Ray Acheson is the Director of Reaching Critical Will, the disarmament programme of the Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom, for which they provide analysis and advocacy at the United Nations and other international forums on matters of disarmament. Ray also serves on the steering groups of the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons, which won the 2017 Nobel Peace Prize, as well as Stop Killer Robots and the International Network on Explosive Weapons. They have written Banning the Bomb, Smashing the Patriarchy (Rowman & Littlefield, 2021) and Abolishing State Violence: A World Beyond Bombs, Borders, and Cages (Haymarket Books, 2022).
[ Photo by Tim Wright ]

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Alfredo Aguilar holds a PhD in biochemistry and is former Head of the Units of Biotechnology and International Scientific Cooperation at the Directorate-General for Research and Innovation of the European Commission in Brussels. He played a key role in the development of the European Bioeconomy Strategy, as well as in the creation of the Joint Undertakings «Innovative Medicines Initiative» and «Bio-based Industries». He is Professor of Microbiology at the Universities of León and Complutense of Madrid, and a senior international expert on bioeconomy, food security, sustainability, climate change and the science-society dialogue.

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Eduardo Barcesat is an Argentinian jurist, UNESCO expert on human rights and Professor at the University of Buenos Aires. He is also a founding member of the American Association of Jurists.

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Dr. Ramzy Baroud is a journalist and the Editor of The Palestine Chronicle. He is the author of six books. His latest book, co-edited with Ilan Pappé, is “Our Vision for Liberation: Engaged Palestinian Leaders and Intellectuals Speak out”. Baroud is a Non-resident Senior Research Fellow at the Center for Islam and Global Affairs (CIGA). His website is www.ramzybaroud.net.

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Laura Basu is a writer and independent scholar affiliated with the Institute for Cultural Inquiry, Utrecht University and Goldsmiths, University of London. She is the co-founder of the Amsterdam-based project Good Societies, which aims to develop ideas for new social structures. Since 2019, she has been Europe Editor for openDemocracy’s new economics section, ourEconomy.

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Bob Black is an American social philosopher known for his work on anarchism. The author of various books and numerous political essays, he specializes in the sociology and ethnography of law. He is a graduate of the University of Michigan and Georgetown Law School. He is most widely known for his 1985 essay «The Abolition of Work,» which has been widely disseminated in at least 13 languages. His most recent publication, «Instead of Work,» includes a compendium of his writings and an update on his 1985 essay.

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Colleen Boland is Research Manager at Common Action Forum. She holds an M.A. from SOAS, University of London and PhD in Sociology of Migration from Complutense University of Madrid. She has previously served as Managing Editor of the International Journal of Health Services. Research areas of interest include international migration, diversity management and religion.

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David Bollier is an American activist, scholar, and blogger who is focused on the commons. He is Director of the Reinventing the Commons Program at the Schumacher Center for a New Economics. He is the author of The Commoner’s Catalog for Changemaking (2021) and coauthor of Free, Fair and Alive: The Insurgent Power of the Commons (2019), among other books.

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Simone Buratti served as former Executive Director of The International Association for the Study of the Commons, and previously worked on sustainable lifestyles, migration and sustainable communities. He is a PhD candidate in Sustainability Science at UNAM, México and holds an MA from the University of Bologna in Contemporary History. He currently works on urban commons, public space and sustainable development.

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Judith Butler is Maxine Elliot Professor in the Department of Comparative Literature and the Critical Theory programme at the University of California, Berkeley. She also serves as Hannah Arendt Chair and Professor of Philosophy at The European Graduate School (EGS) and stands out as a key figure in the history of Gender Studies.

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Patricio Cabello is Researcher at the Center for Advanced Research in Education at the University of Chile. He holds his PhD and MAs in Anthropology and Social Research Methods. Leading several projects, he has consulted for UNESCO and UNICEF.

