President: Dolores Gauci, Malta, ceo@richmond.org.mt

or

richmond@vol.net.mt

Dolores Gauci holds an M.Sc in Health Services Management and a first degree in psychology
and Sociology from the University of Malta and she is a Mental Health Social worker by profession having obtained her CQSW from Mid-Kent College for Higher and Further Education, Kent, UK. Ms Gauci is the President of GAMIAN-Europe, a pan-European federation of patient advocacy groups whose mission is to encourage and promote information, education and awareness on current knowledge of the treatment and support available to those affected by mental illness. She is also a member on the Employment Task Force of the European Anti Poverty Network (EAPN). For the last four years, she has been coordinating the Maltese Delegation of People Experiencing poverty at the Annual Meeting which is an annual event organized by the country holding the European Presidency.
Dolores Gauci is currently the Chief Executive Officer of Richmond Foundation - the only NGO in Malta which works in the field of Mental Health. She is also a Director on the Board of the Foundation for Social Welfare Services, responsible for social welfare in Malta. She lectures at the University of Malta providing a service to both the Department of Social Policy and Social Work and the Department of Psychology. Ms Gauci has held the following positions in Malta - Executive Secretary of the National Commission for Mental Health (1993-2006) and Hon. Secretary of the National Mental Health Federation. Dolores was the Founder Member and the first Chairperson of the Maltese Association of Social Workers.
Ms Gauci has been interviewed in the local press and radio and TV audio-media on issues related to mental health and has had regular slots of TV in order to promote mental health and related issues. She has given presentations at both national and international fora.

Honorary Board Director: Mr. John Bowis, UK

John Bowis is the President of Health First Europe; the Chairman the Health Advisory Board of GSK; and Advisor to FIWRA  and a Board Member of TBVI, Global Initiative on Psychiatry, GAMIAN-Europe, EMHF, EHA, and EIH. He was born on the 2nd August 1945. He was educated at Tonbridge School and Brasenose College, Oxford (MA Philosophy, Politics, and Economics).  He is married with three children. Read more...

Executive director:Paul ARTEEL, Belgium,
executive.director@gamian.eu
arteel@aplusa.be

Master in Law Sciences, University of Ghent, 1974 
Solicitor at the bar of the Ghent court of justice; Scientific collaborator, Department of Youth Welfare an Adult Education, University of Ghent; Co-ordinator Flemish Association against Child Abuse “Child & Violence”; Director Vlaamse Vereniging voor Geestelijke Gezondheid, (Flemish Association for Mental Health); Flemish Ombudsman  since September 2008
Read more...

Vice-President: Yoram Cohen, Israel, cohenyd@smile.net.il

Was born in Jerusalem, Israel. Retired building constructor. Founder and chairman of Enosh branch in Holon. Chairman of Enosh, the Israeli Mental Health Association, since 2003. Chairman of SACH (Save A Child's Heart). 29 years volunteer in the field of mental health. Director of leading NGOs in mental health, child welfare in third world countries, social welfare and the environment. Past Governor of Rotary Israel (District 2490). Vice-President of GAMIAN-Europe. Board Member of WFMH.Representative of GAMIAN-Europe to IAPO and DDD.

Secretary General: Rebecca Müller, Belgium, Rebecca.muller@skynet.be

Rebecca was born in Zürich, Belgian and Swiss nationality; she was graduated from the University of Ghent, as Master in Art History; she is the President of Ups & Downs (Flemish Bipolar Association - Belgium), a self-help organisation for patients suffering from bipolar disorder and chronic depression and their family members. Rebecca is very experienced in management, general secretarial duties, and translations. She knows six languages: German and Dutch as mother tongue level, as well as English, French, Italian, and Spanish.

Immediate Past-President: Raluca Ileana Nica, Romania, lrsm@clicknet.ro

Graduated as Master in Management and Public Administration (Academy of Economic Studies, Bucharest, Romania, 2006); Master of Business Administration (Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, USA, and International  Management Centre, Budapest, Hungary, 2002). Since 1995 Raluca is the Executive Director of the Romanian league for mental health. Between 2000 and 2008 she was the coordinator of the several important projects, including  the “Employment – a guarantee of equal opportunities and quality of life for people with disabilities” and “Enhancing social cohesion through strengthening community mental health services in South-Eastern Europe”. In 2004 – 2006 Raluca was the President of GAMIAN-Europe. In 2007 she was elected as Board Director of the World Federation for Mental Health.

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Treasurer: Pedro Manuel Ortiz de Montellano, Portugal,  adeb@adeb.pt, Treasurer.

Pedro was born in Lisbon, Portugal; graduated of the Institute of Agronomic of Lisbon in 1991and had post-graduated studies on management and valuation of real estate in 2004 and 2008. During many years he has been working as a commercial manager, general manager and commercial director. Since 2001 he has been working as a volunteer in ADEB (Association for the support of depressive and bipolar users) being the President of fiscal board and the treasurer. He also is GAMIAN-Europe Board director during the past two years.

