Peace and Security. Prior to joining Oxford, she held appointments at the Harvard Law School and John F. Kennedy School of Government, including a Fellowship at the Carr-Ryan Center. She is widely published and has received several prestigious awards, including by the International Bar Association, where she also Co-Chairs for the Rule of Law Forum.

ALL SESSIONS BY FEDERICA D’ALESSANDRA

19 September

12:00 – 12:45 Session V: ‘Democracy Matters: Values as Strategy, Security as Outcome’ [Speaker]

Senior Fellow, Democracy, Conflict, and Governance Program, Carnegie Europe

Richard Youngs is a senior fellow in the Democracy, Conflict, and Governance Program, based at Carnegie Europe. He is also a professor of international relations at the University of Warwick and previously held positions in the UK Foreign and Commonwealth Office and as director of the FRIDE think-tank in Madrid. Youngs has authored seventeen books, the most recent of which are Democratic Crossroads: Transformations in Twenty First-Century Politics (Oxford University Press, 2024), Geoliberal Europe and the Test of War (Agenda Publishing, 2024), Rebuilding European Democracy: Resistance and Renewal in an Illiberal Age (Bloomsbury/Tauris, 2021) and The European Union and Global Politics (Macmillan, 2021).

ALL SESSIONS BY RICHARD YOUNGS

19 September

9:15 – 9:25 Lightning Talk: ‘A New Phase of Civic Movements: Implications for International Democracy Support’ [Speaker]

Chief Policy Correspondent, POLITICO Europe and Host of EU Confidential

Sarah Wheaton is the Chief Policy Correspondent for POLITICO Europe, the co-author of Brussels Playbook newsletter and host of the EU Confidential podcast. In her role, she focuses on top policy news, in-depth reporting and special projects in collaboration with our policy reporting teams. Prior to this, Sarah authored the weekly newsletter EU Influence and served as a Senior Policy Reporter for POLITICO Europe’s health team.

Before moving to Brussels, Sarah was a White House correspondent for POLITICO in the United States, covering the final two years of the Obama administration, and a health care reporter for POLITICO Pro.

Sarah spent the first part of her career at the The New York Times, where her reporting on breaking news, the 2008 and 2012 campaigns and the White House appeared online and in print. She grew up in Clearwater, Florida, and holds a bachelor’s degree in Political Communication from the George Washington University in Washington, D.C.

ALL SESSIONS BY SARAH WHEATON

19 September

09:00 – 09:05 Welcome Keynote Address [Speaker]

Co-CEO Accountability Lab Global

Blair Glencorse is Co-CEO of Accountability Lab- a translocal network that makes governance work for people around the world. Blair and his team have done everything from building large-scale socially conscious music campaigns in Nigeria; to monitoring and improving public services in Pakistan; to running a prize-winning TV show called Integrity Icon to “name and fame” honest government officials. Blair is also the outgoing Co-Chair of the Open Government Partnership (OGP) through which he represents civil society as part of the largest global effort to make governments more transparent and effective. Blair is a former member of the World Economic Forum’s Global Future Council on Good Governance and was previously a member of the World Bank’s Expert Advisory Council on Citizen Engagement. Blair speaks and writes regularly on issues of democracy, open governance, citizen participation, anti-corruption and social change.

ALL SESSIONS BY BLAIR GLENCORSE

19 September

12:00 – 12:45 Session V: ‘What Future for Democracy Support? Innovative Approaches to Put Democracy at the Centre of External Policies’ [Moderator]

Director for Europe, International IDEA

Sam van der Staak is the Director for Europe at the International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance (International IDEA). His work focuses on responding to democratic developments in Europe, with a special emphasis on the topics of political parties, money in politics, and ICT in democracy. Van der Staak manages International IDEA’s Regional Europe Programme, in which capacity he leads International IDEA’s representation to the European Union in Brussels. Sam has been involved in International IDEA publications on Cybersecurity in elections, Citizen movements, Money in politics, and Political party dialogue. He makes regular media contributions for national and international media.

