Juraj Ivanyi is an Emeritus Professor of Immunology of Infectious diseases at Kings College London. Obtained his MD from Charles University and Ph.D. from the Academy of Sciences in Prague. His initial experimental research involved a range of immune mechanisms in relation to ontogeny and phylogeny. Worked as departmental head at the Czechoslovak Academy and The Wellcome Research Laboratories, Beckenham, and shorter periods at UCLA-Los Angeles, Cancer Insitute, Lausanne, NIMR-Mill Hill, and Stockholm University. Having pioneered the production of monoclonal antibodies against pathogenic mycobacteria, he became director of the MRC Tuberculosis and Related Infections Unit at the Hammersmith Hospital in London. His research on the epitope specificity of immune responses to mycobacteria led to the development of serodiagnosis of multibacillary-infectious tuberculosis, based on the identification of the HLA-permissive Pst-S1 antigen, analysis of the T cell repertoire in response to different vaccines, the involvement of 'decoy' immunity in the reactivation of dormant infection and the contribution of B cell responses to protection in experimental models. This aspect, analysed by passive protection with monoclonal antibodies continued extensively at the Guy's campus of Kings College London. Published 330 research papers, served as chairman of the Immunology of Leprosy WHO-TDR Steering Committee, started the Tatra Immunology Conferences in Slovakia, when acting as International Secretary of the British Society for Immunology, and was given the 'Garnet Immunoglobulin' award by the Czech Society of Immunology.

Tomas Hanke is a Professor of Vaccine Immunology at the University of Oxford. He has devoted his entire professional career to the development of an HIV-1 vaccine. In addition to smaller awards, he led two MRC UK Programmed Grants, coordinated three consecutive consortia funded by the European and Developing Countries Clinical Trials Partnership (EDCTP), was a leading PI on the Horizon2020 European AIDS Vaccine Initiative 2020 award and two MRC Translational Medicine awards and is on the leadership teams preparing to test HIV consvX vaccines under the AIDS Clinical Trials Group (ACTG) and the International Maternal and Pediatric, Adolescent AIDS Clinical Trials (IMPAACT) networks. His basic research has been focused on understanding what constitutes protective killer T cells against virus infections and has been always well balanced with vaccine design and construction, testing novel vaccine strategies in mice and non-human primates and focusing on safe but rapid translation of the most promising concepts to early clinical trials. He has overseen translational Experimental Medicine trials in the UK, Europe, the US and Africa, where his partners and he enhance research capacity and infrastructure. His broad interdisciplinary scope has enabled him to improve iteratively T-cell vaccine designs through basic research insights into the virus-host interactions, but his main emphasis is on informing designs by human vaccine data.

Dr. Kamen is a Professor in the Department of Bioengineering at McGill University and a Canada Research Chair in Bioprocessing of Viral Vaccines. He is a world expert in process development for the manufacturing of biologics. Significantly contributed to the advancement of cell-culture engineering, process optimization, process analytical technologies, and scale-up of different technology platforms to enable viral vectors and nanoparticle production for gene delivery and vaccination. Through his work, Dr. Kamen has designed advanced manufacturing processes for safe, efficacious, and cost-effective vaccines and delivery systems for live gene editing Dr. Kamen is also a Researcher Emeritus of the National Research Council of Canada (NRC) where he was employed until the end of 2013 as Head of the Process Development section of the Human Health Therapeutics Portfolio. He received his Doct.-Ing. in Chemical Engineering from Ecole des Mines de Paris and a Ph.D. in Biochemical Engineering from Ecole Polytechnique de Montreal. He is currently a member of the Council of Expert Advisors for Canadian Biomanufacturing and Life Sciences Strategy.

Shannon Turner, BA, BSc, MSc PhD is the Executive Director of the Public Health Association of British Columbia. Shannon has more than 40 years of experience in public health practice, healthy public policy, health promotion, program and project management, strategic planning, health informatics, quality assurance, risk management, logistics, and accounting as well as conducting research on digital communication and citizen engagement. Aside from her extensive academic credentials, Shannon has a wide range of experience from both the public and private sectors. Shannon is currently serving as Co-Chair of Prevention of Violence Canada, as Chair of the British Columbia Alliance for Healthy Living Society, and as Chair of the World Health Organization Vaccine Safety Net.

Ian Roe, a vibrant and innovative professional, has dedicated over three decades to the fields of social marketing, communications, and advocacy in health promotion. Born and raised in Newfoundland, Ian embarked on a journey to British Columbia over 30 years ago, initially drawn by his passion for rock and roll music. In 2004, Ian found a new calling when he joined the Communications team at the BC Centre for Disease Control in Vancouver. Since then, his career has been marked by continuous growth and impactful contributions to the realm of public health. Ian's entrepreneurial spirit and commitment to social good led him to co-found two pioneering online education platforms, Kids Boost Immunity (KBI) and I Boost Immunity (IBI). As the National Manager for both initiatives, Ian plays a pivotal role in shaping their vision and impact.

