Born in 1957 in Ybbs on the Danube, he has been a Member of the European Parliament since 1999, and he was Vice President from 2012 to 2014 and has been back in that position since July 2019. For this convinced European politician the European Parliament is, as the only directly elected EU-Institution, "the strong heart of a European parliamentary democracy“. From 1983 to 1990 he was a member of the Austrian National Council. In 2010, he founded the non-partisan "Citizens' Europe 2020", which advocates greater participation of citizens in EU policy and whose spokesman he is still today. One of Karas´s most famous demands is: "Domestic politics must be Europeanised". Since 1998 he has been President of “Hilfswerk Österreich”, one of Austria's largest providers of social services.

“Berlin was not built in one day and neither was Beijing. To understand what is happening today we must have a look at trends that last for longer than the moment. We are talking about trends that evolve over centuries.“ Born 1947 in Linz in Upper Austria. From 1994 to 2015 Head of the Institute for Austrian Legal History and the Development of European Law at the Karl-Franzens University in Graz. From 1986 -2016, he led the independent research institute "Austrian Institute for European Law and Policy" in Salzburg, which focuses on European legal policy since 2008. In these capacities, his research focused on acceptance of law, certainty of justice on the internet, family and marriage law, healthcare law, industrial law, youth law and patients' rights. Professor Pichler is the author of several publications and Chairman of the society "Europe needs Initiative“, the central concern of which is the nurturing of the European citizens’ initiative.

Born in 1946, he served from 1996 to 2014 as a Member of the European Parliament and Vice-President of the S & D Group and from 2012 as its President. In 1972 Hannes Swoboda completed eight years of studying law and economics. In 1983 he became a member of the Vienna Landtag and municipal council and was from 1988-1994 acting city councillor for urban development and urban planning as well as in various periods being responsible for personnel, transport and external relations. In April 2008, Dr. Swoboda served as Rapporteur on the 2007 Progress Report on Croatia of the EP's Foreign Relations Committee, which was adopted by the European Parliament by a very large majority. He participated in the "A Soul for Europe" initiative and was a member of its parliamentary working group, which links the initiative with the European Parliament. As a creative thinker, the passionate painter works in several institutions. Among other things, he is a member of the executive board of the Bruno Kreisky Forum for International Dialogue, chairman of the board of the FH Campus Wien - Association for the Promotion of the University of Applied Sciences, Development and Research Centre in the south of Vienna and president of the Architekturzentrum Wien. Since 2017 an honorary member of European Dialogue.

Born 1941 in Vienna, from 1991 until 1995 he was Vice-Chancellor of the Republic of Austria, also Vice-Mayor of the City of Vienna, Minister of Science and Minister of Education. Furthermore, from 2002 until 2008, Dr. Busek was the Special Co-ordinator of the Stability Pact for South Eastern Europe, and from 2008 to 2009, advisor to the Foreign Minister of the Czech Government (on issues of the Western Balkans during the EU Presidency). In addition, from 2000 to 2012 President of the European Forum Alpbach (since then honorary president) and from 2004 to 2011 the principal of the University of Applied Sciences Salzburg. Since 2012, he has been associated with the city of Graz by a Jean Monnet professorship at Karl-Franzens University Graz, which was awarded ad personam in support of his extensive activities in European integration. Currently, this East European and Balkan expert, recognised internationally, holds among other positions Chairman of the Institute for the Danube Region and Central Europe, President of the Gustav Mahler Youth Orchestra and Chairman of the Chamber Music Festival Lockenhaus. "For me Erhard Busek is the really ideal personification of a Central European". Václav Klaus, President

Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Republic of France to Austria since 2017. He graduated in law with a "License en droit" degree and graduated from the Institut d'études politiques in Paris and the elite university École Nationale d'Administration (1983) in Strasbourg. From 2002 to 2004 he was the cabinet director of the European Minister for Europe Noëlle Lenoir, he served as Ambassador of the Republic of France to Croatia from 2004-2009, and was appointed Director of Central Administration of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs from 2009 to 2014, overseeing French and consular affairs, and served as Ambassador between 2014 and 2017 for the Republic of France in Romania The passionate pianist, composer and knight of the French Legion of Honor speaks five foreign languages (English, German, Spanish, Croatian and Romanian).

Born in 1971, since 2019 new President of the Association of Visual Artists in Austria. Born in Carinthia, she is the first woman to head the internationally renowned Künstlerhaus Association founded in 1861. Social commitment is the focus of her thinking and artistic activity. "Living art for me means realizing social responsibility, courage and vision," says Prušnik. She studied at the Technical University of Vienna and since 1999 has been working as a freelance architect and artist. Since 2009, she has been leading the Austrian-wide exhibition series "opening the view" - an art project with a social background to raise awareness with the aim of preventing violence against children and adolescents (together with the artist Ina Loitzl).

Born in Graz in Styria in 1929, he was Deputy Governor of Styria from 1985 to 1991. In 1970 he was appointed to the State Government of Culture in the State Government of Styria, an office which he held until 1985. France and French culture always fascinated him attracted him with magical power. After completing his teaching qualification in Latin and French, he joined the federal educational institution Graz-Liebenau as a teacher and pedagogue in autumn 1953, where he worked extremely successfully until he became a member of the Styrian state government in 1970. If you want to understand Kurt Jungwirth's access to culture, Europe and intercultural competence, you have to start your search in France. His performance in the cultural field is remarkable. In 1985 he founded the Styriarte - now an indispensable fixed point in the European festival calendar - and was until the end of 2006 president of the cultural festival "Styrian Autumn". He is also passionate about chess, where and he was President of the Austrian Chess Federation from 1971 to 2017. From 1986 to 1998 he was President of the ECU and from 1990 to 1998 Continental President of FIDE for Europe. Among the many honours that Professor Kurt Jungwirth has received are the "Great Golden Medal of Honor with the Star" (2007) for services to the Republic of Austria, which was awarded to him by the Federal President, as well as the highest award of the State of Styria, the Ring of Honor of the State of Styria (2010).

Robert Leigh Turner (born 1958) is British Ambassador and since August 2016 Permanent Representative of Great Britain to the UN in Vienna. He grew up in Nigeria, Lesotho and Swaziland and graduated from the prestigious Cambridge University (1979). He began his civil service career in the Transport, Environment, Finance and Economy Ministries before moving to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office in 1983. By 1984 he was embassy secretary in Vienna, later he held posts in Russia and Germany. He spent his last two stations of four years as British Ambassador to the Ukraine (Kiev) and British Consul General in Turkey (Istanbul). Ambassador Turner runs creative blogs in English and German, and in 2014 was named Companion (CMG) of the Order of St. Michael and George.