Over 16 years of experience in designing and implementing programs that seek to support meaningful engagement of women in public affairs, and promotion of gender equality through gender mainstreaming in public policy. Specialized in developing reform initiatives that aim to create space for women in political parties, local and national legislatures, civil society organizations, media and business communities. Implemented a broad range of democracy and development programs, including ‘Week of Women” and “Women Leadership Academy”, working closely with political party representatives, elected officials, civil servants, civil society activists, and donor community. Proven track record of delivering technical assistance and mediating solutions in complex and fragile environments. Pranvera studied Public Policy and Management at York University UK and participated in numerous academic and professional development conferences and programs, including the Women’s Campaign School at Yale University.

Nathalie Niedoba is currently serving as the Deputy Head of Mission and Consul at the Embassy of Canada to Croatia and Kosovo. A lawyer by training, Nathalie Niedoba is a career diplomat with a broad international experience in both the public and private sectors, including as Communications Advisor for Bombardier Transportation’s HQ in Berlin. Nathalie joined Global Affairs Canada (GAC) in 1996. She had three postings in Germany (including her last as Senior Advisor for the Western Balkans at the Embassy of Canada), New York (Consul and Head of Investment at the Consulate General of Canada), and Costa-Rica (with accreditation to Nicaragua and Honduras). In Ottawa, she worked as Parliamentary Relations Officer and Legal Counsel (Trade Law). Before joining the federal government, Ms. Niedoba worked for the Ministère des Relations internationales du Québec as Consultant/Legal Counsel.

Katrin Langensiepen is a Member of the European Parliament. She is also a Vice Chair on the Committee on Employment and Social Affairs, and a member on the Special Committee Special Committee on Lessons Learned from the COVID-19 Pandemic and Recommendations for the Future and a deputy member on the Committee on Foreign Affairs with responsibility for the Syria and Sub-Saharan Africa regions. Despite her diverse experiences, finding employment during the financial crisis proved challenging, with numerous opportunities denied due to her visible disability. Fueled by this adversity, she delved into political engagement with Alliance 90/The Greens. Within a year of joining, she secured a seat on the Hanover City Council in 2011, where she actively served as a social policy spokesperson, advocating for increased participation and solidarity as the spokesperson for the Federal Disability Policy Working Group. Simultaneously, from 2017 to 2019, she contributed to the constituency office of Bundestag member Sven-Christian Kindler and held positions in the state parliament offices of Filiz Polat and Belit Onay. In November 2018, she achieved a significant milestone, securing the ninth position on the European list at the federal party conference of Alliance 90/The Greens. This victory paved her way to the European Parliament, where she assumed office in July 2019. Currently, as Vice-Chairman of the Social Committee, she passionately champions the cause of a social Europe, with a specific emphasis on housing, basic security, and inclusion. At the federal level, her membership in the AG Diversity sees her spearheading the Green Diversity Statute and advocating for increased intra-party diversity within the Greens. She studied speech therapy in the Netherlands, served as an au pair in Marseille's banlieues, worked on an Israeli kibbutz, and underwent training as a foreign language assistant.

Emilija Redžepi is Chairwoman of NDS party and Third Deputy Prime Minister for Minority Issues and Human Rights. Ms. Redžepi has been a Member of Parliament for the past three legislatures. Ms. Redžepi ran for Mayor in the 2017 local elections in Prizren and she served as the minister of the Ministry of Local Government Administration. She was the Deputy Speaker of Prizren and Deputy Minister for Economic Development and Energy. Ms. Redžepi earned her Master’s Degree studies in Political Science.

Bujar Kadriu serves as Executive Director of the Kosovo Disability Forum, previously he served as a Co-chairman of the National Council for Persons with Disabilities. He has held key roles within the Association of the Blind of Kosovo, including Vice President and Chairman. Kadriu is pursuing his Bachelor's degree in Public Administration and International Relations from Universum College while he finished Secondary school for the blind in Peja.

