Archives: Speakers

Athanasios Kyriazis is a Professor at the Department of Statistics and Insurance Sciences at the University of Piraeus in the field of Applied Mathematics and New Technologies. He has graduated from the Department of Mathematics of the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens and holds a PhD degree from the same Department. He has been a visiting researcher in Universities and Research Centers in the U.S.A. and Europe. He has taught a significant number of courses at the undergraduate and postgraduate level, as well as in training programs. He has supervised Doctoral Dissertations and Master’s theses, and has participated in several research programs as the Project Leader. His academic work includes four monographs, eight university textbooks and a great number of scientific publications and papers in international and Greek journals and in conference proceedings. He is an active participant in International and National Conferences and Seminars while he has been the national representative in a significant number of European and international institutions and working groups. In addition, he has participated in Ministerial Councils, meetings, official visits and international collaborations. He has served for several years as the General Secretary of the Ministry of Education and Religious Affairs as well as the Special Secretary for Higher Education at the same Ministry. Finally, he has been a consultant in companies and Institutions in relation  to educational and training subjects.

Fernando Kalligas is currently the Head of Corporate Affairs of DESFA. Prior to joining DESFA, he was the Country Manager of Enagas for Greece. His responsibilities in Enagas included overlooking participated companies in Greece, DESFA and TAP, and further opportunities in the region.

Born and raised in Greece, with working experience in over 20 countries, mainly in infrastructure projects in Europe, South and Central America and Sub-Saharan Africa, he also holds an MBA from Hult International Business School.

Fernando has also worked for Borealis, developing Extra High Voltage Transmission Systems in Europe and the US and for the Spanish company Comsa Emte in constructions and infrastructure. He has also consulting experience, working for funds on international business development in London. He started his career in Greece in MJ Mailis in the Oinofyta plant.

He is native in Spanish and Greek and speaks excellent English.

Experienced Civil Engineer with a Master’s degree in Water Resources Science & Technology from the National Technical University of Athens and a demonstrated history of working in the Renewable Energy Sources sector. Involved in Hydroelectric Energy projects development, such as Small Hydropower plants, Hydro Pumped-Storage and  Hybrid projects, emphasizing in licensing and design coordination procedures. Highly interested in matters of water management and engineering education.

Natasa Pilides was appointed Minister of Energy, Commerce and Industry on July 10th 2020.

Previously, on March 1st 2018 she had been appointed as the first Shipping Deputy Minister of the Republic of Cyprus, heading the strategic development and promotion of Cyprus as a world class, integrated, maritime cluster.

From April 2016 to March 2018, Ms Pilides was Director General of the Cyprus Investment Promotion Agency (Invest Cyprus), responsible for the design and implementation of Invest Cyprus’ strategy in investment promotion, investor support and facilitation of reform.

She has more than fifteen years of private sector experience, notably as Director and Regional Chief Operating Officer at Baker Tilly South East Europe, heading the departments of Finance, Marketing, HR, Administration, Operations and IT, for Cyprus, Greece, Romania, Bulgaria and Moldova.

She also worked, for 9 years, at PwC in Cyprus, Milan and London, in audit and tax consulting of multinational companies active in the fields of banking and finance, shipping, insurance, energy, construction and FMCG.

Ms Pilides has wide experience in delivering professional training and courses for ICAEW, ACCA and CIMA exams, in the areas of audit, tax, corporate law, ethics, financial accounting and reporting, at BPP London, a leading professional studies organisation.

She graduated from Oxford University with a first-class honours degree, with distinction, in Modern Languages and Literature (French and Italian). She is a Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of England and Wales (ICAEW) and a member of the Institute of Certified Public Accountants of Cyprus (ICPAC).

Minas Papadakis took over as the CEO of the Port of Heraklion in January 2020 and managed the port during one of the most challenging times for the cruise industry. Together with his team he managed to put the right procedures and safety protocols in place, which resulted in Heraklion becoming one of the first Greek ports to welcome back the cruise industry and to serve as a homeport for major cruise lines during the pandemic.

Minas joined the port after a long career in the financial sector and has held various executive positions at EFG Eurobank Equities, were he served as head of private clients amongst others. He has served as a member of the Board of Directors for Minoan Lines and A.Papadakis-Technometal.

Minas holds an MBA from the Management School of Imperial College , London University and a degree in chemical engineering from the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki. He has taught Project Management and Financial Management at the Technical Chamber of Greece, North College and the Hellenic Management Association.

He is fluent in English and German.

Giannis Kefalogiannis has studied Law at the Law School of the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens and earned a Master degree in Politics and International Relations at Columbia University in New York (CUHA).

He has also specialized in the Law of mediation technique in Harvard Law School.

Before getting into politics, he worked as a Lawyer in Greece specializing in Criminal and Civil Law.

Ηe has also served as an Advisor to the Permanent Representation of Greece to the United Nations (UN).

In 2012, Giannis Kefalogiannis was elected Member of Parliament  with the party of New Democracy and became the youngest member of parliament in that period. He was elected to the honorary position of Secretary of Parliament, a position he held until 2019.