We are currently in the process of securing world class speakers from all over the globe In the coming weeks we will reveal all to you! Keep watching this space for updates and speaker biographies.

SIGOURNEY WEAVER

Award –winning Actress and Environmentalist

Award winning actress Sigourney Weaver has created a host of memorable characters.  Over the years, she has captivated audiences and won acclaim as one of the most versatile and prodigious actresses working on both stage and screen.  She is also a well-known environmental activist who uses her high profile in the creative arts to bring attention and positive change to critical situations around the globe.

Born and educated in New York City, Weaver graduated from Stanford University and went on to receive a Masters degree from the Yale School of Drama.

Sigourney Weaver made her motion picture debut in Ridley Scott’s blockbuster Alien.  She later reprised the role of Warrant Officer Ripley in James Cameron’s Aliens, which earned her Academy Award and Golden Globe nominations for Best Actress.  Following Alien, Weaver had starring roles in Gorillas in the Mist, in which she portrayed primatologist Dian Fossey, and the Mike Nichols comedy Working Girl. Weaver received her second and third Academy Award nominations and was awarded Golden Globes for her performances in Gorillas in the Mist and Working Girl.

Other films include The Year of Living Dangerously, Ghostbusters, Death and the Maiden, The Ice Storm, for which Weaver won a British Academy Award, Galaxy Quest, Copycat, A Map of the World, Heartbreakers, Snow Cake, Prayers for Bobby and Avatar.  Weaver will be back in Avatar 2 and 3.  She will also be seen in Vamps, Red Lights, Rampart, and The Cold Light of Day.

Weaver has served as honorary chairman of the Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund since 1988.  She served on the board of Human Rights First from 1986-2010.  She is a proud co-founder of The Flea Theater in downtown New York which champions young, provocative talent in theater, dance and music.

As a devoted environmentalist, Weaver has spoken about the wide spread threat to ocean habitats posed by deep sea trawling and ocean acidification at the United Nations, Capitol Hill, NRDC and many other groups.  In 2011 she was proud to receive the Rachel Carson Award from the Audobon Society.

ISOBEL COLEMAN

Foreign Policy Coordinator

Dr. Isobel Coleman is a senior fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations in New York, where she directs the Council’s Civil Society, Markets, and Democracy initiative and the Women and Foreign Policy program. Her areas of expertise include democratization, civil society, economic development, regional gender issues, educational reform, and microfinance.

Dr. Coleman is the author and co-author of numerous publications, including Paradise Beneath Her Feet: How Women are Transforming the Middle East (Random House, 2010), Restoring the Balance: A Middle East Strategy for the Next President (Brookings Institution Press, 2008), and Strategic Foreign Assistance: Civil Society in International Security (Hoover Institution Press, 2006).

Dr. Coleman’s writings have also appeared in publications such as Foreign Affairs, Foreign Policy, Washington Post, Financial Times, International Herald Tribune, USA Today, Christian Science Monitor, and Forbes, and online venues such as the Huffington Post. She also maintains a blog, “Democracy in Development,” on CFR.org. She is a frequent speaker at academic, business, and policy conferences. In 2010, she served as the track leader for the Girls and Women Action Area at the Clinton Global Initiative. In 2011, Newsweek named her as one of “150 Women Who Shake the World.”

ZEINAB BADAWI

BBC TV Personality  

Zeinab was born in the Sudan but moved to London at the age of two. Her father, prominent Sudanese - Mohammed-Khair El Badawi, was involved in pre-independence politics in Sudan.

Education: BA Hons Philosophy, Politics and Economics Oxford University, MA – awarded with a distinction - History and Anthropology Middle East – SOAS, London University.

In July 2011 Zeinab was awarded an honorary doctorate by SOAS, London University for her services to international broadcasting.

Zeinab has extensive experience in television and radio, working on a range of programmes. She is one of the best known broadcast journalists working in the field today. In 2009 she was awarded International TV Personality of the Year by the Association of International Broadcasters, and in 2011 was named in Powerlist 2012 (published by Powerful Media Ltd) as one of Britain’s top 100 most influential members of the black community.