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A former employment lawyer and magistrate, Manuela Carmena recently governed as mayor of Madrid from 2015 to 2019.  She served as a judge for over 30 years, as well as spokesperson for Spain’s General Council of the Judiciary from 1996 to 2001. She co-founded the law firm targeted in an infamous far-right terrorist attack, known as the Atocha massacre. She retired in 2010 and founded an NGO to support underprivileged collectives through local trade. She has also served as Chair-Rapporteur of the United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary Detention, and has authored several books.

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Fernando Carrión Mena is an architect with a doctorate in Urban Regional Development. He founded the Organization for Latin American and Caribbean Historical Centers (OLACCHI), is the President of the Research Center CIUDAD and General Coordinator of the Latin American Cities Network. He was recognized by ESGLOBAL one of the top 50 most influential intellectuals in Ibero-America. He is a researcher at FLACSO Ecuador, and teaches and consults at diverse institutions. He also served as representative of the Metropolitan District of Quito.

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Marta Cazorla is an editor, translator and economist specialised in political economy. She has a Master’s in International Economy and Development and is a worker owner at Guerrilla Media Collective, a translation and editorial services co-op with a strong focus in feminism and the commons which believes that translation is a powerful catalyst for social transformation.

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Sofía Coca is, since 2005, a partner and member of the coordination team for ZEMOS98, a cooperative with more than 20 years experience in cultural production and research. The cooperatives’ focus is on developing mediation methods that spark relationships between activists, artists, academics, foundations and public institutions, aiming for social change. At ZEMOS98, Sofía is responsible for managing the exchange of knowledge, community relations and the working team. Currently she also serves as the coordinator of PLANEA in Andalusia, a network promoting art in schools.

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Herta Däubler-Gmelin served as Germany’s Minister of Justice (1998 – 2002) and as congresswoman in the Bundestag for over 30 years and SPD vice-president for ten years.  She chaired the Committee on Legal Affairs and Human Rights of the Council of Europe Parliamentary Assembly. She has written several books, continues to practice law, integrates the board of many civil society organizations and is Honorary Professor of Political Sciences, International Law and Humanitarian Law at the Free University of Berlin.

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Romualdo Dias is a professor in the São Paulo State University and visiting professor in the University of Bologna (Italy) and the University of the Republic (Uruguay). He has a PhD in Philosophy (UNICAMP/Brasil), and a postdoctoral degree in Political Science (Universidad Complutense de Madrid). He has authored two books: Imágenes de orden and Educación de Jóvenes y Adultos: nuevas perspectivas, among others. His research focuses on popular education, political philosophy and psychoanalysis.

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Named one of Spain’s top 100 women, Maysoun Douas is Madrid City Councilwoman and works on Economy, Education, Employment and Entrepreneurship. She holds a PhD in Physic and serves as President of the Tamkeen Foundation.

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Rafael Fernandez, political scientist and PhD of Economics, is a senior lecturer at the Complutense University of Madrid (UCM) and researcher for the Complutense Institute for International Studies (ICEI). He is the co-director of the group Political Economy and Globalisation (EPM) and a member of the Clacso Energy and Sustainability working group. He is co-author of La decadencia económica de Rusia (The decadence of the Russian economy) and has published numerous articles and book chapters on the Russian energy industry and international energy relations. He is currently serving as Vice Dean of Research and Doctoral Studies for the Department of Economics and Business Studies at UCM.

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Mariano Gómez Aranda is Ph.D. in Semitic Philology and currently a researcher at CSIC (the Spanish State Science Institution). He specializes in medieval Hebrew texts on science and on interpretations of the Bible. His various publications relate science and Judaism in the medieval period, and deal on the role of Jews in the transmission of science. He has directed several publicly funded research projects; the most recent is “Science and Religion in Medieval Judaism.” He has been Director of the CSIC “Biblical, Hebraic and Sephardic Studies” series, as well as Professor at New York University in Madrid and Middlebury College, USA.

