Chris Cooper
Convergence Targeted Communications
Chris Cooper is the founder and president of Convergence Targeted Communications, a boutique political consulting firm with offices in Washington, D.C., and Seattle. In over more than two decades in politics, he has worked on campaigns in over 40 U.S. states as well as the United Kingdom. Chris’ experience spans the fields of political strategy, persuasion mail creation, production and microtargeting, traditional and digital media consulting, campaign and project management, and public relations. His work has helped win elections on the level of president, governor, senator, state representative, mayor and city council member.
David Lawsky
Lawsky Consulting
David Lawsky works for Lawsky Consulting, specializing in public affairs and public relations with a focus on European tech and competition issues, as part of the IPAC Network of independent public affairs agencies based Bern, Switzerland. David has previously reported on competition policy, tech, and politics for Reuters in Washington, D.C., Brussels, and Silicon Valley before turning to consulting. His background includes extensive reporting on presidential campaigns, Capitol Hill, traveling with the Pentagon pool of journalists, and high-profile court battles about tech in the U.S. and the European Union.
Ana Vila Nova
Initium Policy Advisers
A lawyer by training, Ana has worked for over 25 years as a government relations professional in Portugal and at the European Union, developing a solid global network of political, diplomatic, trade, and corporate contacts. She advises both local and multinational companies as well as trade associations on government affairs and political communication. In doing so, Ana builds alliances to ensure that corporate interests are taken into account in major trade and legislative matters in both Portugal and international forums, especially in European Union institutions such as the Council, Parliament, and Commission. She is a founding partner at Initium Policy Advisers and a member of multinational networks for public affairs.
Dominique Reber
Hirzel.Neef.Schmid.Konsulenten
Dominique Reber is a partner at Hirzel.Neef.Schmid.Konsulenten in Switzerland. He focuses on the development of communication strategies for companies in transition, effective strategies for sustainability communication, personal coaching and training of leaders in communication, access at national and international level to politicians and authorities in more than 50 countries, the development of positioning concepts for companies and organizations with a strong connection to the political and social environment, and crisis communication and communication on competition and antitrust law issues. Dominique has led political work relating to major infrastructure projects, energy supply, and environmental issues. He further attended the 2010 Copenhagen climate change negotiations as a member of the Swiss government’s delegation. Dominique has also worked in various positions in lobbying, corporate communications, and journalism, with an emphasis on IT and communications technology. He is the current president of the Club Politique de Berne.
Su Ramanathan
Senior Partner of Public Affairs and Commercial Diplomacy at Gratiya Advisory
Su is a senior partner of public affairs and commercial diplomacy at Gratiya Advisory, focusing on transformation initiatives. She is a multidisciplinary strategist with over 22 years of experience spanning the public and private sectors. As vice president, strategy and destination marketing, at Expo 2020 Dubai, Su spearheaded industry partnerships and campaigns to deliver revenue and visitation across 128 global markets. At VisitBritain, she held key positions from 2005 to 2017 including regional director Asia Pacific, Middle East & Africa. Su elevated the UK’s tourism export and facilitated expansion of UK businesses into emerging markets. She also played a key role in the public diplomacy program rollout across 24 countries, working with the Prime Minister’s Office, UK Trade & Investment, and British Council. Su excels at aligning public-private interests and has delivered high-impact partnerships across diverse industries. She has led award-winning global branding, marketing, and public relations campaigns, earning accolades such as Gold at Cannes Lion. Su holds a Master of Information Management degree from Leeds (LMU), UK, and a Bachelor of Economics (Hons) in Analytical Economics from University Malaya and speaks four languages.
Dr. Tarek Oliveira Shayya
Gratiya Advisory
Dr. Tarek Oliveira Shayya is the Founder and Managing Director of Gratiya Advisory, which he established after a 30-year career at the United Nations and the government of the United Arab Emirates (UAE). He served as Executive Vice Chairman of the Board of Directors at Expo2020 Dubai, and as Director of the International Affairs Department at the UAE Vice President’s Office for Political Affairs. Gratiya Advisory supports governments, businesses, and institutions across the Global South to drive transformation, positioning, and growth.
