Dr. Salvatore LaSpada is an internationally recognized expert in strategic philanthropy, with extensive experience working with high-net-worth families from North America, Europe, the Middle East, and Asia. He specializes in defining mission and focus, developing strategies, and designing intergenerational leadership transitions. His past affiliations include the Brazil office of the Ford Foundation, the Rockefeller Foundation, the MacArthur Foundation, and the Al Nahyan Foundation (the royal family's foundation of Abu Dhabi), where he served as founding Executive Director, as well as the Institute for Philanthropy in London, where he was CEO. In academia, he has been a Visiting Professor in the Master’s program in Philanthropy at the University of Bologna and a Visiting Senior Fellow at the IDEAS Centre of the London School of Economics. He has also been a Fellow of the Royal Society for the Encouragement of Arts (RSA) in London and is a lifetime member of the Council on Foreign Relations. He is the co-founder of AFOCASTRO, the founder of the Emerging Artists Fund – Italy, and serves on the Board of Directors of the R&G Naftali Foundation and the Foundation for Child Development. He lives between New York and Rome.

Gaia Di Lorenzo is an artist and educator based in Rome. Her research focuses on collective behaviors and their role in processes of self-identification. Gaia holds a BA in Humanities and Philosophy from the University of Tor Vergata and a BA in Fine Arts from Goldsmiths, University of London. Her exhibitions include: Offendicula, Kora, Castrignano dei Greci (2024); ITALICS, Monopoli, curated by Vincenzo De Bellis (2022); Persona, ADA, Rome (2022); MATERIA NOVA, curated by Massimo Mininni at the Galleria d'Arte Moderna, Rome (2021); and Una Boccata d'Arte – Puglia, curated by Bruno Barsanti, Fondazione Elpis and Galleria Continua (2021). She has been a visiting tutor at the Academies of Fine Arts in Rome and Milan. She serves as a representative of the Minister of Culture on the Board of Directors of the Michetti Foundation. In 2018, Gaia founded CASTRO, an experimental educational program based in Rome. She is also a founding member of ART WORKERS ITALIA, an association established to give voice to contemporary art workers in Italy. Both initiatives — CASTRO and AWI — run in parallel with her artistic practice and reflect her ongoing interest in collective dynamics and the role of the artist in contemporary society.

Anna Silvia Tinelli is an attorney at DLA Piper in New York. She specializes in Tax Law, with a focus on both domestic and international matters, including patent box regimes, transfer pricing, and VAT. She has advised numerous clients in the context of voluntary disclosure procedures.

Stella is a Director in the M&A team of UBS Investment Banking, where she has worked on transactions totaling over $20 billion over the past seven years. She holds a Master’s degree in Global Governance and Diplomacy from the University of Oxford and a BA in International Relations from King’s College London. Originally from Italy, she speaks English, French, and Spanish, and has traveled to 65 countries. Stella is passionate about art and emerging artists, which she also collects. She is a certified yoga instructor and, in her free time, enjoys camping in remote locations and climbing high-altitude peaks, including Mount Kilimanjaro (5,895 m) and Cotopaxi (5,897 m).

 

Michaela Tupini ha costruito la sua carriera lavorando a fianco di fondatori, operatori e investitori nei settori della tecnologia e dell'ospitalità. Ha iniziato la sua carriera lavorando nel Venture Capital, sia in società istituzionali che corporate nella Silicon Valley, acquisendo esperienza nella raccolta fondi e nell'esecuzione di investimenti di impatto. Dopo essersi trasferita a New York, è stata Chief of Staff presso APICII, una società di progettazione e gestione di soluzioni su misura per l'ospitalità. Lì ha contribuito a realizzare le visioni creative di chef, designer, albergatori e ristoratori. Ha assistito all'apertura di diverse proprietà, da club privati, bar e proprietà a uso misto. Michaela attualmente lavora presso HSBC come Vice President of Venture Debt, fornendo opzioni di finanziamento ad alcune delle startup più innovative al mondo. Michaela vive e lavora a Brooklyn, New York.

A global marketing leader with over twenty years of experience growing iconic and culturally influential brands — including BEATS BY DRE (Apple), CONVERSE (Nike), TOMMY HILFIGER (PVH), and COLE HAAN — Cheryl is known for her ability to drive transformative brand growth through award-winning campaigns and high-impact collaborations across multi-billion-dollar companies. Cheryl also serves on the Board of Directors of VGC PARTNERS, a London-based capital investor and private equity firm, and is a Senior Advisor at ADOREUM, a global community of business leaders, entrepreneurs, and investors.