Team
Panos Gkiokas
Consortium LeadPanos Giokas was born in 1984 and grew up in Eleusis. He graduated from the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens in 2007, continued his postgraduate studies in Marketing (University of Leicester) and Cultural Facilities Management (Hellenic Open University), while in 2017 he received a scholarship from the Hellenic Initiative to participate in the StartMIT program at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. In 2014, he started MENTOR, which is active in the fields of cultural organisation management, strategic planning of tourism development in areas with a strong cultural character, as well as inbound cultural (archaeological/ educational) tourism. The company has been distinguished as one of the most innovative Greek companies through Eurobank's youth entrepreneurship program/ competition "egg", while its portfolio includes some of the largest cultural organisations, institutions and festivals in Greece. MENTOR is also active in the organisation and management of NGOs aiming to promote Greece's cultural heritage abroad.
Martha Stroumpou
Project DirectorMartha was born in 1988, grew up in Athens and lived in Corfu for a while. She graduated from the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens (NKUA), and continued her postgraduate studies in Museology (Ionian University), and Religious Tourism (NKUA). She has been working as a museologist and cultural heritage manager since 2015, designing and curating permanent and temporary exhibitions, implementing educational programmes and participating in the writing of research proposals. At MENTOR, where she found herself by (a stroke of) good fortune in 2022, she works as a project manager, in charge of cultural heritage projects, museums, and finding literature on any topic.
Myrto Staratzi
Project ManagerMyrto is a Museum Studies graduate from University College London (UCL) with expertise in the intersection of technology and museums, as well as digital strategy for cultural organisations. Her MA’s dissertation explored the application and related ethical dilemmas of ChatGPT within the museum’s digital practice while investigating the opportunities this technology could bring for the purposes of facilitating the production of museum content. She has a proven experience in collections curation, digital curation and event coordination, complemented by a solid foundation in science and technology studies as she also holds a BSc in History and Philosophy of Science from the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens (NKUA).
Ian Christidis
Junior Project ManagerIan is a Cultural Manager with an academic background in Anthropology, Archaeology, and History. He studied History and Ethnology at the Democritus University of Thrace and completed his postgraduate studies in Cultural Management at the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens with distinction. His thesis, which focused on the management of ongoing archaeological projects and the use of new technologies, was awarded the prestigious Kaftanzogleio Prize. Throughout his academic journey, he was a scholar of the Baggeion Foundation. From 2017 to 2025, he served as sector coordinator and excavation specialist at the ancient Tenea excavation, also overseeing the project’s visual communication. He has collaborated with the Hellenic Ministry of Culture and Sports on projects related to cultural management, technology, and education, and he has presented in conferences and published his work in scientific journals. At MENTOR, he brings his genuine passion for culture, his keen interest in new technologies, and his experience in visual communication.
Aggelos Pliakos
Communication ManagerAngelos is a graduate of the Department of Journalism and Mass Communications at Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, specializing in article writing, digital content management, copywriting, and communication strategy. He has professional experience in online content review and evaluation, as well as in creating texts tailored to the needs of each project. He has worked as a communications and social media manager, with significant involvement in managing social media accounts and drafting publications for sports and cultural events. With strong communication skills, creativity, and social awareness, he actively contributes to the promotion of quality content and the connection between audiences and creators. He is the Communication Manager at MENTOR.
Celia Farantaki
Project AssistantCelia is a graduate of the Department of Music Studies (NKUA), specialising in Historical and Systematic Musicology, and holds a piano diploma from the National Conservatory. She completed postgraduate studies at Erasmus University Rotterdam, where she focused on issues related to the relationship between audiences and cultural organisations, specifically, through her thesis on the challenges of the participatory transition in museums in the Netherlands. In parallel, she has worked in education, administrative organisation, and creative production, with experience in coordinating educational activities, conferences, and cultural events. Her interests centre on sustainable and participatory approaches in culture, as well as on the ways cultural organisations engage with their communities.
Martin Bricelj Baraga
Ljubljana Pilot Project ManagerMartin Bricelj Baraga is an award-winning media artist and curator. He is the director of MoTA – Museum of Transitory Art and the founder of SONICA Festival in Ljubljana, Slovenia. He is a member of the Nonument Group, research and artistic collective. He is the project manager of several EU funded projects where MoTA was the coordinator or partner, i.e. M.A.P.S. - Mapping and Archiving Public Space, Artecitya, SHAPE - Sound, Heterogenous Art and Performance in Europe, and many others. He has initiated several awarded projects, for example Cyanometer, Moonolith, Everlandia, etc
Barbara Tomšič
Ljubljana Pilot Project AssistantBarbara Tomšič, MSc, is self-employed in culture,works as assistant producer and administrator at MoTA - Museum of transitory art in Ljubljana since 2012. She has been engaged in financial reporting for several European projects under Creative Europe, for instance ArtistTalk, T.R.I.B.E., Alipi, GALA, SHAPE, Artecitya. She is also engaged in public funding for MoTA productions in Slovenia and abroad with different public bodies, as well as cultural centres and embassies.
Lilit Stepanyan
Dissemination CoordinatorTAI’s curator and founder. Lilit has a Fine Arts degree. She has worked in various art organizations as an art teacher, project manager, and curator. She established the Today Art Initiative NGO in 2014. She develops the content of the activities, plans the project’s implementation, and cultivates the strategy for it. Her responsibility is to raise funds and apply for grants. Lilit is a curator and artist in her early stages. She has curated exhibitions and has been curating the Artists in Residency programme in Armenia with international artists since 2014. With the support of Armenia’s Cultural Ministry, she established the Rural Art Residency in Armenian villages in 2019, where international artists create and develop their art practices.