Paolo Petrocelli

Paolo Petrocelli is a cultural manager, university professor and journalist driven by the belief that culture, arts and education are a major force for growth, development and change globally. 

He is a leading member of some of the most prestigious international organizations, including United Nations, UNESCO, World Economic Forum. 

As a cultural and music diplomacy ambassador, he serves in institutional roles to forge bonds through music and arts in Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Asia and the US. He is the Founder and President of EMMA for Peace (Euro-Mediterranean Music Academy), international non-governmental organization for the promotion of music diplomacy between Europe and the Middle East, Co-Founder of Opera for Peace. Co-Founder and Honorary President of the Italian Youth Association for UNESCO, the largest youth organization in the UNESCO system. He is the Cultural and Music Diplomacy Officer of the Permanent Secretariat of the World Summit of Nobel Peace Laureates and Cultural Advisor to Coldplay. 

To help shape the next generation, Dr Petrocelli lectures at leading universities, including Yale University, MIT, New York University, Université Paris-Sorbonne. He is a Research Affiliate at metaLAB at Harvard University. 

Dr. Petrocelli has been recognized as a Young Global Leader by the World Economic Forum for continued contributions to arts and culture, selected by the think tank Friends of Europe among the 40 most influential young personalities in Europe and nominated European Young Leader and named by the Fortune magazine among the 40 most influential personalities under 40 in Italy, as the first cultural manager ever selected.