Dr Petros Varelidis is Secretary General Natural Environment and Waters in the Ministry of Environment and Energy since February 2022. He has studied Chemical Engineering in the National Technical University of Athens and has a PhD on composite materials and recycling. He has also graduated from the department of business administration of the Athens University of Economics and Business. Since 2009, he has served as a policy advisor of the political leadership in the ministry of Environment. Since December of 2019, is representing Greece on the Bureau of the European Environment Agency. From 2016 to 2021 he held the position of Director of the Organisation of Natural Environment and Climate Change (formerly named National Centre for Environment and Sustainable Development). During 2005-2009 and 2013-2015 he served as an environment attache in the Permanent representation of Greece in the ΕU.
From 2012 to 2013, during the preparation of and the presidency of Cyprus of Council of the EU, he served as environment attache in the Permanent Representation of Cyprus in EU
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Andreas A. Gregoriou was born on 13th April 1965. He graduated from 10th Lyceum in Lemesos in 1983. He served his military duties in the National Guard and then he studied Economics at the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, from which he obtained an economic degree in 1988. In 2006, he obtained a Master’s degree in Public Sector Management from the Cyprus International Institute of Management (CIIM).
In September 2020, Andreas A. Gregoriou was appointed Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Agriculture, Rural Development and Environment of the Republic of Cyprus.
From July 2023, he performs in addition to his duties as Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Agriculture, Rural Development and Environment, duties in the Presidency and the Presidential Palace (Head of the Presidency Administration).
In December 2019, he was appointed by the Council of Ministers at the post of Acting Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Justice and Public Order.
Prior to his appointment as Permanent Secretary, from February 2008, he served as Director of the Department of Postal Services. In November 2002, he was appointed Senior Officer, responsible for financial and legal issues at the newly created Office of the Commissioner of Electronic Communications and Postal Regulations (OCECPR), where he served until 2008. During that time, he was also responsible for the regulation of the Postal Services Sector in Cyprus with the transposition of EU-directives into national law.
From 1996 to 2002, he served as Officer in the Value Added Tax Service. During that period, between 1999 and 2001, he was seconded to the Directorate of Tax Policy of the Ministry of Finance.
From 1993 to 1996, he was appointed Customs Examiner at the Customs and Excise Department.
In 1992 he joined the Public Service, beginning his career as Assistant Taxation Officer at the Department of Inland Revenue, where he served until 1993. In 1988 to 1992, he worked in the private sector.
Mr. Nabil Gangi is the Deputy Regional Representative of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) for the region of Europe and Central Asia and de facto head of FAO offices in Bosnia & Herzegovina, Montenegro, North Macedonia and Serbia. In October 2025, he also assumed the roles of Subregional Coordinator for Central Asia and FAO Representative in Türkiye ad interim.
Before being appointed as Deputy Regional Representative for Europe and Central Asia and Secretary of its Regional Conference, Mr. Gangi held the same post in FAO’s Regional Office for the Near East and North Africa in Cairo, his city of birth. Prior to that, he headed the Organization’s Shared Services Centre in Budapest, providing support to FAO’s essential administrative operations, including human resources, financial services, and asset and travel management.
During his 25 year career with FAO, Mr. Gangi has assumed increasingly senior-level positions including in FAO’s headquarters in Rome where he successfully managed staff-related benefits, particularly in the area of pensions and social security for the Rome-based UN agencies.
Before joining the United Nations, Mr. Gangi gained wide experience in the humanitarian development field through senior management positions with multilateral and non-governmental organizations. This work included managing development programmes and projects funded by leading donors such as the European Union and the United States Agency for International Development, among others.
Throughout his career in international development Mr. Gangi has travelled extensively leading several organizational development missions in more than 25 countries in Africa, Asia, Europe, and South America.
Mr. Gangi, a national of Canada, has a background in engineering, project and financial management, and business administration. He speaks Arabic, English, French, Italian and Spanish.
Dr Theodora Kouloura received her BSc in Chemical Engineering from Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Greece, in Systems Engineering and Management and her Doctor of Philosophy degree in Systems methodology in sustainable energy management of industrial and residential complexes from Democritus University of Thrace, Greece.
She is working since 1989 as a Manager of several departments such as safety, technical services, environment protection, production and engineering, in a fertilizer production industry, based in New Karvali, Greece and since April of 2019 as the Chief Operating Officer of the Fertilizers Industrial Complex in Nea Karvali, Kavala, GREECE.
She is a member of BoD of Fertilizers Europe Association and the Chairwoman of Technical and Sustainability Committee of this Association.
She is a member of BoD of Ammonia Europe Association and an elected Vice President of the Association. She is the official representative of the company in IFA, UNICEN (Union of Industrial Consumers of Energy), ESA (European Sulphur Association branch of CEFIC) and other Associations.
Since 2021, she is the elected President of Association of Fertilizers Enterprises and Industries (AFEI) in Greece. AFEI is an affiliate member of IFA and Fertilizers Europe Association as well as a member of Hellenic Association of Chemical Industry.
