-Dr. Andrew Mold -

Dr. Andrew Mold is a senior economist at the OECD Development Centre in Paris. His main research interests are International Economics (Trade and FDI Policy), International Finance, and Aid Policy. Dr. Andrew Mold holds a Masters Degree from Cambridge University and a Ph.d. in Economics from the Complutense University Madrid. He joined the OECD Development Centre in February 2008, having previously worked for the United Nations in Ethiopia, Chile and Costa Rica. From 2000-2004, he was the Co-Director of a Masters Programme in Development Studies at the Complutense Institute of Madrid (ICEI), and was also the Vice-Secretary General of the International University of Mendenez Pelayo (UIMP). Since 2003, he has been an editor of the European Journal of Development Research (EJDR).

-Thomas Pietschmann-

Thomas Pietschmann is a research officer at the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) and one of the main authors of the World Drug Report 2009 launched in June in Washington D.C. The general message of the Report is that: the global markets for cocaine, opiates and cannabis are stable or in decline yet there are concerns that production and use of synthetic drugs may be increasing in the developing world. Thomas Pietschmann will speak about the problems of the global drug trade, especially in regard to Afghanistan where over 90% o the world’s opium is grown!

-John Hammock-

Oxford Professor John Hammock is a Research Fellow at Boston University Associate Professor, Fletcher School, Tufts University, Director, Ethics and Human Development Initiative and the North American Director of the Oxford Human Development and Capability Initiative at Oxford University. He founded and was director of the Feinstein International Famine Center at Tufts University, and served as Executive Director at Oxfam America as well as at ACCION International. In addition, he also has been the Managing Director of Global Equity Initiative at Harvard. He has worked in many countries in the world, including Costa Rica, Ecuador, the Dominican Republic, the United States and the United Kingdom.
At the Summit he will give a talk about on a possible alternative economic framework for human development. As part of the Careers Fair taking place during the Summit, he will be presenting his most recent book: “Practical Idealists: Changing the World and Getting Paid”.

-Royston Maldoom-

The British choreographer Royston Maldoom has been the initiator and leader of numerous dance projects all around the globe for the past 30 years. Royston Maldoom initiated and worked in Lithuania, Croatia, Zimbabwe, the United States, with socially handicapped children in Peru, catholic and protestant children in Northern Ireland, male and female prisoners, children and adults with learning difficulties, young adults and children in exile and in numerous primary and secondary schools and dance academies. In 1996 he organized a project with 100 street kids in Ethiopia. Due to the success of this project he established the Adugna Dance Company, giving young people the opportunity to be educated in dance, choreography, and teaching.
His work was especially honoured by the movie “Rhythm is it"! which received the German Lola Movie Award for best documentary film in 2005. Next to other international awards, in 2006 The Queen presented Royston Maldoom with the Order of The British Empire (O.B.E.) from the British Government for Services To Dance.

 -Will Bennett-

Will Bennett is Education Policy Manager at the UK-based NGO Right to Play with particular areas of expertise in conflict prevention and human security. Right To Play is an athlete-driven international humanitarian organization that uses sport and play as a tool for development of children and youth in the most disadvantaged areas of the world. Right To Play is committed to improving the lives of these children and to strengthening their communities by translating the best practices of sport and play into opportunities to promote development, health and peace. Will Bennet holds a MA in War Studies from King’s College University London, and a BA in History from The University of Bristol.

-Jorge Saba Arbache Filho-

Jorge Saba Arbache Filho is a Senior Economist at the Office of the Chief Economist of the Africa Region of The World Bank. He has written a broad selection of publications, scholarly journals and books on wide-ranging topics on development economics (http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/cf_dev/AbsByAuth.cfm?per_id=290246 ). Mr Filho holds a PhD in Economics from University of Kent and was Research Fellow of their Department of Economics (2000-2002), as well as a Professor of Economics at the University of Brasilia, Brazil (1991-2005). Prior to joining the Africa Region at the World Bank Africa Region, he worked as a Senior Researcher of the National Research Council at Brazilian Ministry of Science and Technology (1999-2005) and an Economist at the International Labour Organization (1989-1991) Brasilia Office. He has worked jointly with the Brazilian Government on several topics related to poverty, employment and social programs; the establishment of the unemployment insurance program in Brazil and has been a short-term consultant for the World Bank, UNDP, ECLAC, DFID, various Brazilian Ministries, various large Brazilian and international private sector companies, among others. Mr. filho was lead economist of several large projects such as “Poverty and Markets in Brazil” (DFID/ECLAC), “Brazilian International Competitiveness” (Brazilian Ministry of Development and International Trade), “The impacts of Free Trade of Americas Agreement and European Union / Mercosur Trade Agreement on the Brazilian Exports” (Brazilian Ministry of Foreign Affairs).

