Robert Řehák, Ph.D. is Special Envoy for Holocaust, Interfaith Dialogue and Freedom of Religion, Czech career diplomat, Head of the Czech Delegation to the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA), Member of the Steering Committee of the International Religious Freedom or Belief Alliance (IRFBA), published scholar of biblical proper names and the Dead Sea Scrolls, and official Hebrew interpreter. He studied at Charles University in Prague, Ruprecht-Karls-Universität in Heidelberg and Hebrew University in Jerusalem.

He served as Deputy Spokesperson of the Czech Ministry of Foreign Affairs (2018- 2019), Cultural Attaché at the Czech Embassy in Washington, D.C. (2012-2016), Cultural and Press Attaché at the Czech Embassy in Israel (2005-2009), President of the Society of Christians and Jews in the Czech Republic (2000-2005), and General Secretary of the Center for Biblical Studies at the Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic (2000-2002). In recent years, he has worked with young people and lectured in the United States, Europe and the Middle East, is an external lecturer at New York University in Prague, Deputy Director of the Diplomatic Academy and since 2019 Ambassador at large.

As a researcher, he participates in several international research projects in the field of interfaith dialogue and sociology of religion. He is the initiator of the new Czech National Strategy of Combating anti-Semitism and co-ordinated the recent conference on the Terezín Declaration and the 2023 FoRB Ministerial in Prague. He is proficient in Czech, English, Hebrew, German and Russian, and reads classical Latin, Greek and Arabic. He lives in Prague with his wife and four children.

Daniel Nadel has served as Director of the Office of International Religious Freedom since August 2015, where he is responsible for promoting freedom of religion and belief for all as a core objective of U.S. foreign policy. Dan leads the office’s efforts to monitor religiously motivated abuses, persecution, and discrimination worldwide, and to recommend and implement policies and programs to address these concerns. He joined the office in 2011 as Unit Chief for South and Central Asia, and served as Acting Deputy for several years before assuming his current role. Dan joined the State Department in 2006 as a Presidential Management Fellow, and served from 2006 to 2011 in the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor’s Office of European Affairs, where he promoted human rights and democratic governance in the Balkans and Eastern Europe, and elevated the plight of Europe’s Roma minority.

Dan worked previously as a political officer and refugee coordinator at the U.S. Embassy in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia; as an attorney-advisor with the U.S. military in Europe; and as a federal prosecutor in Washington, DC. Before joining the U.S. government, Dan served at organizations including the United Nations Office of Legal Affairs, Lawyers’ Committee for Human Rights, the Kosovo Law Center, and the UN International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda. He has published on topics including the Rwanda genocide, political rights of persons with disabilities, Slobodan Milosevic, and the political crisis in Zimbabwe.

Dan received a B.A. and M.A. in International Affairs and a Juris Doctor from George Washington University. He was born and raised in Queens, New York.

Anke Oppermann heads the Unit of the Federal Government Commissioner for Freedom of Religion or Belief, Frank Schwabe MP at the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ). Previously, she was head of the directorate "Decent work worldwide; food and nutrition security" and the directorate responsible for personnel, organisation, legal affairs and the translation and interpreting service, as well as acting head of Directorate-General Z (Central Directorate-General). During her career with the BMZ, Ms Oppermann also headed the Personnel Division and the Division for Parliament and Cabinet, and was Deputy Head of the Minister's Office. She has development-policy experience – gained both at the BMZ and while working for other organisations – in areas such as international human rights, cooperation with Pakistan and Afghanistan, the Federal College for Security Studies, policy planning and parliamentary work. Anke Oppermann studied History, Public Law and Political Science at universities in Germany, the Netherlands and the U.S.A.

Alexander Rieger is the Head of the Unit for Intercultural and Interreligious Dialogue as well as the Head of the Task Force Dialogue of Cultures (and Religions) at the Austrian Federal Ministry for European and International Affairs. His responsibilities include Religion & Foreign Policy, the promotion of Freedom of Religion or Belief and Intercultural and Interreligious Dialogue initiatives.

In 2021, he established the Vienna Group on Religion & Diplomacy that includes representatives of like-minded EU Member States and aims to increase coordination, information exchange and work on joint initiatives. Since November 2023, he heads the International Religious Freedom or Belief Alliance (IRFBA) Working Group on Interfaith Dialogue. He coordinates the yearly Intercultural Achievement Award (www.intercultural-achievement.com) that recognizes best practice projects around the world. He has established new bilateral intercultural and interreligious Dialogues with Morocco (2022) and the United Arab Emirates (2024).

Alexander has held posts as Deputy Head of Mission in Saudi Arabia (2006-2009), Mexico (incl. Central America) (2009-2014) and Iran (2016-2020), where he was additionally the Director of the Austrian Cultural Forum and the President of EUNIC Iran.

Alexander holds a Master in Social and Economical Sciences of the Vienna University of Economics and Business and a Master in International Management of the Community of European Management Schools (CEMS).

David Smith was appointed as the UK Special Envoy for Freedom of Religion or Belief on 11 December 2024.

David became Member of Parliament for North Northumberland in July 2024. Immediately prior to this, he was chief executive of homelessness charity, Oasis Community Housing, based in Gateshead.

David’s other roles, including at Tearfund and the Bible Society, have similarly been in the charity sector. His career has taken him around the UK and overseas to promote fairness, egalitarianism, compassion and the empowerment of the vulnerable.

David is a member of the Northern Ireland Affairs Committee, and Vice Chair of the All Party Parliamentary Groups on Homelessness and North Korea.