She is currently a patron of the BBC World Service Trust, the charitable arm of the BBC, and a trustee of the National Portrait Gallery. She has been a board member of the British Council, a former Chair of the London based freedom of speech campaign organisation, Article 19, and a board member of the Overseas Development Institute.

Current work:

Anchor on BBC World News Today, a flagship international news programme broadcast both in the UK and on BBC World News. Her programme includes interviews with major guests on the topic of the day as well as reporting from outside locations.

Hard Talk for BBC, this programme has, and continues to feature some of the best known personalities in the world. Zeinab also presents the World Debates and Intelligence Squared Debates on the BBC. Featured on both radio and television.

Moderator for high level panel discussions at conferences organised by international bodies such as WHO, UNESCO, UNIDO.   Zeinab has four children.

SORAYA SALTI

Regional Director of INJAZ al Arab

Soraya mobilized the private sector and Ministries of Education across the Arab World to join forces in creating a new generation of business-oriented youth who will become entrepreneurs and the employees of choice for corporations. Her efforts have led to the expansion of INJAZ into 13 Arab Countries reaching more than 700,000 youth in the world region with the highest youth unemployment.

Prior to establishing INJAZ al Arab, Soraya was applying Harvard Professor Michael Porter’s model for the economic development of the Levant. She received an Executive MBA from Northwestern University’s international Kellogg program and has a BA in Economics and Accounting. Soraya is also the winner of the 2006 Schwab Social Entrepreneur of the Year for Jordan, a Young Global Leaders of the World Economic Forum, Co-Chair of the WEF 2010 Education Summit and was the first Arab to win the global award for Social Entrepreneurship from the Skoll Foundation in 2009.

Soraya is a founding board member of the Queen Rania Awards for Excellence in Education, and the Business Development Center in Jordan. Soraya was nominated by Harvard University’s student led public policy journal, as one of the “Top five young public policy leaders”.

As Chair of the 2011 World Economic Forum Action Group on entrepreneurship, Salti will take the lead in advancing the 21st Century skills in education reform across the Arab World.

Salti was recently featured on PBS’s popular Frontline World TV program and the exciting INJAZ competition for Best Student Company in Egypt. She was recognized by President Barack Obama in his opening speech at the Presidential Summit on Entrepreneurship held in Washington D.C. April 2010 where he said “ We have people like Soraya Salti of Jordan who are empowering the young men and women who will be leaders of tomorrow. Together they represent the great potential and expectations of young people around the world.

HALA GORANI

CNN Anchor and Correspondent

Hala Gorani is an anchor and correspondent for CNN International and is based at the network's headquarters in Atlanta.

She anchors the 1300ET/1900CET edition of 'International Desk', the weekday program that brings viewers into the heart of CNN’s newsgathering operation and immerses them in the latest stories of the day.

In addition to her anchoring duties, Gorani often goes into the field to report on major breaking news stories. In late June she was part of a small team of journalists allowed into Syria for the first time since the protests began to cover the situation there. She previously reported extensively from Jordan and Egypt and has been instrumental in CNN’s coverage of the “Arab Spring.”

In 2010 Gorani covered the devastating earthquake in Haiti, for which CNN’s coverage was recognized with a Golden Nymph award - one of the highest honors in international journalism - at the Monte Carlo Television Festival last year.

Gorani formerly hosted ‘Inside the Middle East’, the monthly show featuring stories on the most important social, political and cultural issues in the region. During her five years as host, she reported on several colorful and thought-provoking stories including poverty in oil-rich Bahrain; everyday struggles for artists living in Iraq; and gay life in the Middle East, which was a first on international television and earned a nomination for a Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD) award.

Gorani, one of CNN’s most experienced international journalists, has reported from every country in the Middle East including Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Israel, Jordan and the Palestinian territories. She was instrumental in CNN International’s coverage of the Israel-Hezbollah conflict in 2006, for which CNN won an Edward R. Murrow Award.

In early 2009 she presented ‘The Middle East Challenge’, a special hour-long program that took an insightful and thought-provoking look into the problems and promise facing the Middle East.

In 2008 Gorani attended the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland and moderated the closing session that featured several business and political leaders including Tony Blair, Nobel Peace Prize Laureate Elie Wiesel and JP Morgan Chase & Co. Chairman and CEO James Dimon.

