Author of ‘Are we there yet? Localisation as the journey towards locally led practice: Models, approaches and challenges’ (2022), Arbie Baguios is a humanitarian and development professional, and founder of Aid Re-imagined. His initiative aims to advance the evolution of aid towards effectiveness and justice through an interdisciplinary lens, integrating insights from development studies, anthropology, sociology, economics, philosophy, and management.

Arbie brings extensive experience from global organizations such as ActionAid, Save the Children, the Red Cross, and UNICEF, where he has contributed to humanitarian response, program management, policy development, strategy formulation, and research. Originally from the Philippines, he holds degrees from the London School of Economics and Ateneo de Manila University.

Arbie’s interests encompass evidence-based policy, complexity and systems thinking, and the decolonization of development and humanitarian aid approaches.

Dr Alistair D. B. Cook is Coordinator of the Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief Programme and Senior Fellow at the Centre for Non-Traditional Security Studies, S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore. His research interests focus on humanitarian affairs, disaster governance, foreign policy and regional cooperation in the Asia-Pacific. He was a Visiting Scholar at the East-West Center and Asia-Pacific Center for Security Studies in Honolulu, Hawaii, USA from May-June 2022. He served as the President (2018 – 2021) of the Asia-Pacific Region of the International Studies Association. He teaches a masters level seminar titled Governance and Security in Myanmar at RSIS and contributes to professional development courses. His most recent publications include ‘Military humanitarian and disaster governance networks in Southeast Asia: Framework and analysis’ (with Angelo P. L. Trias in Disasters, 2023).

Ece Ceren Doğar is the Head of External Relations and Partnerships at Turkish Red Crescent (Türk Kızılay). She manages strategic engagements with governments, international organizations, and civil society, and oversees the dissemination of Sphere Standards. Ece has worked in various crisis and disaster settings, including the Middle East Crisis, Morocco Earthquakes, Kahramanmaraş Earthquakes, and the Syria refugee response. During the Kahramanmaraş Earthquakes, which impacted 11 provinces in Türkiye, she played a key role in stakeholder engagement and contributed to the early recovery process.

Before her current role, Ece held various positions within the Red Cross Red Crescent Movement and the private sector. From 2019 to 2024, she took different assignments in International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) and served as Strategic Partnerships and Resource Mobilization Coordinator for the Middle East Crisis and Morocco Earthquakes in Jordan and as Senior Officer for National Society and Government Partnerships at the IFRC headquarters. With a background in project management, communication, and business development, she holds a Bachelor’s in International Relations and Affairs and an MBA, with her thesis focused on cross-sector collaboration in disaster risk reduction.

United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres announced on 10 June 2022 the appointment of Amandeep Singh Gill of India as his Envoy on Technology.  The Secretary-General wishes to extend his appreciation and gratitude to the Assistant Secretary-General for Policy Coordination and Inter-Agency Affairs, Ms. Maria-Francesca Spatolisano, for her dedication and commitment as Acting Envoy on Technology.

Mr. Gill is the Chief Executive Officer of the International Digital Health and Artificial Intelligence Research Collaborative (I-DAIR) project, based at the Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies, Geneva.

A thought leader on digital technology, he brings to the position a deep knowledge of digital technologies coupled with a solid understanding of how to leverage the digital transformation responsibly and inclusively for progress on the Sustainable Development Goals.

Previously, he was the Executive Director and Co-Lead of the United Nations Secretary-General’s High-Level Panel on Digital Cooperation (2018-2019).  In addition to delivering the report of the High-Level Panel on Digital Cooperation, Mr. Gill helped secure high-impact international consensus recommendations on regulating Artificial Intelligence (Al) in lethal autonomous weapon systems in 2017 and 2018, the draft Al ethics recommendation of UNESCO in 2020, and a new international platform on digital health and Al.

Mr. Gill was India’s Ambassador and Permanent Representative to the Conference on Disarmament in Geneva (2016-2018).  He joined his country’s Diplomatic Service in 1992 and served in various capacities in disarmament and strategic technologies and international security affairs, with postings in Tehran and Colombo.  He was also a visiting scholar at Stanford University.

Mr. Gill holds a PhD in Nuclear Learning in Multilateral Forums from King’s College, London, a Bachelor of Technology in Electronics and Electrical Communications from Panjab University, Chandigarh and an Advanced Diploma in French History and Language from Geneva University.  He is fluent in English, French, Hindi and Punjabi.

