Currently working as an external consultant for the EU commission, Andrea Sibilia has gained a diversified experience throughout the roles he covered over his professional career which encompasses various fields (nature conservation, civil engineering, pharma, risk management). Starting as an Environmental Consultant at G.R.A.I.A. srl about 10 years ago, he began to build a know-how in the data analysis and GIS fields. In 2018 he decided to make a step forward by joining the Master's Degree in GIS at UCL, which helped him to acquire new technical skills mainly related to process automation, databases and machine learning. Joining WSP as GIS assistant he had the opportunity to provide technical support on several projects related to transport planning and to act as GIS lead on major infrastructure projects. In 2020, he got back to Italy, his native country, as a Business Intelligence Consultant for IQVIA a leading global provider of advanced analytics in the life science industry. Here, he deepens his knowledge related to the creation of effective BI tool, data visualisation and storytelling related to analytics. Eventually, He joined the Risk Data Hub team at JRC Ispra, becoming a reference point for the management of the data and analyses related to the project.

Brian Wanbaugh earned a Master of Environmental Sustainability from Indiana University Bloomington O’Neill School for Public and Environmental Affairs and also holds a B.A. in Sociology from Butler University (IN) and a Transition to Teaching Certificate from Indiana University South Bend. At Indiana University Bloomington, Brian focused on municipal sustainability initiatives and indicators, specifically in urban greening policies. He is interested in understanding the interlinked socio-ecological dimensions of climate change adaptation, including how forest conservation and climate change adaptation initiatives can be put in place and strengthened. Along with ND-GAIN, he will be working with Dr. Daniel Miller and FLARE (Forest & Livelihoods: Assessment, Research and Engagement) as the Program Manager at the University of Notre Dame. While not in the office, Brian enjoys hiking with his wife, finding new musical artists and gardening.

Danielle Wood received her Ph.D. from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in Urban and Regional Planning with a minor in public management. She also holds her M.S. from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and her B.S. from Purdue University. Her dissertation research examined how quality of life and sustainability indicator systems have been used to facilitate change in local communities, and how engagement strategies, organizational capacities, and structural design are part of building collective impact. Wood has research interests in community engagement, asset-based community development, collective impact, and resilience planning and evaluation.

Dr. Elena Lazarou is the (acting) Head of the External Policies Unit of the European Parliamentary Research Service (EPRS) since 2020. Her research focuses on security and defence, global governance, transatlantic relations and EU foreign policy. Prior to joining EPRS, she headed the Center for International Relations of the Getulio Vargas Foundation (FGV), Brazil (2012-2014) and the Euro-Mediterranean Observatory of the Hellenic Center for European Studies (2009-2010). She received a Ph.D. in International Relations from the University of Cambridge in 2008 and subsequently held research positions at the University of Cambridge, the University of Sheffield and the London School of Economics (LSE), as well as various visiting positions in think tanks and universities in Europe and the United States. She has published edited volumes, articles and policy briefs in English, Portuguese and Greek and is the editor of the EPRS annual EU Peace and Security Outlook. Dr. Lazarou is an Associate Fellow on the “US and Americas” programme at Chatham House (London) and a Fellow on the European Institutions and Policies programme at ELIAMEP (Athens).

Jan Burck is senior advisor for low-carbon strategies and energy and project leader for climate indices at the NGO and Think Tank Germanwatch. He has developed the Climate Change Performance Index (CCPI) in 2005 and presented the CCPI since then every year at the UN Climate Summits. He was for six years team leader of the German and EU climate policy at Germanwatch and is responsible for different studies at Germanwatch. He is co-author of the Brown to Green Report and the Allianz Climate and Energy Monitor. Jan likes to be with his family, hiking and mountain biking. Jan studied Geography, Political Science, Ethnology and Chemistry at the Universities of Bonn and Mainz.

