Agenda

Dr Johan Stander is currently the Senior Director of Services with the World Meteorological Organisation in Geneva.  Dr Stander studied meteorology and went onto gain a PhD in Oceanography. He worked for the South African Weather Service where he enjoyed extensive experience which included forecasting, observations, data, research, services, international relations and management.

While Dr Stander joined WMO in 2020 his engagement with WMO goes back more than 25 years supporting a wide portfolio of oceanographic and marine initiatives with his vast experience recognised in his election as the Co-President of the WMO-IOC/UNESCO Joint Technical Commission for Oceanography and Marine Meteorology (JCOMM) in 2012.

As the Senior Director of Services Dr Stander leads of broad expert team ranging from Disaster Risk Reduction, Early Warning Services, public weather service, Water management, Hydrology, Cryosphere, Marine and Oceans, Aviation, Climatology, Agriculture, Energy, Health, Socio Economic Benefits, and technical support to programme funding projects in particular LDC’s and SIDS. His underpinning principles of Teamwork, Collaboration and Hard Work ensure WMO Members, receive the required support so that collectively we can all serve the needs of the most vulnerable in our ever changing world and together make a difference to the whole of humankind.

Jeong Kee Kim was appointed Secretary General of the World Smart Sustainable Cities Organization (WeGO) on October 1, 2024, by the president of WeGO, who is also the Mayor of the Seoul Metropolitan Government. He simultaneously serves as an Executive Committee Member of UN ITU’s Global Initiative on Virtual Worlds and AI. With a distinguished academic background and extensive experience in law, governance, and sustainable development, he is well-equipped to lead WeGO in its mission to promote smart and sustainable urban growth. 

Just before assuming the position of the Secretary General of WeGO, the World Smart Sustainable Cities Organization, Mr. Jeong-kee Kim served as the Chief Executive Officer of CityNet, the Asia-Pacific Local Government Network for Economic and Social Development, and as a distinguished chair professor at the Business School of Dongguk University.

In 2000, he was elected as the first president of Korea Cyber University, later renamed Soongsil Cyber University, a pioneering Internet-based institution jointly founded by Yonsei University and The Chosun Ilbo. In 2007, he served as the International Committee Chairman for Presidential Candidate Myung-bak Lee. In 2008, he was appointed the 8th Consul General of Korea in Shanghai with Ambassadorial Rank and as the Commissioner General of the 2010 Shanghai Expo Korea Pavilion. In 2010, he was nominated as the Principal Vice Minister of the Korean Ministry of Foreign Affairs. From 2012 to 2020, Mr. Kim worked as a senior attorney-at-law at DR-Aju LLC while simultaneously teaching as a distinguished chair professor. He taught courses on law, political science, international relations, history, sociology, economics, business administration, future studies, and negotiation at Korean universities (SNU, Yonsei, Korea, Kyunghee, Dongguk, Kookmin, Hannam, Seonggyul, Yongin) and Chinese universities (Peking, Nanjing). In 2021, he served as the Head of the Political Reform Group within the Political and Administrative Committee and as a Political Strategy Advisor for Presidential Candidate of People Power Party. In 2025, he served as a Diplomatic Advisor for Presidential Candidate Moon-soo Kim.

Mayor of Amman since August 2017 Mayor Alshawarbeh was the Chairman of Amman Municipal
Committee (March 2017 August 2017), Chairman of Addustour newspaper Board of Directors (2016)
and Minister of Political Development and Parliamentary Affairs (2016).
Over 15 years, Mayor Alshawarbeh held various positions on local Government and Municipal work,
legal and Legislative field: (2013 2016) he was the Deputy Mayor of Amman, Vice Chairman of
Investment committee at the Greater Amman Municipality, A member of the Local Organizing
Committee of the FIFA U-17 Women's World Cup 2016, Chairman of Tenders committee at the Greater
Amman Municipality , Vice Chairman of the Central Market Board of Directors at the Greater Amman
Municipality, Deputy Chief of Directors, Al-Tawfiq for Transport & Investment Co. Ltd , Vice Chairman
of Comprehensive Multiple Transport company Board of Directors, and Deputy Chief of Directors, Asia
Transportation Company, Vice Chairman of Integrated Cards Company (E -kartak) Board of Directors.
In (2014) Member of Decentralization Law Formulation committee, Member of Human Rights National
plan Formulation committee and a Member of Amman Sister Cities High committee. Founding Member
of Leadership Board of Mayors Migration Council (MMC) 2018 till present, founding chairman of the
Arab Cities Cultural Working Group & the Arab Smart Cities Forum. UCLG-MEWA co-president for the
term 2022-2025 .
Mayor Alshawarbeh has been appointed a member of UN SG advisory group for local and regional
government (2023-2324), he was also awarded orders and decoration as follows: the Royal
Norwegian order of Merit Category I-Grand Cross 2020, and Commander Grand Cross of Royal Swedish
order of the Polar Star 2022.
Mayor Al-Shawarbeh holds a PhD degree in constitutional law from Al-Neelain University in Sudan.
He also holds a Bachelor degree in Law - Al-Ahliyya Amman University- Faculty of Law in Jordan.

