Dagmar Strohmeier

Dagmar Strohmeier is Professor at the University of Applied Sciences Upper Austria, Linz in Austria and Professor II at the University of Stavanger, Stavanger in Norway. She studies peer relations in children and youth and developed a strength-based concept of school social work.

She has developed, implemented, and evaluated a program to foster social and intercultural competences in schools (ViSC program) that has been implemented in Austria, Cyprus, Romania, Turkey, and Kosovo.

Her current research interests are pro-environmental behaviours of youth and the role of social work in times of climate change. She was the PI of the EU-funded “Europe 2038” project with partners from Albania, Germany, Italy, Romania, Spain, and UK that is currently replicated as “Europe 2048” project.

She was co-editor of the European Journal of Developmental Psychology between 2015 and 2021 and served as president of the European Association for Developmental Psychology between 2021–2023.

Natallia Sianko

Natallia Sianko, Ph.D., is an Associate Professor in the Department of Sociology, Anthropology, and Criminal Justice at Clemson University. In her academic role, she teaches undergraduate and graduate courses in research methods and provides supervision and mentorship to graduate students.

Her research program centers on examining how family dynamics, community environments, and broader social contexts influence developmental outcomes among children and youth, with particular attention to those in vulnerable circumstances.

Employing a rigorous mixed-methods framework and longitudinal research designs, Dr. Sianko has led and contributed to a wide range of empirical studies, from community-based initiatives to large-scale international assessments, across diverse sociocultural settings.

Jorge M. L. Ferreira

Jorge M. L. Ferreira, Ph.D., is a Doctor of Social Work specializing in Social Work, Social Policies, and Society. He is an Associate Professor at ISCTE – University Institute of Lisbon, where he also serves as Director of the Ph.D. Programme in Social Work.

In addition, he holds the position of Sub-Director of the Department of Political Science and Public Policies and is an active member of both the Scientific Committee of the department and the Pedagogical Committee of the School of Sociology and Public Policy (ESPP).

Professor Ferreira is engaged in several academic and professional networks at both national and international levels. He is a member of the Scientific Committee of REdidi – Ibero-American Network of Teaching and Research in Children, Vice-President of the Scientific Society in Social Work, and Vice-President of the Association for International Social Service.

Furthermore, he serves as President of the Local Development Association ALAO, reflecting his strong commitment to bridging academic scholarship with community-based development initiatives.

Pamela Dale

Pamela Dale is the Senior Advisor (Social Protection) for UNICEF. In this role, she is responsible for providing global leadership, expert advice, and operational support to advance inclusive, child-sensitive, and shock-resilient social protection across UNICEF’s global portfolio.

Prior to this role, she worked with UNICEF as Regional Advisor for Social Policy and Economic Analysis in Europe and Central Asia, and Social Protection Specialist in the Eastern and Southern Africa regional office and Somalia country office.

Prior to joining UNICEF, Pamela worked with the World Bank on social protection in Timor-Leste and with the International Labor Mobility program.

Pamela is a national of the United States and holds a Master in Public Policy degree from the Harvard Kennedy School.