By education, Jaak Aaviksoo is a physicist. He graduated cum laude in the specialisation of theoretical physics in the Department of Physics in the Faculty of Physics and Chemistry of the University of Tartu in 1976. He holds a PhD degree and has been elected the Professor of Optics and Spectroscopy of the University of Tartu. He has been a Vice-Rector of the University of Tartu and been twice elected the Rector of the University of Tartu. Owing to his achievements in research, Aaviksoo has been elected a member of the Estonian Academy of Sciences, Honorary Doctor of Turku University and a member of the Academia Europaea.

From 1981-1992 Jaak Aaviksoo conducted research in the Novosibirsk Institute of Thermal Physics, in the Max Planck Institute in Stuttgart, in the Osaka University in Japan and in the Paris VII University. As the Minister of Education, Prof Aaviksoo launched the Tiger Leap programme to bring the Internet to Estonian schools. As the Rector of the University of Tartu, he was a member of the European University Association and of the European Cultural Foundation. As the Minister of Defence he launched cyber defence operations in the Estonian Defence Forces and was the initiator of the establishment of NATO’s Cooperative Cyber Defence Centre of Excellence in Estonia.

For outstanding services, Prof Aaviksoo has received the Order of the White Star Class II (2006), the Order of the National Coat of Arms Class IV (2000) as well as the Grand Cross of the Order of Merit of the German Federal Republic, the National Order of Merit of the French Republic (2001) and the Order of the White Rose of the Republic of Finland (2001).

Since 2004 Prof Aaviksoo has been a member of the Estonian Academy of Sciences and belongs to ten other professional associations. For instance, he has been the chairman of the Estonian Council of Rectors and a member of the Academic Council of the President of the Republic. Since 1976 he has published almost 200 research and other articles and participated in over a hundred research conferences in 23 countries. Jaak Aaviksoo is a father to three children and a grandfather to four.

By education, Jaak Aaviksoo is a physicist. He graduated cum laude in the specialisation of theoretical physics in the Department of Physics in the Faculty of Physics and Chemistry of the University of Tartu in 1976. He holds a PhD degree and has been elected the Professor of Optics and Spectroscopy of the University of Tartu. He has been a Vice-Rector of the University of Tartu and been twice elected the Rector of the University of Tartu. Owing to his achievements in research, Aaviksoo has been elected a member of the Estonian Academy of Sciences, Honorary Doctor of Turku University and a member of the Academia Europaea.

From 1981-1992 Jaak Aaviksoo conducted research in the Novosibirsk Institute of Thermal Physics, in the Max Planck Institute in Stuttgart, in the Osaka University in Japan and in the Paris VII University. As the Minister of Education, Prof Aaviksoo launched the Tiger Leap programme to bring the Internet to Estonian schools. As the Rector of the University of Tartu, he was a member of the European University Association and of the European Cultural Foundation. As the Minister of Defence he launched cyber defence operations in the Estonian Defence Forces and was the initiator of the establishment of NATO’s Cooperative Cyber Defence Centre of Excellence in Estonia.

For outstanding services, Prof Aaviksoo has received the Order of the White Star Class II (2006), the Order of the National Coat of Arms Class IV (2000) as well as the Grand Cross of the Order of Merit of the German Federal Republic, the National Order of Merit of the French Republic (2001) and the Order of the White Rose of the Republic of Finland (2001).

Since 2004 Prof Aaviksoo has been a member of the Estonian Academy of Sciences and belongs to ten other professional associations. For instance, he has been the chairman of the Estonian Council of Rectors and a member of the Academic Council of the President of the Republic. Since 1976 he has published almost 200 research and other articles and participated in over a hundred research conferences in 23 countries. Jaak Aaviksoo is a father to three children and a grandfather to four.

Before joining the OECD, Dr. Ischinger was Executive Vice-President for International Affairs and Public Relations at Berlin Humboldt Universität (2000-2005).

Between 1992-1994, she was a Director at UNESCO heading the Division of International Cultural Co-operation, Presentation and Enrichment of Cultural Identities. From 1994 to 2000, she was Executive Director of the Fulbright Commission for Educational Exchange between the United States and Germany.