Ambassador Nina Hachigian (ret) is the first U.S. Special Representative for City and State Diplomacy. In this role she seeks to bring benefits to, and learn from, local leaders in the United States, and connect them to counterparts around the world. Before rejoining the Department, Ambassador Hachigian served as the first Deputy Mayor for International Affairs for the City of Los Angeles. In that role, she oversaw efforts that sent underserved community college students on free, educational international trips; created a new public-private partnership to attract international business and non-profits, especially to underserved communities; prepared the City for the 2028 Olympic and Paralympic Games and their legacy; hosted the Summit of the Americas; founded the first global gender equity city network; planned trade missions, and worked with international city networks to advance cutting-edge climate change programs, migrant integration, healthy cities and more.

Eliza Hoxha is a Member of the Assembly of Kosovo from the Democratic Party of Kosovo (PDK). She is also a member of the Committee for Education, Science, Technology, Innovation, Culture, Youth and Sport and Committee for Gender Equality, Human Rights and Missing Persons. Hoxha is also a board member of the Women Caucus. She graduated in 2002 from the Faculty of Civil Engineering and Architecture at the University of Pristina. She completed her postgraduate studies in 2006 at the Catholic University of Leuven, Belgium, focusing on the field of urban planning. She is currently pursuing her doctoral studies at TU in Graz, Austria.

Kadri Rahimaj, the mayor of the municipality of Kamenica, was born in August 1991 in Koprnica, Dardana Municipality, where he still lives. He completed primary school in his hometown and secondary school in Gjilan. He completed his university studies in Banking, Finance and Accounting at the Faculty of Economics, University of Pristina, while his post-graduate studies at the University of Southeast Europe, in the same field. The purpose of political engagement is the aim to influence the improvement of citizens' well-being. Youth on one side and women on the other side are the two starting points for equal development in both society and economy.

Arijeta Skeraj is the Speaker of the Dragash Municipality Assembly from the LDK political entity. She completed her primary education in Bellobrad, secondary education in Bresan, while she completed the nursing faculty in Pristina. She worked as a nurse in the Mother Teresa organization in Bellobrad and during the war at the Finnish Red Cross in Albania. From 1999-2002 she worked at the OSCE in Dragash. In 2003, she was employed at the Regional Hospital in Prizren, where she still works today. In 2007, Arijeta Skeraj entered the race for Municipal Assembly where she is the most voted woman in the Municipality of Dragash, she has been an assemblywoman for four consecutive mandates, she is the vice president of the LDK in Dragash as well as the President of the Women's Forum, she is also a member of the Lobby for Gender Equality. In 2018, she participated in Week of Women.

Burbuqe Bakija - Deva is a member of the Presidency at the Alliance for the future of Kosovo (AAK). She has served as a Leader of the division for the Department of European Integrations, also served as a deputy minister of the Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sports, as well as Deputy Minister in the Ministry of Economy and Environment and Deputy. She holds a degree from the Faculty of Construction and Architecture, University of Pristina "Hasan Prishtina", and a Master in Architecture, and Master in Archaeology, Center for Albanian studies in Tirana, 2012.

Z. Sazan Ibrahimi është Magjistër i shkencave ekonomike, drejtimi menaxhment dhe informatikë. Studimet e larta i ka mbaruar si Inxhinier i Elektroteknikës, drejtimi automatik me elektronikë. Nga viti 2000 deri në fund te vitit 2003 ka punuar për Organizatën për Siguri dhe Bashkëpunim në Evropë (OSBE), departamenti për demokratizim. Në fund të vitit 2003 është emëruar në pozitën e Drejtorit Ekzekutiv në Asociacionin e Komunave të Kosovës (AKK). Ka një experiencë të gjërë në menaxhimin e projekteve vendore dhe asiston në realizimin e projekteve ndërkombëtare në sektore që bien nën kompetencat e pushtetit lokal në Kosovë. Ka një eksperiencë mbi 20 vjeçare në zhvillimet dhe proceset që kanë të bëjnë me zhvillimin dhe ndërtimin e pushtetit lokal në Kosovë. Gjatë kësaj kohe z. Ibrahimi ka fuqizuar relacionet e pushtetit lokal me atë qëndror në Kosovë si dhe ka ndërtuar relacione të reja dhe në të njëjtën kohë ka fuqizuar relacionet me organizata ndërkombëtare që veprojnë në vend për fuqizimin e demokracisë lokale. Është drejtor ekzekutiv i AKK-së dhe gjatë kësaj kohe ka pjesëmarrë në shumë seminare dhe konferenca si brenda dhe jashte vendit dhe nën drejtimin e tij ky mekanizëm ka shënuar rezultate dhe suksese të vazhdueshme në përmbushjen e e plotë të mandatit të tij.

