Wendy Metten is director of Inter - Accessible Flanders. Inter is an independent center of expertise in accessibility and Universal Design and partner of the Flemish government.

Krista was a presenter and producer at Radio 1. In 2009 she was struck by an aggressive bacterial infection and an immune disease. She wrote the book ‘My life on stilts’ about this. Since then, she has traveled around the country speaking about her experiences.

Angela Rolfe is an architect and urban planner who has been campaigning for accessibility in the existing and historic built environment at the Office of Public Works in Ireland for many years.

Angela is the regional director of the Union of International Architects (UIA) Architecture For All working group for Western Europe. UIA wants to influence and contribute to the development of socially responsible, accessible and inclusive architecture. Angela is particularly committed to accessibility and inclusion in the built environment.

She is also a board member of the International Council on Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS) in Ireland.

Fionnuala is an Irish architect and accessibility consultant with extensive expertise in urban planning, housing and various public buildings.

She advises design teams, companies and government agencies on a wide range of projects: from urban planning and transport infrastructure to educational institutions and health and welfare institutions.

Fionnuala is also a teacher.

She previously led the Architecture for All program in Region I of the Union of International Architects (UIA). And now she advises the Architecture for All program to make architecture more inclusive and accessible.

Monika Klenovec is an Austrian architect, structural engineer and lecturer at the Faculty of Architecture and Regional Planning of the Technical University of Vienna.

She mainly focuses on Universal Design. Monika has extensive experience with standardization and has worked on accessibility requirements at national, regional and international levels.

Monika is a well-known accessibility consultant, representing the Austrian Consumer Council and representing Austria within ANEC (European Voice of Consumers in Standardization).

She played an important role in drawing up accessibility standards in Austria, but also within CEN and ISO standards, with special attention to inclusive design in the built environment.

Monika’s commitment to accessibility goes beyond education. She advised many projects in the tourism sector, such as the Musiktheater am Volksgarten in Linz.

As a member of UIA WP “Architecture for all”, Monika continues to advocate for inclusive designs worldwide.

Matthias Francken is government commissioner for Inter and director of Herita vzw, an organization committed to the preservation and management of heritage in Flanders. He has a background in heritage management and played an important role in promoting the conservation and promotion of cultural heritage in Belgium. As director of Herita, he is responsible for developing and implementing strategies to preserve cultural heritage and make it accessible to the public.

Jos Meheus is project director and section head at the Facilities Service of the Province of West Flanders. He is the main contact person for accessibility policy within the province. With his expertise, he oversees various projects where heritage and accessibility come together. He is also committed to accessibility in general provincial policy.

Els Pieraerts has been an accessibility officer at the City of Bruges since 2020. As an accessibility officer, Els Pieraerts works on a more inclusive city where everyone counts. It ensures that buildings, public spaces, services and public domain are accessible to everyone.

With her background as a social educator and experience in equal opportunities for LGBTI+ people and diversity policy, Els now brings her expertise to the strategic cell of the City of Bruges. She ensures that every citizen is taken into account.

Alexandra Verdeil is an inclusion expert and collaborator at Tactile Studio, an innovative inclusive design agency and workshop, with offices in France, Germany and the US.

This team of passionate designers, UX specialists and model makers specializes in inclusive experiences in cultural institutions. After leading the German office for the past seven years, Alexandra has shifted her focus to supporting institutions in understanding and implementing solutions to improve accessibility and create a more welcoming environment. With support throughout the visitor experience, from inclusive signage to accessible content.

Delfin is director of the Spanish architectural firm “EQAR, Planning, Building and Accessibility”. He participates in several projects of international standards on accessibility for UNE, ISO and the European Commission.

He has extensive experience as an accessibility consultant at ONCE Foundation and ILUNION. He works with AENOR as an expert in certification audits in the field of accessibility.

He is also a lecturer at the Master of Accessibility course at the University of Jaén and teaches many other courses.

He is also a board member of ASEPAU, the Spanish Association of Professionals in the Field of Universal Accessibility and IAAP, the International Association of Accessibility Professionals.

He is the Spanish expert for AccessibleEU.

Bart graduated as an environmental coordinator. He has a passion for systems thinking – making connections. As a generalist, he has worked in various policy areas: nature conservation, heritage conservation, urban development and mobility. And this on the different sides of the table (public, private and NGO).

He has been working for the city of Bruges since 2018.

Since 2010, Marieke has been an accessibility and universal design advisor at Inter. She has already advised numerous heritage files on accessibility and inclusion.

Ramona Nicolaescu is an architect and has worked at the Facilities Management department of the city of Bruges since 2015. She supervised the BMCC project from the very beginning. Making buildings user-friendly and accessible to everyone is the common thread in her career.

Pieter Marechal is alderman for Personnel & Organization, Customer-oriented services and Welfare (seniors, people with disabilities and health) in the City of Bruges.