Ðorde Vukotic

Djordje Vukotic, born in 1963, is the head of the Legal Team to The Regulatory Review Unit for the Government of the Republic of Serbia and the Principal Legal Adviser to the Council Secreteriat for Regulatory Reform Council for the Government of the Republic of Serbia          
Educated in Belgrade Law Faculty and College of Europe in Bruges and trained in World Bank Institute Washington, Vukotic has more thean 17 yeras of professional experience in the policy, practice, and legal drafting of commercial and corporate law, financial law, foreign investments law and privatization.
He was the key Legal Expert for the Regulatory Reform in Serbia project, financed by the Swedish Government and implemented by the World Bank, the key Legal Expert for Serbia in the European Commission funded project European Network for Better Regulation within the Balkan Center for Regulatory Reform in Serbia (2007/2009), and the key Legal Expert for preparation and implementation of the strategy for development of Serbia’s new business-friendly commercial registry, one of the reforms which led to Serbia being identified as Top Reformer within the World Bank Doing Business Report 2006 (2003-2005).

Ranko Vujacic

Ranko VUJACIC, born in 1951 in Belgrade, is a UN and development projects expert. He has spent three decades working in the United Nations International Development Organization where he started in 1981 as Chief of UNIDO Division of Administration, General Services, Buildings Management Section, Electrical Engineering and Buildings Operation Unit all the way to Director of UNIDO, Program Support and General Management Division, Operational Services Branch. Ranko is a chairman or member of numerous high-level committees within UNIDO, other international organizations and Austrian authorities. Ranko resides in Vienna.

De La Salle College, Malta , the Technical University,  Graz, Austrija, the Technical University, West Berlin, Germany, where he received his MS in electrical engineering, Diplomatic Academy, Vienna, Austria, Ecole Nationale d’Administration, Paris, France and Escuela Diplomatica, Madrid, Spain. Needless to say, Ranko is fluent English, French, Spanish, Russian and German. He was awarded a honorary PhD by the European University at the Technical University in Vienna.

Ranko has published numerous articles in local and international press on various subjects like UNIDO and related matters but also on Njegos, Nikola Tesla, Mileva Maric Einstein. He has organized scores of events related to culture and arts and promoted Serbian and Montenegrin culture in various European capitals.

Marko Blagojevic

Marko Blagojevic, born in 1974, is an expert in social marketing and communications, campaigning, strategic planning and tactics and election monitoring. Marko is the founder of the Center for Free Elections and Democracy (CeSID), since August 1997, Member of the Board of Directors and Communications Director of the Center and its Director of Operations. CeSID is a top public opinion poll and market research agency in the region.

Marko is also Lecturer at the Department for Political Marketing of the Faculty for Media and Communications, Singidunum University in Belgrade and PR & Communications Consultant for the SVA/Luna advertising agency, Serbian partner of TBWA.

Marko was since 2000 to 2008 the Campaign Director of supporting election campaigns (motivation and recruiting campaigns) and from January 2003 to January 2008 member of the Board of Directors of the Fund for an Open Society, Serbian branch of the Soros Foundation. In his rich career Marko has worked as a contracted consultant for OSCE, NDI, Soros Foundation and Freedom House, on projects in Serbia, Georgia, Azerbaijan, Macedonia, Romania, Hungary, Bulgaria, Russia and Montenegro. He was very active as student leader in the anti-Milosevic struggle: in 1997 he was the founder and spokesperson of the first Students' parliament of the Belgrade University, member of the Board of the Students’ Protest (as a representative of the Law Faculty), and also of the Legal board of Students' protest.

Giles Keane

Giles Keane , a PR and PA expert, runs the Diplomacy practice group at Hill & Knowlton International, Belgium. 

Since joining Hill & Knowlton in October 2002, Giles has represented a wide range of clients in communicating to media and public officials on issues including public diplomacy, international trade, sustainability, food safety and technology.

