Nuno Azevedo currently holds a position as EVP of the Executive Committee and Member of the Board of Directors at aicep Global Parques, where he oversees several business location areas, including ZILS - Zona Industrial e Logística de Sines, under the brands “ZAL Sines - Zona de Atividades Logísticas,” “Energia Sul,” and “Sines Tech - Innovation & Data Center Hub.” From 2016 to 2024, Nuno worked at the Bank of Portugal, where he held both technical and management positions. He worked as an advisor in the Financial Stability Department and the Statistics Department, later transitioning into a management role in the latter. Since 2023, he has been a researcher in the Economic Studies Department, specifically in the Microdata Research Laboratory (BPLIM). Earlier in his career, Nuno worked in commercial banking, and since 2008, he has been a lecturer in higher education. He is currently a Visiting Assistant Professor at the School of Economics and Management at the University of Minho. Nuno holds a PhD in Mathematics Applied to Economics and Management from ISEG - University of Lisbon, a Master's degree in Mathematical Engineering from the Faculty of Sciences of the University of Porto, and a Bachelor's degree in Mathematics from the University of Minho. He has several publications in his areas of expertise, along with presentations at national and international events, and has participated in various projects and conferences.

Susana Costa holds a Law degree from the Faculty of Law of University of Lisbon. She joined Banco Montepio in 2004, initially serving as a Commercial Manager in the Branch Network of the Amadora Regional Department. She later gained experience as a Premium Individual Customer Manager, focusing on portfolio management, customer retention, and attracting new clients. In 2014, she moved from the commercial sector to a role more closely aligned with her legal background. That November, she began her journey in the Compliance Department. Since then, Susana has built her career in the Financial Crime Prevention Department, with a focus on anti-money laundering/combating the financing of terrorism, and fraud monitoring.

Margarida Varejão holds a degree in Economics from FEP School of Economics and Management. She began her professional journey in the banking sector through a trainee program. Currently, she is a member of the Monitoring Center of the Financial Crime Prevention Department at Banco Montepio, where she works on implementing measures to prevent and combat money laundering and terrorist financing. Her role involves analyzing bank transactions to identify potential links to financial crime. Passionate about acrobatic gymnastics and tennis, Margarida has recently discovered a newfound love for board games.

Filipe Araújo is the Vice-Mayor of Porto and City Councillor for Environment, Climate, Innovation and Digital Transition, serving his third term as a Councillor in Porto (2013 – present). He is the President of the Board of the municipal companies Porto Ambiente (waste and cleaning company) and Águas e Energia do Porto (water and energy company). He is also President of the Board of Porto Energy Agency and Porto Digital Association. He is a member of the Board of LIPOR. Currently, he is Vice-President of Energy Cities network and a member of the Cities Mission Mayors Advisory Group, within the scope of the European Mission 100 Climate-Neutral and Smart Cities. He led the Environment Forum of the EUROCITIES network as President from 2018 to 2023 and as Vice President in the two previous years (2016-2018). Since 2013, throughout his public service career, he has actively developed and implemented a strategic vision for the areas of Environment, Climate Action, and Innovation in Porto, driving substantial progress in the city in recent years. He holds a degree in Electrical Engineering from the Faculty of Engineering of the University of Porto (FEUP) and an MSc in Telecommunications with distinction from the University of Manchester Institute of Science and Technology (UMIST). Between 1999 and 2013, he worked as a senior executive for a multinational telecommunications company.

With 30 years of experience in corporate sustainability consulting, Nathalie Ballan is the Founder and President of Sair da Casca, the first consulting firm in Portugal focused on Social Responsibility and Sustainable Development. Sair da Casca was born from the conviction that companies are a driving force for change and that socially responsible actions create a “virtuous circle” essential to business success. Nathalie is responsible for the company’s development, its internationalization, European projects, and partnerships. An “activist,” she participates in various Portuguese and international forums, teaches, and conducts research in the fields of sustainability strategy and social innovation. In 2021, she was honored by the French state as a Chevalier de l’Ordre National du Mérite. She holds various roles in society, including: Board Member and Head of Training at GRACE, Advisory Board Member of ISCTE Business School and the 3XP Social Impact Fund, Secretary-General of the CCEF (Committee of Foreign Trade Advisors of France), member of the National Center for Competence in Social Innovation, part of the European Union’s Sustainability Expert Group – Networking for better Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) advice to Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises (SMEs), and Guest Lecturer in the postgraduate program in Sustainability at ISEG.

Celeste Varum is an economist with extensive experience in innovation and internationalization in various contexts, with a PhD in Economics and a Master's degree in Economics and International Business from the University of Reading (UK) and a Licenciatura degree in Economics from the University of Évora. Business Development at Galp, Associate Professor with aggregation at the University of Aveiro, has been advisor to the Ministry of Economy of Portugal at the Cabinet of the Secretary of State for Tourism and at the Cabinet of the Secretary of State for Industry, as well as collaborated with the European Commission on energy transition and Industry 4 policies. Her professional career unites business initiatives, government and academia, supporting companies and regions, as well as the definition of public policy to face the challenges to increase competitiveness.

Ana Luísa Costa began her professional career at PwC in 2006, accumulating extensive experience in matters related to national and international taxation, with a particular focus on corporate reorganizations and assisting clients with tax disputes. She is an invited lecturer at several higher education institutions, a speaker at seminars and conferences, and regularly contributes to the press by writing articles for newspapers and magazines on taxation matters. Ana Luísa Costa holds a degree in Economics from the Faculty of Economics of the University of Porto and a postgraduate degree in Taxation from the Higher Institute of Administration and Management.

Manuel Dias is the National Technology Officer (CTO) and an Executive Board Member at Microsoft Portugal. With over 20 years of experience in technology, he began his career at EFACEC as a Software Engineer focused on developing real-time systems. Since then, he has held several prominent positions at Microsoft, including Director of Technical Sales in the Solutions Unit and Data & AI Specialist for the enterprise market. In addition to his role at Microsoft, Manuel is a key figure in Portugals data science community. He serves as the Vice-President of the Portuguese Data Science Association (DSPA) and, since 2021, has been Vice-President of the Portuguese Business Intelligence Association (APBI). In 2019, he founded the Power BI Portugal community, which now has over 3,500 members and promotes the development of analytical skills and knowledge sharing. Manuel Dias holds a degree in Electrical and Computer Engineering from Instituto Superior Técnico and a Masters in Information Systems from Instituto Superior de Economia e Gestão (ISEG), along with a certification in Business Strategy from INSEAD. As a Guest Lecturer at NOVA IMS, he teaches in the field of Advanced Analytics, contributing to the education of the next generation of data analysis and business intelligence experts.

Pedro Saleiro is Co-Founder and Chief AI Officer at Opnova, a startup building trustworthy Agentic AI for enterprise workflow automation. Actively involved in the Responsible AI field since 2017, he has significantly contributed to developing various open-source tools, notably the Aequitas toolkit. Before Opnova, Pedro served as Head of AI Research at Feedzai, where he played a key role in developing award-winning products, co-authoring numerous research papers and co-inventing several US patents related to Responsible AI. Pedro's career path includes a postdoctoral position at the University of Chicago, a Ph.D. internship at Microsoft Research, and a Ph.D. in Informatics Engineering from the Faculty of Engineering at the University of Porto.