Cyprus Speakers 2017

Anna Koukkides-Procopiou is affiliated as Research Associate and member of the Advisory Board, with the Center of European and International Affairs, University of Nicosia and has recently received funding by the State Department and the German Ministry of Foreign Affairs to complete a project on Gender and Inclusive Security, within the framework of the Cyprus Problem. Currently working towards the attainment of her PhD in leadership and crisis-management, she holds First Class degrees (B.Sc.) in History and Economics from University College London, with postgraduate studies at the London School of Economics (M.Sc.) on International Relations. She is also a recipient of the Executive Development Diploma for Professionals (mini-MBA) from the Cyprus Institute of International Management and various other professional business training qualifications, (including the Engel&Volkers Academy in Hamburg, Germany). She has in the past held a number of managerial positions in the Lanitis Group of Companies, one of the largest employers in Cyprus, later on serving as corporate consultant for a number of international and local clients, including the Bank of Cyprus. She has served as Project Manager for two EU-funded pan-European projects, Women Fit4Business and Gender Diversity in Decision-Making Positions and as an Executive Director on the Board of Directors of DIAS Media, a public company and the largest media house in Cyprus. An active member of civil society, she now serves her second term as President of AIPFE Cyprus- Women of Europe, which she also represents on the Board of the Cyprus Women’s Lobby. She is a member of Business Professional Women-Cyprus, a founding member of the Cyprus Literacy Board, as well as the founder and facilitator of two Lean-In Nicosia Circles, affiliated with Sheryl Sandberg’s Lean-In Org. She currently sits on the panel of judges for the Madame Figaro Women Awards, is a member of the Cyprus Advisory Board of the Global Entrepreneurship Network and a mentor for the newly-launched Impossible Pitch project for start-ups, having in the past served as team coach for the Young Entrepreneurs/Junior Achievement Project.

Despina Panayiotou Theodosiou is joint Chief Executive Officer of TOTOTHEO MARITIME, an organization offering maritime services with specialization in maritime satellite communications. She has been with the group since 2005. Since 2013, Despina is a member of the Board of Directors of the Cyprus Shipping Chamber, being the first woman ever to be elected since the Chamber’s establishment in 1989, and is chairing the Chamber’s Development and Promotion Committee since 2015. In 2011 Despina founded WISTA Cyprus – a member of WISTA International – and is the Association’s current President. In 2015 during the International AGM, Despina was elected Secretary of WISTA International. She also sits on the first Board of Governors of the Cyprus Maritime Academy and on the Board of Directors of the Cyprus-Germany Business Association. Despina is the national advocate for the European Commission’s “Equality Pays Off” Initiative. She won the titles of “Top Professional” and “Cyprus Business Woman of the Year” at the 9th National Cyprus Business Woman of the Year Awards 2015. She is also proclaimed as an Honorary Fellow of the Cyprus Institute of Marketing (April 2017). She is frequently asked to contribute as a speaker or moderator to industry-related conferences and is often asked to speak about her experience as a young female leader in the maritime industry. Despina holds a bachelor degree in Economics from the National and Capodistrian University of Athens and an Executive MBA in Shipping and Logistics from the Copenhagen Business School. Believing in (and advocating for) continuous education, she is currently completing the Postgraduate Diploma in Financial Strategy at the University of Oxford – Said Business School. She is married to Socrates and they have a three- year old son, Ektoras.

Dr Michalis I. Loizides has been the General Director of ISOTECH Ltd since 1998. Dr Loizides is a Chemical and Environmental Engineer. Born in 1966, he graduated from the National Technical University of Athens in Chemical Engineering and obtained his Masters Degree in Environmental Engineering from Imperial College of Science, Technology and Medicine, London. He received his PhD from the National Technical University of Athens, School of Chemical Engineering on the issue of co-composting of olive oil mill effluent. Since 1990, he has worked as an external associate of the National Technical University of Athens and as an Environmental Engineer in several research projects. He has been the scientific coordinator of more than 40 research projects, funded by the EU (e.g. LIFE, Leonardo da Vinci, 5th-6th-7th EU Framework Programmes for Research, MEDA, and other), international agencies (e.g. by UNEP, UNDP, USAID), transnational bodies (e.g. DAC projects), national agencies (e.g. Cyprus Research Foundation) and private entities in a broad spectrum of the environmental protection scientific field. Water and waste-water, solid waste, air pollution, Environmental Impact Studies, ISO 14000 and Community Annoyance, are among his main areas of interest, oriented on applied research and engineering solutions. He provides technical consultancy to several Municipalities and Communities in Cyprus on waste management and community annoyance issues. From 2005 to 2014 he cooperated with the University of Cyprus as Research and Teaching Fellow, teaching final year Civil and Environmental Engineering students the environmental part of their capstone design project. Since 2010, he has been a lecturer at Frederick University for the MSc degree on Environmental Education. He chairs the Environmental Technical Committee on the peace-building negotiations and he is a member of the Board of Directors of the Research Promotion Foundation of Cyprus.

