QS Higher Ed Summit: Americas 2023

Graduated in Electrical Engineering from the Federal University of Espírito Santo, Master and Doctor in Computer Science from the Federal University of Espírito Santo and Master in International Management from the Steinbeis School of Management Berlin Germany. He has been a professor of Higher Education since 1987, both at Undergraduate and Postgraduate Lato Sensu, teaching subjects in the areas of Computing, Informatics, Business Administration, Information Systems, Project Management, Innovation, Entrepreneurship, Auditing and Public Management. In higher education, in addition to being a professor, he held the positions of coordinator of training courses, from 1999 to 2010, and pro-rector of course, from 2012 to 2014. He currently holds the position of dean, since 2014, all these management charges academic at Vila Velha University. He worked from 1978 to 1994 in large private companies such as Vale and Arcelor Mittal, where his specialists and management loads. In the public service of the State of Espírito Santo, from 1995 to 2013, he held the positions of external control auditor, director of information technology and general deputy director at the Court of Auditors of the State of Espírito Santo and secretary of state in the area of management and human resources.

Carlos Eduardo Sanches da Silva graduation at Engenharia Mecânica from Universidade Federal de Itajubá (1990), graduation at Ciências Economicas from Faculdade de Ciências Econômicas do Sul de Minas (1989), master’s at Production Engineering from Universidade Federal de Itajubá (1996) and doctorate at Production Engineering from Universidade Federal de Santa Catarina (2001). He is currently full professor at Universidade Federal de Itajubá. Has experience in Production Engineering, focusing on Management of Project and Product, acting on the following subjects: gerenciamento de projetos, processo de desenvolvimento de produtos, produtos, inovação and projetos.

Bachelor in Business Administration, postgraduate in Systems Analysis, a specialist in executive functions, Master in Business Management at PUCMINAS/FDC, Master in International Management at SIBE Berlin, and Doctoral Student in Business Administration at FGV/EBAPE. Professional experience: Systems Analyst, Manager of material and patrimonial resources, owner of companies in different fields of activity, Director of Market Relations at UVV and currently Vice-Rector at UVV, and Professor of Contemporary Administration, Business Management, Supplies and Entrepreneurship

Graduated in Pharmacy from the Federal University of Espírito Santo (2000), master’s and doctorate’s degrees in Pharmaceutical Sciences from the Federal University of Minas Gerais, having completed a sandwich internship at Purdue University (Indiana), United States. She also holds a Master of Science in International Management, Steinbeis University Berlin, Sibe, Alemanha. She is currently a full professor at the Vila Velha University. At the Capixaba Institute of Sciences and Administration, she works as a Senior Researcher. She authored or co-authored over 100 papers. As a Provost of Research, Graduate and Extension, she represents the UVV in research initiatives and directly identifies research/funding opportunities to support the graduate programs’ research initiatives. She is able to establish relationships with local, state, and federal agencies to identify possible funding streams and opportunities for faculty and other researchers. She also participates in the internationalization process of Graduate programs and UVV.

As an Education Strategist, Michelle works to design and deliver programmes that develop the key skills behind resilience, innovation, and responsiveness in our rapidly changing, digital reality. With over 20 years of experience working in both the public and private sectors, Michelle has supported Universities, NGOs and for-profit organisations in their quest to stop keeping up and start getting ahead.

Her collaborations in the private sector have contributed to the development of leadership frameworks and process models that have helped organisations to better connect information, ideas and individual employees in a more dynamic system of interaction. As the Director of Academic Innovation for York University, Dr. Sengara works with a world-class team of educators and administrators focused on researching how emergent technologies can support these more dynamic systems of human interaction, helping students gain essential skills and supporting the institution in creating a more systemic approach to academic innovation.

María Noel Vaeza is currently serving as UN Women Regional Director for the Americas and the Caribbean. She has extensive experience in global and regional leadership and management positions at the UN, including as Director of the Programme Division at UN Women Headquarters, Director of the UNOPS Global Portfolio Services Office, UNOPS Regional Director for Latin America and the Caribbean, as well as various assignments at UNDP. Prior to that, she held various positions in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Uruguay.