In her present capacity, Dr Ischinger is responsible for the Directorate for Education which helps Member countries to improve the quality, equity and efficiency of their educational systems. The work is mostly done through the Education Policy Committee in charge of the reviews of country educational systems and the development of international indicators (Education at a Glance) and through the work of the Center for Educational Research and Innovation. It is also done by assessing the learning outcomes at the school level (PISA), at the university level (AHELO) and at the adult level (PIAAC).

Member Period
Member of Parliament for the Liberal Party in Zealand greater constituency from September 15th 2011, in Greater Copenhagen greater constituency November 13th 2007 -September 15th 2011, in West Zealand County constituency February 8th 2005 -November 13th 2007, in Copenhagen County constituency February 15th 1977 – September 30th 1999, and in North Jutland County constituency January 9th 1975 - February 15th 1977. Candidate for The Liberal Party in Greve nomiation district from 2009, in Taastrup nomination district 2007-2009, in Kalundborg nomination district 2002-2007, in Lyngby nomination district 1977-1999, in Gladsaxe nomination district 1975-1977, in Sæby nomination district 1974-1975, and in Thisted nomination district 1973-1974.

Parliamentary career
Minister for the Interior and Health February 23rd 2010 - October 3rd 2011.
Minister of Education and Minister for Nordic Cooperation November 23rd 2007 – February 23rd 2010.
Minister for Education and Minister for Ecclesiastical Affairs February 18th 2005 - November 23rd 2007.
Minister for Refugee, Immigration and Integration Affairs and Minister for Development Cooperation August 2nd 2004 - February 18th 2005. Minister for Refugee, Immigration and Integration Affairs January 1st 2003 - August 2nd 2004.
Minister for Refugee, Immigration and Integration Affairs and Minister for European Affairs November 27th 2001 - January 1st 2003. Minister for Education and Research September 10th 1982 - January 25th 1993.
Member of the Presidium from September 30th 2011.

He was the Governor of the Central Bank of the Republic of Turkey, Chief Advisor to Prime Minister Turgut Özal, and President for Mass Housing and Public Participation Administration in Turkey, a state agency in charge of housing and urban development, large scale infrastructure projects, and the privatization program of the Turkish Government. He also served as an advisor for Turgut Ozal when he became president.

He served as the Chief Advisor to the Minister of Privatization in Poland during 1989-1991. He was a policy advisor to the governments of Indonesia, Egypt, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Ukraine, Belarus, Russian Federation, and to the presidents Nursultan Nazerbaev, and Islam Karimov.

He served as a senior advisor to the may agancies in the public sector such as: USAID, European Bank of Restructure and Development, International Finance Corporation, the World Bank, Istanbul Stock Exchange, OECD, UNDP, and Capital Markets Board of Turkey, Institute of Banking of the Saudi Monetary Agency,. He was a consultant for many international firm including Charles River Associates, Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley & Co., Rothchild & Cie, IBM, Merck and Co., Citicorp, Chemical Bank, Barclays Bank, Merrill Lynch, Namura Securities, Arab National Bank in Riyadh, and the Dubai World.

He was the Chairman of the Board of Sumerbank, a state owned conglomerate with 35,000 employees and a director on the boards of Emlak Bank, Westergaard Fund, and Bell Atlantic Mutual Funds.

He is currently on the boards of Limak Yatirim in Turkey, Grossman Currency Fund Ltd, Grossman Macro Fund, BlueOrchard, and Oasis Capital in Geneva.

He is a founding trustee of the Koc University, Foundation of Ownership Changes in Warsaw, International Institute of Business in Kiev, and a former trustee of the American University in Bulgaria and the International Business School in Moscow.

Prof. Gultekin published extensively in scientific journals.

Since joining SABIS® in 1992, Mr. Bistany has led the fourth generation family-owned business and transitioned it into a globally-recognized, professionally-managed enterprise at the forefront of education management. He has been instrumental in the expansion of the SABIS® School Network into various countries as well as into the Public-Private-Partnership arena in the U.A.E, U.S., and Kurdistan. In addition to his active involvement as president of SABIS®, Mr. Bistany spends his time developing the network and overseeing the establishment of private and public schools around the world.

