ElKerdany is a Professor of Architecture and Urban Design at the Faculty of Engineering, Cairo University; a practicing architect; and a Chairman of MIMAR Engineering Consultancy. In addition to her local education and practice in Egypt, she studied and practiced in the California USA 1989-92, and Berlin Germany 1979-80. Since her graduation, she is involved in research, education, as well as practice in the fields of design, conservation, and heritage.
ElKerdany has been a consultant and committee member for many governmental institutions in the fields of architecture, urban design, heritage and development. Among which, the Permanent Committee of Islamic and Coptic monuments at the Ministry of Antiquities (2016- present); the Historic Areas Committee at the National Organization for Urban Harmony, Ministry of Culture; and Chairperson of the Architecture Committee at the Supreme Council of Culture at the Ministry of Culture (2016-present).
Dr. Zaki is considered one of the distinguished Arab women who rose to prominence in the field of cultural diplomacy and starred for seven years in the management of the Egyptian Academy of Arts in Rome as a “cultural advisor to the Egyptian embassy in Italy”. Gihan Zaki graduated from the Catholic school “The Sacred Heart” in Cairo, then completed her studies at Helwan University, where she was appointed as a faculty member and was sent by the Egyptian government to obtain PhD in “Egyptian Sciences” from the Lyon University in France.
In 2014, Dr. Zaki obtained specialized diploma in the field of “cultural diplomacy” from the Italian University of “Siena”, in parallel with the Egyptian sciences in the fields of cultural diplomacy and management of cultural institutions. She now works as a professor / researcher at the Centre for Scientific Research of the French University “Sorbonne” in the field of Egyptian science and art history. Zaki continues her career as a visiting professor at multiple universities around the world.
Mrs. Talebna is the Director General of Cultural, Social and Family Affairs at the General Secretariat of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC). She has Master of Public Governance, from the University of Granada, Spain. She has 37 years’ experience in the Public Administration; Social & Cultural Development & Diplomatic Administration. Mrs. Talebna was the Minister of Culture, Youth and Sports in Mauritania 2005-2007. She is also the Founder and president of centres for studies and researches in West African Countries as well as many NGOs for Women and Girls’ Advancement and combating poverty.
Dr. Ashkanani is an assistant professor of anthropological archaeology and a curator of Anthropology and Archaeology Museum and Laboratory in the department of Sociology, Social Work, and Anthropology at Kuwait University. His research interests involve the nature of socio-political entities, social complexity, trade and exchange between 7000 – 4000 years ago, and social archaeology. Hasan was appointed by the Amiri Dewan, as the first general director of Abdullah al-Salem Cultural Center, to manage seven museums, support the implementation of the pre-opening, the opening and post opening strategic plans.
Alaa el-Habashi is an Egyptian professor of architecture and heritage conservation, and chairs the Department of Architecture in Menoufia University. He received his MS and Ph.D. from the University of Pennsylvania. His researches and practices aim to found a preservation framework that respects the specificities of local history and traditions. He has many conservation projects in Egypt and in other Arab countries whereby he attempted to develop heritage conservation approaches appropriated to different local values, identities and specificities. He assisted in registering, managing, and evaluating sites listed as World Heritage. He is a member of the editorial advisory board of the Journal of Cultural Heritage Management and Sustainable Development. He established Turath Conservation Group specialized in conserving and managing heritage sites, and founded a Center in Historic Cairo for the Revitalization of Historic Cities. He has been promoting for Arab culture through various venues as selectively and briefly described throughout three venues, each with a complementary goal.
Dr. Hadžimuhamedović is the director of the Centre for Cultural Heritage, International Forum Bosnia. She has been the leading expert in the process of integrating cultural heritage into postwar recovery in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Hadžimuhamedović has taught History of Architecture and Architectural Conservation at the International University of Sarajevo (2010-2019), guest-lectured across the world, and published widely, including the books Heritage, War and Peace; Human Rights and Destruction of Cultural Memory (editor); Bosnia: destruction of cultural heritage (co-author), and Reconstruct or Forget: recovering heritage in war-traumatized communities (forthcoming). She has worked as a consultant for UNESCO, ICCROM, World Bank, ICOMOS International, OSCE, ARC-WH, and Welfare.