Biography of participants Ronald A. DePinho Ronald A. DePinho was born in the Bronx, NY in 1955. He earned a bachelor's degree in biological sciences in 1977 from Fordham University, where he graduated summa cum laude as class salutatorian. He received his medical degree with distinction in microbiology and immunology in 1981 from Albert Einstein College of Medicine. He was the fourth president of the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston and is internationally recognized for basic and translational research in cancer, aging and age-associated degenerative disorders. He was inducted into the National Academy of Sciences in 2012. He was only the fourth full-time president in the 70-year history of MD Anderson. He announced his resignation on March 8, 2017, after scrutiny over the administration of the organization had put him in the spotlight, and remained through the end of the 85th Texas Legislative Session. Dr. Tedros Adhanom Gebreyesusv Dr. Tedros Adhanom Gebreyesusv is an Ethiopian politician, academic, and public-health authority who since 2017 has been Director-General of the World Health Organization. He served in the Government of Ethiopia as Minister of Health from 2005 to 2012 and as Minister of Foreign Affairs from 2012 to 2016. Born March 3, 1965 in Asmara, Tedros joined the Ministry of Health in 1986, after graduating from the University of Asmara. An internationally recognized malaria researcher, as Minister of Health, Tedros received praise for a number of innovative and system-wide health reforms that substantially improved access to health services and key outcomes. Pauline Nuggent Professor Pauline Nugent, Dean of Health Sciences and former Victorian Businesswoman of the Year, is the Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Academic) at Australian Catholic University (ACU). She holds a Master of Education from Monash University and a Bachelor of Applied Science from Lincoln Institute of Health Sciences. Her scholarly record includes publications, public lectures and conferences in nursing education, rural health, clinical research and health curriculum development as well as public funding of research development and evaluation projects worth more than $5 million. Giuseppe Versaldi Giuseppe Versaldi is the Cardinal Prefect of the Congregation for Catholic Education, since his appointment, by Pope Francis on 31 March 2015. Previously, Cardinal Versaldi had served as Cardinal President of the Prefecture for the Economic Affairs of the Holy See since 21 September 2011. Cardinal Versaldi had served before that as Bishop of Alessandria. Pope Benedict XVI elevated him to the rank of cardinal on 18 February 2012. M. Vincenzo Paglia M. Vincenzo Paglia is an Italian prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He is President of the Pontifical Academy for Life and Grand Chancellor of the St. John Paul II Pontifical Institute for Studies of Marriage and Family. He was President of the Pontifical Council for the Family from 2012 to 2016 and Bishop of Terni-Narni-Amelia, Italy, from 2000 to 2012. He was a co-founder of the Community of Sant'Egidio in 1968. Dr. Isabel CAPELOA GIL IFCU President Rector the Catholic University of Portugal Isabel Capeloa Gil is Full Professor of Culture Studies at the School of Human Sciences and Rector of the Catholic University of Portugal (UCP). She studied in Lisbon (U. Lisbon), Munich (Ludwig Maximilian University) and Chicago and holds a PhD in German Studies from UCP. Previously, she was Vice-Rector for Research and Internationalization (2012- 2016) and the Dean of the School of Human Sciences (2005-2012) of the Catholic University of Portugal (UCP). Having grown up in Asia (Macao), Isabel Gil has been especially interested in researching issues of diversity and conflict and has structured her work around the exploration of the disciplinary boundaries between literature, the arts and other disciplines. She is a passionate advocate of international education and works consistently to develop international research networks, exploring the different ways in which the practice of the arts and humanities is pivotal to advance a more sustainable and intellectually robust global education agenda. Her research is currently published in Portuguese, English, German, French, Italian and Spanish. She is the author of over 140 publications, bridging cultural theory, interarts studies, visual culture, culture and conflict and her work has been published in New German Critique, Dedalus or Colloquia Germanica, amongst many others journals. She was a founding member and is a senior researcher at the Research Centre for Communication and Culture (CECC), where she coordinated the research group Culture, Art and Citizenship (CULTCIT). Isabel Gil is furthermore Honorary Fellow at