Ms. Vaeza holds a PhD in Law and Social Sciences from the University of the Republic of Uruguay and a master’s degree in public policy from Johns Hopkins University.

PhD in Production Engineering from COPPE/UFRJ (2015), Master in Informatics from the Federal University of Espírito Santo (1999), specialist in Systems Analysis (FAESA, 1989), Computer Networks (UFES, 1997) and Project Management (FGV, 2007). PMP Certified (Project Management Professional) by PMI (Project Management Institute). He worked in the systems development area as a Programmer, Systems Analyst and IT Manager, in the private sector for 15 years. He is a full professor at the Federal Institute of Espírito Santo (Ifes-006), with a 2-dedication regime. He also held the position of Planning Director at Ifes from 2015 to 2017, and Incubator Center Coordinator of Ifes-Campus Serra from 2018 to 2019.

Mr. Cid is Master of Sciences in Artificial Intelligence by the Pontifical Catholic University of Rio de Janeiro and graduated summa cum laude as Computers Engineer by IME, the Military Institute of Engineering, Brazil.

Dante works for Elsevier since 2002 and today, as Vice-President of Academic Relations for Latin America, represents Elsevier as President of the Brazilian Publishers Association, President of the Pro-Livro Institute for Literacy, and in several organizations such as: the Brazilian Association for Copyrights, the International Publishers Association, the Innovation Workgroup of the National Confederation of
Industries in Brazil, and the Americas Business Dialogue of the Inter-American Development Bank.

Leigh Kamolins is Director of Analytics & Evaluation at QS. He is responsible for the organization’s acclaimed rankings and ratings as well the suite of Analytics solutions that provide comparative. He has a background in performance evaluation, quality assurance and evaluation system design spanning the public and private sectors in the United Kingdom and Australia. Before joining QS, Leigh led a team at the UK Department for Education reporting on the performance of England’s biggest school reform program in 100 years. He also has previous experience in the public sector in Australia, designing anti-corruption and human rights monitoring frameworks. He is passionate about equalities and access to quality education. He has undergraduate and postgraduate degrees from Monash University in Australia which included a period of studying abroad at King’s College London. Leigh speaks widely about evaluation frameworks and performance trends at a range of international forums. 

Dr. Prosper Bernard is a professor of management at the University of Quebec in Montréal where he was previously vice-rector and member of the BOARD of TRUSTEES.

Professor Bernard manages an MBA in China. He has published numerous books and articles. He has developed a joint MBA and other joint programmes in China and in Latin America. He holds several degrees including a PhD from City University of New York.

He is the chairman of the Board of the University Consortium of the Americas in Florida, an organisation that organises international education collaboration.

He is an American Citizen and a Canadian Citizen.

In 2014, China’s Jiangsu Province presented him with the prestigious Friendship Medal and the Labor Prize for his contribution to university education.

PhD in Management Sciences from the National University of San Marcos (UNMSM). MBA from California State University, Fullerton; MBA from San Ignacio de Loyola University (USIL); and master’s degree in Educational Administration from the University of Lima. Economist from the University of Lima.

Current vice president at the University of Lima. Former dean of the Faculty of Business and Economics, director of the International Business Undergraduate Program, head of the Center for Entrepreneurship and researcher of the Scientific Research Institute at the same university.

Current full professor at the University of Lima, with more than 20 years of teaching experience. She has also served as professor of the Master’s Program in Management at UNMSM.

Author of the book Pymes Verdes (Eco-Friendly Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises);
co-author of the chapter “Current Situation and Challenges in Peruvian Universities” in Handbook of Higher Education in Latin America: Deans’ Views and Overviews, Saarland University Press; and co-author of the chapter “PRME Latin America and the Caribbean Chapter” in the book Responsible Management Education. The PRME Global Movement by Principles for Responsible Management Education. Author of several articles published in national and international journals.

Current member of the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB) Latin American and Caribbean Advisory Council; member of the PRME Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) Chapter Advisory Committee; and member of the Editorial Board of 360: Revista de Ciencias de la Gestión, a journal published by the Pontifical Catholic University of Peru (PUCP) Academic Department of Management Sciences.

She has also participated as a member of the Academic Committee at the XIX Congress ALTEC 2021 (Latin- and Ibero-American Association for Technological and Innovation Management).