Fleur Johns is Professor in the Faculty of Law & Justice at UNSW Sydney. Her latest book, ‘#Help: Digital Humanitarianism and the Remaking of International Order’ (Oxford University Press, 2023), explores the implications of digital technology for international law and politics, as well as the international law of diplomacy. Fleur’s research spans international law, legal theory, law and development, and law and technology.

An Australian Research Council Future Fellow (2021-2025) and Visiting Professor at the University of Gothenburg, Sweden (2021-2024), Fleur has authored five books. She holds degrees from Melbourne University (BA, LLB(Hons)) and Harvard University (LLM, SJD; Menzies Scholar; Laylin Prize), and previously practiced law in New York.

Fleur’s academic contributions extend globally, with visiting appointments in Canada, Europe, the UK, and the US. She serves on the editorial boards of the American Journal of International Law, Technology and Regulation, the Journal of Cross-disciplinary Research in Computational Law, and Science, Technology & Human Values, and is an Advisory Editor for the London Review of International Law, the Australian Feminist Law Journal, and several scholarly book series.

Elected to Fellowship of the Academy of the Social Sciences in Australia in 2020, Fleur currently serves on its Executive Committee as International Secretary. Within UNSW, she is affiliated with the Allens Hub for Technology, Law and Innovation and the Kaldor Centre for International Refugee Law, and is an associate of the Australian Human Rights Institute. Fleur was Associate Dean (Research) for the Faculty of Law at UNSW Sydney from 2016 to 2019 and currently serves on UNSW’s Academic Board.

Christopher Lockyear became Secretary General of Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) International in October 2018.

Starting with MSF in Darfur in 2005, he has subsequently held field coordination roles in Sudan, Somalia, and Pakistan. In 2010, he was appointed Operations Manager responsible for operations in Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Pakistan, South Sudan and Uganda.

In 2014 he joined Action Against Hunger USA as Operations Director and was a Member of the UN Emergency Director’s Group.

Originally from the UK, Christopher Lockyear is a 2014 Yale World Fellow and holds an MA in Philosophy and Ethics from Exeter University, and degrees in Engineering from Cambridge University.

Dr Adam Lupel has been Vice President and Chief Operating Officer at the International Peace Institute since 2016. He served as IPI Acting President and CEO from October 2020 to March 2021. He is responsible for developing IPI’s long-term research agenda and for overseeing management and coordination among all IPI Departments. Between 2014 and 2016 he served as the director of research and publications for the Independent Commission on Multilateralism, a project of IPI. In 2015, he led IPI’s support to the General Assembly-mandated “Lessons Learned Exercise” on the UN Mission for Ebola Emergency Response, working in close collaboration with the Executive Office of the Secretary-General.

Dr. Lupel also conducts research on issues related to globalization, multilateralism, and the prevention of mass atrocities. He is the author of Globalization and Popular Sovereignty: Democracy’s Transnational Dilemma (2009) and the co-editor of Peace Operations and Organized Crime: Enemies or Allies? (2011) and Responding to Genocide: The Politics of International Action (2013).

Prior to 2006, when he joined IPI as Editor, he was the Managing Editor of Constellations: An International Journal of Critical and Democratic Theory, and he taught modern and contemporary political theory at The New School’s Eugene Lang College in New York. He has a PhD in political theory and an MA in liberal studies from the New School for Social Research and a BA in international relations with a concentration in Latin America from Boston University.

He tweets at @ALupel.

Ms Nguyen Ngoc Ly is the founder and developer of Center for Environment and Community Research (CECR) in 2009.

She holds a diploma in Food Chemistry from the Technical University of Prague, Czech Republic, a Master’s degree in Environmental Management and Technology, Asian Institute of Technology, Thailand and a Master’s Degree in Information and Library Science (University of Maryland) as well as a Master Degree in Public Administration (Harvard University), USA.

She has extensive practical experience, working as an executive at the Ministry of Internal Trade, a lecturer at Hanoi University of Science and Technology, an Environmental expert at the World Bank, Washington DC and Head of the Department of Sustainable Development at UNDP Viet Nam from 1998 to 2008.