In November 2005 Gorani was one of the first television reporters on the ground in Amman, Jordan after al Qaeda suicide bombers attacked two hotels. Earlier that year, she covered the Israeli withdrawal from Gaza. Gorani has also reported extensively from France, leading CNN’s coverage of the French presidential elections in 2002 and 2007. Previously based in London, Gorani anchored CNN International’s European breakfast show, ‘CNN Today'.

MANAL OMAR

United States Institute of Peace (USIP)

Manal Omar is Director of Iraq, Iran, and North Africa Programs at the United States Institute of Peace (USIP).

Previously, she was regional program manager for the Middle East for Oxfam--Great Britain, where she responded to humanitarian crises in Yemen, Palestine and Lebanon.  

She worked with Women for Women International as regional coordinator for Afghanistan, Iraq and Sudan. She has carried out training programs in Yemen, Bahrain, Afghanistan, Sudan, Lebanon, and Occupied Palestinian Territories among others.

Omar is on the board of directors of Women Without Borders. She is the author of Barefoot in Baghdad: A Story of Identity--My Own and What it Means to Be a Woman in Chaos (2010). She holds an M.A. in Arab studies from Georgetown University and a B.A. in international relations from George Mason University.

H.E. RAZAN KHALIFA AL MUBARAK

Secretary General, Environment Agency – Abu Dhabi (EAD)

Razan Al Mubarak is Secretary-General of the Environment Agency Abu Dhabi (EAD). EAD is Abu Dhabi’s environmental regulatory authority, established in 1996 with the objective of protecting and conserving the environment as well as promoting sustainable development. She is Managing Director of the Emirates Wildlife Society in association with the WWF (EWS-WWF) as well as the Mohamed Bin Zayed Species Conservation Fund.

Ms. Al Mubarak serves on the boards of the Global Footprint Network, African Wildlife Foundation, and the Al Ain Wildlife Park and Resort. She is also a member of the Board of Advisors of Abu Dhabi Music and Arts Foundation.

Ms. Al Mubarak holds an MSc in Public Understanding of Environmental Change from the University College London, UK and a BA in Environmental Studies and International Relations from Tufts University, Massachusetts, USA.

H.H. SHEIKHA SHEIKHA SAIF MOHAMMED AL NAHYAN

Sheikha Sheikha bint Saif is the wife of H.H. Dr. Sheikh Sultan Bin Khalifa Bin Zayed Al Nahyan.

Born in Al Ain, she earned a Bachelor ‘s Degree in Business from UAE University. She continued her education in French literature and culture at the Sorbonne in Paris and a course in English literature at Goldsmith College at the University of London.

• In 1999 H.H. Sheikha Sheikha founded the Al Shohub School in Abu Dhabi, a British curriculum school for young boys through age ten and girls through age eighteen

• Patron of Abu Dhabi Music and Art Foundation and promoter of cultural understanding;

• Patron of the Abu Dhabi Bride Show; and a keen supporter of the Dubai Bride Show

• Frequent sponsor and host for Islamic Scholars to lecture ladies groups on Islam

• Chairman of the Emirates Thalassemia Society and Board member of the International Thalassemia Federation;

• Collector of fine arts

• Key speaker at Unesco conference on “Women from the Arab World in Europe” Perugia, Italy 2006

• Chairman of Make-A-Wish Foundation UAE – a non-profit organization dedicated to giving hope, strength and joy to children with life-threatening medical conditions

Awards:

• Awarded the "Sheikh Rashid Al Nuaimi Prize" for education by the Ruler of Ajman, HH Sheikh Humaid Bin Rashid Al Nuaimi

• Awarded the “Ordine della Stella della Solidarieta” – the highest rank of the Order for the outstanding contribution to the role of Arab Women by the President of the Italian Republic in 2009

• Received an Award  from the UAE Red Crescent for her work with orphanages around the world in 1999

• Awarded the title of the “World Renowned Personality” by the International Hospital Federation in gratitude for the outstanding contribution to the healthcare community, education and research in November 2011

THEO SOWA

Interim CEO of the African Women’s Development Fund.

Theo Sowa is currently the Interim CEO of the African Women’s Development Fund.

