Ibán García del Blanco, 43, was born in León, Spain, where he started his political trajectory, serving from local to national administration: City Councillor (2003-2011), member of the Provincial Council (2011-2012), and member of the Spanish Senate (2012-2015) where he served as the second Vice President of the Health and Social Affairs Committee.

Within his political party, the Spanish Socialist Workers’ Party (PSOE), García del Blanco is a member of the Federal Executive Commission in charge of Culture and Sports.

In 2018, García del Blanco was appointed President of Acción Cultural Española (AC/E), an agency providing public support to the promotion of culture in Spain and overseas. He held this position until 2019, when he was elected as a Socialists and Democrats (S&D) Group member of the European Parliament, where he serves as Vice President of the Legal Affairs Committee and as a substitute member of the Committee of Culture and Education.

Ibán García del Blanco holds a Degree in Law. As a lawyer, he has specialized in cultural management.

Eva Maydell was born and raised in Bulgaria and now spends her time between Sofia and Brussels with her husband Niklas.

She holds a Bachelor’s degree in International Affairs and Business Administration from the American University John Cabot in Rome, Italy and a post-graduate qualification in leadership from the Harvard Kennedy School.

Eva Maydell has previously worked for the International Development Law Organisation (IDLO) and has over 5 years of experience in the European Parliament as coordinator for the GERB/European People’s Party (EPP) delegation and adviser to Iliana Ivanova MEP.

In July 2014, following a successful campaign, Eva Maydell was elected to the European Parliament as a representative of GERB and EPP. In her first Parliamentary mandate (2014-2019) she was a member of the Committee on Internal Market and Consumer Protection (IMCO), as well as the trade delegations to the People’s Republic of China and the United States. She was also the sole Bulgarian representative on the Committee for Economic and Monetary Affairs (ECON).

In the 2019 European elections Eva Maydell was re-elected as a Member of the EP from the EPP Group.

Eva’s Parliamentary work focuses mainly on improving the quality of education for young people, expanding opportunities for entrepreneurs and promoting technology and digitalization.

In addition, she is the President of European Movement International (EMI) – the largest umbrella body for civil society groups and associations in Europe; member of the EP’s Youth Intergroup, and is part of EPP’s Young Members Network and a board member of EU40. Eva is also on the National Executive Board of Entrepreneurs-GERB and an honorary member of the Council of Women in Business in Bulgaria.

Alexandra Geese is a Member of the European Parliament and serves as member of the Budget Committee, the Committee on Internal Market and Consumer Protection, and deputy member of the Committe for Regional Development. The Greens/EFA parliamentary group appointed her as shadow rapporteur for the Digital Services Act and as coordinator in the Special Committee on Artificial Intelligence (AIDA). Alexandra Geese is committed to fair digitalisation, participation and women’s rights in all her functions.

My name is Anna Cavazzini. I was elected to the European Parliament for Alliance 90 / Greens. I am the Chair of the Committee on the Internal Market and Consumer Protection and an alternate member of the Committee on International Trade. In the European Parliament, in the Committee on International Trade, I am committed to just globalization and fair world trade . Climate and environmental protection, human rights and good living and working conditions along the entire supply chain must be the basis of our economic approach. That is why I am campaigning for high socio-ecological product standards on the European market in the Internal Market Committee.

Nuno Filipe Alves Salvador e Brito is a Portuguese diplomat. Currently he is the ambassador at the Permanent Representative of Portugal to the European Union.

He graduated in Law in 1984 from the University of Lisbon. Afterwards he joined the Portuguese diplomatic service, serving in the US Department and later worked at the Portuguese Embassy in Washington as Secretary of
Embassy.

His experience also includes service in the cabinet of the Minister of Foreign Affairs (1993), Chief of the Cabinet of the Secretary of Defense (1995), Deputy
Permanent Representative of Portugal at the United Nations (1999), Principal Diplomatic Advisor to the Prime Minister (2005) and Ambassador of Portugal to the United States of America (2011).