Former chair of the PRME Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) Chapter, a United Nations-supported initiative; member of the Lima Chamber of Commerce (CCL) Innovation, Science and Technology Committee; and jury member in international innovation competitions such as Desafío Intel, Young Americas Business Trust – Organization of American States (OAS) and Wayra at Telefónica del Perú, among others.

She has received scholarships from the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) and Dialogue on Innovative Higher Education Strategies (DIES) to attend the International Deans’ Course Latin America 2015/2016, and from the United States Department of State – Phelps-Stokes Fund, 2000.

Patricio Conejero Ortiz has a Degree in Economics (UBA). Research Fellow (2018-19) of the Special Program for Urban and Regional Studies with focus on International Development of the Department of Urban Studies and Planning (DUSP) at MIT. He is Professor of Internationalization of Higher Education (UBA) and Adjoint Professor of the Department of Economics (UBA). Previously Secretary of International Affairs at the University of Buenos Aires, he is now Chief Advisor to the President for Strategic Projects at the institution.

Research Manager & Insights Specialist at QS Intelligence Unit, Gabriel oversees the reputation components of every ranking evaluation at QS from survey design, data acquisition, data analysis, to the dissemination of findings and key insights.
Gabriel has a vast experience in both quantitative and qualitative research, specialized in the fields of Psychology and Behavioral Economics.

Having a degree in Clinical Psychology at PUC-SP and a MsC in Economic and Consumer Psychology at the University of Leiden.

Research and academic interests: Dr. Mira is a full professor at the Graduate Program in Health Sciences of PUCPR’s Scholl of Medicine. In 2004, Dr. Mira obtained his Ph.D. in molecular genetics from McGill University (Montreal, Canada); today, Dr. Mira is a National CNPq-Productivity scientist level 2, and coordinator for professional graduate programs in medicine at the Brazilian Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES).

Administrative Interests: since 2014, Dr. Mira has been serving as the director of PUCPR’s Office for Internationalization. Among the main achievements in the period, one can mention (i) the Global Classes, the largest program promoting EMI in Brazil; (ii) the American Academy, the first liberal arts undergraduate program in Brazil, created in partnership with US Kent State University; and (iii) the launching of PUCPR Florence (Italy), also as a joint initiative with Kent State University.

José Fernando Rubio-Navarro is a Philosopher, Bachelor and Master of the Lateran University (Rome); theologian and historian of ancient Christianity. He advanced his doctoral studies in History of Christianity on Roman Pannonia doing his fieldwork in Serbia. He was trained in ancient, classical and modern languages, and in recent years he has come into close contact with the cultural and linguistic diversity of indigenous peoples. He has been a research professor at the Faculty of Social Sciences, former director of the History Program; he initiated and structured the Transversal Project on Linguistics and Ecology of Languages and has been in charge, since 2010, of the editorial affairs of the Faculty. Among his various interests and studies, he has dealt with the cultural and linguistic diversity of Latin America, religious diversity and secularization processes, and the history of patristic Christianity. He is currently a member of the Official Translators and Interpreters Examination Commission of the National University (COL), vice-president of the Colombian Association of Historians and a correspondent member of the International Association of Patristic Studies.

Experienced Associate Provost for International Affairs and President of the Brazilian Association for International Education – FAUBAI for eight years has a demonstrated history of accomplishments in the internationalization of higher education sector, both at his university and for the Brazilian higher education sector. Working as a faculty on a research university for more than 30 years, have been offering innovative solutions to institutional challenges for over this period. He holds a doctorate in software engineering from Université Joseph Fourier, France. 

Miss Heideliza Batausa is an economics lecturer currently with the Social Sciences Department, College of Arts and Sciences, Cebu Doctors’ University (CDU), Cebu, Philippines. She has an undergraduate degree in Economics, Cum Laude, from the University of San Carlos (USC), Cebu City, Philippines. She did her MA Development Studies degree at the International Institute of Social Studies (ISS Erasmus University) in the Hague, the Netherlands in 2000 to 2001 under a fellowship grant from the Netherlands government. She also earned graduate economics units from the National University of Singapore (NUS). She is currently finishing her PhD Social Sciences degree and is teaching at the International Studies program of Cebu Doctors’ University.