She is an independent advisor and consultant, specializing in international social development with a particular emphasis on women and children’s rights and protection issues.

Born in Ghana, she has lived and worked in many countries in Africa, as well as the UK, Europe, Asia and the USA. Her work includes advisory roles to African and other international social justice activists and leaders, plus policy development and advocacy with a variety of international agencies and organizations.

Theo is a board member of various national and international civil society organizations and grant making foundations, including being a board member of the Children’s Investment Fund Foundation; a Trustee of Comic Relief (a multi-million pound grant making organization) and Chair of its International Grants Committee; a board member of the Graça Machel Trust; a member of the African Advisory Board of the Stephen Lewis Foundation; a member of the British Refugee Council’s Leadership Board and a Patron of Evidence for Development. She holds a public appointment as a Board member of the Charity Commission of England and Wales. Theo was awarded a CBE in 2010

WAFA’ TARNOWSKA

CDLA Piper – Manager for Corporate Social Responsibility

Wafa’ Tarnowska was DLA Piper's Manager for Corporate Social Responsibility in the Middle East for four years since Nov 2007, before returning back to London and becoming their CR Manager for UK-Europe in September 2011. Previously, she was a head-hunter with Odgers-Berndtson in Dubai. She is also a writer and translator of children’s books and a former journalist for SBS Australian Radio and various magazines.

Wafa' has worked in Australia, Lebanon, Poland, Cyprus, India, the UK and the UAE. She has an MA in Sociology from the American University of Beirut and a BA in Political Sciences from Melbourne University. She is fluent in Arabic, English, French, speaks conversational Polish and is learning Italian.

In 2009, DLA Piper ME won three awards for their CSR programs in the region. The first for "Best Environmental Initiative in the UAE" The other two ("Women in Leadership CSR Award " and the "Best Practice Award for CSR and Community Affairs by MEPRA (Middle East PR Association) for DLA Piper's work with Tawteen and the "Women in the Workplace Project" in the UAE.

DLA Piper Middle East was also short listed and highly commended for CSR Leader of the Year Award at the Middle East Business Achievements (MEBA) Awards in 2009 and for best CSR initiatives for a middle sized business by the Emirates Environmental Group.

 On April 15, 2011, Wafa' won the CSR award for the GR8! Women's Awards, normally held in India but held for the first time in Dubai and hosted by the Indian Television Academy. In July 2011, Wafa was nominated as one of the Top 100 Thought Leaders in Trustworthy Business Behaviour in Europe and the Middle East http://trustacrossamerica.com

 Wafa' also sits on the board of Women for Sustainable Growth a joint initiative between Sweden and the UAE working to build a stronger bridge between the two regions, to train women leaders and increase their visibility as role models. www.womenforsustainablegrowth.org

MARCIA C. INHORN

Professor of Anthropology and International Affairs in the Department of Anthropology and The Whitney and Betty MacMillan Center for International and Area Studies – Yale University

Marcia C. Inhorn, PhD, MPH, is internationally recognized as the leading scholar of Middle Eastern medical anthropology. Over the past 25 years, she has conducted long-term qualitative research on the social impact of infertility and assisted reproductive technologies (e.g., in vitro fertilization) as they have come to the Middle Eastern region. As an Arabic-speaking scholar, she has lived for extended periods of time in Egypt, Lebanon, and the United Arab Emirates, where she has been a visiting research professor at both American University of Beirut (AUB) and American University of Sharjah (AUS).

In the United States, she has also conducted long-term ethnographic research in the Arab-American refugee community based in metropolitan Detroit, Michigan. Dr. Inhorn has been a professor at four major American research universities, including University of Arizona (1991-94), Emory University (1994-2000), University of Michigan (2000-2008), and Yale University (2008-present). In Fall 2010, she was also the first Diane Middlebrook and Carl Djerassi Visiting Professor at the Centre for Gender Studies at the University of Cambridge. At Yale University, her home institution, Dr. Inhorn is the William K. Lanman, Jr. Professor of Anthropology and International Affairs in the Department of Anthropology and The Whitney and Betty MacMillan Center for International and Area Studies. She has served as Chair of Yale’s Council on Middle East Studies (CMES), and she is the founding editor of the Journal of Middle East Women’s Studies (JMEWS), which is based in CMES.

