Professor Ahmed Bawa, a theoretical physicist, currently holds the position of Chief Executive Officer of Universities South Africa (USAf).  In this capacity, he is a member of the Board of Directors of USAf – the representative association of all 26 public universities of South Africa.  Until April 2016, Professor Bawa was Vice-Chancellor and Principal of the Durban University of Technology.  From 2012-2013 he was chair of Higher Education South Africa (HESA) which became USAf in July 2015.

Sjur Bergan is Head of the Council of Europe’s Education Department. His work at the Council focuses on projects and recommendations on the purposes, values and democratic mission of higher education. Sjur is a member of the Bologna Follow-Up Group and Board and has chaired working groups that were involved in the implementation of structural education reforms.

A prolific writer and expert on education, his bibliography is extensive. He is a main author of the ‘Lisbon Recognition Convention’ as well as of recommendations on public responsibility; academic freedom and institutional autonomy; and quality education.  Sjur is series editor of the Council of Europe Higher Education Series and the author of Qualifications: Introduction to a Concept and Not by Bread Alone. He was also one of the editors of the Raabe Handbook on Leadership and Governance in Higher Education and coordinated sessions on the future of the European Higher Education Area at two of the Bologna Researchers’ Conferences.

Professor Chapman is Chair of Educational Policy and Practice at the University of Glasgow.

He was the key architect and Principal Investigator of Children’s Neighbourhoods Scotland and the Network for Social and Educational Equity based at the University of Glasgow.

Chris is seconded part-time to Scottish Government as Senior Academic Adviser in the Learning Directorate where most of his work focuses on supporting the Scottish Attainment Challenge. He is also a member of the First Minister’s International Council of Education Advisers and President-elect of the International Congress for School Effectiveness and Improvement.

Dr. Anne Farrell is the Director of Research at Chapin Hall at the University of Chicago. As the research leader of the organization, she serves a critical role in keeping Chapin Hall at the forefront of policy research, fostering innovative, rigorous, and actionable studies. Farrell supports the acquisition and development of talent and engages in collaborations that ensure the creation, delivery, and development of knowledge and strategies to improve the well-being of children, youth, and families. In addition to leading Chapin Hall’s translational research agenda, Farrell engages in organizational strategy development, business development, research design, and implementation support and advises initiatives within and beyond Chapin Hall.

Ira Harkavy is Associate Vice President and Founding Director of the Barbara and Edward Netter Center for Community Partnerships, University of Pennsylvania.  As Director of the Netter Center since 1992, Harkavy has helped to develop academically based community service courses and participatory action research projects that involve creating university-community partnerships and university-assisted community schools with Penn's local community of West Philadelphia.  Harkavy teaches in history, urban studies, and Africana studies, as well as in the Graduate School of Education.

Harkavy has written and lectured widely on the history and current practice of urban university-community-school partnerships and the democratic and civic missions of higher education.

Paul is Associate Professor in Public Engagement at UWE Bristol and founding director of the UK’s National Coordinating Centre for Public Engagement (NCCPE). 

The NCCPE was established in 2008 to support universities to embed innovative approaches to involving the public in their work.  The NCCPE is widely recognised for its expertise in supporting organisational change, partnership working, impact assessment and innovation in engagement. 

Paul trained as an English teacher before working at the BBC for 18 years, responsible for a number of broadcast-led public engagement campaigns.  He is chair of the National Trust’s advisory group on Collections and Interpretation.

Professor Ronnie Munck is Head of Civic Engagement at DCU and a Visiting Professor of International Development at the University of Liverpool and St. Mary's University, Nova Scotia. He has authored or edited more than 30 books on various topics related to globalisation, international development and social movements as well as over 100 academic journal articles. His books have been translated into French, Spanish, Portuguese, Italian, Arabic, Korean, Turkish, Chinese and Japanese. He is the founding chair of the Development Studies Association of Ireland and of Campus Engage, the national platform for civic engagement in Ireland.