2026 Edition
Speakers
Discover the inspiring lineup of speakers joining the Estoril Conferences 2026, bringing their unique perspectives, expertise and conviction to one of democracy’s most urgent conversations.
POLITICS
GLOBAL PEACE
EDUCATION
HEALTH & PREPAREDNESS
AI & TECH
Organization
Ana Maria Rodrigues
Professor of Epidemiology and Ageing at NOVA Medical School
Portugal
Andrew Jack
Global Education Editor at Financial Times
United Kingdom
Annamaria Lusardi
Faculty Director of Stanford’s Initiative for Financial Decision-Making
Italy
Anselm Schneider
Program Director, Hospital Partnerships Programme, GIZ
Germany
Christoph von Toggenburg
Group Head of Human Rights and Social Impact at Holcim
Switzerland
Emilio J. Castilla
SNTU Professor of Management at the MIT Sloan School of Management
Spain / USA
Emma Lawton
Consultant in User-Centred Design and Experience, Speaker, Writer & Parkinson’s Advocate
United Kingdom
Enrico Letta
Former Prime Minister of Italy, Dean of the IE University and President of the Jacques Delors Institute
Italy
Erwin Dhondt
Special Advisor for Health Security and Defence at FIPRA, Brigadier General (Ret.) & Military Medical Doctor
Belgium
Fabio Rubio Scarano
Chairholder of the UNESCO Chair on Futures Literacy at the Museum of Tomorrow & Professor of Ecology
Brazil
Francesco Billari
Professor of Demography at Bocconi University
Italy
G. Andrew Karolyi
Professor, Charles Field Knight Dean of the Cornell SC Johnson College of Business and Fellow of the Academy, International Academy of Management
Canadian and American
Gonçalo Saraiva Matias
Minister in the Cabinet of the Prime Minister and of State Reform, Jurist & Professor
Portugal
Helena Canhão
Secretary of State for Science and Innovation, Professor of Medicine & Rheumatologist
Portugal
Helfried Carl
Founder & CEO of the European Capital of Democracy, Diplomat & Political Innovator
Austria
Jenny Romano
Co-Founder & CEO of The Newsroom, AI and Media Innovation Entrepreneur
Italy
Jesus Armas
President, Ciudadanía Sin Límites
Venezuela
Joaquim de Almeida
Actor
Portugal
José Luís Carneiro
Secretary-General of the Socialist Party of Portugal, Former Minister of Internal Administration
Portugal
Karla Soares-Weiser
CEO of Cochrane
United Kingdom
Kenneth Shinozuka
Neuroscientist, Inventor & Healthcare Innovator
USA
Manuel Heitor
Professor and Former Minister for Science, Technology and Higher Education
Portugal
Maria Luís Albuquerque
European Commissioner for Financial Services and the Savings and Investments Union, Economist & Former Minister of Finance
Portugal
Matt Watters
Partner at McKinsey and Company
United States
Matthew Prince
Co-Founder and CEO of Cloudfare
United States
Miguel Pina e Cunha
Vice-Dean of Innovation & Impact & Academic Director of Executive Education
Portugal
Miguel Stilwell D’Andrade
CEO of EDP
Portugal
Nan Li Collins
Director, Division on Investment and Enterprise and UN Trade and Development
China
Nuno Sebastião
Co-founder, President, and CEO of Feedzai
Portugal
Olivier Vandecasteele
Founder & Director, Protect Humanitarians
Belgium
Pedro Pita Barros
Professor of Economics at Nova SBE and Coordinator of the Health Economics & Management Knowledge Center
Portugal
Rebecca Abecassis
Journalist, Author and Editor of European Affairs Programmes at RTP
Portugal
Ricardo Baptista Leite
CEO of HealthAI – The Global Agency for Responsible AI in Health and Founder and President of the UNITE Parliamentarians Network for Global Health
Portuguese and Canadian
Rohit Verma
Professor of Management Science Darla Moore School of Business
Indian-American
Shirin Ebadi
Nobel Prize Laureate, Human rights lawyer, writer, and former judge
Iran
Trudie Lang
Professor of Global Health Research, Clinical Scientist & Advocate for Equitable Research Partnerships
United Kingdom
Virgílio Bento
Founder and CEO of Sword
Portugal
Yulia Navalnaya
Political Activist and Economist
Russia
Yusra Mardini
Olympic swimmer and Syrian refugee
Syrian and German