With more than 30 years working in water pollution control, solid waste management, climate change and natural resource management in Vietnam, Ms. Ly has made numerous meaningful contributions, especially in in the areas of policy advocacy, system governance, gender equality promotion and stakeholder participation increasing in environmental solutions. In 2010, the book reporting background information on Hanoi lakes was completed by her and her colleagues. The book is considered a manual for agencies and organizations in the protection of Hanoi Lakes. In 2018, she and her colleagues completed the report Situation analysis in terms of water pollution and the need to develop the Law on Water Pollution Control in Vietnam.

Author of ‘Private Foundations and Development Partnerships: American Philanthropy and Global Development Agendas’ (2014), Dr Michael Moran is an Academic Specialist and Lecturer in Social Enterprise in the Graduate School of Humanities and Social Sciences. Prior to joining the University of Melbourne in 2024, he was a Senior Lecturer at the Centre for Social Impact (CSI) Swinburne University of Technology and National Education Director for the CSI network administered by the UNSW Sydney.

Dr Moran is a political scientist and leading Australian scholar of the social economy whose research uses theories from policy and organisational studies to understand how people and organisations can work more effectively to enhance Australian and global society.

Dr Moran has published in leading journals including Public Administration Review, Journal of Business Ethics, Policy & Politics, Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management and Australian Journal of Public Administration and has served on the international advisory boards Nonprofit & Voluntary Sector Quarterly and Policy & Politics.

Ambassador Ong Keng Yong s Executive Deputy Chairman of the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies (RSIS) at the Nanyang Technological University in Singapore. He is concurrently Director of the Institute of Defence and Strategic Studies (IDSS) and Head of International Centre for Political Violence and Terrorism Research (ICPVTR) at RSIS. Mr Ong continues to hold the position of Ambassador-at-Large at the Singapore Ministry of Foreign Affairs. He is also Singapore’s Non-Resident High Commissioner to Pakistan and Non-Resident Ambassador to Iran. Mr Ong was the Chairman of the Singapore International Foundation (SIF) from 2015 to 2023.

Mr Ong was High Commissioner of Singapore to Malaysia from July 2011 to October 2014. He served as Secretary-General of ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations), based in Jakarta, Indonesia, for five years from January 2003.

He was Singapore’s High Commissioner to India and concurrently Ambassador to Nepal from 1996 to 1998. From September 1998 to December 2002, he was Press Secretary to the then Prime Minister of Singapore, Mr Goh Chok Tong. From 2008 to 2011, he served as Director of the Institute of Policy Studies (IPS) in the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy at the National University of Singapore.

Pauline Paillé (she/her) is a senior analyst at RAND. She works mainly within the Defence and Security team in RAND Europe and is deputy lead of the Security and Resilience workstream. At the intersection of defence and security, her research interests relate to preventing and countering violent extremism, radicalisation and terrorism; hybrid and information warfare; international and European security, and climate-related issues.

Prior to joining RAND, Paillé conducted research for various organisations, such as the International Institute for Strategic Studies and the Hudson Institute, on a wide range of international security issues. She also worked as an analyst for the French Ministry of Defence and the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs. She holds an M.A. in international politics from Sciences Po Bordeaux and attended both the University of California at Berkeley and Laval University as part of her multidisciplinary studies.

LTC(DR) Suriya Prakaash graduated from Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine in 2010. He went on to complete his Family Medicine Residency and obtained his Masters in Medicine in 2016. He served in the Army Medical Services, Singapore Armed Forces before completing Advanced Specialist Training in Sports Medicine in 2022.

LTC(DR) Suriya is currently head of Soldier Development Branch in the Centre of Excellence for Soldier Performance. He oversees various aspects of soldier performance from exercise physiology to nutrition to performance in the heat. His research areas include musculoskeletal injury management, load carriage, fatigue management, and heat injury, amongst others.

LTC(DR) Suriya has co-authored several articles, including publications in the Singapore Medical Journalon “Thermal strain and fluid balance during a 72-km military route march in a field setting,” the International Review of the Armed Forces Medical Services(Issue 87) on “The Musculoskeletal Injury Management Pathways, a Useful Tool for the Singapore Armed Forces Medical Officers,” and BMJ Open Sport & Exercise Medicine on “Longitudinal change in cardiorespiratory fitness and the association with cardiovascular disease and all-cause mortality in young Asian men: a cohort study.”

