29 سبتمبر - 1 اكتوبر 2026
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مركز ذي أرينا الرياض للمعارض والفعاليات| المملكة العربية السعودية.
Damian Fernandez
Chief Operating Officer - University of Design, Innovation and Technology, Spain
Damián Fernández is a senior executive with over fifteen years of leadership experience in the global education sector, specializing in operations, finance, strategic development, and international expansion. He has a proven track record of driving institutional growth, operational excellence, and large-scale project execution across diverse regions.
For more 10 years, Damián led the expansion of SEK in the Middle East, overseeing the operations of its schools and spearheading the group’s international growth strategy. Under his leadership, the group launched projects exceeding USD 200 million in value and opened six new schools across Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Oman, and Bahrain. His first-hand experience living and working in Qatar, the UAE, and Saudi Arabia for over six years gave him deep insight into cross-cultural management and global education ecosystems.
Throughout his career, Damián has evaluated over 200 education projects in 40 countries, collaborating with investors, regulators, consultants, and operators to shape the strategic direction of institutions worldwide. His global perspective has led him to speak at leading conferences and seminars across four continents — Europe, Africa, Asia, and the Americas.
An entrepreneurial mindset has also guided his work in business diversification. He successfully launched new consulting services and B2B commercial channels that achieved a 15x revenue increase, generating USD 1.5 million.
Speaker Sessions
Leaders in Education
1499
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Higher Education - STEAM Areas of Knowledge in Demand
Session Summary:
This session examines the growing global demand for STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Mathematics) education and the significant gap in higher education provision. Whilst K-12 institutions increasingly embrace integrated STEAM approaches to meet workforce and innovation demands, higher education remains largely compartmentalised between traditional STEM programmes and liberal arts offerings. This presentation explores the strategic opportunities for universities to develop comprehensive STEAM curricula that bridge disciplinary boundaries, preparing graduates for the interdisciplinary challenges of the modern economy and addressing critical skills shortages in creative-technical hybrid roles. Participants will be able to:
• Analyse the global demand for STEAM competencies and identify the structural gaps between K-12 STEAM preparation and current higher education programme offerings across STEM and liberal arts divisions
• Evaluate strategic frameworks for developing integrated STEAM curricula in higher education that combine technical proficiency with creative problem-solving and design thinking methodologies
• Design institutional models and partnership approaches that enable universities to deliver comprehensive STEAM programmes, addressing workforce needs whilst maintaining academic rigour and accreditation standards
Speakers
Damian Fernandez
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Chief Operating Officer - University of Design, Innovation and Technology, Spain
التصنيفات
Higher Education
STEM Education
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