Current and recent clients include the states and government, interest groups from Europe, Africa, Caribbean and Pacific  regions, and others like the Special Court for Sierra Leone, the Gates Foundation, Statioil, Visa Europe, and Hewlett Packard. 

Giles’ strength lies in his ability to combine his knowledge of policy making and media relations to provide strategic integrated communications counsel. 

Prior to joining Hill & Knowlton Giles worked as a trainee in DG External Relations of the European Commission and completed a Masters in European Politics and Administration at the College of Europe, Bruges.

Milan Vujanic

Milan Vujanic, born in 1948, is the foremost Balkans expert in traffic safety, with a PhD in technical sciences, specialty in traffic and communication safety. Milan is currently a Professor of Traffic Safety at the Belgrade University, faculty for Traffic and Communication and head of its Traffic Safety Department. He has been teaching hundreds of students since the early 70s. He is also a member of the Commission for Expert Exams at the Serbian Institute of Technology.

Professor Vujanic is also the president of the assembly of shareholders and the board of governors of the Yugoslav Airlines, the Serbian national carrier. Milan is also a top forensic expert. He was a member of the Belgrade city government in charge of traffic issues and made a valuable input into the latest Bill on Traffic Safety. He is a member of the regional Association for Traffic Safety, the Association of Traffic Forensic Experts, and Association of Driving schools.

Vujanic has been key to the overhaul of the Serbian legal and technical traffic and driving system and bringing it into line with EU standards. He has published seven books on traffic forensics and traffic safety, 41 studies on the related issues both at home and abroad and taken part in almost 100 various seminars or research projects in Serbia and abroad and published relevant studies. He has authored numerous campaigns for traffic safety awareness and strategies to promote traffic safety and behavior of participants. Married and lives in Belgrade.

Milica Cubrilo

Currently serving as Serbian Ambassador to Tunisia, Milica is one of the most versatile members of EWB. Her CV includes the positions such as  Minister for Diaspora in the Serbian government as well as the Paris-Dakkar Rally VIP Manager.

She has been described as "highly resourceful, multidisciplinary, effective and accomplished leader with experience in many different cultures and work environments in Tourism Development, Senior Government Management, Communications, Marketing, Public Relations, Cultural Event Management, Land Management and Land Tenure." Even this does not do Milica enough justice. Milica holds M.A. in Law and Anthropology, Specialization in African Studies. Université de Paris I - Panthéon - Sorbonne, Paris, France, and a B.A. in Public Law. Université de Paris II - Panthéon-Assas, Paris, France. She speaks several languages.

Milica's previous posts include monitoring of the Implementation of Projects and Programs of External Cooperation financed by the EC in the Western Balkans and Turkey, Credit Agricole Bank Top Management operations, Securing strategic alliances and partnerships with prominent Serbian companies and Government institutions for Price Waterhouse Coopers.

She was a correspondent for Le Figaro, Le Temps, Radio France Internationale, Le Point TV Channel + Correspondent for the Balkans.

Milica worked for Booz Allen Hamilton as a USAID contractor and she also was the Director General of the Serbian National Tourism Organization.

Jakša Šcekic

Jaksa Scekic, a journalist with more then 35 years experience in Serbian and International media, is the TV producer in the Reuters bureau in Belgrade. After graduating the Law School at Belgrade University, Jaksa started his journalistic career as a print journalist but soon moved to Radio television Belgrade, as a reporter and producer of Belgrade city programme and then on to 1st Channel News.

Jaksa founded the popular 3rd Channel and was editor and chief of the first ever Satellite TV programme in the region. His expertise also included satellite and cable TV technology.

In 1993 he later joined Sky news as the East European Bureau chief based in Belgrade. He covered war in former Yugoslavia, NATO operations in the Balkans, war in Iraq, and traveled through Europe for Sky News.  He spent most of his time in Iraq, heading the Sky operations there during and after the Saddam Hussein regime. He also worked in Sky Bureaus in Moscow, Washington, Brussels.