Mr. Bistany holds two Masters' degrees, one in Mathematics and the other in Computer Science from Syracuse University, NY. He is also a Harvard alumnus, having completed the Harvard Business School Executive Education Owner/President Manager program. He serves as a board member of several organizations including the Advisory Board of the Institute of Family and Entrepreneurial Business at the Lebanese American University. He is currently an Area Vice President of the Chief Executive' Organization (CEO) and was the founding Chairman of the Lebanese Chapter of the Young President Organization (YPO) as well as the World Presidents' Organization (WPO). He has also served as a senior member of the Executive Board of the Institute for Social and Economic Policy in the Middle East at the John F. Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University. He is a member of the World Bank Advisory Group on Engaging the Private Sector and is a sought-after speaker at global education conferences and events.

She was an English teacher for over 20 years and became Principal in 4 different schools. In schools, she actively participated in international conferences, and delivered papers for International and local Forums. In 2003 she was appointed Deputy Director of the Schools Division, Ministry of Education Malaysia; in 2004, as the Director of the W.P. Kuala Lumpur Education Department, and in May 2006, as the Director of the Schools Division. She is currently the Education Adviser to Khazanah Nasional Berhad , providing guidance on several educational initiatives; namely PINTAR, Trust Schools, and Teach for Malaysia.

At the commencement of his fourth term, he was appointed the Minister of Education. In his third term, Dave served as Minister of Health and Wellness and as Government House Leader. He was also appointed as a member of theAgenda and Priorities Committee, Treasury Board, the Legislative Review Committee, the Privileges and Elections, Standing Orders and Printing Committee, and the Cabinet Policy Committee on Community Services.

He has previously served as the Minister of Advanced Education, Minister of Justice and Attorney General, Minister of Intergovernmental and Aboriginal Affairs, and vice-chair of the Standing Policy Committee on Education and Employment. During each of his terms in office, Dave has served as a member of Treasury Board and the Agenda and Priorities Committee.

Dave is a lawyer by profession and was a partner with Matheson and Company, Barristers and Solicitors, before entering public service. He received an arts degree in political science and economics, and a law degree from the University of Alberta.

He is a strong believer in giving back to the community. He supports numerous nonprofit and service organizations as time permits, including Success By 6, Meals on Wheels, and Kiwanis Club. Dave was born in Fort Resolution, N.W.T. He lived in Hazelton, B.C., and the northern Alberta community of Fort Vermilion, graduating from La Crête Public School before moving to Edmonton to attend university.

He and his wife, Janet, have three children: Ian, Janis and Janine.

Following studies in law, he works as an insurance agent and loan broker in Amiens from 1965 to 2000. Parallel to this, he becomes involved in the Républicains Indépendants (Independent Republicans) during the presidential election of 1974, and then the UDF party (Union for French Democracy) for which he is to become departmental president and member of the national office until 2002.

Mr de Robien is elected National Assembly Deputy for Somme in 1986 and Secretary of the National Assembly. He is re-elected Deputy in 1988 and becomes Mayor of Amiens in 1989. In March 1993 he is re-elected Deputy for Somme and takes on the role of first Vice-President of the National Assembly. In 1995 he becomes president of the UDF parliamentary group (215 deputies). In 1995 he is re-elected Mayor of Amiens in the first round.

Elected Vice-President of the UDF in 2001, Mr de Robien becomes the natural director of the campaign for the UDF candidate, François Bayrou, but breaks ties with him due to the systematic opposing attitude of the former presidential election candidate.

On 7 May 2002, Mr de Robien is asked to join the first government of Jean-Pierre Raffarin as Minister for Infrastructure, Transport, Housing, Tourism and the Sea. Re-elected Deputy on 9 June 2002, he remains in government and coordinates one of the major presidential projects: ‘road safety’. In 2004 he joins the third Raffarin government as Minister for Infrastructure, Transport and Regional Planning, Tourism and the Sea.

On 25 May 2005, he is appointed Minister for National Education, Higher Education and Research in the government of Dominique de Villepin, until the end of the term of office on 25 June 2007. He establishes the ‘foundation of knowledge’. In 2006, Mr de Robien forms a discussion club called Société en Mouvement (Society on the Move).

Mr de Robien, appointed Ambassador by the Council of Ministers in August 2007, is the delegate of the French government at the International Labour Organisation. On 4 April 2011, he is appointed by the President of the French Republic as coordinator and spokesperson for the social agenda of the French Presidency of the G20.