Mr. Nasir Usman Umar is Deputy Mayor of Abuja. He is a dedicated public servant, esteemed for his unwavering commitment to community development and service to the people.  In 2010, Nasir Usman Umar ventured into the realm of governance by contesting for the position of Councillor of Wuse Ward under Abuja Municipal Area Council (AMAC), demonstrating his passion for grassroots representation. His exemplary leadership qualities were soon recognized, leading to his appointment as the Deputy Speaker of AMAC, where he served with distinction for a tenure of three years. Continuing his upward trajectory in public service, he assumed the pivotal role of Personal Assistant to the AMAC Chairman in October 2013. 

In 2021, Nasir Usman Umar's outstanding contributions and sterling track record earned him the nomination as the running mate of the incumbent AMAC Chairman. His vision, integrity, and tireless efforts resonated with the electorate, culminating in a resounding victory on February 12, 2022. Subsequently, on June 14, 2022, he was sworn in as the Deputy Chairman of AMAC, embarking on a new chapter of service to the people to date.

He obtained his NCE in Islamic Studies at Legal Studies Kano.

Nadia Verjee is executive director of Expo City Dubai. In this capacity she also acts as general manager of the Global Initiatives & Advisory Division, and leads 25 direct/downline reports and up to 60 outside contractors. She presents quarterly to Supreme Committee (Dubai Government).

Previously she served in different positions. She was Senior Vice President and later Chief of Staff of Expo 2020 Dubai where she established strong relationships with UAE C-suite and met regularly to discuss project status and challenges.

Between 2012-2016 she worked in the UAE Prime Minister's Office as Head of Strategy and Advisor on international affaires.

Earlier she was responsible for several geographical areas in the Executive Office of H.H. Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum.

Nadia has broad experience working in global and regional international organizations, such as the European Parliament, the European Commission, and the Aga Khan Development Network.

Nicholas You is a veteran urban specialist. He served as the senior policy and planning advisor to UN-Habitat and as the manager of the Habitat II Conference held in Istanbul in 1996. He is the founder and honorary chairman of the UN-Habitat World Urban Campaign Steering Committee and, a former thought leader for the World Business Council for Sustainable Development, Siemens, ENGIE and the Global Cities Business Alliance. He served for several years as an adjunct to the Center for Livable Cities, Singapore. He currently serves as the Executive Director of the Guangzhou Institute for Urban Innovation, as a senior policy advisor to the Metaverse Institute (London), and is a member of the SDSG Urban Finance Commission.  

He regularly advises central and local governments, technology companies and civil society organisations on urban sustainability, urban governance and urban innovation and has written and co-authored key policy papers for the U20/G20 and BRICS+.  Two of his publications this year have been presented at various United Nations conferences including the World Urban Forum, the UNFCCC and COP 29. More recently, he joined the Metaverse Institute as a senior policy advisor. The Institute advises governments, cities, regional authorities and utilities on visions, strategies and plans to harness the power of the metaverse for sustainable urban development. The Institute was asked by the International Telecommunications Union (ITU) to help prepare a definition and develop a set of standards for the metaverse for cities. 

Anh Thu Duong is Co-Director of the Global Cities Hub. Before joining the Global Cities Hub, Anh Thu has worked 15 years at the Swiss Federal Department of Foreign Affairs (FDFA), where she contributed to the multilateral engagement of Switzerland with the United Nations and other International Organizations. 

She has extensive diplomatic multilateral expertise and robust negotiation skills in human rights and humanitarian affairs. During her tenure at the Swiss FDFA, she was seconded to the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights and to the Presidency of the Human Rights Council.

Amb. András Szörényi is Senior Policy Advisor at the Global Cities Hub, an organization connecting local and regional governments to the United Nations system. He provides consultancy to UN entities on advocacy and diplomatic outreach. He had 20 years of distinguished diplomatic career. He worked in different capacities in Brussels, covering EU affairs, in Washington D.C. dealing with bilateral relations, in Budapest on energy security and in Geneva, working with the United Nations and other International Organizations. He has first-hand experience of negotiating in the European Union and the UN system as well as conceptualizing and implementing diplomatic initiatives on a wide variety of issues.

With a deep knowledge of international relations, Dr. Szörényi always focuses on new global developments and emerging challenges. He has a broad understanding of the engagement of non-state actors on multi-stakeholder platforms. He regularly gives lectures and has been particularly interested in the increasing influence of non-state actors on the development of international relations since his Ph.D. research.

He holds a Ph.D. in International Economics from Corvinus University, a DEA in Comparative Political Sciences from Sciences Po Paris and a Master degree in International Relations from the University of Economics in Budapest.