Jaksa  is one of the most prominent bloggers on the web site of a popular independent TV and radio station B92, and he has been a guest on several panels on International politics  and Serbia. Jaksa, married with two grown up sons, has been teaching TV and war journalism in Belgrade.

Branko Radulovic

Branko Radulovic is an economist from Belgrade. He graduated at the Faculty of Economics in Belgrade and holds a master's degree in International Economics from the University of Birmingham and a PhD in Economics of Law and Institutions from Collegio Carlo Alberto, University of Turin. He was also a visiting scholar at the Cornell Law School. His professional interests include the economic analysis of law, public policy analysis, international economics and econometrics.

Mr. Radulovic is presently a lecturer at the University of Belgrade Law School and works as a consultant in the field of the regulatory reform. He has nearly 15 years of experience and prior to his current positions he served as a private and financial sector specialist with the World Bank and as a research fellow in several Serbian think-tanks.

For the past seven years, he has led or provided key inputs to several drafting committees responsible for business-related laws including the new Bankruptcy Law and has published and presented papers at several academic and policy-oriented conferences.

Miodrag Stojkovic

Miodrag Stojkovic, born in 1964 in Leskovac, Serbia, is one of the world's top genetics researchers. He is a Chair Professor in genetics with the Institute of Human Genetics at Newcastle University. As of January 2006, he is serving as a Deputy Director and Head of Cellular Reprogramming Laboratory, Centro de Investigación Príncipe Felipe, Valencia, Spain, the top European institution of the kind.

Miodrag is the founder of Spebo and Spebo Medical, IVF clinic in his home town of Leskovac and also teaches at the Human Genetics, Medical School, University of Kragujevac, Serbia.

According to the TIME magazine, Stojkovic's research of human embryos could lead to cure of Alzheimer's, Parkinson's and heart diseases. Other German media reported that Stojkovic's stem cell therapy could enable paraplegic patients to walk in the upcoming years.

Miodrag, who holds a PhD from the Ludwig-Maximilians University in Munich, has so far published more than 100 works pertaining to his field of research, either alone or as a coauthor, held more than 100 lectures across the globe. He owns two patents, advises five major companies and is the grant recipient from 15 institutions, including the FP7 EC, from countries ranging from  UK, France and Germany to  Canada, USA and Singapore.

Nenad Lujic Mr sc.Med

Well known Serbian orthopedic and oncology surgeon, head of the general medical department head of the Belgrade Orthopedic Hospital Banjica. Married, lives in Belgrade.

Born in 1963 in Belgrade Nenad opted for medicine as his profession already in his teens when he enrolled in the Medical High School in Belgrade. He graduated from the Medical College of the Belgrade University in 1988, did a stint in ER, worked in Athens City Hospital, Greece, and also found time to work as a lecturer for the Yugoslav Red Cross.

Nenad specialized orthopedic and trauma surgery in the Banjica Clinic in Belgrade and spent a year in the SHANDZ hospital, in Gainesville, Florida.

His masters degree focused on the oncology angle of his orthopedic work and he has maintained a leading position in this field in the country.

Nenad is also a consultant trauma surgeon in the Tirsova University Children Clinic and oncology trauma surgeon at the Oncology and Radiology Institute in Belgrade.

Boško Jakšic

Serbia’s leading daily Politika’s Foreign Desk Editor, Bosko Jaksic is a journalistic thoroughbred, a frank and unfailing critic of foibles of authorities in Serbia and elsewhere – for the balance. He started off in Politika way almost 40 years ago, first as a junior reporter with the Metro Desk, moved up the world to the foreign desk  and then down to the destruction, carnage and misery of wars. He covered the killing fields of Kampuchea, Lebanon’s civil war, Islamic revolution in Iran, Soviet intervention in Afghanistan, Pakistan, India, Iran-Iraq war, First Gulf War,  the hunger in Ethiopia, Israeli-Palestinian conflict. For R&R, Bosko also covered European affairs, including Belgrade OSCE conference, OSCE Stockholm and Helsinki summits, Carter-Brezhnev Vienna summit and number of other European and world events.

