LISTEN TO THE Speakers
Francesca Imperiale
Associate Professor of Business Administration at University of Salento

Francesca Imperiale
Associate Professor of Business Administration at University of Salento
Francesca Imperiale is an Associate Professor of Business Administration at the University of Salento, Italy. Since 2008, she has been teaching management of cultural organizations, with a focus on heritage assets management. She has specialized her research activities in this field on the following topics: public-private governance, community engagement, co-creation processes, heritage asset accounting and network performance. She is currently the President of ENCATC – European Network on Cultural Management and Policy.
Gian Paolo Manzella
Undersecretary @ MISE

Gian Paolo Manzella
Undersecretary @ MISE
Gian Paolo Manzella held many positions at the Commercial Bank of Italy, the Italian AntiTrust Authority, the Court of Justice, the Ministry of Economy, and the European Investment Bank. He moved to politics covering the role of Regional Councilor for economic development of the Lazio Region, becoming promoter of “Startup, Lazio!”, “Lazio Creativo”, and the “Città della Cultura del Lazio” award. Since 2019, he has been the Undersecretary of the Ministry of Economic Development for the Italian Government.
Valentina Montalto
Head of Cultural and Creative Cities Monitor’project @ DG Joint Research Centre

Valentina Montalto
Head of Cultural and Creative Cities Monitor’project @ DG Joint Research Centre
With a 10-year experience in international working environments, Valentina Montalto has dealt with European policies and statistics for the Cultural and Creative Sectors, development of indicators and impact assessment of cultural investments through the Cities. Valentina currently works at the Joint Research Centre of the European Commission where she leads the Cultural and Creative Cities Monitor project. She regularly take part in conferences as a speaker. Her TEDx talk How important is culture in our cities? is available on YouTube.
Aldo Patruno
General Director of Tourism and Culture of the Puglia Region

Aldo Patruno
General Director of Tourism and Culture of the Puglia Region
General Director of the department of Tourism and Culture of the Puglia Region. He is public manager with experience in urban transformations, development, enhancement and disposal of public real estate assets (state and local). Areas of expertise: management of complex public-public/private partnership initiatives. Strategic planning. Territorial enhancement. State-owned federalism. Development of network projects and structuring of real estate finance transactions.
Davide De Nicolò
Chief Project Officer @ Tecnopolis PST

Davide De Nicolò
Chief Project Officer @ Tecnopolis PST
Chief Project Officer of Tecnopolis with specific experience in marketing, technology transfer and start-up of innovative businesses. He has been involved for over 10 years in international projects of cooperation and technical assistance. In recent years, he has consolidated specific experience in the activity of audit and scouting of research results of research groups from the academic, and from public research institutions too. He has also experience in the activity of exploiting the results of research and facilitating innovation and enterprise as trainer for young people
Gianfranco Gadaleta
JS Coordinator @ Interreg V-A Greece-Italy Programme

Gianfranco Gadaleta
JS Coordinator @ Interreg V-A Greece-Italy Programme
Expert in social economy and European Structural Funds Management
Irini Kafousia
Chamber of Achaia

Irini Kafousia
Chamber of Achaia
Economist – Development Coordinator – Project Manager
Born in Patras, with studies in Economic Science, she has been working for the last 15 years in the management and coordination field of co-financed European projects mainly for the public sector in Greece. Fields of expertise is planning, procurement, monitoring, control and execution of a project according to project management processes and project management information systems.
Tina Ranieri
JS Project Officer @ Interreg V-A Greece-Italy Programme

Tina Ranieri
JS Project Officer @ Interreg V-A Greece-Italy Programme
Expert in European projects Management
Carmela Sfregola
JS Communication Officer @ Interreg V-A Greece-Italy Programme

Carmela Sfregola
JS Communication Officer @ Interreg V-A Greece-Italy Programme
Communication Strategist and social media expert
Giorgia Boldrini
Head @ Incredibol

Giorgia Boldrini
Head @ Incredibol
Expert on culture and creative industries, Giorgia Boldrini is Head of the Cultural Promotion Office of the City of Bologna, Italy. With a 20-year experience in the field, in 2010 she created and still manages 'Incredibol!' a project for the development of CCIs in Emilia-Romagna region.
Laura Moro
Director of the Central Institute for the Digitization of Cultural Heritage - Digital Library

