Dr. Gabriela Tejada – ACT Advisor

As the Deputy Director of the Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL)’s College of Humanities and the current Vice-President of the Swiss Commission for UNESCO, Dr. Gabriela Tejada promotes science-society linkages and advocates for an inclusive development and dialogue through education, science, and culture.

Gabriela has extensive expertise in international cooperation in science, education, and innovation, incl. strategically advising universities, governments, and multilateral organisations. She has been a visiting researcher at Harvard University and ETH Zürich and has worked at the Monterrey Institute of Technology and the University of Zürich. Gabriela served as an International Expert for the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in Moldova, as well as, as the Advisor to the UNDP Director for Sustainable Human Development at their Headquarters in Geneva. Prior to relocating to Europe, Gabriela was the Head of Department for Bilateral Trade Agreements of the Mexican Secretariat for Economy.

In 2007, Gabriela joined EPFL as a scientist at the Cooperation and Development Center, which held the UNESCO Chair in Technologies for Development. Her research focused on scientific diasporas and skilled migration with diverse international collaborations under her leadership. She led the EPFL Leading House Program of the Swiss government for 3 years, which upheld Swiss bilateral research cooperation with Brazil, India, Vietnam and Latin America. Gabriela also serves the Scholars at Risk program at EPFL in an advisory capacity and is a member of the Steering Committee for the International Centre for Interdisciplinary Science and Education (ICISE)in Vietnam.

Gabriela holds a PhD in Political Sciences, and an MA in Political Analysis and Communication Science from the UAB in Barcelona. She also holds a BA in International Relations from the UIA (Ibero) in Mexico and obtained a CAS IPA – International Policy and Advocacy from ETH Zürich.