Bosko was Politika’s Middle East correspondent in Cairo, 1987-1992  Politika’s Foreign Editor,  1992– 1993, Politika’s Editor in Chief, 1994-1994, Politika’s  Italy correspondent in Rome, 1994–1998, Politika’s Secretary General, 2000 – 2001, its Senior columnist,  2001-present and Foreign Desk editor since October 2010. He regularly contributes to BBC, Radio Free Europe, Al Jazeera TV and number of Serbian and Balkan region radio and TV stations.

He has interviewed scores of notables across the world including  Benazir Bhuto, Indira Gandhi, Sirimavo Bandaranaike, Leh Walesa, Yasir Arafat, Muamar Ghadafi, ayatollah Mohammad Ali Montazeri, King Hussein of Jordan, Gen. Kenan Evren, Rauf Denktash, Shimon Peres, Butros Ghali, Lord Karington, to name just a few.

Zorana Z. Mihajlovic Milanovic

is Serbia’s top energy expert. Educated in Serbia, Zorana holds a PhD in the field of Energy and Economic Development and is an Associate Professor of Economy, Sustainable Energy Security, Renewable Energy Resources and the Economy of Natural Resources at one of best private universities in Serbia.

Zorana started her successful career as a high school professor in 1993, but soon joined the Serbian power company EPS in 1996 and ended her 10-year employment in the energy giant as the head of the Planning and Analyses Department. She joined the Cabinet of deputy Prime Minister of Serbia Miroljub Labus in 2004, was his energy advisor until 2006 when she took over the position of his Chief of Staff and chief of his energy and environment protection department.

Zorana was a member of the EPS Board of Governors, and was also the energy advisor to the general manager of the Nikola Tesla airport in Belgrade, and the editor in chief of the EU Market monthly magazine.

With her reputation spilling over the borders of Serbia, Zorana was also invited to be the  energy advisor to the RS Prime Minister, Milorad Dodik, as the RS strives to develop itself as an energy hub in The Balkans.

Andrej Gruden

Andrej Gruden, is one of Serbia’s foremost information technology and financial payment system experts and policy advisors. Andrej was born on September 23rd 1969 in Belgrade, Serbia. He was educated in Serbian and American schools and holds a Telecommunications Engineering degree from the Technical University of Vienna.  His fields of expertise include the payment card industry and public finance. His three children are his biggest achievement in life.

Andrej worked for companies such as IBM and Accenture for close to a decade. He worked in the financial industry for clients such as Barclay’s Capital, NatWest, Commerzbank and Credit Suisse in the west European markets. He also worked in the telecommunications and retail industry for clients such as Telia and Sainsbury’ Supermarkets.

In 2003 he moved to Serbia, to assist the Serbian Central Bank in building a national payment card system – the DinaCard. The DinaCard system enjoyed great success, with more than $1 billion yearly turnover, and gained global acceptance through partnering with a US owned global card network. He also assisted the Serbian Ministry of Finance and several other institutions in Serbia responsible for managing the public finances.

In 2007, Andrej formed his own company, Information Technology Consulting Services, designed to help Serbian companies and public institutions improve their management and information technology infrastructure and governance.