Laura Moro
Director of the Central Institute for the Digitization of Cultural Heritage - Digital Library
Architect and PhD in Conservation of Architectural Heritage, since 2000 she has held various roles within the Ministry of Heritage and Cultural Activities and Tourism: from 2009 to 2018 she directed the Central Institute for Catalog and Documentation; between 2018 and 2020 she was director of the Institute of Cultural Heritage of the Emilia-Romagna Region; she currently holds the position of director of the Central Institute for the Digitization of Cultural Heritage - Digital Library of MiBACT
Vincenzo Bellini
President @ Apulia Creative Cluster Association

Vincenzo Bellini
President @ Apulia Creative Cluster Association
Founder and CEO of Bass Culture, an Italian based live music events company and booking agency founded in 2001. The focus of the company is to spread high-quality music and support the artists in their career. Bass Culture organises Locus Festival, one of the most important Italian and International music Festivals. Since 2013, he is President of Apulia Creative Cluster Association, the network of cultural and creative enterprises recognized by Apulia Region.
Domenico Sturabotti
Head of Fondazione Symbola

Domenico Sturabotti
Head of Fondazione Symbola
Landscape architect. Since 2007, he has been the head of the Symbola Foundation for Italian Quality. Since 2005, he has coordinated all the research activities of the foundation. He is author of essays and articles on the topics of made in Italy, the creative and cultural industry, the green and circular economy. He has worked for the Protected Areas and Territory Office of the national Legambiente for which he has carried out research on sustainable tourism, territorial development and collaborated in the implementation of the APE - Apennine Park of Europe project.
Anna Ressa
Freelancer - Project manager

Anna Ressa
Freelancer - Project manager
Firm supporter of the value of culture as a source of innovative solutions for the development of territories and economy. As EU Project Designer and Manager, Anna Ressa is in charge of writing and management of funded projects in the following sectors: culture, innovative development of companies, agriculture and local promotion, enhancement of local ecosystems, youth participation, technological innovation and international cooperation.
Gianluca Galletto
Principal & Managing Director @ Global Futures Group, LLC

Gianluca Galletto
Principal & Managing Director @ Global Futures Group, LLC
Entrepreneurial leader with international public and private sector experience. Smart Cities expert. Works with CEOs and boards, governments, nonprofits and universities. Investor, mentor for startups, with a passion for social impact, sustainability and inclusion.
Leveraging a strong technical background in economics complemented by cross-cultural relationship-building, leadership, and management skills. Extensive U.S. and global network of top-level relationships in the corporate, government, and institutional investment sectors.
Manuel Toscano
Co-Founder @ Future’s People

Manuel Toscano
Co-Founder @ Future’s People
Manuel has helped changemakers, innovators and corporate clients bridge the gap between business and design. His career started by studying photography at the Corcoran College of Art in Washington and later he received his masters at the School of Visual Arts (SVA) in New York. Manuel served in the communications advisory board at Human Rights Watch, on the board of the Photo Agency VII, and as National Director of Social Engagement for Design for Good at the AIGA. He is currently co-founder and Partner of Future’s People.
Mario Vaglio
Owner & Creative Director @ RIGHT SIDE STUDIO

Mario Vaglio
Owner & Creative Director @ RIGHT SIDE STUDIO
An expertise, developed on top brands, covering everything that a company or a brand needs to do in order to grow, using communication and marketing as daily tools, success oriented. Mario Vaglio supports companies in designing and developing Marketing & Digital Marketing strategies in order to develop their businesses.
Through the studio, he offers services in communication strategy, creative strategy, creative direction, art direction, for traditional medias, new medias and online ADV both as stand-alone or integrated and cross-media ADV.
Piero Magri
General Coordinator @ CART’ARMATA EDIZIONI SRL

Piero Magri
General Coordinator @ CART’ARMATA EDIZIONI SRL
Piero Magri is one of the 4 partners of the “Cart’armata edizioni srl” company. He works in implementing and managing projects related to ethical consumption and new lifestyles. He supports the Fa’ la cosa giusta! Fair (Do the right thing!), as well as the “Scuola delle buon pratiche”, school of good practices for local administrators.
Lara D’Argento
Growth hacker @ The Hub Bari

Lara D’Argento
Growth hacker @ The Hub Bari
Growth hacking specialist, Lara D’Argento strongly believes that innovation happens at the intersection. For this reason, she dedicated her training and professional experiences in Italy and abroad to culture and technology. She provides startups and established companies in the cultural sector with digital marketing counseling and coaching for their professional development and growth.
Cinzia Lagioia
Director @ Distretto Produttivo Puglia Creativa