Camila Hamond is currently a Collaborate Researcher at National Reference Laboratory for Leptospirosis/World Health Organization Collaborating Center for Leptospirosis, Instituto Oswaldo Cruz, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. She grew up in Brazil and received her Doctor of Veterinary Medicine from Estacio de Sa University in 2005, a masters degree in microbiology (2010), and a Ph.D. in clinical and animal reproduction (2014) from Federal Fluminense University. While working on her PhD, she had the opportunity to perform an internship at the Biology of Spirochetes Unit at the Institute Pasteur (Paris, France). During the past fifteen years, her studies and professional experience have focused on animal leptospirosis, working on its clinical aspects, and a high dedication to performing research in the laboratory. She received the 2019 Early Career Research award from the International Leptospirosis Society and in 2022 was named Honorary Diplomate of the American Veterinary Epidemiology Society.

Pere-Joan Cardona is head of the Microbiology Department at the Hospital "Germans Trias i Pujol" of the Catalan Institute of Health (ICS) and a Professor at the Universidad Autonomy de Barcelona. He is a clinical microbiologist that has devoted more than 20 years in unravelling the mechanisms behind latent tuberculosis infection and the transition to active TB. To further his research, he established the Experimental Tuberculosis Unit at the IGTP Research Institute. Through the development of innovative "in vivo" and "in silico" experimental models, he has made significant contributions to the field. Notably, his work led to the invention of the RUTI therapeutic vaccine and the exploration of host-directed therapies against TB. Additionally, Pere-Joan Cardona has been exploring the immunomodulatory properties of environmental mycobacteria, aiming to balance immune responses against various diseases. Pere-Joan Cardona possesses extensive expertise in leading clinical trials aimed at developing novel diagnostic, prophylactic, and therapeutic tools for TB. He has actively collaborated with international consortiums dedicated to the study of TB, further demonstrating his commitment to advancing our understanding of this global health issue.

Stefania Triunfo is a medical doctor, specialist in obstetrics and gynaecology, European Ph.D. label in Physiopathology in Human Reproduction, and clinical researcher in feto-maternal medicine. She has worked at BC Natal Fetal Medicine Research Center, Barcelona, Spain; at Karolinska Insitutet in Stockholm, Sweden; at Policlinico Universitario Agostino Gemelli in Rome, Italy; Ente Ospedaliero Cantonale in Ticinum, Switzerland. Currently, she works at the University S. Paolo Hospital in Milan, Italy, leading the Unit of Diabetes in Pregnancy.

Dr. Abdalla Abo Taleb is one of the most profound experts in healthcare policy and regulations in the Middle East. His expertise extends from HTA & Reimbursement policies to regulatory and supply chain strategies in the public sector. He has been involved in the fields of health economics, outcomes research, and reimbursement policy within the healthcare industry for 15 years, with experience across the pharmaceutical, biological, and vaccines. And now works for WHO as a project manager in the healthcare reforming area. Abdalla Abotaleb graduated from the faculty of pharmacy and then obtained a post-graduate in health economics followed by a PhD in Health Economics & Policy from York University. He also has a degree in Project management professional (PMP), Pharm. D certificate and a Master of business administration (MBA). He, in addition to being a committee member and project manager in several national projects in many countries including Germany. United Kingdom, Egypt, Algeria, Sudan, Russia, and Poland, He is a very active researcher with tens of publications across different well-recognized organizations including ISPOR, ESMO, ASCO, ECCO, and iHEA. HTAI, and EAHE. He has been a true contributor to several public and industrial projects in Egypt, his homeland. He committedly changed the landscape of the healthcare policy there. A few examples to mention are his contributions to the establishment of the NORCB (National Organization for Control and Research of Biologics), and Egyptian Biosimilars guidelines for the cancer and MS registry. Establishing stroke units, hospital-based HTA, and Health economic unit at the Ministry of Health in Egypt's different sectors. Multiple engagement efforts are well recognized in his research by introducing concepts of stakeholder engagement. He also does that by being an active member of many research organizations internationally and locally like the ISPOR and its local chapter. Abdalla Abo Taleb remains a very rich source of developmental initiatives having been a hands-on expert across different sectors of the healthcare systems and a visionary for healthcare reform.

Dr. Najla Barnawi is a Saudi Assistant Professor in the College of Nursing at King Saud University for Health Sciences. Currently, she earned her Post-Doctorate Degree from King Abdullah International Medical Research Center (KAMRC) at National Guard Ministry-Health Affairs (NGHA-MH). She has several publications including two books in various community health topics. Dr. Barnawi graduated (2004) from King Saud University (KSU) with excellent and honor certificates from the Nursing Bachelor program at KSU. She was the 1st Saudi nurse who earned her master's program in 2007 from Lawrence S. Bloomberg Faculty of Nursing at the University of Toronto, Canada. She worked as a faculty member and researcher in various national and international universities. Dr. Barnawi earned her Ph.D. in 2018 with excellence and outstanding honor certificate at the university level from Decker School of Nursing at Binghamton University in Community health nursing and mainly minority and migration health. She received the Sigma Theta Tau Award for the best Ph.D. dissertation and the Outstanding Student Award from Binghamton University. Besides her teaching position, she is the chairperson of the Community Services Unit at the College of Nursing at KSAU-HS. Dr. Barnawi has been involved in various community healthcare services. She established a healthcare team in the American Civic Association (ACA), aiming to increase the newcomers' health awareness and provide home-based services to improve their accessibility and utilization of the healthcare services within the Binghamton area. The Refugee Social Services Program (RSSP) Manager and Dr. Barnawi organize the first Health Literacy program for Binghamton's immigrant population.