Since May of 2025, Dr Theodora Kouloura has been elected as the VICE PRESIDENT of the Hellenic Association of Chemical Industry.
H.E. Dr. Bebeb A.K. Nugraha Djundjunan has served as Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Republic of Indonesia to the Hellenic Republic since 2021. A senior career diplomat with more than three decades of experience, he has built a distinguished record in international law, treaty negotiations, and maritime affairs.
During his tenure at Indonesia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, he held several strategic leadership roles, including Director of Legal and Territorial Treaties and Head of Indonesia’s Technical Delegation on Maritime Boundary Negotiations. He also served as Deputy Chief of Mission in Bangkok and Deputy Permanent Representative to the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia Pacific.
Ambassador Djundjunan has represented Indonesia at numerous multilateral fora, including the World Intellectual Property Organization, the International Maritime Organization, and Advisor to Secretary General of the International Seabed Authority as well as a Conciliator to UNSG on UNCLOS. He earned his Doctorate in Law from Padjadjaran University Indonesia and has received national honors in recognition of his longstanding public services.
H.E. Mrs. Luela Hajdaraga is Ambassador of the Republic of Albania to the Hellenic Republic since 2020 and concurrently serves as non-resident Ambassador to Cyprus, Armenia, and Tunisia.
As Ambassador, Mrs. Hajdaraga is responsible for representing Albania’s political, economic, and cultural interests in the countries where she is accredited. She actively engages with senior officials, government representatives, and business leaders to advance key diplomatic initiatives, including trade agreements, security cooperation, and investment opportunities.
In parallel with her diplomatic mandate, Ambassador Hajdaraga plays an important role in promoting Albania’s economic diplomacy. She advocates for increased bilateral trade, foreign direct investment, and joint ventures in strategic sectors such as energy, tourism, technology, and infrastructure. Through strategic partnerships and close engagement with the private sector, she contributes to positioning Albania as a reliable economic partner in the region. She is also strongly committed to supporting the Albanian diaspora, ensuring its active involvement in national dialogue and development initiatives.
Prior to her current appointment, Mrs. Hajdaraga holds senior coordination roles within the Albanian government, including positions at the Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs and the State Minister for Diaspora. In these roles, she oversees the implementation of key foreign policy and diaspora-related initiatives and works directly with the Prime Minister’s Office to ensure effective inter-ministerial coordination.
Earlier in her career, she demonstrates leadership in both the public and private sectors, holding managerial roles in human resources and international relations within the telecommunications industry. She also works with the Albanian Center for Human Rights (ACHR), reflecting her long-standing commitment to human rights and social development.
Mrs. Hajdaraga holds an MBA in International Relations and Diplomacy from the University of Business and International Studies in Geneva and a Bachelor of Arts in International Relations and Political Science from the State University of New York.
She is fluent in Albanian, English, and Italian.
Professor Dr. Marios P. Efthymiopoulos is Professor of International Security and Strategy at Vytautas Magnus University and Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Strategy International (Cyprus). He specializes in international security, NATO and NATO–Russia relations, defence, cybersecurity, climate and energy security, and strategic analysis. He has served for many years as dean and head of academic departments and worked in Cyprus, the United Arab Emirates, the United States and Italy and worked with international organizations with professional experience and collaborations with leading universities and research centres. He is an author and co-editor of internationally published academic books and articles. With extensive experience in policy analysis, his policy options support governments, institutions, organizations, as well as private sector and actors and businesses in strategic planning and in managing complex international risks and analyses. More information is available at www.strategyinternational.org and at his personal website www.efthymiopoulos.gr.
Nikolaos Thomaidis is Professor of Analytical Chemistry at the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens (NKUA), Vice-President of the Administration Council since 2023, and Chairman of the Property Management & Development Company of the University of Athens since 2018. The Company, a public limited company solely owned by NKUA, manages and develops the University’s real estate assets and endowments, supporting its educational, research, and development mission. He is also Vice-President of the Regional Council for Research and Innovation of Attica. In addition to his administrative roles, he leads a scientific research group of more than 48 researchers, authored more than 480 scientific articles and participated in/coordinated more than 110 projects.
Pantelis Z. Lappas is an Assistant Professor of Operations Research and Computational Intelligence at the University of the Aegean (Greece) and an AI Solutions Architect at Netcompany. He holds a PhD in Operations Research, along with advanced degrees in Statistics and Information Systems from the Athens University of Economics and Business, and a BSc in Informatics Engineering. His research focuses on Artificial Intelligence, Optimization, and Computational Intelligence, with particular emphasis on Machine Learning, Deep Learning, Evolutionary Computing, Reinforcement Learning, and Generative AI. He has extensive experience in designing and deploying AI-driven solutions across the Finance, Health, Security, and Public sectors. Dr. Lappas has actively contributed to major European research and innovation initiatives, including HORIZON 2020 and HORIZON Europe projects, bridging academic research with real-world, large-scale applications.