Dr Maria Socratous comes from Cyprus. She holds a PhD in Management with a specification in gender discrimination in the workplace. Dr Socratous is working for the Cyprus Tourism Organisation and also as a Lecturer at the Cyprus Institute of Marketing on Business Policy and Strategy. She is also elected as Young BPW Europe Representative for the period 2014-2017. She is an activist and working towards the promotion of women’s rights all over the world and towards gender equality both in the society and the workplace.

Monica holds a BA (Honours) in Economics and Politicics awarded from the University of Essex, UK and an MSc in International and European Politics awarded from the University of Edinburgh in the UK. She is actively involved in building the startup ecosystem and is also heavily involved in various research projects related to a broad range of areas such as open data, ICT, environment, renewable energy sources and education. In 2015, she co-founded Makewaves Cyprus, which is a non-profit company aiming to strengthen democracy, increase accountability and transparency in the political scene in Cyprus and at the same time encourage citizens and especially young people to become more involved in the decision making structures. Monica is a leading expert in Cyprus in relation to open government data and was also a key expert and co-author of the study detailing the results of the research conducted for the assessment of civil society in Cyprus using the CIVICUS methodology.

Startup Catalyst. Entrepreneurship Evangelist. Mentoring and catalyzing startups, evangelizing entrepreneurship and startups in politics. Stavriana is Startup Cyprus Cofounder and Chief Evangelist , Founder Institute Cyprus Chapter Director , Cyprus Startup Digest Curator, Organizer Startup Live Cyprus, Startup Weekend Cyprus, Cofounder & Lead Organizer Startup Academy, Mentor Pioneers Festival, Lisbon Council expert as National Coordinator for the Startup Manifesto Policy Tracker, Board Member (Secretary) Research Promotion Foundation, Advisory Board Member European University Cyprus Business School, and Entrepreneurship MBA Lecturer. She represents Startup Cyprus in the European Startup Network (founding member), Allied for Startups (member) and on the Cyprus Entrepreneurship National Policy Statement Implementation Committee.Experienced in management positions in telecoms, startup support and incubation. Holds degrees in Business Administration and Political Science (University of La Verne) and Entrepreneurship Development (MIT).Was the CEO of Diogenes Business Incubator of the University of Cyprus for 6 years, with deep experience in incubation and commercialization. Currently is the Deputy Press Spokesperson and Special Entrepreneurship Adviser of Democratic Rally, the governing party in Cyprus. In her political life she advocates for entrepreneurship enabling policies to enhance the Cyprus startup ecosystem and drive entrepreneurial growth. Her Vision is to #StartupCyprus.

Xenia I. Loizidou is a graduate of the Civil Engineering Department of the National Technical University of Athens (Hydraulics Section, Harbour and Coastal Works Laboratory) and of the Imperial College of Science, Technology and Medicine of London (MSc, DIC in River, Estuary and Coastal Engineering). Since 1990 she has been working with issues relevant to Integrated Coastal Zone Management, coastal erosion control, coastal adaptation to climate changes, decision support systems, peace-building and blue growth.

Dr Michael Loizides is the co-founder and Chairman of ISOTECH Ltd Environmental Research and Consultancy (www.isotech.com.cy), based in Nicosia, Cyprus. He is also one of the founders and Member of the Board of Directors of the Cypriot NGO AKTI Project and Research Centre (www.akti.org.cy). Dr Loizides is a graduate of the School of Chemical Engineers, National Technical University of Athens. He holds an MSc, DIC in Environmental Engineering from Imperial College and his PhD on waste management from the National Technical University of Athens. He has been member of several European and international expert groups and networks as expert chemical and environmental engineer. He has cooperated with international organizations and worked as an expert researcher and consultant in more than 45 countries. He is the author/co-author of more than 30 published papers in Scientific Journals and International Conferences, of books and of more than 1000 published Technical Reports in the fields of waste management, compost and co-composting, CEMP (Construction Environmental Management Plans), decision support systems and community annoyance. He is an external Associate Professor at the University of Cyprus (Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering) and the Frederic University of Cyprus. Recent honours and awards In 2014, Dr Loizides was appointed, by the President of the Republic of Cyprus, as the Head of the Technical Committee on Environment within the peacebuilding negotiations for Cyprus. In 2015, he was appointed by the President of the Republic of Cyprus, as Member of the Board of Directors of Cyprus Research Promotion Foundation. As a representative of the Cyprus Scientific and Technical Chamber, he is Member of the National Committee for the evaluation of Strategic Environmental Impact Assessments of the Republic of Cyprus. He represents Cyprus in several International and European Fora on environment and sustainability. Dr M. Loizides’s vision for a sustainable future centres on innovation coupled with participatory education. His concept of Tiganokinisi, an innovative project implemented in 350 schools in Cyprus since 2014, that focuses on the education of youth on recycling, reuse and financial sustainability through the collection of used cooking oils at schools and its conversion into biofuel, was ranked in the top 61 best practices in ELSEVIER’s 2015 Green and Sustainable Chemistry International Contest (out of 495 eligible nominations).