Programme

Haas alumna, Managing Director of DFJ VTB Capital Aurora, a venture group specializing in investments in the developing world. Alexandra invests in a broad range of companies targeting enterprise, material science, alternative energy, and industry innovation and has grown a variety of product and services start-ups and emerging technology companies in the U.S, Russia and the CIS. Alexandra was named among Top 20 most influential men and women in Bay Area finance in 2015 (Worth). Alexandra is a President of the Global Technology Symposium, a premier investor conference on global emerging markets held annually in Silicon Valley since 2003, and was a private sector Co-Chair of the U.S. – Russia Innovation Working Group. She has spent her career connecting Bay Area investors with companies in emerging markets, supporting international cooperation and global talent. She is a board member of several tech companies, including Grid Dynamics, VisionLabs, and Rolith. Previously Alexandra was a founder and managing director of Landbridge Capital LLC, an investment firm targeting U.S.-based companies commercializing Russian technology. Prior to forming Landbridge Capital, Ms. Johnson was CEO of Libritas, Inc., a venture backed provider of Information Technology (IT) products and managed telecom services for small, medium and Fortune 500 Corporations. Libritas was acquired in 2001. Alexandra received an M.A. with honors from the Far Eastern State University, Vladivostok and a Ph.D. from University of St. Petersburg. She also has an M.B.A. from the University of California, Berkeley.

Born 1954, M.Sc. (Soc.Sc.). From 2009 to 2012, Mr. Esko Aho was the Executive Vice President of Corporate Relations and Responsibility at Nokia Corporation. Before joining Nokia Mr. Aho served as a member of Finnish parliament for 20 years, from 1983. Mr. Aho has enjoyed a distinguished career, including the post of Prime Minister of Finland from 1991 to 1995. In 2000 he joined the Harvard University as a lecturing professor. Following the retirement from the Finnish Parliament, Esko Aho worked as a private consultant. In July 2004 he was appointed President of the Finnish Innovation Fund, SITRA. Currently, Mr. Aho is board member of the Board of the Skolkovo Foundation and Chairman of the Industrial Advisory Board of the Skolkovo Foundation since 2012. Mr. Aho is an invited member of the Club de Madrid, an independent organization of former heads of state and government dedicated to strengthening democracy. Mr. Aho is also visiting lecturer at Beijing University and Russian Presidential Academy of National Economy. In 2013 Mr. Aho was appointed as an Executive Chairman of East Office of Finnish Industries representing the leading Finnish corporations in Russia. He was also appointed to head the Business Team for Russia – the cooperation venture of the Finnish-Russian Chamber of Commerce, East Office and the Confederation of Finnish Industries EK’s Russia functions.

Vladimir Volkov was born in 1954 in Novoe Arakcheevo, Krasnoslobodsky district, Mordovskaya ASSR. He graduated from Mordovia State University named after N. P. Ogarev in 1976. He has two degrees: an electronics technology engineer and a building engineer.Vladimir Volkov started his working career in 1976 as an instructor of regional office of students’ construction gang of Mordovian All-Union Leninist Young Communist League regional committee. In 1977-1976 - a secretary of All-Union Leninist Young Communist League commitee in Mordovia State University committee, in 1979-1983 – a leader of regional students’ team of Mordovian All-Union Leninist Young Communist League regional committee. In 1983-1986 - the first secretary of Saransk All-Union Leninist Young Communist League city committee. In 1986-1988 - the Manager of industrial transportation office of Saransk Communist Party of the Soviet Union city committee, 1988 - 1990 - the first secretary of Proletarsky Communist Party of the Soviet Union district committee of Saransk. In 1990-1995 – the chairman of permanent Mordovia Republic Supreme Soviet committee concerning major construction work, industry and construction supplies. In 1995 - the Vice- Chairman of Mordovia Republic State Assembly. From 1995 - the Chairman of Mordovia Republic Government. On May, 14, 2012 he was appointed to the post of the Head of Mordovia Republic.He was awarded with order of Badge of Honor.

