Usec. Malcolm S. Garma is the Undersecretary for Operations at the Department of Education, recently re-appointed under Secretary Sonny Angara. A former UP Integrated School faculty member, he has held key leadership posts as Regional Director in Regions IX, III, I, and NCR, and previously served as Assistant Secretary for Operations and the National Academy of Sports. He also contributed to literacy and numeracy reforms as a Senior Technical Adviser for the USAID RTI ABC+ project.

Ms. Manjushree N. is an Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer from the 2010 Karnataka cadre, known for her leadership in governance, policy implementation, and citizen-centric administration. She has held several key roles, including Chairperson of the Karnataka School Examination and Assessment Board (KSEAB) and Deputy Commissioner and District Magistrate of Mandya District. She received the Star 2020 Appreciation Certificate for her dedicated public service during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Alessandro Mele, President of La Cometa in Como, Italy, is a leading advocate for disability inclusion in vocational education. Under his leadership, Cometa has become a European Centre of Excellence for Inclusive TVET, offering hands-on learning in crafts, hospitality, and entrepreneurship. Mele emphasizes holistic, community-based education that welcomes individuals with disabilities into work-based programs, including a bakery, bistro, and woodworking shop.

Ms. Tadevosyan has over 25 years of professional experience in social development. She joined ADB in 2014 and works to ensure that urban and social sector projects in the East Asia Department are socially inclusive, people-centered, and sustainable.

Edward Yee is a serial social entrepreneur whose career bridges impact, finance, and technology. He co-founded ventures like Givfunds, an impact investment fund, and nsave, a fintech focused on financial inclusion. His ventures have attracted funding from prominent backers including Sequoia Capital, the UNDP, and Y Combinator. Today, he heads growth and strategy for FAR.AI, an AI Safety non-profit that works to ensure advanced AI is safe and beneficial for everyone.

Baiq Hana Susantiis a practitioner and academic in AI learning. Since 2019, she has led the Artificial Intelligence Center Indonesia (AiCI) at the University of Indonesia, which develops AI curricula for K12 and university levels, creates learning media and evaluations, and runs AI programs for students. The institution also collaborates with the Ministry of Education to train coding and AI teachers in several provinces for school implementation this year.

Mr. Hervé Huot-Marchand has been working at UNESCO Headquarters for more than 6 years as Chief of the Section for Youth, Literacy and Skills Development in the Education Sector.

He has over 25 years of international experience in the field of education and training with high experience in Sub-Saharan Africa in research, publications, policy support and coordination.

From 2016 until his appointment to UNESCO HQ, he served as the Head of Office and UNESCO Representative to Mali.