Chevalier in the Legion of Honour
Chevalier in the Order of Academic Palms

He was recently appointed to the Equity and Excellence Commission of the U.S. Department of Education, and he served as chair of the Board of Directors of the National Board for Education Sciences from 2008-2010. He has written or edited twenty books along with numerous widely-cited articles in professional journals. Government service includes being Deputy Director of the Congressional Budget Office and Senior Staff Economist at the Council of Economic Advisers. He is a Distinguished Graduate of the United States Air Force Academy and completed his Ph.D. in economics at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. (http://www.hanushek.net)

During that period the Maastricht University grew out to become one of the leading international teaching research universities, with mlmost have of its students from abroad and problem based learning as the style of education. Before that Dr. Ritzen was Vice President of the World Bank’s Development Economics Department from August 1999. In July 2001 he assumed the position Vice President of the World Bank's Human Development Network. Dr. Ritzen joined the Bank as Special Adviser to the Human Development Network in September 1998. Prior to coming to the Bank, he was Minister of Education, Culture, and Science of The Netherlands, one of the longest-serving Ministers of Education in the world. During his term, he enacted a series of major reforms throughout the Dutch education system. He has also made significant contributions to agencies such as UNESCO and OECD, especially in the field of education and social cohesion. Prior to his appointment as Minister in 1989, Dr. Ritzen held academic appointments with Nijmegen University and Erasmus University in The Netherlands, the University of California-Berkeley and the Robert M. LaFollette Institute of Public Affairs at the University of Wisconsin-Madison in the US. He has written or co-authored eleven books. Many articles written or co-authored by him are published in the fields of education, economics, public finance and development economics.

He is now honorary professor of Maastricht University, senior advisor to the International Institute of Labor Studies IZA in Bonn, member of the International Advisory Board of RANEPA (Moskou) and KAU (Jeddah), adviser to several ministers of education, Chair and Founder of Empower European Universities and Initiator of the Vibrant Europe Forum.April, 2012

From 1980, he worked in managerial and executive functions in education and ended his executive career in August 2004 as president of the Management Board of the ROC ASA (Institute for intermediate vocational training with locations in Amsterdam, Utrecht and Amersfoort). Total number of students: 17,000. Number of employees: 1,200. Budget: € 90 million.

Leo Lenssen has had several additional functions. Until 1 January 2005, he was chairman of the Supervisory Board of the Corporation of Christian Secondary Education in Utrecht (7,500 students). Until mid-2005, he was treasurer of the NSO, Dutch School for Educational Management.

Leo Lenssen was a member of the Board of the BVE-Raad (sector organization of secondary vocational education and training and adult education) and its predecessors. He was a director of employers’ and school managers’ organizations. As chairman of the steering committee OKF, he negotiated about the transfer of school buildings to the BVE institutes.

Leo Lenssen has written several publications in (specialist) journals, newspapers and books on (school) leadership, supervision and inspection, funding issues, managerial relations between education and government, educational developments in secondary vocational education and training, the Act on Education and Vocational Training, identity questions, quality assurance, educational innovation and finance. He was chairman of the Becoming Who We Are Foundation. This foundation aims at stimulating work participation of psychiatric and mentally handicapped people.

Leo Lenssen gives presentations and lectures for institutes, government organizations and companies. He organizes workshops, conferences and study groups. He acts as chairman of conferences and meetings. He advises (government) organizations, executive committees and managers on governance, innovation and leadership issues.

Leo Lenssen graduated in march 2011 on a thesis ‘Hoe sterk is de eenzame fietser?” This study focusses on the interaction between government policy and the individual and explores the impact of Dutch educational policy in general and the education system in particular on the development of the individual in recent decades. This involves discussion of the theme ‘accessibility’ of education, which encompasses how the education system and the individual interrelate and the factors that shape the associated outcomes.

Prior to joining the NIE, Dr Quek started his career as a school teacher and taught in Singapore schools at the primary, secondary and junior college levels for 18 years before being involved in teacher education in 1985.Over the past 25 years, he has served as the Deans of a School and Faculty Affairs of NIE. More recently, his roles within the Senior Management were to oversee the 12 academic departments, including Human Resource, Finance, Strategic Plan & Corporate Services.