Dr Luis C. Rodriguez, is the Thematic Lead, Climate and Environmental Crises, for IFRC Asia-Pacific Regional office based in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

Luis joined IFRC after gaining significant experience in leading and coordinating Global, Regional and National Climate Change initiatives in Africa, Asia Pacific, Latin America and the Caribbean with multiples international organizations and UN agencies.  He has expertise in Climate Adaptation and Resilience, Disaster Risk Reduction and GHG mitigation, and track record mobilizing climate finance, strengthening partnerships, building capacity, and leading multidisciplinary teams in development and emergency settings.  Luis is also skilled in Strategic Planning, Program/Project Management, Policy Analysis, and Program Evaluation. He holds a PhD in Ecological Economics and certifications in Project Management and Corporate Finance.

Author of ‘The humanitarian exit dilemma: the moral cost of withdrawing aid’ (2023), Prof Chin Ruamps is an Assistant Professor at Audencia Business School with over a decade of academic and practical expertise in humanitarian ethics. She specializes in the ethical dimensions of business practices during humanitarian crises and disasters, including conflicts, pandemics, and climate change.

Her research applies ethical theories and humanitarian ethics frameworks to analyze the complexities of cross-sector collaborations between businesses and humanitarian organizations. Prof Ruamps aims to steer these partnerships towards sustainable and morally justifiable outcomes for affected populations and the humanitarian community.

She also contributes to the ‘What is climate humanitarianism’ project, examining the ethical implications of ‘managed retreat’ in climate adaptation.

Ahmed El Saeed, M.D., MSc. is currently serving as Regional Head for the UN Global Pulse Asia Pacific. Prior to this, he has spent the past 4 years working at the intersection of innovation and human development as the Innovation Scaling Lead for the Global Pulse Innovation lab in Helsinki, Finland. His previous positions included serving as Country Manager for UNAIDS and a member of the UN Country Team in Egypt and several other technical and leadership positions during his career of 16 years with the United Nations. Dr. El Saeed’s professional journey has woven through various domains, including program and personnel management, UN coordination, public health, and innovation for development.

His Academic background includes a Masters in Public Health from London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine (LSHTM), A healthcare management post-graduate diploma in Healthcare management from the American University in Cairo and a Bachelor of Medicine from Alexandria University.

Moutushi Sengupta is the Chief of Capital Mobilization in AVPN where she engages with the broad spectrum of capital providers, to deploy financial and human capital to strong, credible Impact Organizations across Asia. She also maintains oversight of the Deal Share platform- AVPN’s online deal-information source for nonprofit and for-profit organizations.

Prior to joining AVPN, Moutushi has worked with reputed development funding institutions, including DFID (the erstwhile development wing of Government of United Kingdom), John D and Catherine T MacArthur Foundation, Oxfam India, and more recently, Co-Impact where she served as the Asia Regional Director. Moutushi has an honours graduate degree in Economics and holds two Masters’ degrees – a Master of Science (MSc) in Applied Environment Economics from Imperial College, University of London, and a Master of Business Administration (MBA) from the University Business School of Panjab University, Chandigarh. She is also an accredited Leadership Coach with the International Coaching Federation.

COL Tan Eng Han Fredie is presently the Deputy Chief Guards Officer in the Guards Formation, Singapore Armed Forces (SAF). He is also concurrently the Director of Changi Regional Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief (HADR) Coordination Centre (Changi RHCC).

Enlisted into the SAF on 27 September 1996, COL Tan was commissioned as an Infantry Officer on 26 September 1997, and completed the Guards Officers Conversion Course in 1998. He has served in numerous command and staff appointments in the SAF over the last 26 years.

COL Tan’s key command appointments included Commanding Officer, 3rd Battalion Singapore Guards, and Commander of a NS Infantry Brigade. His staff appointments included Head Plans & Doctrine, and Head General Staff in the Guards Formation. He was also Head of Overseas Training Policy and Plans in the Singapore Army General Staff, and Head of Doctrine Development Group in HQ Training and Doctrine Command (TRADOC). Prior to his present appointment, COL Tan was the Head of SAF Centre for Leadership Development in SAFTI Military Institute.

COL Tan attained a Bachelor of Commerce (Management) from the University of Adelaide, Australia. He also completed a Master of Arts (Instructional Design and

Technology) from the Nanyang Technological University, Singapore. He is a Fellow of the Australian War College, and graduated from the Defence and Strategic Studies Course with a Master of International Relations from Deakin University, Australia.