Marianna Bogdan, Chief Editor Newsletter, Russia, marianna.bogdan@gmail.com

Psychiatrist with 40-years experience. Worked both at in-patient and out-patient clinics, in specialized institutions as well as in general practice. In 1994 worked on probation in USA (Protection and advocacy of mentally ill people). Was one of the founders of NGO “Public Initiatives on Psychiatry”. From 2000 till 2006 served as a Board Director of GAMIAN-Europe. From 2007 is a chief editor of the GAMIAN-Europe Newsletter

Roger Gunnarsson, Sweden, umea.roger@passagen.se

President of local SADA during six years.
President of local SADA for the four north regions during
three years.
Member of the main SADA board during four years
Director of the board GAMIAN-Europe 2008-2010
I find it very inspiration to work for better mental health
And learn more about mental illness, that can be use in
Sweden in national level.My ambition is to make a platform for GAMIAN-Europe in Sweden for fruitful exchange of information.
I having a hope to invite GAMIAN-Europe's board to
Sweden, and Umea 2014, when Umera will be European
Capitol of Culture
My experience from the board is that the candidate contributing is very important.

Urve Randmaa, Estonia, urve.randmaa@mail.ee

Since 1991 till nowadays the volunteer of the EMHA. I have the long-team practice on educational, social work, and research work on the different level (on last past years with young people). The main specialist in Social Welfare Ministry on social protection, insurances, and services, the double advisor for population Minister on the 1990-s and the 2000-s. Expert since 1993 on the social policies, since 2000 - on Mental health, 2004 - Public Understanding Foundation expert, coordinator of state social policy part (supervising by President. Chairman of Vitality of Estonia. The representative of Estonian Patient Council and in the different national and international organisations (the patients, women and family organisations). I like very much also charity work with homeless people (the "food bank"). Independent. I'm not belonging to any political party. Contribution for GAMIAN-Europe: Tallinn Convention, Tallinn Regional Educational Seminar, Stigma research national co-coordinator, Handbook "Recover and Ahead" co-coordinator.

Monika Nemanyte, Lithuania, monika@club13.lt

Education: French-English teacher
Experience: active in the mental health field since 2000;
Clubl3&Co. Board member since 2001;
Gamian-Europe Board member since 2006.
I would like to continue as a GAMIAN-Europe Board member because being a mental patient I better understand the problems of psychiatric patients', their needs and expectations and do not treat them as secondary people. I wish to continue my activities in GAMIAN-Europe Board because I would be useful especially when the patients' opinion and representation are necessary.
GAMIAN-Europe declares itself as an organisation which represents patients' voice: I would like to put all my efforts to make it real and not to be just a declaiation. In the future I see GAMIAN-Europe as an organisation which continuously involves mentally ill patients in the psycho-education, Training programs, various projects and campaigns ani takes into consideration the patients' point of view.
The Annual Conventions and Board meetings of GAMIAN-Europe became for me an invaluable source of communication, information, mutual support and understanding which inspired me and indicated the right direction all the years long. Now I can proudly say that-I have a certain expertise in such issues as patients' advocacy, human rights, peeiself-hllp, mental health services, etc. I think that G-E helped and encouraged me to become more .competent, confident and enthusiastic in all my activities in Lithuania and abroad. I am ready to dedicate more time to G-E because from now I know more about G-E members (who give their time, energ y and.talents) and more about the organisation itself (G-E goals, aims and objectives, statutes, strategy, transparency policy, etc.).
Since my election as Board member in 2006, I promoted G-E everywhere I was participating at and given an introduction, report or presentation.

Hilkka Kärkkäinen, Finland, hilkkakarkkainen@gmail.com

Hilkka is a social worker by profession and working as a social ombudsman for nine municipalities in Southern Finland. She has made a career mainly in the public sector carrying out various duties in social sector for the cities of Helsinki and Espoo. She also worked for seven years for the Probation and Prison After Care Association in Helsinki.
Hilkka has been an Executive Director of Finnish Central Association for Mental Health (Affinity) from 1998 to 2002. Affinity is a nationwide Mental Health Organization with 22 000 individual members. She has also  been from 2007 to 2008 a President of Mieli Maasta, which is a nationwide patients’ organization for people suffering from depression.
Hilkka was a Board Member in European Federation of Neurological Associations from 2002 to 2004. She was the Elected President of GAMIAN-Europe from 1999 to 2000 and since then she has served as a Board Director of GAMIAN-Europe excluding the years 2006-2007.

Flavio Prata, Italy, flavio.prata@tin.it

Flavio Prata is ARETE onlus President. ARETE onlus is a charity operating in the field of mood disorders, fully patients directed. He is URASAM vice-president. URASAM is a federation of 50 associations working in the field of mental health in Lombardy, a region of 10 millions inhabitants in the northern part of Italy. He works as teacher in a high school and he is a sportsman practicing triathlon (swim, bike and run) believing in positive impact of sport in mood disorders. He suffers from bipolar disorder.

"I want to fight stigma against people suffering from mood disorders. I hope to contribute to build a net of European associations always larger and larger which can share experiences and resources. At last improving services to patients could be a strong impulse to my work."