In April 2007, Dr Quek was seconded to Emirates College for Advanced Education (ECAE), Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, as its first Vice-Chancellor. He started the College and launched the BEd & PGDE programmes and mounted professional development courses for the teachers in the Abu Dhabi Emirates. He returned to NIE to assume his roles again in December 2008.

Dr Quek graduated with BSc and MSc from the University of Oregon, USA, and his PhD from the University of Queensland, Australia. He had his professional certifications in Singapore. For his professional & academic contributions and years of service in education,Dr Quek was awarded three different National Day medals from the Singapore Government.

Ralph has been living in the Middle East since 2009 and until February this year, held the post of Chief Operating Officer and Chief of Schools at the leading private school operator, GEMS. He is renowned as a dynamic leader who is steeped in classroom practice. As a former teacher and researcher into how children study and learn, Ralph has expertise in curriculum, pedagogy, student assessment and the new technologies. His abiding interest remains, how do schools work best with parents to help them raise their children?

In the New Years Honours list of 2009, Her Majesty The Queen invested Ralph as a Companion of the Order of the Bath in recognition of his services to schools. He is a visiting professor at the Institute of Education, University of London and he is Secretary of the Dubai Private Schools Group.

Mr. Shediac has more than 15 years of experience working with governments in the Middle East region across a broad range of policy areas. He primarily focuses on the development of sustainable public-sector strategies, restructuring initiatives, operations improvement, and organization development.

Mr. Shediac holds an MBA from the University of Chicago, a master’s degree in engineering from the George Washington University, and a bachelor’s degree in civil engineering from the American University of Beirut.

Engineer, Economist and Politician, he is the author of several books including a best-selling memoir of his time in prison entitled Isla 10, that inspired the film Dawson, in 2009 Also Educacion Nuestra Riqueza, Editorial Santillana, 2005

President Sexton is a Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, a member of the Council on Foreign Relations, and a past member of the Executive Committee of the Association of American Universities. He is past Chair of the American Council on Education, the New York Academy of Sciences and the Commission on Independent Colleges and Universities of New York. He has served as the Chairman of the Board of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York and Chair of the Federal Reserve Systems Council of Chairs. He also serves on the Board of the Institute of International Education.

Before coming to NYU, President Sexton served as Law Clerk to Chief Justice Warren Burger of the United States Supreme Court (1980-1981), and to Judges David Bazelon and HaroldLeventhal of the United States Court of Appeals (1979-1980). For ten years (1983-1993), he served as Special Master Supervising Pretrial Proceedings in the Love Canal Litigation. From 1966-1975, he was a Professor of Religion at Saint Francis College in Brooklyn, where he was Department Chair from 1970-1975. President Sexton is passionate about teaching; in Academic Year 2011-2012, he is teaching four full courses.

President Sexton received a B.A. in History (1963) from Fordham College; an M.A. in Comparative Religion (1965) and a Ph.D. in History of American Religion (1978) from Fordham University; and a J.D. magna cum laude (1979) from Harvard Law School.

Prof Low joined National University of Singapore (NUS) in 1983. He established the Data Storage Institute in 1992 as Singapore embarked on its first National Technology Plan. In 1998 he returned to NUS as Dean of the Faculty of Engineering. Prof Low went on to build and led Republic Polytechnic from 2002 to 2008.

Prof Low was awarded the National Science and Technology Medal in 2004, the highest honour bestowed on an individual who has made distinguished, sustained and exceptional contributions, and played a strategic role in the development of Singapore through the promotion and management of R&D. In 2007 he was awarded the Public Administration Medal (Gold) by the President of Singapore for his outstanding contributions to the development of technical education and the management of science and technology for the nation.

Prof Low is currently the Managing Director, Agency for Science, Technology & Research. He also holds a tenured professorship at Nanyang Technological University (NTU) where he is Senior Advisor to the President of NTU. Prof Low is a Fellow of the IEEE and a Fellow of the Academy of Engineers, Singapore

Previously he served as National Research Coordinator and Executive Director of the US National Center which oversaw participation of the United States in the IEA sponsored Third International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS).He has published in numerous journals including the Journal of the American Statistical Association, Journal of Educational Statistics, and the Journal of Educational Measurement. He has co-authored seven books including *Why Schools Matter*.