Isidro has a Doctorate in Management Sciences from the Universidad del Rosario, Bogotá, Colombia. Research topic: Intercultural Competences. He has a Master’s in Business Administration; he also has an MBA from the University of Lleida, Catalonia, Spain and a Master’s degree in Biology from California State University, Fresno.

He is currently a member of the Professional Board of the Center for Intercultural and International Education at Kent State University. He teaches the following subjects: International Marketing, Cultural Factors in International Business, Leadership, Creativity and Negotiation; Business Culture, among others.

He is an expert in International Relations issues, including conflicts in the Middle East, ISIS, and Islamic Army. He is also knowledgeable about study abroad and student exchanges. His area of research focuses on the acquisition and development of intercultural skills. He is a fellow scholar of the DAAD of Germany and the ITEC of India.

Master in University Teaching and Educational Management by Universidad Tecnológica del Perú. Industrial Engineer by the Universidad de Lima. Educator by the Universidad San Ignacio de Loyola. Since 2019, Director of Quality and Accreditation in the Universidad Continental in Perú. I worked for the SINEACE (Peruvian National Accreditation Agency) as a Director of Higher Education Accreditation. University faculty in the Pontificia Universidad Católica del Perú, Universidad de Ciencias y Artes de América Latina. 22 years of experience in the university sector, in teaching and management.

Since 2015, Caroline has been part of edX, building out partnerships in Europe, LATAM and Asia. She built out and led the European team, launched edX.org/es and the Spanish language offerings on edX and was instrumental in the launch of flagship products, including MicroMasters programs. Prior to edX, Caroline worked for Deloitte and the United Nations. Today, she focuses on new partnerships with Academic, Corporate and Governmental institutions internationally to find strategic synergies to enhance impact at scale. Caroline is a Dutch native, speaks English, Spanish and French and holds a Masters degree in Organizational Psychology from Utrecht University. Caroline is passionate about the power of education and how the support of technology enhances its reach and impact at scale. She’s a strong believer in lifelong learning and has taken more than 15 MOOCs on edX herself.

Jesús Gambín has been Director of International Programs at ENAE Business School for 20 years
In terms of Academic background, he is Bachelor in Economics from the University of Murcia and Master in Business Administration (Executive MBA) from Enae Business School, Master in International Trade from the University of Murcia and Enae Business School.
He is currently Professor of International Economics and Internationalization Strategy in the MBA Master in Business Administration at ENAE Business School. Currently is at the stage all but dissertation in their PhD in Economic Impact of Climate Change in Agricultural Value Chain.

Dr Toimil is a Professor at the USC since 2008 and hold more than 40 scientific publications. His h-index: 11 and has Contributions to congresses: 20(Nationals)/43(Internationals), 3PhD theses supervised (2 in progress). 1997-1999: Posdoctoral Researcher, Pharmacologie et Physico-Chimie des Interactions Cellulaires et Molléculaires (Université de Strasbourg, France). 1999-2001: Research Associate, Department of Pharmacology, University of de Cambridge (UK). 2001-2003: Posdoctoral Researcher, Department of Pharmacology, USC 2003-2008: “Ramón y Cajal” Researcher Department of Pharmacology, USC Membership to Spanish Society of Pharmacology (SEF) Membership to Galician Network for Research and Development of Drugs Awards: Pharmacology Prize (2003) sponsored by the Spanish Pharmacological Society and Almirall- rodesfarma.

Metallurgical Engineer and Master of Science in Materials Science from the Military Institute of Engineering, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil and Ph.D. in Metallurgy from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), Cambridge, USA. Worked for 30 years, in the Steel Industry, occupying relevant positions in three major companies in the sector, CSN, ArcelorMittal Luxembourg and Votorantim Siderurgia. Is currently Director of the Innovation Agency and Associate Professor of the School of Volta Redonda Metallurgical Industrial Engineering of the Fluminense Federal University (UFF), where he teaches since 1986. He acted a member of the Advisory Committee of PADCT/MCT and as Project Reviewer and Evaluator of Graduate Institutions by MCT and Capes. He was also Director and Advisor of the Brazilian Association of Metallurgy, Materials and Mining (ABM) in several periods, being currently a Counselor of this Association and reviewer of the journal JMRT – Journal of Materials Research and Technology.