Oleg Perelman was born on April 13, 1949, in Orenburg. He graduated from Orenburg Polytechnic Institute in 1971. Mr. Perelman devoted the start of his career to scientific activities. He conducted his first scientific research in powder materials science at the Department of Metals Technologies of Orenburg Polytechnic Institute. In 1991, based on a proposal from the Ministry of the Oil and Fuel Industry, Mr. Perelman and his colleagues established an enterprise to manufacture powder operating devices for submersible centrifugal pumps that would become known as CJSC Novomet-Perm. Over the first two to three years of the enterprise’s operation, Mr. Perelman formed a team of workers and technical base and also established contacts with leading specialists on the production and repair of submersible devices. This marked the start of the establishment of Novomet-Perm with Oleg Perelman serving as its inspiration and CEO. In 1997, a fundamentally new type of pump was developed – the inclined-rotor pump – with such pumps successfully introduced in the Ural-Volga and West Siberian regions. The team of authors led by Oleg Perelman was recognized for this development in 2000 with the Prize of the Russian Government and Mr. Perelman was granted the title of Laureate of the Prize of the Russian Government in Science and Engineering. Mr. Perelman is the author of a number of scientific articles and holds more than 30 Russian and international patents.

Also President of the Chinese Association for development and planning of enterprise overseas operations at the Centre for Co-operation with Russia/CODARC CEO. SIRIUS HOLDING CORPORATION is a group of international companies, which includes the following: Heihe Company Sirius, AMUR SIRIUS POWER EQUIPMENT CO.LTD, MENLAN-SIRIUS ENERGO CORPORATION, ОАО Heihe company for building a bridge across the Amur, XJ Biotech and Simplnano. Sphere of activity: investment in energy projects (including photoelectric facilities), general contractor work, the export of equipment components, prospecting for, and the extraction, refining, storage, transport and sale of oil and gas, the development of the main aspects of biotechnology in medicine and the promotion of putting scientific developments into production, developments in the mobile communications and 4G-chips sectors, the testing of car operating mechanisms during the winter, and so on. The Centre for Co-operation with Russia was set up in 2015 in conjunction with the Chinese Association for the Development of Industry Overseas and the SIRIUS HOLDING CORPORATION.

Academician Vladimir E. Fortov was born on January 23, 1946. In 1968 he was graduated from Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology with honors. In 1976 he received a doctoral degree, in 1982 was awarded the title of professor. In 1987 – was elected as corresponding member of the Academy of Sciences of the USSR with specialization in thermal physics of the Division of physical-technical problems of power engineering. In 1991 he was elected as full member of the Russian Academy of Sciences for the divisions of Physical and technical problems of power engineering and General and technical chemistry. From 1993 to 1997 V.E.Fortov – Chairman of the Russian Foundation for Basic Research , from 1996 to 1998 – Deputy Prime Minister of the Russian Federation – Minister of Science and Technology, from 1996 to 2001 – Vice President of the Russian Academy of Sciences, from 2002 to 2013 – Head of the Department of energy, machinery, mechanics and control processes RAS, from 2013 - President of the Russian Academy of Sciences. From January 2007 academician V.E.Fortov is the Head of Joint Institute for High Temperatures RAS. V.E. Fortov is a well known scientist actively involved in the research fields of power engineering, thermal physics, strong shock and detonation waves, plasma physics and physical mechanics. V.E. Fortov belongs to the group of scientists, whose work determines the modern state of physical and engineering science. Academician Fortov was one of the first people to apply strong shock waves to a generation of intense pulses of electric currents and to also investigate the physical and chemical properties of materials under extreme pressure and temperatures. He was the first to carry out the detailed measurement of the properties of perspective working media for magneto-hydrodynamic and magnetic flux compression electric generators. His has made an unique scientific input in an entirely new field of physics, the physics of dense plasmas. Academician Fortov has made key contributions to the understanding and expanding knowledge of the basic properties of matter under extreme conditions.

Born on July 17, 1949, in Leningrad (now St Petersburg). 1971 – graduated from Zhdanov Leningrad State University; Doctor of Physics and Mathematics. 1971-1991 – junior researcher, laboratory head, deputy director for research, leading researcher at the Ioffe Physical Technical Institute of the Soviet Academy of Sciences, Leningrad. 1991-1993 – Vice President of Advanced Technology Centre, St Petersburg. 1994-2001 – Director of Regional Foundation for Scientific and Technological Development, St Petersburg. From 2000 – Chairman of the Academic Council of the Centre for Strategic Research North-West Foundation. 2001-2002 – Deputy Minister of Industry, Science and Technology of the Russian Federation. From June 2002 – First Deputy Minister of Industry, Science and Technology of the Russian Federation. From December 2003 – Acting Minister of Industry, Science and Technology of the Russian Federation. March 9, 2004 – appointed Minister of Education and Science of the Russian Federation. Since May 21, 2012 – Aide to the President of the Russian Federation. State award – Honorary Diploma of the Government of the Russian Federation.