His current writing and research concerns issues of academic content in K-12 schooling, assessment theory and the effects of curriculum on academic achievement. He is also concerned with educational policy related to mathematics, science and testing in general. He was awarded the Honorary Doctorate Degree at Concordia University in 1997 and received the1998 Willard Jacobson Lectureship from The New York Academy of Sciences and is a member of the National Academy of Education.

In the mid 1990s he founded and was Managing Director of the central organisation representing free schools in Sweden.

In 1999 Anders co-founded Kunskapsskolan. He was Chief Executive of this company for eight years during which time the company became the largest provider of secondary education in Scandinavia operating 25 schools with almost 10,000 students.

Between 2007 and 2009 Anders was based in London in order to establish the company in the UK. Following this he served as CEO for GEMS UK before being appointed, in 2010, as Managing Director for School Improvement at Pearson UK.

Andy has received many awards including an Honorary Doctorate from Scandinavia’s oldest university (Uppsala) and the Whitworth Award for contributions to educational research in Canada.

Since 2006 he is UNESCO, Chairman of the Working Group on Debt Swaps for Education

He is Professor at UBA (University of Buenos Aires), and Researcher for the CONICET, National Council of Scientific and Technological Investigations. He has been a consultant and adviser in various National and International Organizations such as OAS, OEI and IBD.

Dean of Latin American Faculty of Social Sciences (FLACSO).

Awarded by UNESCO with the Jan Amos Comenius Medal.

Proposed and passed laws for Educational Innovation:
-National Education Law Nº 26.206 passed December 14th 2006, entry into force December 28 th 2006.
-Educational Finance Law Nº 26.075 passed December 21 st, entry into force January 9th 2006.
-Professional-Technical Education Law Nº 26.058, passed September 2005, entry into force September 8 th 2005.

During this period he had overall responsibility for managing a large Government Ministry, implementing and monitoring policy and delivering outputs. An important part of his role as Secretary General was the provision of high-quality policy advice and briefing to successive Ministers and, as administrative head of the Ministry, agreeing with each Minister outputs for the Ministry in the implementation of policy.

During his term as Secretary General, Mr Dennehy worked closely with successive Ministers, to initiate and implement an unprecedented program of change and development, both within the Ministry and in the wider education sector, aimed at raising the quality of education and significantly improving customer service and accountability. This included the most important program of structural, administrative, legislative and curricular reform undertaken in the history of the Ministry.

Before his appointment as Secretary General, Mr. Dennehy held many key, senior positions within the Ministry, prior to which he was a Divisional Inspector of Schools, a Principal Teacher and a teacher. He was Chairman of Ireland’s Teacher In-Career Development Committee and a member of the Irish National Council for Curriculum and Development.

From 2000 to 2006, Mr Dennehy was also Chairman of the prestigious Education Committee of the OECD (Paris).

During the past five years he has been the Director of Education at International Development Ireland (IDI). During this time he has led an expert team involved in providing world-class consultancy and project management on all aspects of Education and Training across the world.

From 2008 to date, Mr Dennehy has acted as a visiting international education expert/advisor for the Abu Dhabi Education Council (ADEC) on the preparation and implementation of its Strategic Plan for Education. He has also participated in a number of workshops on education reform strategies, quality control and inspection of schools for ADEC.

Since the end of his term as Secretary General, he has also served as an independent expert/advisor on education reform to a number of Education Ministers and Ministries in the Middle East, Asia and Eastern Europe.

Gordon Brown served as Prime Minister of Great Britain and Northern Ireland from June 2007 to May 2010. As Prime Minister, Brown made major changes to how Britain tackles health, education, defense, crime, energy and foreign policy. He is widely credited with preventing a second great depression through his negotiation of the global deal at the London Summit—a meeting of the G20—which he hosted in the middle of the financial crisis. Prior to serving as Prime Minister, he had served as Chancellor of the Exchequer in 1997 and held that position until 2007, making him the longest active Chancellor in modern history. During his ten years at the head of the treasury, he presided over the longest ever period of growth, made the Bank of England independent and delivered an agreement to support the world’s poorest countries and address climate change. The distinguished global leader in residence at New York University and an adviser to the World Economic Forum, Brown is also the author of Beyond the Crash: Overcoming the First Crisis of Globalization, which focuses on the monetary crisis, global trade and the next stage of globalization. In his next book, 2025: Shaping a New Future (November 2012), Brown charts the massive technological, demographic, social and political forces–including the explosive growth of a global middle class–reinventing our world.