Jean-Eric Paquet became Director-General of DG Research and Innovation on 1st April 2018; however, his involvement in EU research policy dates back from 2002, as Deputy Head of Cabinet of Philippe Busquin, then Commissioner in charge of Research and Development.

Jean-Eric’s career at the European Commission started in 1993. Since then he contributed in shaping EU policy in various fields and achieved major breakthroughs, notably in DG Transport, where he led the development of the Trans-European Transport Network Policy and was responsible for Europe’s transport infrastructure policy and investment strategies, the single European rail area, inland waterways and port policy.

He also gained considerable experience at international level: in DG Enlargement, his portfolio covered Albania, Bosnia & Herzegovina, Serbia, Kosovo, Montenegro and FYROM. He was also EU Ambassador in the Islamic Republic of Mauritania from 2004 to 2007.

In 2015, he was appointed Deputy Secretary-General of the European Commission, in charge of Better Regulation and Policy Coordination.

In all his endeavours, he puts co-creation and systemic change at the heart of the decision-making process, and strongly believes that citizens should be more involved in shaping public policy agendas.

Dr Markus Richter was born in Münster, Westphalia in 1976. He has two children.

After graduating from law studies at the Westfälische Wilhelms-Universität in Münster, he earned a doctorate in law and completed his practical legal training at the Regional Court in Hamm, followed by the second state examination in law one year later.

Starting in 2005, Dr Markus Richter held several positions at the Federal Office for Migration and Refugees, with assignments in human resources, organisation, the office of the President and areas including integration and migration policy issues. In 2014 he became head of IT units at the Federal Office of Administration. He returned to the Federal Office for Migration and Refugees as head of the Infrastructure and IT Directorate in 2015 and became Vice-President of the agency in 2018.

On 1 May 2020 Dr Markus Richter was appointed State Secretary at the Federal Ministry of the Interior, Building and Community and Federal Government Commissioner for Information Technology

Ibán García del Blanco, 43, was born in León, Spain, where he started his political trajectory, serving from local to national administration: City Councillor (2003-2011), member of the Provincial Council (2011-2012), and member of the Spanish Senate (2012-2015) where he served as the second Vice President of the Health and Social Affairs Committee.

Within his political party, the Spanish Socialist Workers’ Party (PSOE), García del Blanco is a member of the Federal Executive Commission in charge of Culture and Sports.

In 2018, García del Blanco was appointed President of Acción Cultural Española (AC/E), an agency providing public support to the promotion of culture in Spain and overseas. He held this position until 2019, when he was elected as a Socialists and Democrats (S&D) Group member of the European Parliament, where he serves as Vice President of the Legal Affairs Committee and as a substitute member of the Committee of Culture and Education.

Ibán García del Blanco holds a Degree in Law. As a lawyer, he has specialized in cultural management.

Ibán García del Blanco, 43, was born in León, Spain, where he started his political trajectory, serving from local to national administration: City Councillor (2003-2011), member of the Provincial Council (2011-2012), and member of the Spanish Senate (2012-2015) where he served as the second Vice President of the Health and Social Affairs Committee.

Within his political party, the Spanish Socialist Workers’ Party (PSOE), García del Blanco is a member of the Federal Executive Commission in charge of Culture and Sports.

In 2018, García del Blanco was appointed President of Acción Cultural Española (AC/E), an agency providing public support to the promotion of culture in Spain and overseas. He held this position until 2019, when he was elected as a Socialists and Democrats (S&D) Group member of the European Parliament, where he serves as Vice President of the Legal Affairs Committee and as a substitute member of the Committee of Culture and Education.

Ibán García del Blanco holds a Degree in Law. As a lawyer, he has specialized in cultural management.

Stephanie De Bruyne is the CEO of Belgian Mobile ID, the company behind the successful identity app, itsme®. In these times when the combination of digital user experience and security are more important than ever, she wants to continue building the future of a digital identity in Belgium and the rest of Europe.