-Benny Dembitzer-

Benny Dembitzer has worked in the field of international development for 40 years across 35 countries in Africa and 2 in Asia. He has been at different times a member of staff of the Economist Intelligence Unit, a consultant to various UN Agencies (UNCDF, ILO, UNDP, ITC, UNIDO) as well as the World Bank and DfID, and has worked for various British and international NGOs, including OXFAM, CARE and War on Want. He was the European Director of the winners of the 1985 Nobel Peace Prize, IPPNW. He is a visiting lecturer in economics at Greenwich and London Metropolitan universities. He has studied at Cambridge, Uppsala (Sweden) and Lausanne (Switzerland).

-Thomas Winther-Smith-

Thomas Winther-Smith is a Policy Analyst at the Network on Poverty Reduction of the OECD Development Cooperation Directorate. Prior to this he worked as a Fundraising and Advocacy Advisor Danish Association for International Cooperation (MS Kenya), he was Team Leader Save the Children Denmark, and worked as an assistant at the European Commission’s Delegation to Bangladesh. Thomas holds a Master of Science (MSc) in Gender, Development and Globalization from London School of Economics and Political Science.
Focus of presentation: presenting on the crisis responses of the DAC Network on Poverty Reduction, and how the targets for poverty eradication are affected

-Dr. Gabi Hesselbein-

Dr. Gabi Hesselbein is a Research Fellow at the Crisis States Research Centre of the Development Studies Institue (DESTIN) at London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE). Gabi Hesselbein's research interests lie in the political economy of development. She has research experience in the Republic of Korea and in a number of African countries. She has conducted work on state failure and state reconstruction in Africa and is an expert on African economies and the history of the Congo, Rwanda and Tanzania

-Suleyman Yilmaz-

Suleyman Yilmaz is Advisor and Policy Analyst at the Division on Asia and Pacific of the OECD Development Centre, with special emphasis on the Black Sea and Central Asia. He has recently been employed as the Director of UNIDO Center for Regional Cooperation in Turkey (UNIDO: United Nations Industrial Development Organization). He holds an MBA degree from Warwick Business School (1998-99).

-Annie Watson-

Annie Watson is a freelance consultant on labour and international development. She is a Trade Union Coordinator at the UK Ethical Trading Initiative (ETI), specialising in Working with member companies, NGOs and unions on issues around commercial purchasing practices and labour standards in the garment sector, as well as Capacity development/training for workplace supervisors in agriculture sector, Kenya and UK, with particular focus on sexual harassment and discrimination. She also works for the UK Trade Union Congress as an adviser on international development including projects on HIV and AIDS development programme with trade unions in the health and education sectors in Nigeria, Trade union capacity development in Sierra Leone and Development education for UK trade unionists. Prior to her current work, she was the director of the Commonwealth Trade Union Council (1997-2005) and International Policy Officer at the UK Trade Union congress (1990-1995).

-Jenny Hedman-

Jenny Hedman is a Policy analyst at the Development Assistance Committee (DAC) of the Organisation of Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) working in the DAC Network on Gender Equality.

-Prof. Shirin Rai-

Prof. Shirin Rai studied at the University of Delhi (India) and Cambridge University (UK) and joined the University of Warwick in 1989. She is Director of the Leverhulme Trust Programme on Gendered Ceremony and Ritual in Parliament. Her research interests lie in the area of feminist politics, gender and political institutions, globalisation and development studies. She has written extensively on issues of gender, governance and development. Her latest books are The Gender Politics of Development (2008, Zed Books/Zubaan Publishers) and (co-ed) Global Governance: Feminist Perspectives (2007, Palgrave). Her articles have appeared in many journals including: International Feminist Journal of Politics, Global Networks, New Political Economy, Hypatia and Signs. She has consulted with the United Nations’ Division for the Advancement of Women and UNDP. She is a founder member of the South Asia Research Network on Gender, Law and Governance and on the Editorial Board of International Feminist Journal of Politics, Global Ethics and Indian Journal of Gender Studies and Political Studies Quarterly. She is the co-editor (with Wyn Grant) of Perspectives on Democratic Practice. She is Director of the Taught Masters (MA) Programme in Globalisation and Development at Warwick. She is currently supervising doctoral research in the areas of international political economy, Indian politics and political institutions.

-Silvia Guizzardi-

Silvia Guizzardi, joined the DAC Secretariat in October 2008 to work as a Policy analyst in the Capacity Development unit. She is sponsored by Italy as a Junior Professional Officer. Prior to coming to the OECD, she worked in monitoring and evaluation for the Asia and Pacific Division of the UN International Fund for Agricultural Development (2006-2008) and for the US-based private firm TANGO International (2005-2006), which provides consultancy services to international organisations and NGOs. Silvia began her development career in 2004-2005 as a World Food Programme volunteer in Tanzania. She holds degrees in Economics and International Development.
Focus of Presentation: Capacity Development to promote partner country ownership and leadership of development processes - from Paris to Accra and beyond. The importance of capacity development as flipside of development sustainability and country partner ownership and leadership of their own development processes. The need to bring Southern perspective in the current policy debate on development co-operation, and DCD/OECD efforts to create effective partnership with policy leaders and champions in the South. 