COL Tan was awarded the SAF Tsunami Relief Operation medal for his role as the Deputy Ops Officer in Operation FLYING EAGLE, the SAF’s largest HADR deployment in the aftermath of the Boxing Day Tsunami in 2004. As Director RHCC, COL Tan looks forward to strengthen the regional and global HADR networks, as well as the disaster relief preparedness of the SAF with its partners.

COL Tan is happily married to Chin Chin, with three children Adelaide, Aden and Ancel.

As Chief Executive of Space Faculty, Lynette is a champion of the Asia space ecosystem, working through her organisation to develop people and technologies for the future economy through space.

Space Faculty creates a dedicated learning pathway to nurture talent from passion to profession, working to bring youths and young adults to deepen their knowledge of space and other deep-tech sectors.

Space Faculty also supports the development of space-based technologies and research through its network of partners. Space Faculty is also starting its own dedicated fund “Space Economy” Fund with partners in Thailand and United Kingdom.

She is a Karman Fellow, an international award given to individuals whose achievements in space are outstanding.

She is also an advisor to international deep tech startups, including life science company, Myelin-H, based in London, UK, and fast-growing artificial intelligence company openstream.a.i. based in New Jersey, USA.

Lynette is active in promoting Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics interest amongst youths and women. For her efforts and accomplishments, she received the Lancôme Visionary Award in 2018 and was recently recognised for her “Outstanding Contributions to the Science & Technology Industry” by a leading women’s publication. She was also recognised as a Trailblazer on the inaugural “Singapore 100 Women in Tech List” in 2020 for her outstanding efforts to put Singapore on the map of the space industry and for being a pioneer in the region’s space sector.

Lynette serves as a mentor for young leaders through the Singapore Business Federation, Women in Aviation – Singapore and with the US Embassy.

May Tan-Mullins is an Advisor for Skilledin Green- the ultimate expert hub for Green Skills, thriving Sustainability Careers, and Future-Proofed pathways. Prior to this, she was with James Cook University Singapore as Dean International and Chief Sustainability Officer, and the Vice Provost of Teaching and Learning at University of Nottingham Ningbo China. Her past senior leadership experience included Associate Provost for Global Engagement, Dean of Graduate School, and the Director of Institute of Asia and Pacific Studies. She is also a professor in International Relations and her research interests are political ecology of rising China, environmental and energy justice, poverty alleviation and building resilience for the poorest and most vulnerable against climate change. Based on her expertise in various international development and human security issues, she is a consultant for the UNDP, National Bureau of Asian Research (US), the Revenue Watch Institute (US) and the Chinese government.

Wu Ye-Min is Regional Director at the Centre for Humanitarian Dialogue, where she oversees a team of mediators based in South Asia and Southeast Asia who work on reducing conflict, limiting human suffering and developing opportunities for peace.

She was a diplomat with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Singapore for 15+ years. While at the Permanent Mission of Singapore to the United Nations (UN) in New York, she chaired UN negotiations as well as represented the Group of 77 and China in UN negotiations on sustainable development issues. She was also Deputy Permanent Representative for Singapore to the World Trade Organisation and World Intellectual Property Organisation in Geneva.

Ye-Min co-founded Negotiation Resolution, which trains negotiators to speak for a better world by balancing interests and global responsibility. She conducts workshops and lectures around the world on negotiation and leadership in diplomacy.

She co-authored “Negotiating at the United Nations: A Practitioner’s Guide” (Routledge), which is used as teaching material in various institutions. Her work has been featured in podcasts and publications, including “The Voices of War” podcast and South China Morning Post.

Ye-Min did her undergraduate studies at Johns Hopkins University and Oxford University, and received her Master of International Public Policy from Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies.

Prof Andrej is Chair of Governance and Innovation and co-founder of the inter- and transdisciplinary branch Faculty Campus Fryslân at the University of Groningen. This newly founded faculty dedicated to “Global Challenges and Local Solutions” combines education and research in the domains of sustainability, development, and digitalization. Andrej earned his PhD in Law, Legal Philosophy and International Law. His research foci include Big Data ethics, cyber governance, humanitarian action and state of emergency politics. Prof Andrej has also extensively published on subjects such as humanitarian action or just war and universal peace theory. He is passionate about understanding how modern technology affects society and how it can contribute to solving global challenges.