Paloma Castro
Darwin Associates
Paloma Castro is a managing director at Darwin Associates. An international lawyer and strategist, she focuses on geopolitical and business ecosystems. Previously, she was head of corporate affairs for a number of FT 100 companies: LVMH, LIME, Richemont, McDonalds, and eBay/PayPal. Presently, Paloma advises companies on strategic positioning and building networks with media, businesses, and decision makers in London, Berlin, Rome, Madrid, Paris, Brussels, and Washington, D.C. Paloma is an advocate for gender parity, actively working to empower women to invest in order to achieve financial independence.
Cynthia Xing
Cynthia Xing is a dedicated practitioner of government affairs with two decades of experience in Chinese politics, government structures, and decision-making processes, and has been providing strategic guidance to numerous clients navigating the intricate regulatory and business landscape of Greater China. She is a strategic solution owner with a breadth of experience in market access, foreign direct investment and mergers and acquisitions, trade and global supply chain management, sustainability, as well as domestic market operations. Cynthia has experience working with multinational companies, government organizations, industry associations and think tanks in agriculture and biotechnology, food and beverage, fast moving consumer goods, retail and e-commerce, healthcare, tourism, and high-tech industries. Her expansive expertise extends beyond China, encompassing markets in North and South America, Asia Pacific, and Europe, where Cynthia has navigated clients, including Chinese clients through complex regulatory environments amidst evolving geopolitical landscapes.
Ilari Marzano
Ilari Marzano has been advising clients in government relations for over 25 years and runs his own company. He is well-networked and experienced in campaign management and alliance building both on the national and municipal level. Ilari is a generalist who understands how decision-making really happens in Finland and how to best safeguard and promote interests within the decision-making bodies.
Jascha Klenk
Head of Status Labs Germany
Jascha Klenk is the Head of Status Labs Germany. Status Labs is a digital public relations company, specialized in improving the online presence of clients, mainly in crisis situations that reflect negatively in Google search results. Status Labs has made it their mission to help clients look their best online and build reputation via effective digital marketing and public relations strategy.
Konstantin Bätz
Konstantin Bätz serves as Chief of Staff at Miller & Meier Consulting. Previously, he conducted research on economic foreign policy and economic sanctions at the University of Konstanz, where he also received his PhD in international politics. He studied philosophy, economics and political science at the Universities of Bayreuth, Rotterdam and Konstanz. He is a member of the German Council on Foreign Relations (DGAP).
Dominik Meier
Dominik Meier is the founder and Chief Executive Officer of Miller & Meier Consulting based in Berlin, Germany. He has been advising global players, international organizations, non-governmental organizations, and associations on political strategy for over 25 years, resulting in his company growing to be a leading name in Germany and Europe. Dominik focuses on strategy consulting, lobbying leadership, CEO positioning, global governmental relations, and transatlantic strategies. He further specializes in matters concerning ethics, transparency, and quality management in political consulting. Dominik also co-founded and chairs de'ge'pol, Germany's association of political consultants, and serves as vice president of PACE, the Public Affairs Community of Europe, which is a growing network of public affairs associations from 17 European countries. He further shares his insights as an advisory board member for the Swiss Green Energy Symposium. Dominik’s work extends into publishing with Freiheit|Macht|Politik, a pluralistic online magazine for political analysis and strategy. His book ”Power and its Logic: Mastering Politics”was first published in 2018.
Schoni Song
Macoll Consulting Group
Schoni is Junior Partner and Lead of Global Business Development at Macoll Consulting Group. He previously served in the National Assembly of the Republic of Korea and the U.S. Department of State. A government and public affairs consultant specializing in chemicals, crypto and blockchain, defense and aerospace, and international affairs, he has broad industry experience in public and political affairs with a focus on stakeholder engagement, policy analysis, and non-market strategy.
Leon Cook
Atticus Partners
Leon Cook is a 20+ year veteran of big agency consultancies across Europe and the Middle East, and Founder of Atticus Partners headquartered in London. Atticus is a “PR Week award winning”, integrated communications agency specialized in strategic counsel, government affairs, and public relations. With over thirty-five consultants, Atticus has overseen corporate transformation, managed global risk, responded to every crisis imaginable, spearheaded strategy, and led legislative change. Whether it be Westminster, Brussels, or within the D.C. beltway, Atticus staff have worked in all of the major political capitals and have an acute understanding of how to navigate the most complicated geopolitical problems and shape the debate. Atticus is specialized in communications advice that protects reputations, navigates politics, understands stakeholders, raises profiles and harnesses the tools of traditional and social media. Atticus have worked on some of the most contested and complex legislative and reputational issues but are always looking for a new challenge.
