Ambassador (ret.) Greta Holtz Ambassador (ret.) Greta C. Holtz joined Amideast in August 2023, following 35 years as a career diplomat with extensive experience in the Middle East and North Africa. She served as the U.S. Ambassador to Oman from 2012 to 2015, the Chargé d'affaires in Qatar from 2020-2021, and the Minister-Counselor for Provincial Affairs at the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad from 2009 to 2010. Additional postings included Saudi Arabia, Yemen, Tunisia, Syria, and Turkey, and her domestic assignments included serving as the Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Public Diplomacy and Strategic Communication in the Bureau of Near Eastern Affairs and as the Director of the Middle East Partnership Initiative. Ambassador Holtz’s broad experience encompasses a number of other positions, including Chancellor of the College of International Security Affairs at the National Defense University, Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary in the Bureau of South and Central Asian Affairs, and Senior U.S. Coordinator for Operations Allies Refuge (OAR) in Doha, Qatar, a U.S. government initiative to evacuate and resettle Afghan allies and their families after the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan.

Andrew Baird serves as the Chief Executive Officer of Education for Employment, an organization deeply committed to tackling the pressing issue of youth unemployment in the Middle East and North Africa. With a wealth of experience in workforce development, entrepreneurship, women's economic empowerment, and youth development, Andrew is a seasoned expert in these pivotal fields. His profound conviction lies in the transformative potential of economic empowerment, recognizing its capacity to give hope and dignity while fostering more resilient communities. Andrew's impactful career has taken him across the globe, spanning diverse regions including Africa, Eastern Europe, Asia, Latin America, and the Middle East. Notably, he played a foundational role in establishing the Global Center for Youth Employment, a robust network of organizations dedicated to serving youth. Andrew also possesses a keen interest in the profound implications of Artificial Intelligence on the labor market.

Mohamed Malouche is the Public Sector Lead Partner at Deloitte Afrique with 26 years of experience in designing and implementing public sector modernization, good governance, local economic development, sustainability and entrepreneurship & innovation development programs in Francophone Africa. Mohamed assists public sector institutions with the development and implementation of their national and sectorial strategies. He has been working extensively with investment and export agencies on their strategy, operating model, program management, performance management, governance needs and operations. He leads the innovation, digital transformation, renewable energy and sustainable development practices of Deloitte Afrique in 19 Francophone African countries, notably in Tunisia, Morocco, Senegal, Cote d’Ivoire and the DRC. Prior to joining Deloitte Afrique, Mohamed served as Director in the Technology Strategy and Architecture division of Deloitte Consulting LLP in the United States for 13 years in the telecommunications / media / technology, financial services and public sector sectors, and previously as a Principal with American Management Systems Inc. Mohamed Malouche is also the founder and board Chairman of the Tunisian American Young Professionals (TAYP), the largest Tunisian American diaspora association. In that capacity, he provided economic counsel to important governmental actions related to investment, innovation and entrepreneurship in Tunisia, particularly a US-Tunisia partnership for the promotion of technology innovation, a Tunisian handicrafts export program’s supply chain and a Tunisian denims exports’ initiative. He has authored several articles in Foreign Policy, the Atlantic Council, the Aspen Institute on the role of diaspora in development.

Laura Engel Laura Engel is a Professor of International Education and International Affairs at the George Washington University, where she directs the GW Global Education Lab, and serves as co-chair of the GW UNESCO Chair in International Education for Development. In 2023-2024, she is a Fulbright Scholar in Costa Rica. Previously, Dr. Engel was a research fellow at University of Nottingham, working on two European Union funded research projects on education and social policy to advance inclusion and social cohesion. As a policy sociologist, her interests focus on the influence of global education policy trends in national and regional systems, with specialization in federal systems. Her current work is examining policy developments related to education for sustainable development and global citizenship education at local, state, national, regional, and international levels. Dr. Engel's research, which has been funded by the American Educational Research Association, the National Geographic Society, and the Stevens Initiative, has been published in four books and over 50 articles, book chapters, and policy briefs. She is the recipient of several teaching awards, including the 2022 GW Morton A. Bender Teaching Award. She currently serves on the board of directors of the NEA Foundation, and is Honorary Professor of International Education Development at University of Nottingham, UK. Dr. Engel earned her PhD from the University of Illinois.