Designation: 2019

Holding a Master degree in Economics and with 25 years of experience in strategic human resources management for the public administration of Hamburg, including as CEO of the Hamburg Centre for Education and Further Education, Petra Lotzkat joined the Hamburg Ministry of Social Affairs in 2012. As its Director General for Labour and Integration as well as head of the ESF-Managing Authority within the Ministry she put special emphasize on strategic measures to secure skilled workforce, to raise youth employment and to improve the work and integration of refugees. Petra Lotzkat was appointed State Secretary in October 2018. Since 2020, her work has been significantly impacted by the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic, and currently by the war in Ukraine and Hamburg’s support of war refugees.

Peter Macleod was appointed as the first Director of Children’s Services for Renfrewshire Council in January 2015 bringing together the council’s education and children’s social work and criminal justice services. He was appointed Director of Social Work for Renfrewshire in September 2007, following a varied career within social work. Peter Macleod was President of the Association of Directors of Social Work in 2012-2013. He was appointed chairperson of the Institute of Research and Innovation in Social Services in 2014 and has co-chaired national groups in relation to health and care integration on outcomes and commissioning.

In addition to this, Peter Macloed sits on the boards of Technology Enabled Care, Macmillan Cancer Support’s TCAT programme and the national Realigning Children’s Services board. He is also a member of ADES and Social Work Scotland and has served on the board of the Digital Health and Care Institute and is a trustee of the charity “I Am Me’.

Nathalie Destais is head of the General Inspectorate of Social Affairs since April 2017.

She graduated from EM Lyon Business School and Sciences-Po Paris where she also taught social issues and published a synthesis in 2003, “The health system, organisation and regulation’.

Before becoming head of the General Inspectorate of Social Affairs, Nathalie Destais carried out several missions there, notably on the management of health risk, the medico-economic evaluation, the role of private clinics in the provision of care, funding and organisation of care in institutions for dependent elderly people and the results of the general reform of public policies.

Since October 2014, Nathalie Destais was advisor for social protection and autonomy policies in the executive office of the President of the Republic of France.

Ernesto Sirolli is one of the world’s leading consultants on the topic of economic development. He started working in the field of International Aid in Africa in 1971 and has since worked in Australia, New Zealand, Canada, the United Kingdom, Latin America and Asia in projects that promote local entrepreneurship and local self-determination. Dr. Sirolli established the Sirolli Institute in the United States in 1985. The Sirolli Institute is a social enterprise that provides global support to communities looking for intrapreneurship and sustainable growth.

Dr. Sirolli received a Laurea di Dottore in Political Sciences from Rome University in 1976 and a Ph.D in Local Enterprise Facilitation from Murdoch University, Australia in 2004. Dr. Ernesto Sirolli received The 2016 IOEE International Lifetime Achievement Award for Entrepreneurship Education at the House of Lords in London.

Katarina Ivanković-Knežević holds a degree from the Faculty of Law, University of Zagreb and has a number of years of relevant experience in the Government of the Republic of Croatia. She also worked in the Ministry of Economy, Labour and Entrepreneurship as Director and Head of Department for the Preparation and Management of EU programmes and projects.

At the age of 17, Eva Liz Moen founded the organisation Norway’s Handicap Federal Youth – Sarpsborg, (NHFU-Sarpsborg) with other disabled young people. She became board member for the Muscular Dystrophy Association, before becoming President of the board. Eva Liz Moen has been an activist within the Rights of Persons with Disabilities since the late 80’s.

She was headhunted to become BPA-peer counselor in Uloba, where she has been an employee since April 2010. This non-profit organisation works for full equality, participation in society and the development of life for the disabled. Uloba works towards eradicating socially created barriers, to combat discrimination, prejudice, myths and disqualification, and to promote liberation for the disabled.

Dagmar Vogt-Janssen is Head of Department of the Senior Citizens (about 800 employees) at the City of Hannover since 2018 She has qualifications in ethics consulting in the hospital and in diaconal education. Previously she worked as Division Manager of the Municipal Senior Service of the City of Hannover (about 70 employees) and as Deputy Head of Department of the Department of Senior Citizens.

Between 2005 and 2010, Dagmar Vogt-Janssen was a specialist in the State Association for Health and Academy for Social Medicine Lower Saxony e. V., Head of the Regional Agency “Generation dialogue Lower Saxony” – responsible for state programs for multi-generational homes (Mehrgenerationenhäuser) in Lower Saxony, Senior Service Offices / Nursing centers, nationwide “patient information” and “aging and health” working groups as well as organisation of the Lower Saxony Forum in cooperation with municipalities in Lower Saxony.

Mrs. Ana Isabel Lima Fernández holds a European degree in social work, master’s in social intervention and knowledge societies in the European Higher Education Area (EHEA).

Until October 2018 she has been a teacher of the degree in social work of the Complutense University of Madrid (UCM) and the Spanish University of Distance Education (UNED).

Mrs. Ana Lima has several postgraduates specialised in management of social services, both general and specialised, strategic planning, quality, local development and interculturality.

She has worked for 22 years for the social services of public administration in positions of direct intervention to people and for the direction of centers and management, planning of programs specialised in public social policies.

Mrs. Ana Lima was also President of the Spanish Committee of Social Welfare (CEBS), Member of the executive of the World Federation of Social Work (IFSW Global), President of the European Federation of Social Work (IFSW Europe), Vice-Treasurer of the Professional Union (UP), Social Services Advisor of the Federation of Municipalities and Provinces of Spain (FEMP) and President of the General Council of Social Work of Spain (CGTS).