Keynote speakers
Sudesh Mujumdar
Dr. Sudesh Mujumdar joined the Romain College of Business at the University of Southern Indiana (USI) as Dean and Professor of Economics in July 2022. As Dean, he has led the development and actualization of a futuristic value proposition anchored in building market-leading competencies for ALL undergraduate business students at USI – competencies that no other business school, globally, is building at scale at the undergraduate level. He also successfully led the extension of AACSB accreditation for business and accounting programs at Romain College. Prior to his Deanship at the Romain College, Dr. Mujumdar served as Dean of the College of Business Administration at Savannah State University in Savannah, Georgia, where he successfully led the College in its extension of AACSB accreditation and secured more than $4 million in grants and private donor funding. He also successfully led the inclusion of Savannah State University as a partnering institution in Bank of America’s $1 billion initiative to expand economic opportunity and social justice, and forged partnerships and relationships with business organizations such as Gulfstream and PricewaterhouseCoopers, various city and state government offices, Texas A&M’s Human Behavior Lab, and the Avatar Lab at the Bagwell College of Education (Kennesaw State University), shaping the College of Business Administration’s brand identity and visibility. Dr. Mujumdar’s research interests are in applied game theory and biometrics. He has a number of publications in A*/A journals, such as Games and Economic Behavior and Economics Letters.
Mohammed Khayum
Dr. Mohammed Khayum, University of Southern Indiana (USI) Provost Emeritus and Professor Emeritus of Economics. During his tenure as Provost, Khayum spearheaded a range of transformative initiatives at USI. This included establishing graduate and undergraduate degree programs, expanding online learning opportunities and active involvement in community and economic development projects. From 2010 onward, he played a pivotal role in shaping and executing the University's strategic plans. Khayum's efforts were particularly concentrated on bolstering data integration and fostering collaboration within the University, with a special emphasis on improving student recruitment and retention strategies. Before becoming Provost, he was the Dean of USI's Romain College of Business from 2006 to 2018. Khayum joined the University in 1991 and retired in 2023. During his time at USI he also served as Department Chair and Associate Dean. Over his 12-year tenure as Dean, he worked to extend the College's business and accounting accreditations, implement an accelerated Master of Business Administration Program and established the Romain College of Business Innovative Speaker Series. This Series featured influential figures such as T. Boone Pickens, Ben Bernanke, Oscar Salazar, General Colin L. Powell, USA (Ret.) and Steve Wozniak. Currently, Dr. Khayum serves as advisor to NewCarbon, a clean energy infrastructure company and Elsmere Education, a leading innovator in online higher education.
Irena Ateljevic
Holding a PhD in Human Geography from the University of Auckland, New Zealand, Dr Irena Ateljevic devoted almost two decades to teaching at Auckland University of Technology and Victoria University of Wellington in New Zealand, as well as Wageningen University in the Netherlands. Throughout her academic tenure, she was actively involved in global research and served as a senior policy adviser. Irena spearheaded social projects in Auroville, South India, led a multidisciplinary team of scholars in a collaborative study of the tourism-identity nexus in Yunnan Province, China, examined the transformative role of tourism across Europe under the guidance of the UN World Tourism Organization, and developed a program of sustainable tourism policies and strategies for the Republic of Croatia. Determined to bring theory into action, Dr. Ateljević transitioned from academia in 2011 to champion successful social-entrepreneurship projects such as Terra Meera, a hub for regeneration and human potential, Regenerate Europe, a multisectoral platform promoting the pan-European regeneration movement, SHE - Sibenik Hub for Ecology, a women-empowered initiative emphasizing local organic farming and the establishment of a seed bank, and Phoenix Arbor, a center for human development and innovative action. A living example of the transformative power of applied regenerative methodologies, Irena continues to educate, inspire, and spark personal transformation in others through her insightful keynotes and workshops.