the IGRS, School of Advanced Studies, University of London and holds a position as Invited Professor at USJ (Macao). An advocate of strengthening doctoral education, she has been involved with the Council for Doctoral Education at the European University Association. Professor Frédéric Houssiau The professor Frédéric Houssiau is born on December 23, 1958 in Brussels. He graduated as a doctor of medicine in 1983 from the Catholic University of Louvain and opted for a specialization in internal medicine / rheumatology. During and after this training, he obtained several mandates from the National Fund for Scientific Research that allowed him to work as a researcher in the Experimental Medicine Unit of the Institute of Duve, under the direction of Professor Jacques Van Snick. He obtained the diploma of Agrégé of Higher Education in 1993, defending his thesis entitled "The role of interleukin-6 in T-cell activation". He has been Head of the Rheumatology Department of the Saint-Luc University Clinic since 2004 and has been an Ordinary Professor at the Catholic University of Louvain since 2002. Rev. Terry KERSCH St. Joseph's College president Fr. Terry Kersch, CSB, PhD, has been serving as President of St. Joseph’s College, University of Alberta since July 1, 2011. Born and raised in Montreal, Quebec, Canada he encountered the Congregation of Priests of St. Basil (the Basilian Fathers) while competing his Doctorate in Political Science at the University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada. As a Basilian he has served in Canada, United States of America, Mexico, and Colombia. While serving as Chaplain at the University of St. Michael’s College, University of Toronto he taught as a sessional instructor in the areas of Catholic Social thought, the Church in Latin America, and Equity and Diversity in Education. He has served on the Collegium of the University of St. Michael’s College at the University of Toronto, the Board of Governors of St. Thomas More College at the University of Saskatchewan and Assumption University in Windsor, Ontario, Canada. His current research interests include Modern Hebrew, and the Politics and Society of Israel. Dr. Herminio DAGOHOY, O.P Rector, University of Santo Tomas (Manila, Philippines) IFCU Vice-President Born in 1965 in Hagonoy, Bulacan in where he spent his childhood, he completed his basic education at Sta. Elena Elementary School and Hagonoy Institute in Bulacan. He studied Accountancy at the Polytechnic University of the Philippines in 1985. He professed the evangelical vows in the Order of Preachers in 1988 and was ordained to the priesthood in 1994. As a Dominican, Fr. Dagohoy obtained the following degrees: BA Philosophy at the Philippine Dominican Center of Institutional Studies in 1990; Bachelor in Sacred Theology at the UST Ecclesiastical Faculty of Sacred Theology in 1993; Master of Arts in Philippine Studies in Philosophy at the University of the Philippines, Diliman, Quezon City, in 2000; Licentiate in Philosophy at the UST Ecclesiastical Faculty of Philosophy in 2011 and Doctorate in Philosophy also at UST in 2012. His areas of specialization include Ancient Philosophy, Theodicy, Social Philosophy, and Hermeneutics. He previously held posts as Prior/Superior of the Santo Domingo Convent, QC, and Caleruega, Batangas. He was also formerly the Rector of Angelicum College in Quezon City. Fr. Dagohoy has published articles and book reviews in scholarly journals. He also engaged in significant scientific, ecclesial and cultural activities, and delivered various talks and lectures both in the Philippines and abroad. Firoz Rasul Mr Firoz Rasul has served as President of the Aga Khan University since May 1, 2006. Mr Rasul has served as a member of the University of British Columbia's Board of Governors and as a Director on the Board of Science World, British Columbia. Between 2000 and 2006, he was President of the Aga Khan Council for Canada, where he led the development of several large-scale projects for the Aga Khan Development Network, including The Global Centre of Pluralism in Ottawa and the Aga Khan Museum in Toronto. As a business leader, Mr Rasul has shared his knowledge and experience as a member of the Board of TELUS Corporation and the Royal Bank Capital Corporation. He was named the 2001 National Transportation Person of the Year by the Government of Canada, and Wilfred Laurier University's School of Business and Economics recognized him with its Outstanding Business Leader award. Mr Rasul received a Bachelor's degree in Industrial Engineering from the University of Hertfordshire in the United Kingdom and an MBA from McGill University in Montreal. Mr Rasul was conferred with the Degree of Doctors of Laws, honoris causa, by Simon Fraser University in 2001 and an honorary Doctorate