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Rebeca Grynspan has served as Ibero-American Secretary General since 2014. She is former Vice President of her country of origin, Costa Rica, where she held office from 1994 to 1998. In 2010, she was elected UN Under-Secretary-General. She is also a former Associate Administrator of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), where she additionally served as regional director for Latin America and the Caribbean. She is a member of the G20 High Level Independent Panel on financing the global commons for pandemic preparedness and response, as well as many other entities. She holds a master’s degree in economics.

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Joe Guldi is Associate Professor of History at Southern Methodist University, where she teaches text mining and the history of technology. An expert in the history of Britain and its empire, other areas of expertise include questions of state expansion, the contestation of property under capitalism, and the how state and property concepts are articulated in the landscape of the built environment.

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Rafael Heiber is the Co-Founder and CEO of the Common Action Forum. Geographer, MSc. in Spatial planning and PhD in Sociology, his expertise includes mobilities, climatology, politics and the links between territory, technology and citizenship. He advises journalists, provides commentary and publishes in the international media.

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Wadah Khanfar is the Chairman and Co-founder of Common Action Forum. He previously served as the Director General of Al Jazeera, transforming it from a single channel to a media network. He is also the President of the Al Sharq Forum and board member of several distinguished think-tanks such as the International Crisis Group. In 2011 Wadah was ranked first in Foreign Policy’s Top 100 Global Thinkers.

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Steve Keen is an Australian economist and author, known for his work on a post-Keynesian economic approach that criticizes neoclassical economics. He formerly was associate professor of economics at University of Western Sydney, as well as was professor and Head of the School of Economics, History and Politics at Kingston University in London. He continues his work on a monetary, complex systems approach to economics on his Patreon blog as at the Centre for Policy Development.

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Felipe Llamas Sánchez is Madrid City Councilman and Professor at the Social and Juridical Sciences Faculty of Carlos III University, Madrid. He has worked on the World Forums on Urban Violence and Education for Coexistence and Peace I and II. A founding partner of PHARE Territorios Globales, he is an expert in participatory governance and international collaboration among local governments.

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María Lois holds a PhD in Political Science and Sociology from the Complutense University of Madrid, where she teaches Political Geography in the Department of Political Science and Sociology since 2001. She is the deputy director of the magazine Geopolítica(s) and coordinates the International Political Science Association’s (IPSA) Research Committee on Political and Cultural Geography (RC15).

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Andrés Lomeña holds degrees in Journalism and Literary Theory, as well as a PhD in Sociology. He teaches philosophy and published Ficcionologia (2016), El Periodista de partículas (2017), Rescoldos Mentales (2018) and the script of the award-winning short-movie Psicopolis. He writes for the Huffington Post.

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Irene López has a degree in International Relations and a Master’s in Human Rights. She has worked as chief of staff, analyst and consultant for political parties in both Spain and Ecuador. She served as an international aid worker in refugee camps and headed political advocacy at various organizations.

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Leticia Merino holds a PhD in anthropology and is professor at the Institute of Social Research (IIS/UNAM), Mexico, where she also teaches the Postgraduate Program on Sustainability Sciences. She has served as member of the Committee for Development Policies of the United Nations since 2016 and collaborated for 15 years, in research and teaching projects with Elinor Ostrom, Nobel Price on Economics, 2009. She has authored and coauthored more than 80 articles and book chapters, as well as six books.

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Emilio Muñoz Ruiz is honorary researcher at the Department of Science, Technology and Society (CTS) of the Institute of Philosophy (IFS) of the Spanish National Research Council (CSIC). He is a partner at the Spanish Association for the Advancement of Science (AEAC) and a member of its Advisory Board. He has served as Director General of Scientific Policy, Secretary General of the Spanish Committee on Scientific and Technical Research (CAICYT) and the Spanish National Research and Dissemination Program, as well as President of CSIC. He also forms part of the CSIC research project, «Scientific, philosophical and social analysis of COVID-19: Social impact, ethical implications and culture pandemic prevention.»

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Antonio Penedo Picos is a teacher of literary studies at the Autonomous University of Barcelona. His Academic publications are focused on hermeneutics, semiotics and new historicism. In 2020 he published an article in “Seeds of Hope: 12 Perspectives on the COVID Pandemic”.