A prolific scholar, Dr. Inhorn is the author of four books on gender and reproductive health in the Middle East, including The New Arab Man: Emergent Masculinities, Technologies, and Islam in the Middle East (Princeton U Press, 2012), Local Babies, Global Science: Gender, Religion, and In Vitro Fertilization in Egypt (Routledge, 2003), Infertility and Patriarchy: The Cultural Politics of Gender and Family Life in Egypt (U Pennsylvania Press, 1996) and Quest for Conception: Gender, Infertility, and Egyptian Medical Traditions (U Pennsylvania Press, 1994), which have won the AAA's Eileen Basker Prize and the Diana Forsythe Prize for outstanding feminist anthropological research in the areas of gender, health, science, technology, and biomedicine. She is also the editor or co-editor of eight books, including Medical Anthropology at the Intersections: Histories, Activisms, Futures (Duke U Press, 2012), Anthropology and Public Health: Bridging Differences in Culture and Society (Oxford U Press, 2009), Reproductive Disruptions: Gender, Technology, and Biopolitics in the New Millennium (Berghahn Books, 2007), and Infertility around the Globe: New Thinking on Childlessness, Gender, and Reproductive Technologies (U California Press, 2002). Dr. Inhorn serves as the Associate Editor of Global Public Health, and co-editor of the Berghahn Book series on “Fertility, Reproduction, and Sexuality.” She is the past-president of the Society for Medical Anthropology (SMA) of the American Anthropological Association and current member of the executive boards of the Middle East Studies Association (MESA) and Friends of Low-cost IVF (LCIVF).

RAJA EASA Al GURG

Managing Director of the Easa Saleh Al Gurg Group (ESAG)

Raja Easa Al Gurg is a well known businesswoman in the region. She has achieved laurels for her stellar leadership of the group under the tutelage of her father, the Chairman, H.E. Easa Saleh Al Gurg, KCVO, CBE. Her counsel and valuable insights have significantly contributed to the growth and expansion of the organisation.

A leading business woman in her own right, Mrs Al Gurg has carved a niche for her support and encouragement of Arab women entrepreneurs. She is the President of Dubai Business Women Council, Deputy Chairperson of the Board of Directors, Dubai Healthcare City Authority, a Board member of the Dubai Chamber Of Commerce & Industry (DCCI) and Dubai Women’s Association. She holds memberships at the Dubai Economic Council, Arab International Women’s Forum, National Advisory Council and College of Business Sciences.

She represents the U.A.E. at many international conferences and round-tables as a key-note speaker and is also part of the Government of Dubai’s official delegation for various trade and commerce meetings. Named by Forbes International as the 4th most powerful Arab businesswoman in 2006; Mrs Al Gurg who is also in the list of the ‘100 Most Powerful Arab Women 2012,’ compiled by CEO Middle East; has earned several other plaudits and awards in recent years. These include the Stevie Award for Women in Business in 2011 and the ‘World of Difference Award’ from the International Alliance for Women (TIAW) in 2009. Mrs Al Gurg was also selected as the figure of the month, ‘The Mother of Pearl amongst Businesswomen,’ by the Al Waref Institute for Humanitarian Studies in Washington in 2010.

Besides providing valuable counsel to various business groups and international trade alliances, Mrs Al Gurg spends considerable time in several philanthropic, social and charitable activities, notably with the Easa Saleh Al Gurg Charity Foundation.

Education

• Graduate in English Literature, from Kuwait University – 1977.
• Attended Advance Courses in Management, Sales and Marketing, Human Resource and Personality Development.

Career

She is the Managing Director of the Easa Saleh Al Gurg Group, a family business encompassing 23 divisions that deal in trading, manufacturing, retail, franchise and real estate. Joined the group in 1989 as a member of the Board of Directors. At present she looks after the day-to-day operations and expansion of the business. "At first I never thought I wanted to go into business. But when I took a role in my father's company, I had to prove that I could be successful regardless of the fact that I am a woman or chosen by my father. It is crucial that all women push their own boundaries and have the will to succeed."