ALL SESSIONS BY SAM VAN DER STAAK

19 September

11:10 – 11:45 Session IV: Democracy Matters: Values as Strategy, Security as Outcome [Speaker]

Secretary-General, International Idea

Casas-Zamora has more than 25 years of experience in democratic governance as a researcher, analyst, educator, consultant and public official. He embodies the rare combination of a distinguished academic career—strongly focused on electoral systems and democratic institutions—with practical experience as a high-level public official in his home country as well as multilateral organizations. Casas-Zamora is Senior Fellow at the Inter-American Dialogue, a Washington, DC-based policy research centre. Until recently, he was member of Costa Rica’s Presidential Commission for State Reform, and managing director at Analitica Consulting (Analitica Consultores). Previously, he was Costa Rica’s Second Vice President and Minister of National Planning; Secretary for Political Affairs at the Organization of American States; Senior Fellow at the Brookings Institution; and National Coordinator of the United Nations Development Program’s Human Development Report. He has taught at Georgetown University, George Washington University, and the University of Texas at Dallas, among many higher education institutions. He holds a Law degree from the University of Costa Rica, a Masters in Government from the University of Essex, and a PhD in Political Science from the University of Oxford. He has authored several studies on campaign finance, elections, democratization, citizen security and civil-military relations in Latin America. His doctoral thesis, entitled “Paying for Democracy in Latin America: Political Finance and State Subsidies for Parties in Costa Rica and Uruguay”, won the 2004 Jean Blondel PhD Prize of the European Consortium for Political Research (ECPR) and was published in 2005 by the ECPR. He was selected as Young Global Leader by the World Economic Forum in 2007. In 2013, he became a member of the Bretton Woods Committee.

ALL SESSIONS BY KEVIN CASAS ZAMORA

18 September

14:25 – 15:10 High-Level Opening Session: ‘Democracy for All: Inclusive Democracy as a Pathway to Security and Development’  [Speaker]

Chairperson National Commission for Civic Education (NCCE), Ghana

Kathleen Addy is the Deputy Commissioner of the National Commission for Civic Education since 2017. She is a Ghanaian activist with special interests in human rights and governance. She holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Psychology from the University of Ghana and a Master’s Degree in Communications from the University of Ghana School of Communications Studies. She was appointed as Deputy Chairperson in Charge of Finance and Administration at the National Commission For Civic Education by President Nana Akufo-Addo of Ghana in 2017.

Kathleen Addy was the Afrobarometer Communications Manager a the Center for Democratic Development and has worked with other civil society organizations in Ghana. She was also a Research and Communications Officer at the Center for Policy Analysis focusing on Women’s Economic Empowerment and Economic Partnership agreements. Through international trade, Kathleen Adyy has worked on projects in domestic violence, gender, and economic development as well as economic development.

ALL SESSIONS BY KATHLEEN ADDY

18 September

15:55 – 16:40 Session II: ‘WYDE Political Parties: Inclusion at the Heart of Political Life’ [Moderator]

Co-Founder and Chairperson of Civis Fortis

Liudmyla Yankina is the Co-Founder and Chairperson of Civis Fortis, a Human Rights NGO, Foundation for Civil Society Protection. A human rights advocate, she is widely recognized for her enduring efforts to defend Ukrainian civil society and support at-risk activists (on territories temporarily occupied by the Russian Federation, as well as on territories under the jurisdiction of the Ukrainian government). Her contributions have earned both national and international acclaim, including the National Human Rights Award and the OSCE Democracy Defender Award for her impactful work. Throughout her career, she has led initiatives to document and monitor violations against human rights defenders, enabling effective advocacy and evidence-based protection strategies. Currently, she serves as a member of the Public Integrity Council and leads the working group on the protection of activists and journalists within the International Council of Experts on War Crimes, operating under the Prosecutor General’s Office.

ALL SESSIONS BY LIUDMYLA YANKINA

19 September

12:00 – 12:45 Session V: ‘Democracy Matters: Values as Strategy, Security as Outcome’ [Speaker]

Head of Democracy Assessment, International IDEA

Dr Seema Shah is the Head of International IDEA’s Democracy Assessment (DA) Unit , which produces a biennial ‘Global State of Democracy’ report, an annually updated Global State of Democracy Indices and a EU-co-funded Covid-19 Global Monitor on Democracy and Human Rights.

She previously served as the research and strategy lead for the International Rescue Committee’s humanitarian innovation department in the Middle East region. Prior experience also includes leading electoral integrity-related research and advocacy for a coalition of Kenyan civil society organizations in Nairobi. As the Director of Research, she managed a team of data analysts in the development of evidence-based advocacy reports for national election reform campaigns and for Supreme Court cases challenging the credibility of the 2013 and 2017 Kenyan elections.

Seema has also worked on election violence, media development, campaign finance reform, human rights research and advocacy, and standard-setting for electoral integrity with civil society organizations in DRC, Kenya, Sri Lanka, Zimbabwe and the United States as well as with International IDEA in a previous capacity. She holds a PhD in Political Science from UCLA, where her dissertation focused on patterns of intra-ethnic election violence in Iraq, Kenya and Sri Lanka.