Nathalíe Galeano is Director of Research Intelligence at Tecnologico de Monterrey, responsible for analyzing research trends and the participation of the university in international research rankings; the analysis of these two insights results in internal reports that support the process of developing research strategies at the university. She served as Director of the Center for Innovation and Technology Transfer (CIT2), and also coordinated Tecnologico de Monterrey’s Incubation Cell Program, promoting the creation of technology-based start-ups by researchers and graduate students. As Director of the Research Internships Program at Tecnologico de Monterrey from 2010 to 2013, Nathalíe integrated undergraduates from different majors into research groups with faculty on campus as well as abroad through collaborative research exchanges. She is the (co-)author of more than 30 papers in journals, book chapters and international conferences.

Claudia Tobar is the Chief Innovation and Outreach Officer at Universidad San Francisco de Quito and faculty member at the undergraduate Education Department. She is editor-in-chief of Para el Aula magazine since 2012. She is also director of Lupini, Community Children’s Library. She has offered workshops to teachers in Ecuador and Latin America on educational and current pedagogical topics. TEDx speaker in 2021. She is the author of several publications and research on education. She is an activist on children’s rights issues #liberenalosniños. She has a doctorate from Northeastern University in Organizational Leadership.

Dr. Vaishali Raval is professor of psychology and affiliate of global and intercultural studies at Miami University. She is an educator committed to internationalization through her research, teaching, and professional service. Her federally funded program of research focuses on cultural and contextual foundations of parenting, child and adolescent mental health, and intervention and prevention in global communities. She has published over 60 peer-reviewed journal articles and book chapters. Her mentorship of undergraduate and graduate students was recently recognized by Henry David International Mentoring Award from the American Psychological Association Division 52. She is the associate editor of Journal of Cross-Cultural Psychology, and Journal of Research on Adolescence, as well as chair of the international committee of the Society for Research on Adolescence, and a member of the U.S. National Committee for Psychological Sciences, a committee of The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine.

Educated at the University of Winnipeg in Canada (BA), the University of Wales, College of Cardiff (LLB), the University of Southern Queensland in Australia (M.Ed.), and the English Learning Centre in London, UK (TESL Certificate).

Dr. Sherweit El-Ahmady is a Professor of Pharmacognosy at the faculty of Pharmacy, Ain Shams University. She graduated from the Faculty of Pharmacy, Cairo University in 1995. She received her MSc degree from Texas A & M University, USA, in Plant Biology in 2000 and her PhD from Ain Shams University in Pharmaceutical Sciences – Pharmacognosy and Phytochemistry in 2006. Dr. El-Ahmady has been a faculty member in Ain Shams University since 2006 and a full professor since 2019. She teaches Pharmacy students and has published over 40 research papers, supervised over 20 theses, and co-authored 3 book chapters in the field of medicinal plants. Dr. El-Ahmady served as the Department Head of Pharmacognosy at the faculty of Pharmacy from 2014-2015 and 2020-2021 as well as the Drug Design Program Director from 2014-2018. She was appointed as the Director of International Students & Mobility for Ain Shams University in February 2020.

Dr. Maíra holds a bachelor degree in English and Portuguese, Masters in Linguistics and PhD in Linguistics and the Portuguese Language. She is an adjunct professor in the English Language Department, Languages and Letters Institute at the Federal University of Uberlândia (UFU), Minas Gerais, Brazil. She teaches in the English undergraduate course and Language Studies graduate program (Masters and Phd). Dr. Maira also takes part in the following projects at UFU: Language without Borders (IsF), and Program for Internationalization Education (ProInt). I am currently the coordinator of the English language and literature undergraduate course at UFU.

Craig has worked for more than 25 years in government, business, education and NGO settings in Latin America, New Zealand and globally.  He has designed and lead international education programmes, diversity and inclusion programmes, including in indigenous settings, and worked as an intercultural business consultant in Latin America. His Deputy Director role at the Latin America CAPE focuses on strategies and practical initiatives to increase New Zealander’s knowledge and awareness of Latin America and their ability to engage successfully with the peoples, businesses, universities and governments of the region.

