Mulugeta Tafesse is a visual artist, art critic and theoretician. He is also the author of the book ‘Towards African Mimesis: Regarding East Africa’s Art Scene Now’. Mulugata graduated from Ale School of Fine Art and Design in 1980, obtained his masters at Higher Institute of Fine Arts in Sofia, Bulgaria, a postgraduate degree from the National Higher Institute for Fine Arts in Antwerp (Be.), and then his PhD from La Laguna University in Spain.

Shane Quinonez (MD) is a clinical geneticist based in Michigan, in the United States. For the last four years, he has been coming to Ethiopia, helping build the local healthcare sector.

Girma Wake, former CEO of Ethiopian Airlines, joined Ethiopian at a young age. Girma was trained at Ethiopian Airlines Aviation Academy and served the airline for 34 years at various posts. In 1993 he had some disagreements with the then Ethiopian government officials and left the airlines to join Gulf Air. He also worked for DHL in the Middle East.

Brian MacHarg is director of civic engagement at the Appalachian State University, where he focuses on how civic participation can promote democratic values and facilitate learning.

Sergio Pimenta is vice president of the International Finance Corporation (IFC) in charge of operations in the Middle East and Africa. IFC, a private sector arm of the World Bank Group, stands as a primary development financial institution.

Keith Rockwell is Director of the Information and External Relation Division of the World Trade Organization (WTO) based in Genève. Two weeks ago Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung (FES ) in collaboration with WTO has organized a seminar on “Challenges for the Multilateral Trading System ‐ Perspectives from East Africa” which took place in Nairobi.

Mustafa Mohammed Omar is the President of the Somali Regional State. He was born in Degahabur, some 765 kilometers away from the capital of the region Jigjiga in 1973. He joined Addis Ababa University in 1991 and graduated in economics in 1995.

The tireless Ethiopian human rights activist, Obang Metho, is back in Ethiopia after almost two decades. The head of the Solidarity Movement for a New Ethiopia (SMNE) has been touring the nation advocating for a slew of ideals in pursuit of a new Ethiopia.

Saad Ali Shire (PhD) was appointed as Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation of Somaliland in October 2015. Prior to his appointment he was the Minister of National Planning and Development for five years from 2012 to 2015.

Nate Araya is an Ethiopian American filmmaker. In his latest project, he travelled throughout the US looking to converse with immigrant communities on the taboo subject of mental illness.