Considered by many as a pioneer in product design in the Middle East, Sahar has already won many prestigious international competitions in several countries. She has also received wide media interest and coverage for her work that ranges from medical design to new concept furniture.

After completing her degree in Industrial Design from the United States in 2004, Sahar took on the challenge of establishing a design culture in the Middle East. She co-founded the first product design company in Jordan which serviced regional and global clients, she mentored individuals in the design process, and developed award winning product designs to empower underprivileged communities in Jordan and abroad.

She has since moved on to work independently and has won prestigious international design competitions where her work was exhibited and published globally, including; the renowned Red Dot Award, IDEA Award – finalist, two top Spark Concept Awards to name a few making her the first Jordanian to receive such distinctions.
Her other awards also include the Geodesign Competition, in Turin and the A ‘Design Award & Competition in Milan, Italy and Green dot awards, Los Angeles. USA.

Sahar’s award winning work is a testament to her quest for innovation and creating design solutions that improve the quality of life. Based in Amman – Jordan, she aims to continue her efforts in developing new talent and inspiring design thinking in the region.

Mr. Malhas holds a Bachelor Degree in Computer Science from the University of Wisconsin, USA in 1984. He started as an IT manager in several Jordanian companies and served as the Technical Advisor to the Director of Public Security in Jordan. He later founded IdealSoft producing successful large-scale software solutions. He was one of the founders of National Health Insurance Administration Co. in 1999, the first company to use smart cards for health claims adjudication in the region.

Mr. Malhas co-founded IrisGuard in 2001 and serves as CEO and Chief Technology Officer ever since. IrisGuard Inc. is considered a world-leader in the field of Iris Recognition Technology, with Offices in London, Geneva, Dubai, McLean and Amman.

Mr. Malhas pioneered the concept of employing Iris recognition to secure mass-transit national borders prior to September 11th 2001 in the UAE and recently on Jordan borders. More recently, he lead IrisGuard successful deployment of the world’s first iris implementation at banks and ATM machines where customers use their eyes only to draw money from their account (no card and no pin) with a total of six banks in the Middle East and over 100,000 bank customers using IrisGuard technology, this is a solution that has never been done before.

With his diligent involvement, IrisGuard Inc. manufactures quality Iris cameras out of its UK Laboratories that are well received throughout the world, it has been independently evaluated by the International Biometric Group – IBG (New York) and found to be the world’s most accurate and fastest Iris camera on the market today. The recent addition include the IG-AD100® dual-eye camera system that produces pristine images of both irises simultaneously and the world’s first 0.00% Equal Error Rate. More cameras are planned to suite the various user requirements around the world. New devices continue on being invented by IrisGuard under Mr. Malhas supervision and direct involvement including the EyeSign® home unit, the EyeTust® desktop unit and the EyeFinder® iris payment terminal.

Qamar Ahmad Al-Tarawneh

Mohammad Herzallah is a Palestinian cognitive neuroscientist and physician. He his TEDx fellow and founder and director of the Palestinian Neuroscience Initiative at Al-Quds University, which aims to build infrastructure for research and train the next generation of Palestinian neuroscientists. His work is currently focused on deciphering the cognitive correlates of Major Depressive Disorder (MDD)–a disease with a prevalence approaching 36 percent in Palestine–and the administration of antidepressants. He hopes that studying MDD in Palestine will address the unique environmental, familial, and clinical aspects of the disease among Palestinians, as well as ultimately help to advance the understanding and clinical treatment of MDD worldwide.

Zein G Hussami is an entrepreneur with over 20 years experience on an international level. Although initially coming from a hospital administration background, he jumped over to new verticals seeking pioneering achievements with a positively high impact on society.