ALL SESSIONS BY SEEMA SHAH

18 September

16:40 – 16:50 Lightning Talk: Democracy on the Move – Global State of Democracy 2025 Report [Speaker]

Executive Director of the EU-LAC Foundation

Alberto Brunori officially took up his duties as Executive Director of the EU-LAC Foundation on 2024, following his appointment by the organisation’s Board of Governors. Brunori, an Italian national with an extensive background in international relations and human rights, leads the organisation in its mission to enhance bi-regional partnerships between the European Union (EU) and Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC).

Brunori has had a distinguished career with notable roles in the United Nations. Before joining EU-LAC, he served as the Regional Representative for the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) in Central America and the English-speaking Caribbean (2020-2024). His previous roles include OHCHR Representative in Colombia (2018-2020), Guatemala (2010-2016), and Mexico (2008-2010).

Brunori has received several prestigious awards, including the Orden del Quetzal en grado de Gran Cruz from Guatemala and the Cavaliere dell’Ordine della Stella d’Italia from Italy.

He holds a master’s degree in Latin American Studies from the Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México and a bachelor’s degree in Political Sciences from the Università degli Studi di Pisa. He is fluent in Italian, Spanish, and English.

ALL SESSIONS BY ALBERTO BRUNORI

18 September

16:50 – 17:20 Spotlight Session: The EU-CELAC Summit 2025 as an Opportunity for Strengthening Democracy [Moderator]

Managing Director, New Horizons Project Geopolitical Strategy Advice and Analysis

Shada Islam is an influential Brussels-based specialist on European Union affairs who works independently as a commentator, advisor, analyst and strategist on Europe, Asia, Africa, Geopolitics, Trade, Migration, Inclusion, Diversity and Women’s Empowerment. She runs her own Brussels-based global strategy and advisory media company, New Horizons Project (NHP). She is a Visiting Professor at the College of Europe (Natolin) and a Solvay Fellow at the Vrije University Brussel (VUB). In 2017, she was selected as one of the 20 most influential women in Brussels by the magazine Politico. Shada is a Non-Resident Fellow at the Center for Global Development. She is a member of the European Policy Centre’s Strategic Council and Senior Advisor for its Europe in the World programme. She is also on the Brussels Advisory Committee of Women in International Security.

ALL SESSIONS BY SHADA ISLAM

18 September

14:25 – 15:10 High-Level Opening Session: ‘Democracy for All: Inclusive Democracy as a Pathway to Security and Development’  [Moderator]

Member of Parliament & Constitutional Law Professor | Vice‑President, UNITA Parliamentary Group, Angola

Hon. Mihaela Neto Webba is an Angolan politician, legal scholar, and advocate for constitutional governance. A graduate in Law and an expert in Constitutional Law, she is currently a professor at the Faculty of Law of the Methodist University of Angola, where she has shaped future legal minds through her academic rigor and commitment to the rule of law.
Entering politics in 2012, Hon. Webba was elected as a Member of Parliament representing UNITA, Angola’s main opposition party. Over her three terms across more than a decade, she has served as a respected member of the National Assembly’s Constitutional and Juridical Committee. In this role, she has actively contributed to the review and improvement of Angola’s legal and constitutional framework, particularly focusing on judicial reform, legislative oversight, and the protection of civil liberties.
As Vice-President of UNITA’s Parliamentary Group, she plays a strategic leadership role within the party. She supports the formulation of UNTTA’s legislative agenda, and promotes cross-party dialogue and democratic accountability. She is recognized for her strong voice in parliamentary debates on transparency, democratic pluralism, and the inclusion of women and youth in political leadership.
With a dual career as both a professor and an MP, Hon. Webba brings a rare combination of legal expertise, legislative influence, and leadership. Her contribution to the WYDE Political Parties session will reflect her deep understanding of constitutional structures, her commitment to democratic governance, and her advocacy for gender and generational inclusion in politics.

ALL SESSIONS BY HON. MIHAELA NETO WEBBA

18 September

15:55 – 16:40 Session II: WYDE Political Parties: Inclusion at the Heart of Political Life [Speaker]

Assistant Professor of Practice, Director of Early College and Faculty Community Engagement Strategy at Merrimack College, United States of America

Dr. Kirstie Lynn Dobbs is an Assistant Professor of Practice in the Department of Political Science and Public Policy. She is the Director of the Early College Program and Faculty Community Engagement Strategy at Merrimack College in North Andover, MA. In her dissertation, she analyzed why youth in Tunisia were so active during the 2011 Arab Spring revolution, but were still less likely than older generations to vote at the ballot box in the aftermath of the democratic transition.

