Aikynai Yusupova is a Reading Specialist for USAID “Okuu Keremet!” Project of RTI International. She graduated from the Kyrgyz State University in Kyrgyzstan with a diploma of an English teacher. She has experience teaching in primary and secondary schools for about 24 years. She has a Master’s Degree in Teacher Education (The Aga Khan University, Pakistan, Karachi). She enjoys using her skills and knowledge to contribute to teachers’ professional development.

Frank van Cappelle is a regional Education Specialist at UNICEF’s South Asia office. He has been working in the education sector for 15 years (prior to South Asia, in Eastern and Southern Africa, Eastern Europe and Central Asia, and East Asia and Pacific), covering areas such as assessment, out-of-school children research and monitoring, distance learning during COVID-19 and “reimagine education”.

Mr. John Denny (Tim) is a senior technical advisor on a wide range of education issues supporting mainly developing countries throughout Asia and Africa. He is currently supporting the Asian Development Bank and UNESCO on multi-country research toward country situation analysis on education technologies.

Dr. Carmela C Oracion is currently the Director of the Ateneo Center for Educational Development. She completed her Doctorate degree in Education, a dual award program, from Nanyang Technological University, Singapore, and the University of London. In her present post, she is deeply involved in the development of public schools in the Philippines, most of which face very challenging circumstances. The majority of students enrolled in Philippine public schools come from disadvantaged backgrounds and she believes that a good education is a key to breaking the cycle of poverty.

Vignesh Naidu is currently the Director, Operations at The HEAD Foundation. Vignesh helms The HEAD Foundation’s education team that works across Southeast Asia to improve education outcomes through; the design and delivery of bespoke capacity building opportunities for educators, the production of a suite of publications, and opportunities for thought leaders to share their insights and perspectives. Vignesh is particularly intrigued by how education systems need to adapt to ensure that future graduates have the skills needed to navigate a rapidly evolving world of work.

Eric Ju Yoon Kim, a South Korean national and a University of Washington graduate is the founder of Dot – a company making an active Braille smartwatch meant for blind people.