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Jesús Rey Rocha is a Doctor of Science and researcher at the Department of Science, Technology and Society (CTS) of the Institute of Philosophy (IFS) of the Spanish National Research Council (CSIC). He is founding member of the Spanish Association for the Advancement of Science (AEAC) and a member of its Board of Directors. He also forms part of the CSIC research project, «Scientific, philosophical and social analysis of COVID-19: Social impact, ethical implications and culture pandemic prevention.»

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Concha Roldán is Director of the Institute of Philosophy of the Higher Council for Scientific Research (IFS-CSIC), president of the Spanish Association of Ethics and Political Philosophy (AEEFP). She is vice president of the Spanish Philosophy Network (REF) and member of the Board of Directors of the Ibero-American Philosophy Network (RIF).

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Mary-Jane Rubenstein is a scholar of religion, philosophy, science studies, and gender studies. At Wesleyan University, she is Professor of Religion and Science in Society. She is also affiliated with Environmental Studies and Feminist, Gender, and Sexuality Studies. From 2014 to 2019, she was co-chair of the Philosophy of Religion Unit of the American Academy of Religion. She is a Fellow of the International Society for Science and Religion.

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Romana Rubeo is an Italian writer and the managing editor of The Palestine Chronicle. Her articles appeared in many online newspapers and academic journals. She holds a Master’s Degree in Foreign Languages and Literature and specializes in audio-visual and journalism translation.

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Axel Ruppert is Project Manager at the Rosa-Luxemburg-Stiftung Brussels Office where he works on the topics of peace, security and disarmament as well as European Union militarisation and the European arms industry. He holds a Master’s degree in European Studies and has previously worked in the field of anti-racism and equality advocacy.

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Saskia Sassen is the Robert S. Lynd Professor of Sociology at Columbia University and chaired its Committee on Global Thought from 2009 to 2015, now serving as a member. She is a recipient of the Prince of Asturias Award in the Social Sciences (2013). A renowned sociologist, she has conducted extensive work on topics including cities, immigration, and states in the world economy, examining inequality, gendering and digitization as variables.

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Joost Smiers is a Dutch political scientist best known for his work critiquing intellectual property rights. He has served as Professor at Utrecht University of the Arts (Netherlands) and as Visiting Professor at the Department of World Arts and Cultures, UCLA, Los Angeles. He received his PhD from the University of Amsterdam.

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David Vine is Professor of Anthropology at American University, USA. Author of a number of books about military bases, wars, demilitarisation and northamerican foreign policy, has received several awards for his work and publications. He also contributes to Foreign Policy in Focus, The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Guardian, Huffington Post, etc. He is also a board member of the Costs of War Project and a co-founder of the Overseas Base Realignment and Closure Coalition.

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Jean Wyllys is a journalist, researcher, former member of the Brazilian Congress and LGBTQIA+ activist. After the victory of Jair Bolsonaro in the Brazilian general elections of 2018, he resigned from his position and, after receiving death threats, sought exile in Europe, where he continues his work in social justice and the defence of civil rights, especially those of the LGBTQIA+ community.

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Alfonso Zegbe currently heads the Strategy and Public Diplomacy Unit at the Mexican Secretariat of Foreign Affairs. He is the former Ambassador of México in Iran, Afghanistan, Kyrgyzstan, Pakistan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan, and is an expert in environmental law and international relations. He has worked on energy and environmental diplomatic agendas for more than 20 years in Mexico City, Washington DC, Ottawa, Paris, Brussels and the OECD.

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Irene Zugasti (Madrid, 1988) is a political analyst, journalist and expert in International Relations and Public Gender Policy. She has worked for a number of local, regional and state administrations and is currently an advisor to the Spanish Ministry of Equality. She also works with various media outlets including El Salto, CTXT, Público, and The Washington Post. As a freelance journalist and researcher her work focuses on gender, violence, armed conflict, feminist politics in International Relations and, if permitted, on just about anyting that involves collective action.

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