Pieter Walraven
Pieter Walraven is the owner of Public Matters, the leading public affairs consultancy in the Netherlands. He advises his clients on lobbying, stakeholder management, and media relations. Pieter is passionately involved in the public affairs profession as a speaker and in Dutch media. He started his career at the Dutch Employers Federation, VNO-NCW. Pieter has also worked as spokesperson and public affairs manager for the Dutch Retail Federation. He has further worked as director for an e-waste EPR-organization and fraud prevention agency for the retail sector.
Evgeny Roshkov
Evgeny has over 25 years of public affairs experience. He joined Kesarev as a partner in 2004. Evgeny’s primary responsibilities include providing clients with expertise in the fields of public affairs, various public policy and industry issues. Evgeny has extensive experience in public affairs consulting projects in Russia and the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) and Eurasian Economic Union (EEU) regions. He has worked for corporations in information and communications technology (ICT), fast moving consumer goods (FMCG), finance, infrastructure, healthcare, competition and regulatory. He is a member of the International Bar Association (IBA), International Compliance Association (ICA), Society of European Affairs Professionals (SEAP) and the Issues Management Council (IMC). Evgeny holds degrees in law, history and political science from Vologda State Pedagogical University. Additionally, he studied at the Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies in Geneva and Pericles Law School. Evgeny also provides a course in public affairs at the Higher School of Economics (Moscow) Law and Social Sciences Faculties. He has held various positions in government and in policy advisory fields, including Senior Advisor on Political Planning for the United Russia political party from 1999 to 2010. Best Lawyers recommends Evgeny in the areas of government relations and regulatory practice. He is of Moldovan-Gagauz descent and speaks English, Romanian, and Russian.
Sebastian Mariz
InFluence Spain
Sebastian Mariz is a seasoned expert in Spanish and European Union policy and policy making and the owner and Managing Director of InFluence Spain, the most pioneering Public Affairs, Government Relations, and lobby consultancy in Spain.
He has over 30 years’ experience working with multinationals, leading trade associations and leading entrepreneurs and building relationships of trust with policy makers and opinion leaders in order to increase his client’s capacity to shape policy in Spain and the EU. Sebastian has provided government relations advice to some of the largest multinational companies and investment management funds in the world, as well as trade associations, NGOs, and social sector organizations. He has worked with all economic sectors, including chemicals, healthcare, energy, renewable energy, transport, IT, telecoms, collaborative economics, agriculture, functional foods, driving schools, banks, the payments industry and temporary work agencies.
Abdul Waheed Patel
ETHICORE Group
Abdul Waheed Patel, is the CEO and Founder of the ETHICORE Group, a pioneering and first-to-market pan African and Middle East professional firm dedicated to the provision of integrated services and solutions across government affairs consulting value chain. Established in 2009, ETHICORE specialises in ethically driven government relations, advocacy, lobbying, strategy, advisory, insights and analysis, across the public policy, regulatory, public affairs and political risk, in 37 countries across Africa and the Middle East. Abdul Waheed is an internationally renowned government affairs strategist, advisor, lobbyist and entrepreneur, who has cultivated a reputation on delivering and implementing high quality, innovative and impactful government affairs consulting services and solutions. Under his leadership and vision, ETHICORE has established itself as a bespoke trusted partner of choice to leading local, regional and international clientele – corporations, sovereign governments and international development organisations across its footprint of key markets in Africa and the Middle East. Over the past 16 years he has led ETHICORE’s expansion and growth across into a formidable multijurisdictional and cross border international firm. With more than two decades of experience as a government affairs practitioner, Abdul Waheed’s expertise spans public policy, legislative, regulatory and political advisory, advocacy, lobbying, government relations, stakeholder management, public affairs and diplomacy across a broad range of economic sectors, trade, investment and market entry/access. Abdul Waheed has built a reputation for building and leading multifunctional and multijurisdictional teams, working to responsibly bridge the intersectionality between client interests and public policy. Abdul Waheed's leadership philosophy and stewardship of ethical, responsible and open-ethos professional lobbying has set ETHICORE apart as a champion of lobbying excellence that enriches good governance and democratic participation. Before founding ETHICORE, Abdul Waheed held several policy advisory positions in government and as a political advisor, in national and city government, statutory entities and as the General Management of the Business Parliamentary Office of the apex business confederation in South Africa. Abdul Waheed’s forward thinking approach and commitment to advancing and practicing professional government affairs consulting and ethical lobbying, has made him a sought-after speaker, analyst, authoritative commentator and thought leader in the field in Africa and the Middle East. Since April 2023, he has co-led ETHICORE’s expert appointment to the OECD (Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development) Trusted Dialogue Group on Getting Influence Right”. Launched in May 2024, the global initiative forms part of a multiyear Global Program to Galvanize the Private Sector as Partners to Combat Corruption (GPS) across OECD member and partners states through the formulation of OECD Guidelines on Responsible Political Engagement for the private sector. He served on the Task Force led by the Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General, for development of the Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights, convened by the UN Human Rights Commission and the Office of the High Commissioner on Human Rights, Geneva. He is the President of the African Lobbying Union and the Chairperson of the South African Lobbying Association. He is the Regional Lead for Africa and the Middle East and form former Vice President of the FIPRA International Network’s Global Advisory Board. He holds qualifications in Governance and Political Science from the University of Cape Town and is an inaugural Fellow of the Public Policy Partnership administered by the Woodrow Wilson and Andrew W. Mellon Foundations, USA. He has completed executive programmes in International Enterprise Competitiveness with the Commonwealth Secretariat and International Trade Institute of Singapore.