Stephanie has many years of experience in the financial and digital world. After being awarded her master’s degree in Commercial Engineering and her Candidature in Law (KULeuven), she began her career with Bain & Company. In 2010, she joined BNP Paribas Fortis, where she was successively responsible for digital channels and product management of the Retail & Private Banking business. As part of these roles, she worked on the launch and integration of itsme® into the bank’s mobile applications. After leaving BNP Paribas Fortis, she was involved in the start-up of a European fintech player. On 1st June 2020, Stephanie took over the helm of Belgian Mobile ID.

Managing director with 25 years of experience in the technology, content and consumer electronics sectors, Jean-Claude was General Manager of the Retail, Sales & Marketing division from 2011 to the end of 2016 at Microsoft France. In parallel from 2014 to 2017, he represented the video game industry in France as president of the Syndicate of Leisure Publishers and Software (SELL). From 2006 to 2011, he was Vice President Europe in charge of Western and Southern Europe, MEA and President France of Activision-Blizzard. From 2000 to 2006, he worked as General Manager of Electronic Arts Italy. He started his career in large groups and in various marketing and sales positions at Ferrero, Canal + and Warner Bros. He is a graduate of the London Business School and the Graduate School of Management.

Abraham Liu was appointed Vice-President for the European Region at Huawei in July 2018. At the same time, he is the Chief Representative of the company to the EU Institutions in Brussels. Abraham joined the Brussels Public Affairs and Communication team as Vice-President earlier this year and was appointed in May 2018 as the Chief Representative to the EU Institutions.

Mr Liu is no newcomer to Huawei, having joined the company in 2001 as a Wireless Product Manager. Over the years, he has worked in different roles across the globe, including as Country Manager of DR Congo, Vice-President of Huawei’s regional office in East Southern Africa, and Vice-President of Huawei’s Southern Pacific Region. Before moving to Brussels, he served as CEO of Huawei Malaysia. Mr Liu graduated from Central South University of China in 2001 after earning a Bachelor degree in Computer Science and Technology. He is married and a father of two.

Casper Klynge is Vice President for EU Government Affairs at Microsoft.

Casper Klynge is Microsoft’s Vice President for European Government Affairs with responsibility for all of Microsoft’s government affairs and public policy work across the continent. He serves on the senior leadership team of Microsoft’s CELA group. Prior to joining Microsoft, Casper most recently served as Denmark’s (& the world’s first) Ambassador to the global tech industry. Previous posts include: Ambassador to Indonesia, Timor Leste, Papua New Guinea & ASEAN (2014-2017), Ambassador to the Republic of Cyprus (2013-2014), Deputy Head of NATO’s Provincial Reconstruction Team in Helmand Province, Afghanistan & Head of Mission of the EU’s civilian crisis management planning mission in Kosovo (20062008). Casper holds a M.Sc. in Political Science and is a 2009 Marshall Memorial Fellow.

Karl Pihl currently serves as the Head of Ericsson’s EU Affairs Office, responsible for driving Ericsson’s policy agenda in Brussels, where his main tasks are to lead and create a favorable environment for Ericsson and its customers’ success through thought leadership and trusted advice that proactively influences EU institutions, EU member states representations and EU industry organizations, in EU policies, legislation and regulations for ICT and trade. Karl holds a Master’s Degree in Political Science with a specialization in EU Affairs from Uppsala University, as well as from the Paris Institute of Political Studies (Sciences-Po).

Paul Adamson is chairman of Forum Europe and founder and editor of Encompass, an online magazine dedicated to covering the European Union and Europe’s place in the world.

Paul is a member of the Centre for European Reform’s advisory board and Rand Europe’s Council of Advisors. He is also a Visiting Professor at the Policy Institute, King’s College London, a patron of the University Association of Contemporary European Studies (UACES) and a Fellow of the UK Academy of Social Sciences.