Lea Perekrests is the Deputy Director of Operations for Europe & MENA at the Institute for Economics and Peace in Brussels. She is responsible for managing partnerships, overseeing consulting operations, and curating Positive Peace trainings across the region. She has extensive experience leading workshops throughout the region with various stakeholders and audiences. With a Master’s Degree in International Conflict and Security from the University of Kent, her expertise lies in security and foreign policy analysis. Lea has a background as a policy advisor and in academia, developing university-level curriculum for international relations courses. Lea holds a BA in International Relations from Connecticut College (USA), is the co-chair of the European Union Agency for Law Enforcement Training’s EMISA working group on cyberterrorism, is a member of the Interdisciplinary PeaceTech Group, and was selected as one of Brussels’ 15 top rising inclusive leaders in the political, social, economic, and digital fields in 2019 by the German Marshall Fund’s Inclusive Leadership Network. 

Margareta Drzeniek is Managing Partner with Horizon Group. She previously led the economics unit of the World Economic Forum and was in charge of the main flagship reports, including The Global Competitiveness Report and the Global Risks Report.

Michaela Saisana is Head of the Monitoring, Indicators and Impact Evaluation Unit at the European Commission's Joint Research Centre in Italy. She has been working in the JRC since 1998, where she obtained a prize as “best young scientist of the year” in 2004 and together with her team the “JRC policy impact award” for the Social Scoreboard of the European Pillar of Social Rights in 2018.

Scientist and engineer with specialization on process optimization and spatial statistics, she is actively involved in promoting a sound development and responsible use of performance monitoring tools.These monitoring tools feed into EU policy formulation and legislation in a wide range of fields from social rights and fairness to innovation and competitiveness, from enterprises and firms to state aid, from employment to culture and creativity, from cohesion to sustainable development.

She collaborates, by auditing performance indices, with over 150 international organizations and world-class universities, including the United Nations, Transparency International, Oxfam, the World Economic Forum, INSEAD, the World Intellectual Property Organization, Yale University, Columbia University, and Harvard University.

Michaela graduated in 1998 from the National Technical University of Athens with a degree in Chemical Engineering (receiving the Technical Chamber of Greece Award in Chemical Engineering) and went on to complete her PhD in Chemical Engineering with focus on air quality and spatial statistics.
She is the author of ~ 30 articles in academic journals, 100 working papers, and co-author of two books: 2008 OECD/JRC Handbook on Composite Indicators and 2008 Global Sensitivity Analysis-The Primer (Wiley). Reviewer for top journals including Nature Communications.

Tatiana Valyaeva is a board member and head of the editorial department of the non-profit research association Heidelberg Institute for International Conflict Research (HIIK) with over 200 volunteer researchers. As this year’s co-editor-in-chief, Tatiana is responsible for the publication of the annual Conflict Barometer that observes and traces the emergence, dynamics, and settlement of political conflicts worldwide. She also currently works as a policy and regulatory risk consultant at Control Risks in Berlin with a focus on Central and Eastern Europe. Tatiana studied political science and environmental studies from Munich University with stints in Seoul, Moscow, and Venice. She also holds an undergraduate degree in international relations from the University of St Andrews.

Ana Rita Neves currently works at the European Commission’s Joint Research Centre – Competence Centre on Composite Indicators and Scoreboards, where she has been part of the team developing the Composite Indicators & Scoreboards Explorer and the Asia-Europe Meeting sustainable connectivity index. Prior to joining the European Commission, Ana worked for six years at Climate Alliance, an international network of cities dedicated to climate action. At Climate Alliance, she was coordinating the development of the energy and climate reporting framework for over 7,000 cities engaged in the Covenant of Mayors initiative and involved in policy and advocacy activities linked to the international climate process. She was also an external expert evaluator of Horizon 2020, the biggest European Union's research and innovation programme. Ana has worked in research and international organisations for over 15 years at the intersection between science and policy. She holds a Ph.D. in Sustainable Energy Systems from the MIT-Portugal Programme, a Masters in Urban and Environmental Planning and a degree in Environmental Engineering.

Ms Minna Nurminen is a Finnish social policy professional working at the European Commission’s Joint Research Centre (JRC). In her role as Socio-Economic Analyst, she focuses on loneliness, fairness, gender equality as well as composite indicators. Prior to joining the JRC, she gained international experience in research and policy while working at UN Women and the International Labour Organization. As a social scientist, Minna holds an MSc degree in Comparative Social Policy from the University of Oxford and a Master’s degree in Social and Public Policy from the University of Helsinki.