Aleksandra Jovanović is a RTK2 journalist.

Blert Morina is the Executive Director of the Center for Equality and Liberty (CEL) Kosova. He is an LGBTQ+ rights activist and the first transgender person to undergo hormone therapy in the Kosovo state. For years, Blerti has lobbied for the advancement of LGBTQ+ rights in Kosovar society.

Tamara Cofman Wittes became the fourth president of NDI in 2024. Before joining the Institute, she served as Director of Foreign Assistance in the U.S Department of State. Previously, she led the Russia sanctions effort for the State Department's sanctions coordination office. Dr. Wittes also served in the State Department from 2009 - 2012 as Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs, coordinating U.S. policy on democracy and human rights in the Middle East during the Arab uprisings. Dr. Wittes spent nearly twenty years as a foreign policy scholar at the Brookings Institution, including as director of its Center for Middle East Policy. Her analysis focused on U.S. foreign policy in the Middle East, political and economic change in the region, and the Arab-Israel conflict. She is an adjunct professor at Georgetown University, where she has taught courses in international relations, Middle East policy, and security studies. Dr. Wittes was one of the first recipients of the Rabin-Peres Peace Award, established by President Bill Clinton in 1997.

Jessica Blitt joined the Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade (now Global Affairs Canada) in 2002. Since then, she has held positions in the Peacebuilding and Human Security Division, and the Emergency Management Bureau, as well as being seconded to the Department of National Defence (2015 to 2017), where she was the Director of NATO Policy, and to the Foreign and Defence Policy Secretariat of the Privy Council Office (2009 to 2010). Ms. Blitt has been posted to the Mission of Canada to the EU (2017 to 2021), to the Embassy of Canada to Italy (2011 to 2015), as well as to the Canadian Mission to the United Nations (2005 to 2008). Immediately prior to her current assignment, Ms. Blitt served as Director of the Departmental Liaison Unit and Senior Departmental Adviser to the Minister of Foreign Affairs. Ms. Blitt holds a Master's degree in International Affairs from the Norman Paterson School of International Affairs and an Honours Bachelor's degree in Philosophy and Peace and Conflict Studies from the University of Toronto.

Mary Eileen Devitt is a Career Member of the Senior Foreign Service with the rank of Minister Counselor. Ms. Devitt assumed her duties as USAID Kosovo Mission Director in October 2023. She has over 20 years of diverse USAID experience including 18 years in the Middle East. In her most recent assignment, Ms. Devitt served as USAID/Lebanon Mission Director (2020 to 2023). She also served as the Senior Development Advisor/Country Director for Yemen based in the Yemen Affairs Unit in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia (2018 to 2020). Prior to Yemen, Ms. Devitt was the Director of the Office of Financial Management in Egypt (2014-2018) where she also served in Mission leadership. Ms. Devitt served as the Acting Chief Financial Officer and Deputy Chief Financial Officer at USAID Headquarters in Washington, DC (2011-2014). She has led financial management teams in Bangladesh (2007-2011); the Regional Service Center for Southern Africa (2002-2007) and Egypt (1997 to 2003). She has served as an advisor to the non-permissive environment and regionalization working groups and on other Agency initiatives. Ms. Devitt served as a financial management development expert for the Agency, supported regional and bilateral operations and provided executive level expertise in public financial management; leadership in donor and host country government and private sector engagement and collaboration on a broad range of matters including public financial management, macro-economic issues, and private sector engagement. As USAID's Acting Chief Financial Officer and Deputy Chief Financial Officer for Overseas Operations, she provided technical direction and support to over 180 US Foreign Service Officers and 1,700 Foreign Service National financial management professionals. Ms. Devitt and her team were also responsible for oversight and stewardship of the USAID's financial resources totaling over $34 billion dollars. Ms. Devitt has received a number of honor and performance awards during her USAID career. She holds a Bachelor of Arts in History and a master’s degree in management. Ms. Devitt is married and they have a son.