Wisahl Jappie
ETHICORE Group
Wisahl Jappie is the Managing Director of ETHICORE Political Lobbying, a leading consultancy that specializes in ethical lobbying, public policy advocacy, and government relations. With over a decade of experience in political strategy and public affairs, Wisahl has built a reputation as a trusted advisor to organizations seeking to navigate complex political and regulatory environments.
Under her leadership, ETHICORE has become known for its commitment to transparency, integrity, and results-driven strategies. Wisahl works closely with a diverse range of clients, from multinational corporations and non-profits to industry coalitions, helping them achieve their policy objectives while ensuring alignment with ethical lobbying practices.
A forward-thinking strategist, Wisahl is recognized for her ability to bridge the gap between government institutions, the private sector, and civil society. Her expertise spans areas such as legislative affairs, regulatory compliance, and crisis management, with a focus on advancing sustainable, socially responsible policies that support long-term societal benefits.
Before taking the helm at ETHICORE, Wisahl held key roles in both government and private sectors, gaining a deep understanding of the policymaking process and the power dynamics that shape public discourse. This experience has equipped her with unique insights into how effective lobbying can drive positive change while upholding the highest standards of governance.
Wisahl is passionate about advancing ethical standards within the lobbying industry as well as political transparency, corporate responsibility, and the evolving role of lobbying in modern democracies. She holds a Masters’ Degree in Political Communication and is committed to mentoring the next generation of political and government affairs professionals.
When not at work, Wisahl enjoys exploring global political trends, supporting initiatives for social justice, and contributing to thought leadership on ethical advocacy practices.
Anna Wartmann
Hirzel.Neef.Schmid.Konsulenten
Anna Wartmann is a consultant at Hirzel Neef Schmid, specializing in public affairs and communication strategies. Before joining HNS in early 2021, she held various roles at the liberal party in Switzerland, including personal advisor to Senator Ruedi Noser and Party President Petra Gössi. She has significant experience in managing communication projects and navigating challenging political situations.
Jean-Luc Archambault
Lysios Public Affairs
Jean-Luc Archambault graduated from the prestigious Corps des Mines. He was in charge of Industry and Environment policies at the French General Secretary for European Affairs. He then worked for the Ministry of Industry and was in charge of the digital policies.
Jean-Luc was an advisor to two former Ministers for Industry and Director for Information Technologies at the Directorate-General for Industry. Subsequently, he chose to work in the private sector, first as a partner of BNP’s Private Equity team, then as Director of External Relations and Strategy for SFR, a large telecom operator.
Jean-Luc founded Lysios in 2003. Besides managing the team, he also enables the firm’s clients to benefit from his experience in Senior Civil Service, his expertise in digital technology and industry, and his knowledge of competition-related issues.
Jean-Luc Archambault is a former student of the Ecole Normale Supérieure (Ulm). He obtained the “Agrégation” in Mathematics and graduated from Télécom Paris Engineering School.
Peter-Carlo Lehrell
Oxera
Peter-Carlo is a strategic advisor with extensive experience in international public policy. He currently assists in Oxera's international business development, advises companies engaged in major international trade disputes, and supports a regional autonomous government in its EU relations. His expertise lies in competition, climate and trade policy.