Ana has over a decade work experience as a Project Manager, Business Developer and Management Controller in the field of the Rational Use of Energy, Sustainability, and Smart Cities. Ana has been responsible for the coordination and management of European Funds, or the development of strategic action plans for local municipalities, such as the SEAP (Strategic Action Plan) under the Covenant of Mayors Initiative. As a member of the Finance Group of the European initiative Smart Cities Stakeholder Platform she also improved her experience in the identification, adaptation and implementation of alternative financing models and sustainability models related to smart cities.

Ana holds PhD from the Engineering and Innovation Department at the Faculty of Mathematics, Computing and Technology, The Open University UK, that has been awarded for her thesis on “The role of behaviour in the transition to more energy efficient use at home”. Her research combined positivist and constructivist paradigms, so to allow for both: statistically analyse the data, whilst also allowing for an exploration of the complex set of variables that influence human behaviour. With this her research used a mixed, multi-method research methodology, using both quantitative and qualitative research procedures. Quantitative research aimed to gain insight and identify issues for the subsequent qualitative phases of the empirical work, while the qualitative research aims to explore attitudes, behaviour and experiences through such methods as interviews or focus groups.

Ana also holds a degree in Economics from the Universidade do Minho (PT), a degree in International Management from the RSM Erasmus University (NL), and a Master in Business Administration in International Industrial Management from the Esslingen University of Applied Science, a MBA program that had been developed to cater the needs of international senior staff from local enterprises such Behr, Bosch, Daimler, Festo, Hewlett Packard, IBM, Kärcher, Modine, Porsche or Siemens.

After an initial career path within the private industry and service sector Andreas has been working since 2003 in an academic scientific context as a project manager, researcher, consultant and trainer in the fields of economics, education, and in information communication technologies. He has been involved in numerous projects that have been funded by national and international organizations, including the European Commission and the World Bank. Andreas has a decade of experiences in the conceptualization and management of research, training and capacity building projects within Europe and across the globe, managing in-house teams and globally distributed external research, development and training teams. During his term at the United Nations University from 2009 through 2012 he has been for example responsible for coordinating and overseeing research teams from Europe, Africa, Asia and Latin-America.

As a consultant and knowledgeable scholar he has been – inter-alia – heading the strategic and conceptual development efforts within the United Nations University (UNU) on its open education project, and he has been acting as an invited expert to UN agencies and to the European Commission. At current Andreas is also a doctoral supervisor with the University of Liverpool (UK) within their Doctor of Business Administration (DBA) program, an advising fellow to the European Learning Industry Group (ELIG), and he continues to be an affiliated research fellow with the United Nations University UNU-MERIT.

Andreas holds three higher education degrees in management from universities in France, Germany and the Netherlands, and with majors in ‘International Management’ and in ‘Human Resources and Organizational Management’; and a PhD from the Open University UK.

Jacqui has several decades of experience at senior executive level in strategic through operational and change transformation roles in both private and public sectors. She has experience in training and education at the University of Wollongong and with private sector service providers in computing, management, marketing, business development and administration; as well as IT system and operational facilitation, training and development in-house in public and private sector work environments. In addition to senior corporate and Board roles, Jacqui is currently the CEO of Jackal Oz, a strategic through organisational delivery consultancy and research company.

Jacqui is a DBA Candidate at University of Liverpool and has been the DBA Course Representative for the past four years, a role voted for by her peers. Jacqui holds degrees in Computing and Commerce; and post-graduate degrees in Business Administration and Company Secretarial. In addition, Jacqui holds various qualifications in Financial Planning, Finance/Mortgage Broking, Advanced Occupational Health and Safety, Investigation, Project Management, Training and Evaluation, amongst a range of qualifications. Jacqui also holds accreditation as a Fellow of the Institute of Managers and Leaders, for which she is the Chair of the Regional Advisory Board; and memberships of Certified Practicing Accountants, Australian Institute of Company Directors, Institute of Public Administration, Australian Institute of Project Management, Project Management Institute, Change Management Institute, International Women’s Leadership Association, and Women on Boards.’