Giovanni Porta

Giovanni Porta, a passionate journalist, photographer, writer and blogger, was born in Rome in 1961. Graduating ‘cum laude’ in Political Science from Milan’s State University, his first job in 1998 was with the leading Italian weekly “Panorama” as foreign correspondent, reporting from Western and Eastern European countries, the Soviet Union and several Arabic nations, before becoming the magazine’s war correspondent in the Balkans till 1995 when he joined Italy’s leading independent news radio network as anchor of current affairs programs. In 1999 Rome seconded him to the OSCE Mission to Albania and in 2001 he was transferred to the OSCE Mission in Belgrade as Head of the Media Development Department. In 2004, he became the Director of Operations in Kabul for a French INGO, then moved to Nairobi to work as Regional Representative in charge of Kenya, South Sudan and Somalia for a leading medical INGO and was elected chair of the UN-INGO Consortium coordinating medical assistance to Somalia. In 2006, he accepted a managerial position with Doctors without Borders (MSF) in war-torn North Sri Lanka. In 2007 he led for a Dutch INGO their humanitarian programs in the Tamil Tigers (LTTE) territories where he faced several humanitarian emergencies. In 2009 Giovanni retired from active duty, moving permanently to South East Asia, where he works as a free-lance writer, journalist and photographer, regularly travelling to the Region’s countries. Giovanni speaks fluently several languages, is a passionate scholar of Asia’s history and cultures and the curator of the news blog “Guns n’ Spices”, a daily reasoned selection of South East Asia’s news and current affairs.

Ana Brnabić

Holds MBA in Marketing from the University of Hull, England.  Currently works for the US company Continental Wind Partners (CWP) as a Communications and Strategic Development Director in Serbia, and is authorized representative of the Serbia Wind Energy Association (SEWEA).  She is the Executive Director of the PEXIM Foundation, private not-for-profit foundation which provides scholarships to talented students from Serbia and Macedonia to study at Cambridge so they can invest their knowledge and skills in building their country’s capacities for EU integrations and economic strengthening.  Thus far, PEXIM Foundation provided scholarships to 11 students to study at Cambridge.  Ana has also been involved in the establishment of the National Alliance for Local Economic Development (NALED) and cooperates with NALED’s Executive Office on building its capacities as Serbia’s most effective advocacy organization for businesses, local governments and civil society.  From 2007 to 2009 she served as the Advisor to the Director of the Government of Serbia Coordination Body for Presevo, Bujanovac and Medvedja Municipalities.  She is also one of the founders of Serbian consulting company Development Consulting Group (DCG).  Her regional assignments included serving as a Leader of the Regional Communications Group for Development Alternatives Inc. (DAI), where she directed the efforts of Communication Advisors of three different USAID-funded local governance projects in Serbia, Macedonia, and Romania.  She also worked as an expert for the USAID Romania Governance Reform Program in Bucharest.  During her studies in the UK, Ms. Brnabić worked in the Serbian Information Center in London.  

Filip Brković

Filip Brkovic, 24, is the youngest member of the East-West Bridge. He is the head corporate social responsibility department in the biggest pharmaceutical company in Serbia, Galenika, and a PhD scholar at the European Commission’s joint doctorate programme in international political economy - Globalization, EU and Multilateralism. His doctoral research at the universities of Warwick (United Kingdom), Geneva (Switzerland) and Fudan (China) is focused on global civil society, global development institutions, corporate social responsibility and fair trade.

Filip expressly finished his four-year bachelor studies in International Relations at the Faculty of Political Sciences (Serbia), in less than three years. Eight months later, he became the youngest Master of Arts in the history of the Faculty (MA in Political Analytics and Management). In July 2010, he graduated at the University of Cambridge as a Cambridge Overseas Trust – OSI/FCO Chevening scholar and became the Master of Philosophy in Development Studies. He was a member of the Hughes Hall and rowed for the college’s eight.

Filip is also an active member of national and international NGO sector, having worked on more than one hundred projects involving thousands of young people. He worked closely with the Cambridge International Symposium on Economic Crime and became their representative for the Balkans. In March 2011 he founded the Balkan Centre for Development Studies and became its first president.

Roland Schlesinger

Dr. Roland Schlesinger runs the ESQH Vienna Office and in addition he is responsible for the know-how and technology transfer. As a physician and epidemiologist he was the manager of medical project team - High Level Planning Group (HLPG) from 2004 to 2006.