Professional Affiliations

• Deputy Chairperson of the Board of Directors, Dubai Healthcare City Authority.

• Board Member, Dubai Chamber of Commerce & Industry.

• Member, of the Dubai Economic Council, Government of Dubai.

• President, Dubai Chambers of Commerce & Industry Business Women Committee.

• Ex-President, Federation of the UAE Chambers of Commerce & Industry Business Women Committee.

• Ex-Member, Board of Trustees of TANMIA. Locals Employment Agency.

• Member, Board of Directors of Dubai Women Association.

• Member, Arab International Women Forum.

• Board Member of German Emirati Joint Council for Industry & Commerce.

• Member, Board of Trustees of Hamdan Bin Mohammed e-University.

• Honorary Member of Jordan Business Council in Dubai.

• Member, Board of Trustees of Dubai University.

• Board Member of UAE-UK Business Joint Council.

Awards and Recognition

Mrs. Al Gurg has achieved many distinguished awards throughout her career. A selection of the notable ones is:

• Among the ‘100 Most Powerful Arab Women 2012,’ compiled by CEO Middle East.

• Stevie Award for Women in Business in October 2011.

• Awarded by Union GCC Chambers 2010 for supporting and participating in the activities of Union Committees. Awarded by Al Waref Institute for Humanitarian Studies in Washington as the figure of the month of September 2010, the Mother of Pearl among Businesswomen.

• One of the 100 international recipients of the World of Difference Award, presented by TIAW at Toronto, Canada on in October 2009.

• Voted ‘4th Strongest Arab Business Women’ by Forbes International Magazine in April 2006.

• Women of the Year 2003 – Awarded by Datamatix.

• Certificate of Appreciation, presented by H.H. Sheikh Hamdan Bin Rashid at the World Bank/IMF Conference.

• Certificate of Appreciation, presented at the UAE – Germany Economic Partnership Forum, 2005.

• Certificate of Appreciation, presented at the UAE – Italy Economic Partnership Forum, 2005.

• Certificate of Appreciation, presented at the Dubai – Osaka Economic Partnership Forum 2005.

Social Contribution

Board member of the Easa Saleh Al Gurg Charity Foundation. The Foundation assists in establishing and supporting charity housing projects, orphanages, elderly homes, day-care centres, academic institutes, scientific research centres, public libraries besides providing study and research grants to students.

KELLY EIDE

Leadership Coach and CEO of TRUE-Trust.Respect.Unique.Energy.

Executive Coach, Kelly Eide believes that you connect with your own true nature by connecting with nature. Kelly uses natural horsemanship and the core routines of nature awareness to help business leaders practice how they lead in their own unique way. Connecting to the paradigm of leadership in nature, Kelly shares a visceral experience of leadership combined with easy to use practices that you can implement in your life.

For individuals, this leadership experience informs every relationship they have as well as their approach to communication and creative problem-solving. For groups, the experience helps to build a culture of trust as well as confident, agile teams where there is a leader in every chair.

Kelly’s leadership development work with horses has been featured on the BBC Middle East Business Report as well as Dubai One’s Studio One. As a photographer, Kelly’s images have most recently been featured in Finding Your Way in A Wild New World by Dr. Martha Beck.

Kelly grew up in the UAE. As an entrepreneur and CEO of TRUE-Trust.Respect.Unique.Energy., she serves as a founding Host of The Hub-UAE community of social entrepreneurs, sharing the Art of Hosting practices to host conversations that empower social impact. She also shares her TRUE Leadership program with horses with young leaders from Zayed University and NYU-Abu Dhabi.

Kelly received her coaching certification with Dr. Martha Beck and her equus coaching certification with Koelle Simpson. She studies the wisdom practices of ancient and nature-based societies with Sagefire Institute for Natural Coaching.

In her pre-entrepreneurial career, Kelly has over 20 years experience as a corporate strategist and organizational architect with multinationals such as Johnson & Johnson, as well as UAE-based businesses such as Dubai Holding. She holds an MBA from Thunderbird School of Global Management and chairs the Thunderbird Alumni Association in the UAE. She is a Black Belt in Six Sigma and an International Award Assessor for the European Foundation of Quality Management.