In January 2014, Anatoliy Chubais was appointed Chairman of the Executive Board of RUSNANO Managing Company LLC, which was set up within the scope of the OJSC RUSNANO Strategy up to 2020 envisaging division of management functions and possession of company assets. Since September 2008, Anatoly Chubais has headed state corporation Russian Corporation of Nanotechnologies and, since it was transformed into an open joint-stock company in March 2011, had held the position of Chairman of the Executive Board of OAO RUSNANO. From 1998 to 2008, Anatoly Chubais headed up RAO UES of Russia. From 1997 through 1998 he was First Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance of the Russian Federation and from 1996 through 1997 Chief of Staff of the Russian Presidential Executive Office. From 1992 to 1996 he was Deputy Prime Minister and then First Deputy Prime Minister of the Russian Federation for economics and financial policy. From 1995 to 1996, Anatoly Chubais was the Russian Federation manager in the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund. 1991–1994 saw him as Chairman of the State Committee of the Russian Federation for management of state property, when he authored and co-ordinated the Russian privatisation programme. Earlier, in 1990–1991, he was Vice-Chairman and then First Vice-Chairman of the Leningrad Soviet executive committee.

Vladimir Gurdus is the CEO of RMI Partners, which manages the pharmaceutical company ‘NovaMedica’ and the investment fund RusnanoMedInvest. Vladimir graduated cum laude from Sechenov Moscow Medical Academy. His second degree is in finance and economics (RosNOU). Mr. Gurdus is a Professor and Doctor of Medical Sciences. Vladimir Gurdus is the CEO of RMI Partners, which manages two large-scale international projects with total investment amount of $760 million: the Russian pharmaceutical company ‘NovaMedica’ and the venture investment fund RusnoMedInvest. These projects are implemented within the scope of the agreement signed between the Russian investment corporation ROSNANO and the U.S. Domain Associates venture fund. The key aim behind the collaboration is the transfer and localization of innovative biopharmaceutical products and technology in Russia. Professional background: 1991–2007 ROSNO insurance company, 1st Deputy CEO starting in 2003; COO. 2005–2007 ROSNO-MS, CEO, Chairman of the Board. 2006–2007 Allianz ROSNO Life insurance company, CEO. 2007–2009 Medsi Group, President. 2009–2012 development of private investment projects. Vladimir Gurdus is a member of the Government Expert Council of the Russian Federation. He co-chairs a joint working group of the Expert Council and the Ministry of Health responsible for development of the Russian healthcare and drug supply system development concept. Vladimir is also a member of the Public Council under the Ministry of Healthcare of the Russian Federation, a permanent advisory public control body of the Russian healthcare system.

Tatiana Saribekian is a Chief Executive Officer of Domain Russia Investments (DRI) (since 2012), a subsidiary of Domain Associates, a leading US-based life sciences venture capital firm. Tatiana has been cooperating with Domain Associates since 2005, when she supervised clinical trials of Domain portfolio companies in the Russian Federation. In 2010 Ms. Saribekian initiated the development and execution of a complex joint project between Domain and “Rosnano” OJSC with total estimated investments over USD 700 million and was substantially involved in that project's implementation. Ms. Saribekian acted on behalf of Domain when negotiating the transaction and subsequently was named head of the newly-incorporated SPV established for the project management from Domain's side. She also site on the Board of Directors of “NovaMedica” LLC, a joint venture of Domain and “Rusnano” OJSC, a pharmaceutical company created to produce and market innovative next-generation products for the Russia and CIS market. In that role she has been instrumental in the development and performance of transactions on the transfer of pharmaceutical intellectual property rights from Domain portfolio companies (such as Marinus, Syndax, NovaDigm, Lithera, Revision Optics and others) to Russia. Tatiana Saribekian has more than 25 years of business experience. At the beginning of her professional career she was with the Moscow Commercial Land Bank and participated in the management of Lescomcenter (a government corporation formed after the dissolution of the Ministry of Lumber Industry). Subsequently, Ms. Saribekian was co-founder and vice president of one of the first private vertically-integrated lumber companies in Russia, Lespromservice, with the firm quickly becoming one of the 10 largest exporters of Russian lumber. Tatiana Saribekian holds a law degree from the Moscow State Law Academy and bachelors and masters (MBA) degrees from San Diego State University, with a specialization in entrepreneurship. Ms. Saribekian is a 2012 graduate from the prestigious Kauffman Fellows program for venture investors. Ms. Saribekian is a frequent speaker at events around the globe on the topic of cross-border partnerships in the life sciences.