Roland was born in 1967 in Belgrade. After graduating from the Catholic gymnasium in Vienna he attended medical school at the universities in Vienna and Paris as well as economics at the WU University in Vienna. Upon graduation he received a scholarship from the Boston University where he completed the studies in economics and public health.

After a period of travelling worldwide, he worked as a coordinator for UN projects in East and South-East Europe and Arab countries’ region from 1997 to 2001. After briefly working as Deputy Director of the WHO for education and transfer of know-how in public health, Roland transferred to the HLPG in 2004. After his departure from the UN and a spell in Ludwig Boltzmann Institute for Health Technologies Assessment (HTA) he worked as a Deputy Director of Karl Landsteiner Institute for quality management and patient safety. Late in 2008 he was appointed by the Austrian Minister of Health as ESQH Vienna Office Director where he has been successfully working to date.

Dr. Schlesinger is in the Management and Supervisory Boards of a number of national and international institutes and organizations. He is married and a father of two children.

Branislav Radeljić

Branislav Radeljic was born in 1979 in Belgrade. After having completed studies in Humanities at La Sapienza, University of Rome, he went to Brussels where he obtained a double Masters degree, in International politics (at Universite Libre de Bruxelles) and European integration (at Vrije Universiteit Brussel). As a recipient of the prestigious Overseas Research Student Award, provided by the British government, Branislav completed the doctoral program in politics/European Union studies at Goldsmiths College, University of London.

Branislav has worked in a number of different areas. As a scholar, he is primarily interested in the EU and Western Balkans. Accordingly, his forthcoming book will look at the involvement of the then European Community in the Yugoslav state crisis. In addition, he is interested in the position of Islam in present-day Europe and its implications for European identity.

While based at the University of East London, Branislav has given numerous public talks and debated his research at universities in Hong Kong, Japan, Pakistan, USA, Serbia, etc. As a result, his findings have been published in various academic journals and edited volumes. Branislav is a member of the editorial boards of the Review of International Affairs and Law and Policy Review.

When outside academia, Branislav has been active as an official interpreter for Serbian, English, Italian and Russian, authorized by the UK Chartered Institute of Linguists. On an occasional basis he conducts research and consultancy work within his area of expertise.

Đorđe Vučinić

Born in 1961.

A leading Balkans security and crime fighting expert, Djordje has impeccable credentials: a criminology attorney; finished postgraduate studies of management of defense (University of Belgrade) and a fight against organized crime course (US Institute of Peace and Center for Management). Djordje has vast experience in top positions in the Belgrade department of the Ministry of Internal Affairs. He was also deputy director of one of Serbia's premier security companies - Progard Securitas.

Djordje is also a member of Professional security Management Association and the president of SCP International Committee,  chairman of a Serbian Chamber of Commerce department, and since 2010, the director of "Poslodavac" Employers Committee.

Currently he is serving as Chairman of the Serbia Securitas Services Board of Governors.

He is also one of the leading activists in Serbia's civil society promoting religious and ethnic tolerance, equality, justice,  human rights etc...

Prof. dr Slavenko Grgurević

Professor of Economics at the University of Belgrade and Senior Research Fellow of the Institute of Economic Sciences

Expert, Associate and Head of Project in the field of strategic development, energy, environment and sustainable development - (UNESCO, OECD, UNEP, GEF Council – New York, CEC, DG 17- Brussels , System International Foundation (Club of Rome) Budapest, International Institute for Applied System Analysis - Luxemburg, Vienna, Russian Academy of Science, Siberian Energy Institute-Irkutsk.

Director of International Centre for developing studies of Serbia and Russian Federation.

Member of Energy Division ECE (Geneva), Steering Committee, Sustainable Energy Development

Member of Executive International Union for Property Owners (Brussels) one of the oldest European lobbying association for protection of owners’ property interest.