In 2012, Paul was made an Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) “for services to promoting understanding of the European Union” and in 2016 he was made a Chevalier in the Ordre national du Mérite by the French government.

Alexandra Geese is a Member of the European Parliament and serves as member of the Budget Committee, the Committee on Internal Market and Consumer Protection, and deputy member of the Committe for Regional Development. The Greens/EFA parliamentary group appointed her as shadow rapporteur for the Digital Services Act and as coordinator in the Special Committee on Artificial Intelligence (AIDA). Alexandra Geese is committed to fair digitalisation, participation and women’s rights in all her functions.

Prof. Dr. Boris Otto holds the Chair for Industrial Information Management at TU Dortmund University and is the Executive Director of the Fraunhofer Institute for Software and Systems Engineering ISST in Dortmund. He received his doctorate degree from the University of Stuttgart and his post-doctoral qualification (“habilitation”) from the University of St. Gallen. His research focuses on industrial information management, corporate data management and business networks and ecosystems. He is Vice-President of the Board of Directors of the International Data Spaces (IDS) Association.

Dr. Andreas Tegge is Head of Government Affairs EMEA at SAP, based in Brussels.

As such, he heads up a team of public policy professionals with offices in major capitals in Europe, MENA and Africa. Andreas is also heading up the global public policy program at SAP, overseeing relevant legislation and regulation globally, including international trade and taxation.

He is also driving government thought leadership campaigns at SAP, recently on artificial intelligence, cloud computing, the EU Green Deal and digital skills development.

Andreas has more than 25 years of experience in Government Relations and the ICT industry. Between 1991 and 2005 he worked for Deutsche Telekom, where he served inter alia as head of the Government Relations Offices in Washington, DC and Brussels.

Andreas has served on government advisory bodies, is a frequent speaker at ICT conferences and represents SAP in numerous European and global trade associations.

Andreas holds a Master Decree in Social Sciences and a PhD in Economics of the University of Göttingen, Germany.

Yvo Volman (1965) is acting Director of the Data directorate in the Directorate General for Communication Networks, Content and Technology of the European Commission.

Yvo studied at the Universities of Amsterdam and Strasbourg and holds a PhD in European law awarded by the European University Institute in Florence. He worked for the Dutch Ministry of Economic Affairs in the areas of industrial and technology policy, before joining the European Commission in 1998. In the Commission, he dealt with legislative and strategic issues as well as funding programmes related to the information market, digitisation and data.

Casper Klynge is Vice President for EU Government Affairs at Microsoft.

Casper Klynge is Microsoft’s Vice President for European Government Affairs with responsibility for all of Microsoft’s government affairs and public policy work across the continent. He serves on the senior leadership team of Microsoft’s CELA group. Prior to joining Microsoft, Casper most recently served as Denmark’s (& the world’s first) Ambassador to the global tech industry. Previous posts include: Ambassador to Indonesia, Timor Leste, Papua New Guinea & ASEAN (2014-2017), Ambassador to the Republic of Cyprus (2013-2014), Deputy Head of NATO’s Provincial Reconstruction Team in Helmand Province, Afghanistan & Head of Mission of the EU’s civilian crisis management planning mission in Kosovo (20062008). Casper holds a M.Sc. in Political Science and is a 2009 Marshall Memorial Fellow.

Mariane ter Veen is director data sharing lead at consulting firm INNOPAY. She helps organisations to fully embrace the opportunities of the digital transactions era by adopting a more open outlook, collaborating across ecosystems and creating new value. She believes in a world where trusted data exchange is the key to unlocking new business models and reducing costs. As an enabler of this, she is a strong advocate of data sovereignty, which gives people and organisations control over their data. Mariane has a wealth of experience in the domain of data sharing, both in public/private partnerships as well as helping individual organisations, and recently spearheaded the development of the logistics data-sharing scheme iSHARE.