Born on 15 May 1947 in Muar, Johor, he is married to Puan Sri Noorainee Abdul Rahman and has 4 children.

Tan Sri Muhyiddin Hj. Mohd Yassin had his early education in Muar, Johor. His educational excellence had enabled him to be selected to further his studies at the Universiti Malaya, one of Malaysia’s renowned institutions for tertiary education. In 1970, he graduated from the university with a Bachelor’s Degree of Arts with Honours in the Economics and Malay Studies.

Tan Sri Muhyiddin Hj. Mohd Yassin has been a Member of the Parliament of Malaysia since 1978 and has since then been holding several posts in the Government, which include, Parliament Secretary of Foreign Ministry (July 1981 - April 1982), Deputy Minister of the Federal Territory (May 1982 – May 1983), Deputy Minister of Trade and Industry (June 1983 – August 1986), Chief Minister of Johor (August 1986 – May 1995), Minister of Youth and Sports (May 1995 – December 1999), Minister of Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs (December 1999 – January 2004), as well as Minister of Agriculture and Agro-based Industry (January 2004 – March 2008).

In the recent elections of the United Malays National Organisation (UMNO) i.e. Malaysia's largest political party and a founding member of the Barisan Nasional ruling coalition, on 26 March 2009, Tan Sri Muhyiddin Hj. Mohd Yassin had won the party’s number 2 post, which is the Deputy President of UMNO

Adkisson commenced with SMART in February 2007 where he assumed the advocacy and lobbying role for the North American K–12 market segment. Adkisson joined SMART from Intel® Corporation, bringing with him a unique skill set and valuable market insight. During his 10 years at Intel, Adkisson held several positions, including management roles in project and software development, and enterprise architecture. Most recently, he was a strategic marketing manager focusing on the K–12 segment in the Americas marketing group.

Prior to arriving at SMART, Mick spent the past 21 years in the information industry holding a variety of positions within The Boeing Company, Starbucks Corporation and Intel Corporation. Working on many engineering and information related programs, Mick has a very diverse background in software product development processes and technologies. Mick holds a Master of Science in Information System Management from Seattle Pacific University. In addition to his professional experience, Mick brings a personal perspective to his education experience. He has been surrounded by educators his entire life, including his wife, her mother and grandmother, who are all teachers; his brother, head running coach and instructor at Central Washington University; and his father, a retired administrator from the University of Washington, Seattle University and City University. This extended network gives Mick a firsthand experience how technology in the classroom makes an immense difference in how teachers teach and students learn.

He obtained his MBA from INSEAD and his Bachelor of Engineering from the American University of Beirut.

Michael Stevenson is Vice President, Global Public Sector: Strategy, Education and Healthcare, with responsibility for coordinating the development of public sector strategies worldwide to accelerate growth and oversee Global Education and Global Healthcare organizations.

Previously Michael led the Global Education team for five years actively engaging in the work of transforming education systems to meet the needs of 21st century learners, educators, and organizations through an innovative and dynamic approach to thought leadership, country education engagements, and global programs. Michael was responsible for developing Cisco’s education strategy and leading implementation in countries around the world.

Michael has built his expertise in education technology through roles in government and the media. Until September 2006 he was Chief Information Officer and Director of Technology at the Department for Education and Skills in England, driving the use of ICT in schools, colleges and universities. Before that he was DFES Director of Strategy.

From 2000 to 2003, he founded and led the BBC’s Factual and Learning Directorate, responsible for factual programmes and content across television, radio and online and spearheading an innovative education strategy that created an online curriculum for children at school and at home.

After studying Classics at Oxford, he joined the BBC as a graduate trainee. As a programme maker he specialised in politics and religion, going on to found and edit the flagship political programme On the Record. He then went into management, initially as BBC Secretary for the years leading up to the successful 1996 Charter Renewal. In 1996 he became Deputy Director of Nations and Regions, leading BBC Scotland and BBC Wales through the period of political devolution.