Vice-President of Union of Employers of Serbia and member of the Managing Board of the Pension Fund of Serbia

Former President for the League for the Protection of Private Property and Human Rights (Geneva, Paris, Belgrade) and Coordinator NGO Cooperation Council for Serbia and Montenegro

In 2000 awarded a medal for NGO sector development in Serbia and Monte Negro – World Peace Community Action Award (USA).

Published over 120 scientific papers in the country and abroad.

Igor Kostic

Igor Kostic is a researcher, analyst, civil society activist, and Director of the Initiatives, a leading Serbian NGO. Born in late 1970s in Southern Serbia, Igor, educated in Serbia, Europe and the U.S., has over the past 20 years amassed a vast knowledge of strategic planning, project proposal development, and monitoring and evaluation. In 2007, out of hundreds of candidates, Igor got the opportunity to present his own work to the professors and master students at the Kennedy School of Government (Harvard University), and take back the necessary knowledge for his work.   

Igor’s activity in civil society began within the famous anti-Milosevic Serbian student movement “Otpor” (Resistance) at the end of the 1990s, and continued in the Initiatives, he co-founded. Since 2000, Igor has been working on designing local projects and actions. As a result of coordinated activities of the Initiatives, local and national government institutions, and international organizations, Igor established the Business Incubator Center and Regional Development Agency, the first two development institutions in Southern Serbia. These two institutions were launched as joint bodies (public, private and civil sector) to help local community development.

Igor has worked with many international organizations, private foundations, and institutions from Europe, former Soviet republics, and the USA.

Recently, Igor's focus is on exploring opportunities for cross-sectorial cooperation, development of programs based on long-term research and development of special projects for international bilateral donors in the field of youth employment, and effective programs for youth self-employment.

Dusko Suvajac

Dusko Suvajac is an expert in Corporate Finance and Foreign Direct Investments with a Masters degree in Business Administration and Economics (Halmstad University).

Dusko, born in ex Yugoslavia (Bosnia), is a Swedish national specializing in the Emerging Markets.

During his University Studies he conducted a number of important field studies on behalf of Multinational Corporations and Industry Associations most notably during 1996/97 in Serbia after the signing of the Dayton Accords.

Leaving Prague for Stockholm Dusko joined PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) Scandinavia and worked within the European Transaction Team thereby participating in the growth of the Private Equity industry.

Shortly after the October 5^th revolution Dusko was relocated from Stockholm to Belgrade (as a PwC expat) to lead the transition in Serbia and the former Yugoslavia.

During Dusko’s leadership position within PwC South-East Europe and later at Suvajac & Partners he participated in several strategic investments in the Balkans region fostering regional consolidation and co-operation.

Dusko is currently Partner at Suvajac & Partners LLP (London, UK).

Violeta Jovanovic

Violeta Jovanovic is the Executive Director of the National Alliance for Local Economic Development (NALED).  She joined NALED in 2007 as its first full-time employee when the organization was only several months old.  Under Violeta’s leadership, NALED grew to the organizations that it is today: one of the most important think-thanks in Serbia, employing 20 people in its Executive Office, and gathering over 160 members amongst which some of the biggest local companies and investors present in Serbia, majority of local governments, and a number of civil society organizations. NALED is the only organization in the region which gathers businesses, local governments, and civil sector with the goal to work together and influence positive changes to the business environment in Serbia. 
Prior to NALED, Violeta established the Ethno Network with the goal to preserve traditional Serbian handicrafts and combine them with modern design and a luxurious packaging to fit the contemporary industry standards.  The Ethno Network was established in May 2005, with the help of USAID, and is today a self-sustainable organization which provides livelihood to women across Serbia’s rural areas and, since 2008, produces gifts for the protocol of the Serbian Government. 
Violeta is to this day the President of the Ethno Network. 
Violeta possesses over ten years of experience in managerial positions within USAID programs of democratization and economic development, within which she worked on different projects in an effort to secure long-term support for the business community at large.