Theme: Values Worth Spreading

Values make for best ideas as they grow deeper into individuals and society, therefore closer to the material and immaterial needs of the time!

St. George's Bastion
Medieval Town
Rhodes, Notio Aigaio, 85100
Greece

Anna Moody

Anna is a creative thinker, serial entrepreneur, branding specialist and mother to Ariadne with over 25 years experience in creativity & design and loves hotels, architecture and Rhodes - where she spent the last 18 years. During that time she ran a design office responsible for major branding projects in the region and started her own fashion label for executive women. Currently in the UK she works for a leading organisation developing assistive technology for people with special needs, dedicated to improving lives and embracing inclusivity through technology. In her spare time, Anna blogs for the Huffington Post and teaches mindfulness to teenagers. In 2013 she embarked on a path to self-discovery, looking inward to find the meaning to all the chaos of life and harness the energy within. This journey resulted in a life-changing understanding that is revealed in her talk!

Eleni Sotiriou

Eleni Sotiriou is the founder of 'Doctors of the Heart', an award-winning Greek NGO that has been rushing to offer humanitarian relief in the form of medical and pharmaceutical aid to crisis-stricken areas around the world.

George Barboutis

George A. Barboutis was born in Alexandria Egypt and moved to Greece at an early age. In 1979 he graduated from the University of Piraeus and after receiving a scholarship from Bodossakis Foundation he went to New York where he received two postgraduate degrees in the areas of Strategic Management and International Marketing & Corporate Communications . In addition, he visited Paris where he studied International Hospitality Tourism Management at IMHI ( Cornell University - ESSEC ( Ecole Superieure des Sciences Economiques et Commerciales ). In 1999, he became the pioneer of the innovative initiative for the creation of a millennium project with a cultural monument inspired ideologically from the ancient wonder of the Colossus of Rhodes dedicated to the universal values of world peace, friendship and collaboration amongst people and countries.

George Chatzimarkos

Born and bred on Rhodes island, George Chatzimarkos is the Governor of South Aegean. He has been involved in local community affairs since 1997 when he rose from district financial supervisor to lead the independent municipal movement that held the opposition for four years, before winning a bid to lead the South Aegean District as Governor. He currently also serves as the president of the international think tank 'Conference of Peripheral Maritime Regions of Europe.

Leonidas Sakellarides

Dr. Leonidas Sakellarides is an international soloist and music teacher in advanced theoretical studies. His professional experience involves conducting, composing and performing in classical singing and violin. He is also the founder and conductor of Rhodes Camerata orchestra and the Xeni Emner student music ensemble as well as the assistant director of the Rhodes Children’s Choir and the Experimental choir of the island. His works have been presented internationally and he has published with Nakas publications and York University press publications.

Melanie Vangopoulos

Born in New York City, Melanie Vangopoulos moved to Greece at the age of 12 and spent her teenage years growing up on the island of Rhodes. She holds a Bachelor’s degree in Economics & Italian and is a CFA Charterholder. Having achieved great success in her Finance career, Melanie has turned to helping others find their own greatness. An avid student of positive psychology & mental wellness, she is currently training to become a Success Coach. As the founder of a Facebook page entitled «Καθημερινή Ευγνωμοσύνη» (Daily Gratitude), Melanie inspires over 12000 people in Greece to live their best possible life with motivational posts focused on Gratitude & the power of a positive mindset.

Nima Veiseh

Nima Veiseh researches at the intersection of systems, sustainability and design. As a designer and painter, he is the founder of 'Dress Abstract', a sustainable clothing line, and his art has been internationally showcased in galleries in New York & London. As an academic, he dedicates his research toward exploring issues of sustainability and balance within the real-life structures around us. Veiseh’s unique perspective is enabled by Hyperthymesia, an extremely rare condition of having highly superior memory. Hyperthymesia is known to affect 50 people worldwide, and means he remembers every day of his life like film since the age of 15. Hyperthymesia allows him to both paint and perform research, by enabling him to see life in terms of many layers and systems.

Panagiotis Ioannidis

Panagiotis has a long experience in tourism management mainly out of a tiny Greek resort called Pefkos on the island of Rhodes. When his academic background in business management was upgraded through a course in marketing and communication studies, he started seeing the opportunities that laid dormant in his hometown of Pefkos. Mainly the power of teamwork in dealing with everyday problems but also turning a destination into one of the most successful ones in the south-eastern Mediterranean area.

Vaios Lappas

A member of the Greek Diaspora, Vaios was born near Toronto, Canada and moved with his family to Rhodes when he was 9 years old. He holds a B. Eng in Aerospace Engineering from Ryerson University (Toronto, Canada), an MSc in Space Technology at NASA (Goddard Space Flight Centre) through the International Space University (France) and a PhD in Space Vehicle Control at the University of Surrey (UK). He has led various significant research grants on satellite technology, space missions, space debris, funded by the United Stated Air Force, NASA, Airbus, European Space Agency and the European Commission. He is currently a Professor in Aerospace Systems at Cranfield University (UK) and a Research Professor with the Department of Mechanical Engineering & Aeronautics at the University of Patras (Greece). He currently travels between Rhodes, Patras and Cranfield (UK) and his hobbies include TRX training, cycling and development of novel renewable energy technology.