Cinzia Lagioia
Director @ Distretto Produttivo Puglia Creativa
Director of Puglia Creativa. She has proven experience in design and management of projects financed by European structural funds and European territorial cooperation programmes. Cinzia Lagioia is attorney, senior consultant and teacher for the strategic planning of local development from a system perspective, with the opportunities offered by European, national and regional infrastructure policies in the following fields: culture and creativity, development, environment, and legality.
Giuseppina Antonaci
President @ ITS TURISMO PUGLIA

Giuseppina Antonaci
President @ ITS TURISMO PUGLIA
Headteacher and Expert in planning and methodology for education. She acquired skills in educational themes about sustainability and inclusion of each individual in compliance with their aptitudes and potential. As President of ITS Foundation for Tourism and Cultural Heritage of Puglia, she is helping in enhancing the quality and distinctive features of specialistic training in the service sector. The aim is turning tourism from an episodic phenomenon into a high-level territorial offer, promoting integration among supply chains working in tourism.
Michele De Luca
Project developer @ The Qube APS

Michele De Luca
Project developer @ The Qube APS
Designer and expert in subsidized finance, after attending a course in Project Management, he started the collaboration as a project manager and content editor on behalf of TQC srl to support the start-up of entrepreneurial projects in Puglia.
Fausto D’Elia
Creative Director @ XCUBE3D

Fausto D’Elia
Creative Director @ XCUBE3D
Creative Director, Project Manager, Immersive 3DShow® Producer, Tourism Manager. He has written and proposed several shows for national Villages and for the international Robinson Club. Over the years, he has continued his studies on emotional intelligence and emotional marketing, experiencing a synchronized interaction between the artist and the scene. This interaction is capable of convincing the viewer that the multimedia elements are real. In 2013, he refined and presented his first and complete Live Performance for the XCube3D project at the BIT Fair in Milan.
Luisa Mancarella
Choreographer

Luisa Mancarella
Choreographer
Player and dancer, Luisa started her training in the South of Italy in her hometown, Lecce, at the “Miracles dance” dance school. Here, she won many competitions: various 1st places in acrobatic Rock and roll, Mambo and freestyle Jazz dance. She moved on to the musical theatre school “MAS” (music art and show) in Milan (Italy), where she got her diploma. Working internationally, Luisa could continue studying at important Dance schools such as: IALS Roma (Italy), Marameo Ballet Centrum Berlin (Germany), Pinapple London (UK).
Stefano Faccini
President @ Eclettica - Cultura dell’Arte

Stefano Faccini
President @ Eclettica - Cultura dell’Arte
President of the Eclettica association since 2016, he is a multifaceted artist: among the arts he practices - drawing, painting, scenography, writing - he prefers stone carving and related materials and has skills in restoration. In the course of his professional and creative activity, he brought together several artistic groups and set up associations. In Italy and abroad, he has organized sculpture symposiums and received numerous awards. He created stone sculptures, including monumental ones, commissioned by public and private.
Giusy Caroppo
Art historian and independent curator, expert in integrated enhancement

Giusy Caroppo
Art historian and independent curator, expert in integrated enhancement
Art historian and curator, she is the artistic director of the "Circuito del Contemporaneo” project in Puglia and an expert in integrated enhancement. Several projects of contemporary art, international cooperation, research, and innovation, conceived and organized in major attractions, public or unconventional spaces, with national and international artists.
Vassilis Papaioannou
Project Manager of SPARC @ Municipality of Patras

Vassilis Papaioannou
Project Manager of SPARC @ Municipality of Patras
Vassilis Papaioannou was born in Patras in 1972, studied Electrical and Computer Engineering at the University of Patras and works at Municipality of Patras since 1998 at the Department of Planning and Studies. He has been Project Manager in EU funded Projects. He has also attended studies in Painting, Photography and Ceramics. He has organized four solo photography exhibitions and participated in 15 group ones and publication of one Photography alboum. He has participated in 25 group ceramics exhibitions in Greece and abroad and organized 5 ones in Greece.
George Sarlis
Co-founder - Consultant @ MOSAIC // Culture and Creativity

George Sarlis
Co-founder - Consultant @ MOSAIC // Culture and Creativity
George is a Cultural Manager, Consultant on EU Grants and Policy Advisor for Local Authorities.
He co-founded MOSAIC // CULTURE & CREATIVITY, an organization that support cultural innovation, creative entrepreneurship and activating the creative industries potential.
Today, he is a member of the Pool of Experts that provide capacity building and peer-learning services to upcoming European Capitals of Culture (ECOC) in the “Capacity Building for European Capitals of Culture” EU initiative.