Kirstie applied her specialization on voter turnout as a Manatt Research Fellow at the International Foundation for Electoral Systems and has presented this research to the United States Agency for International Development and the Arab Reform Initiative. She is a research consultant for the European Partnership for Democracy on creating a Global Youth Political Participation Index. She has op-ed articles in the Foreign Policy Journal and invited articles in Ace: Electoral Knowledge Network, ORIENT Magazine, and the American Political Science Association’s Middle East and North Africa Politics Section Symposium. Peer-reviewed journal articles appear in Democratization, The British Journal of Middle Eastern Studies, Representation, The European Journal of Political Science, Acta Politica, and PS: Political Science and Politics. She also engages in multiple civically engaged research projects with community partners investigating how educators, practitioners, academics, and civil society can support youth empowerment after the COVID-19 pandemic. She created a summer research experience for first-year students to conduct independent research projects using youth participatory action research practices. This summer course also engages with a summer civic engagement program for middle schoolers she co-created and co-facilitated with faculty and undergraduate students called Youth Voice. The research from this program is published in Issues in Interdisciplinary Studies and a book chapter published by Palgrave in the Political Pedagogies series.

Dr. Dobbs is also dedicated to building pipelines that empower first-generation youth with access to higher education and career opportunities. As a state leader in the field, Kirstie serves as a policy advisor for the Massachusetts Alliance for Early College, shaping initiatives that expand educational equity. In addition to their leadership in education, she is a passionate life coach, helping young people build confidence, manage anxiety, and step into their power.

ALL SESSIONS BY KRISTIE LYNN DOBBS

18 September

15:40 – 15:55 Lightning Talk: ‘Measuring Democratic Inclusion: First Global Youth Participation Index’ [Speaker]

Deputy Managing Director for the Americas, EEAS

Pelayo Castro Zuzuárregui is a diplomat with the European External Action Service (EEAS) and is currently Deputy Managing Director for the Americas in Brussels. Previously, he served as an advisor in the cabinet of the High Representative and Vice-President of the European Commission, Josep Borrell, as well as heading the division responsible for Egypt, Syria, Lebanon and Jordan.

From September 2019 to August 2021, he was Ambassador and Head of the European Union Delegation in Nicaragua.

From September 2015 to August 2019, he was Ambassador and Head of the European Union Delegation in Costa Rica.

He has held various positions in different institutions and organisations linked to the European Union’s external relations. He worked as an advisor in the Cabinet of the High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Catherine Ashton, and played an active role in the establishment of the EEAS. He was Head of the Division for Relations with the European Parliament and National Parliaments of the EEAS during the terms of Catherine Ashton and Federica Mogherini. He previously worked as an advisor to the Spanish Presidency under President José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero, beginning his career as a European civil servant in the secretariat of the European Parliament’s Committee on International Trade.

Pelayo Castro holds a degree in Political Science, specialising in International Relations, from the Autonomous University of Barcelona, as well as a Master’s degree in European Studies from the College of Europe in Bruges, which he obtained through a scholarship from the Patronat Català Pro Europa. Having obtained a scholarship from La Caixa, he went on to pursue a Master of Science in Foreign Service (MSFS) at Georgetown University, where he earned the Karl F. Landegger Certificate of Honour in International Business Diplomacy. He also graduated with the Dean’s Award for Academic Excellence and Distinction in Oral Examination.

ALL SESSIONS BY PELAYO CASTRO

18 September

16:50 – 17:20 Spotlight Session: The EU-CELAC Summit 2025 as an Opportunity for Strengthening Democracy [Speaker]

Secretary-General, Juventud LAC (Latin America)

For more than a decade, Lu has distinguished herself in humanitarian work and strengthening democracy in Latin America and the Caribbean, and as a specialist in international development projects with social, educational, and political impact. In addition to being Executive Secretary of the Latin American Youth Network for Democracy (Juventud LAC), she founded the political party Nuestro Tiempo and was a professor of history and politics at Dr. José Matías Delgado University for seven years. Lu began as a pro-democracy activist in organizations such as the Global Shapers Community (an initiative of the World Economic Forum) and the Community of Democracies, and was elected to the Advisory Council of the International Republican Institute’s (IRI) Generation Democracy program for the 2022 term. Lu holds a degree in international studies from Syracuse University and is currently pursuing a master’s degree in government and public administration at the Autonomous University of Chile.

ALL SESSIONS BY LOURDES ARGUETA

19 September

9.25-10.25 Session III: What Future for Democracy Support? Innovative Approaches to Put Democracy at the Centre of External Policies [Speaker]