-Paul Kadetz-

Resolving the Post-Development Riddle: Community Agency and Positive Deviance in Guatemala, The Philippines, and Post-Katrina New Orleans.

Paul Kadetz is currently completing his doctorate in the Department of International Development at Queen Elizabeth House, University of Oxford. In the United States, he is board-certified Adult/Forensic Nurse Practitioner (MSN, Vanderbilt), and a board-certified Acupuncturist/Herbalist (MSOM, Samra University of Oriental Medicine, USA and Beijing University of TCM, China). He holds a Masters in Public Health in International Health and Development (Tulane University School of Public Health & Tropical Medicine), a MSc in Medical Anthropology (Oxon. with distinction), a post-masters certificate in Adult Education (University of Pennsylvania), and a BA in Biology and Psychology (NYU).  Paul has also just completed two projects for the Western Pacific Region Office of the World Health Organization and is consulting for the Department of Health of the Philippines to devise a curriculum for the standardised training of acupuncture and certification of acupuncture as a profession in the Republic of the Philippines. Paul recently led a Royal Geographic Society funded research project investigating malnutrition in indigenous Guatemalan communities from which he is helping to generate a regional research centre for food security with Oxford U8 Global Student Partnership for Development.

-Jörg Mayer-

International Monetary Reform – Some Systemic Issues.

Jörg Mayer is a Senior Economic Affairs Officer in the Division on Globalisation and Development Strategies of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD). He was also a member of the team that prepares the UNCTAD’s Trade and Development Report. He obtained a Ph.D. in economics from the European University Institute in Florence. Before joining the United Nations, he was an economist in the International Department of the Deutsche Bundesbank. The talk will approach the long term implications of the financial crisis on developing countries and address more precisely how developing countries and the international community should insure themselves against the adverse effects to development in future crisis. 

-Hugh Bredenkamp-

The IMF’s Recently Revised Lending and Policy Framework. 

Hugh Bredenkamp is Deputy Director of the IMF’s Strategy, Policy, and Review Department. And head of the newly created low income strategy united. Since joining the IMF in 1988 from the U.K. Treasury, he has worked on countries in Western Europe, the former Soviet Union, Asia, and Africa, where he was mission chief for Ghana. From 2004-2007, he serves as the IMF’s resident representative in Turkey. The talk will look at the economic issues involved in current IMF lending and its role in dealing with the global financial crisis. The IMF plans to inject $250 Billion into the global economy to bolster countries’ reserves as part of measures to combat the world economic crisis. Furthermore the IMF is stepping up lending to low-income countries via a new framework for loans to the world’s poorest nations, including increased resources, a doubling of borrowing limits, zero interest rates until the end of 2011 and more flexible terms. However, its role has come under intense scrutiny and it has been criticized for variety of reasons and from a range of different sources. It has been argued that the conditions of IMF loans cause more harm than good. In the Asian Crisis of 1997, many criticize the IMF's insistence on deflationary fiscal policy (Spending cuts and tax rises) and higher interest rates. It is argued the IMF turned a minor financial crisis into a major economic recession with unemployment rates in countries like Thailand, Indonesia and Malaysia shooting up. Furthermore the IMF is frequently criticized for the same economic policies regardless of the situation. There has also been a decline in public services, such as health care and the reduction of a countries political autonomy. Therefore it will be interesting to hear some insights from Hugh Bredenkamp as to how the recent reforms will show improvements to the economic situations of developing countries.

-George Assaf-

Aid and Beyond: Implications for world development and United Nations cooperation

Dr. George Assaf has a D.Phil. in economics from the University of Oxford, UK, where he began his career as an economist. He has had a number of senior appointments in government and the private sector, including being economic advisor to the US Federal Trade Commission and Senior Economist at National Economic Associates Washington D.C. He is currently the Spokesperson of UNIDO and the Director-General and responsible for UNIDO’s Advocacy and Public Communications Group. He has also been Representative and Regional Director for South Asia (India, Nepal, Bhutan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Maldives and Afghanistan) of UNIDO , as well as UNRC. His work in development has included all the major regions of the world. . He has also worked at a senior level in UNIDO for over 20 years with management, policy, project and programmatic responsibilities covering UNIDO’s programmes in Africa, Central Asia, the Baltic States and other Newly Independent States (NIS), Central and Eastern Europe, Latin America and the Caribbean, as well as heading UNIDO’s Technology Promotion Unit.