Em. Prof. Baron Marc Van Montagu (PhD, Organic Chemistry/Biochemistry, Ghent) is Chairman of the VIB - Intl. Plant Biotechnology Outreach and Pres. of PRRI. He discovered, with J. Schell, the Ti-plasmid and invented the Agrobacterium transformation technology, now used worldwide to produce GM plants. He made major contributions on fundamental plant sciences and on biotech agriculture, such as GM plants resistant to insects or tolerant to more environmentally friendly herbicides. He was Founding Member and Member of the Board of Directors of the biotech companies Plant Genetic System (PGS) and CropDesign, spin-offs from his laboratory. He has received numerous honours, including the Japan prize (1998), and the World Food Prize (2013). He is member of seven scientific academies worldwide, and Goodwill Ambassador for Agribusiness at UNIDO. He has produced +1000 publications, h-index 125.

Murenzi (PhD Louvain, Belgium) has been professor at Worcester Polytechnic Institute since 2024. He was Executive Director of TWAS from 2011-2023, with a year interruption across 2016-2017 when he served as Director of the Division of Science Policy and Capacity Building in UNESCO's Natural Sciences Sector (July 2016). He previously was Minister of Science, Technology and Scientific Research in Rwanda and Director of the Center for Science, Technology and Sustainability at the American Association for the Advancement of Science, Washington, DC; he was also visiting Professor at the University of Maryland. He was Chair and Professor in the Department of Physics at Clark Atlanta University, USA. He was also designer of the two-dimensional continuous wavelet transform. In 2012 he was elected as a Fellow of the African Academy of Sciences (AAS). He chairs the UN Secretary General's High-level Panel of Technology Bank and Science, Technology and Innovation Supporting Mechanism dedicated to the Least Developed Countries; he is a Member of the ITU/UNESCO Broadband Commission for Digital Development and of the Carnegie Mellon University President’s Global Advisory Council.

Blundell is Professor Emeritus and Director of Research in Biochemistry, Cambridge, UK, having been Professor of Biochemistry and Head, School of Biological Sciences, until 2009. He obtained D.Phil at Oxford University in 1967, and held positions at Oxford, Sussex and London before moving to Cambridge in 1996. He is a member of Academia Europaea; Fellow of Royal Society, Academy of Medical Sciences, Indian Natl. Academy of Science and Chilean National Academy; and has hon. doctorates from 16 universities. He was member of advisory group to Prime Minister; founding CEO, Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council; Chair, Royal Commission Environmental Pollution; President, Biosciences Fed., Biochemical Society and Science Council. He co-founded Astex Pharma, sold recently for USD886M.

Sur is Newton Professor of Neuroscience and Director of the Simons Center for the Social Brain at MIT. He studies the cerebral cortex of the brain, and has discovered fundamental principles by which cortical circuits are wired during development and change during learning. He received his BTech from the Indian Institute of Technology, Kanpur, and his PhD from Vanderbilt University, Nashville. His awards include: Charles Judson Herrick Award, American Association of Anatomists; A.P. Sloan Fellowship; McKnight Neuroscience Development Award; Sigma Xi Distinguished Lectureship; Distinguished Alumnus Award, IIT, Kanpur; Distinguished Alumnus Award, Vanderbilt University. He has been elected to the Royal Society, UK; National Academy of Medicine, USA; American Academy of Arts and Sciences; National Academy of Sciences, India; Indian National Science Academy; Neurosciences Research Program, USA; and Rodin Academy, Sweden.

Tata obtained his BSc (hons.) from U. of Bombay, MSc at Indian Inst. of Science (IISc) Bangalore, and docteur ès-sciences at U. of Paris Sorbonne. He is snr. scientist emeritus at the Medical Research Council, UK; previously trustee, Oxford Intl. Biomedical Centre; sci. adviser Avesthagen, India; chairman, Royal Soc. Research Grants and Intl. Awards Schemes. Previously, he was: vis. prof. in biochemistry, King's College, London; vis. prof., UC Berkeley; Fogarty scholar, NIH, Bethesda; and head, Lab. Dev. Biochemistry, National Inst. of Medical Research, London. His awards include: Van Meter Prize; Colworth Medal; Medal, Soc. of Endrocrinology; Jubilee Medal, Indian Inst. of Science; Doctor h.c., Ecole Normale Superieure, France. He is a fellow of the Royal Society, London, Indian Natl. Science Acad. and Natl. Acad. of Science India, and Member, European Molecular Biology Organisation.

Wong is professor of chemistry at Scripps Research Institute and National Taiwan U. and past president of Academia Sinica, Taipei, Taiwan (2006-16). He received his BS and MS from National Taiwan University, and PhD (chemistry, 1982) from Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He taught at Texas A and M University for 6 years, then became professor and Ernest W. Hahn Chair in Chemistry at Scripps Research Institute (1989-2006) and director of the Genomics Research Center, Academia Sinica, Taipei (2003-2006). He is a member of Academia Sinica, Taipei, American Academy of Arts and Sciences, and US National Academy of Sciences. His research interests are in bioorganic and synthetic chemistry and biocatalysis, including development of chemo-enzymatic, synthesis of complex carbohydrates, glycoproteins and small-molecule probes for the study of carbohydrate-mediated biological recognition.

Marwala is Under-Secretary-General of the United Nations (UN) and the rector of the UN University. He was previously vice-chancellor of the University of Johannesburg and deputy vice-chancellor for research, postgraduate studies and the library, and was previously dean of engineering and the built environment, University of Johannesburg. He was professor of electrical engineering, and Carl and Emily Fuchs Chair of systems and control engineering, University of the Witwatersrand. He has been chair of the Local Loop Unbundling Committee and non-executive director of SITA, EOH, Denel and City Power. He has received more than 40 awards including: Order of Mapungubwe, and President Award, National Research Foundation. He holds a PhD in engineering from University of Cambridge. He has supervised 47 masters and 37 PhD students and published 25 books, 300 refereed papers in journals, proceedings and book chapters and holds 3 international patents. He is a fellow of many organizations including the American Academy of Arts and Sciences.

Azim Surani, born in Kenya received a PhD in 1975 at Cambridge University under Professor Sir Robert Edwards FRS (Nobel Laureate, 2010). Surani joined the Babraham Institute in 1979, and discovered ‘Genomic Imprinting’ in 1984, and subsequently, novel imprinted genes and their functions, with contributions to its mechanism through establishment and erasure of DNA methylation. In 1992, he was elected the Marshall-Walton Professor, and subsequently Director of Research at Cambridge University. His recent work established the genetic basis for germ cell specification and epigenetic programming towards resetting of the epigenome. He was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society in 1990, Fellow of the Academy of Medical Sciences in 2001, awarded a Royal Medal in 2010, and in 2014, the ISSCR McEwen Award for Innovation.