Hélène Eunson currently works for the CAPEs as a Programme Manager and is based at the University of Otago. Thanks to her extensive experience in the fields of communications, public relations, and event management, Hélène is able to successfully manage a wide variety of projects. She particularly enjoys establishing effective and long-lasting relationships with stakeholders, as well as initiating problem-solving actions. Her international profile and experience, along with the collaborative network of the CAPEs, give her the opportunity to support New Zealand’s businesses, schools, communities and students to understand the key countries of the Asia-Pacific region better. She manages the Winds of Change programme.

Laura Hervert- Escobar is head of the Scientometrics office at the Research Vice-Rectory of Tecnologico de Monterrey. She received a PhD degree in Engineering Sciences from Tecnologico de Monterrey and a PhD degree in Systems and Engineering Management from Texas Tec University. She is member of faculty of the Computer Science Graduate Program and she is ascribed to the Research Group on Data Science and Optimization. Her research include, but are not limited to the development, analysis and implementation of metaheuristic techniques for solving complex real-life combinatorial problems with several objectives. Work experience includes the development of different projects including new product launch, design and opening of workshops, business model re-engineering, etc. Current research is focus on the use of Machine Learning, Data Science, Process Mining and Causality, applied to Research Analytics.

Kyria Rebeca Finardi (https://www.kyriafinardi.com/) is a Senior Lecturer in the Department of Languages, Culture and Education (DLCE) and a researcher in the post-graduate program of Education (PPGE) of the Federal University of Espirito Santo (UFES), Brazil. She has a Cnpq Academic Productivity scholarship and a Fapes Universal grant for the project ‘Internationalizing Extension and Extending Internationalization (https://www.kyriafinardi.com/en/fapes-universal). Professor Finardi was the President of the Brazilian Association of Applied Linguistics (ALAB) 2018-2019, is the co-founder and co-coordinator of the Ibero-America Association of Applied Linguistics (AIALA) and the vice-president of the International Association of Applied Linguistics (AILA).

Professor Carlos Henrique de Brito Cruz is a professor emeritus at the University of Campinas (Unicamp) and senior vice-president of research networks at Elsevier. He previously served as president of the São Paulo Research Foundation (FAPESP) and president of Unicamp. Professor Cruz has also worked as a scientist at AT&T Bell Laboratories, Pierre and Marie Curie University, and the Sapienza University of Rome. He is a member of the council of the United Nations University, and also serves on the judging panel for the Queen Elizabeth Prize for Engineering. He is one of 10 members in the UN’s committee for the Sustainable Development Goals.

Graduated in Medicine from the Federal University of Ceará (1991), master’s in medicine (Nephrology) from the Federal University of São Paulo (1997), specialization in Transplant Immunology from the Université de Tours (Diplôme des Études Approfondies, France, 1997-1999), PhD in Medicine (Nephrology) from the Federal University of São Paulo (2000), post-doctoral fellow at Imperial College London (2000-2003) and full professor at the Federal University of São Paulo (Medicine) in 2006. He is currently a Full Professor at the Department of Immunology, Institute of Biomedical Sciences, University of São Paulo (since 2011). Visiting Professor at the University of Tours, France in 2006. Has experience in Nephrology and Cellular and Applied Immunology. Level 1A CNPq Scholarship (2021-2026). Member of the Academy of Sciences of the State of São Paulo. Member of the Brazilian Academy of Sciences. Adjunct Dean of Graduate Studies at USP (2022-2023). Academic Lead for the Future17 project at the University of Sao Paulo

Dr Nigel Healey is Professor of International Higher Education and Vice President (Global and Community Engagement) at the University of Limerick. He is currently serving as Interim Provost and Deputy President. Prior to his appointment at the University of Limerick in April 2020, he held senior academic positions at Fiji National University, Nottingham Trent University, the University of Canterbury and Manchester Metropolitan University, as well as teaching positions at the University of Leicester and Leeds Beckett University.

Dr Healey has served as an economic policy advisor to the prime minister of Belarus and the deputy minister of economy of the Russian Federation and managed a number of multinational research and economic development projects in Europe and Asia. His current research interests are in the internationalization of higher education, transnational education and higher education policy and management.