ADVISORY COMMITTEE
Lydia Carras
Founder of ELLET
In 1972, Lydia Carras co-founded Elliniki Etairia - Society of the Environment and Cultural Heritage (ELLET) with her late husband Costa Carras. She is the current president of the organisation. Lydia Carras studied Sociology and Ιnternational Relations, and holds a MA in Byzantine civilization (Sorbonne and University College London). She has directed 16 internationally awarded documentaries (Chicago, Thessaloniki & MediMed Film Festivals, EU awards). She has led several internationally recognised exhibitions and award-winning cultural heritage projects in Greece and abroad. In 2009, she won the Academy of Athens award for her life’s work in Heritage and Environment. In 2015 she was the curator of the exhibition “Marathon: Cultural Landscape,” at the Unesco Headquarters (Paris). She received the European Heritage Award as the founder of the “Greek Paths of Culture” Programme in 2019.
Eleni Maistrou
President of Architectural Heritage Council of ELLET
Eleni Maistrou - Emeritus Professor of NTUA 2017. President & Dean of the School of Architecture 2011- 2016. She is a member of the International Committee for Historic Cities of Icomos, (CIVVIH), the Greek Committee for the Conservation of Industrial Heritage, the Hellenic Society of Aesthetics, the Hellenic Association of Town and Country Planners. She is the president of the Architectural Heritage Council (SAK) of ELLINIKI ETAIRIA - Society of the Environment and Cultural Heritage (ELLET) from 2018 - present. She has extensive research and professional work and publications, on the subjects of Protection, Restoration, Rehabilitation and Management of Historic Towns and Settlements. She teaches in the interdepartmental postgraduate program of NTUA "Protection of Monuments" from 1999 to present.
Kostas Stamatopoulos
Vice-president of ELLET
Dr. Kostas Stamatopoulos has a PhD in Byzantine History from the Sorbonne, he is the author of 24 books and numerous scholarly articles. Over his career, he has taught at both undergraduate and graduate institutions in Greece and abroad. Since joining ELLINIKI ETAIRIA - Society for the Environment and Cultural Heritage (ELLET) in 1979, he has served as general secretary, vice-president, and, for three years, as president of its Architectural Heritage Council (SAK). From 2013 to 2017, he held the role of president of ELLET and now serves again as vice-president. Notably, he played a key role in the preservation and restoration of the former royal estate of Tatoi, an initiative he began in 1998.
Marina Martinou
Advisor - Board Member of ELLET
Μarina Martinou holds a Bachelor Degree in Economics from the American College of Greece. She is a council member of Europa Nostra and has supported the restoration of several monuments in Greece. She is the Shipping Executive in the Eastern Mediterranean Maritime Group of Shipping Companies, and President of The Athanasios and Marina Martinos (Family) Foundation. She is also Co-Director of The Aegeas Non-Profit benevolent Society, Member of the Board of Trustees of the «Society for the Promotion of Education and Learning Arsakeia – Tositseia Schools,” Member of the Board of Directors of Greek National Opera, as well as Member of the Board of ELLINIKI ETAIRIA Society for the Environment and Cultural Heritage. She is married to Thanassis Martinos, Managing Director of the Eastern Mediterranean Maritime Limited.
Spyros Arsenis
Board member of ELLET
Dr. Spyros Arsenis is member of the board of the ELLINIKI ETAIRIA - Society for the Environment and Cultural Heritage (ELLET), responsible for the local committees, the Digitalization project and the Climate Crisis polls. He is Head of the Business Innovation Development Unit of National Bank of Greece and Director of the ΝΒG Business Seeds program. He is a member of the advisory boards of Synergria, Uni.fund, Metavallon, Big Pi, OK! Thess, and the Archimedes Center of the University of Athens. He is also a member of the American-Hellenic Chamber of Commerce’s Education, Innovation and Entrepreneurship Committee, the Start Ups Committee of the German-Hellenic Chamber and the SEV Innovation Committee. He is an Electrical Engineer with 25 years’ πrofessional multi-sector, multi-discipline experience in Greece and abroad in international telecom projects, business banking and innovation, and is also the author of seven books on ICT and the Internet.
Ioanna Mikrou
Advisor - Board Member of ELLET
Ioanna Mikrou has studied Business Administration in the University of Macedonia, she holds a MSc in Innovation & Entrepreneurship from ESADE Business School and a MSc in Protection of Monuments - Conservation of Building Materials from the National Technical University of Athens. Her main interest is heritage, its preservation and protection, and how to combine entrepreneurship and culture. She is a board member of ELLINIKI ETAIRIA - Society of the Environment and Cultural Heritage (ELLET) from 2018. Alongside, she enjoys participating in organizing conferences, workshops, seminars in the broader field of culture, which she has done in the past.
OUR TEAM
Anastasia Amanatidou (2026-present)
Project Coordinator
Anastasia Amanatidou holds a Master’s degree in Art Law and Cultural Heritage Management from the International Hellenic University, a Bachelor’s degree in Art History from the Athens School of Fine Arts, and a Law degree (LLB) from the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki. Her academic background combines legal, cultural, and heritage-oriented perspectives, shaping an interdisciplinary approach to cultural policy and project development. She has worked on a range of European and international cultural projects, including as a Supporting Expert for the Council of Europe (Roma and Travellers Division), contributing to the coordination and submission of a national programme on social inclusion and child poverty. She previously served as Director of Legacy Projects and Intellectual Property / Head of the CEO Office at Eleusis 2023 – European Capital of Culture, where she was involved in the coordination of large-scale cultural programmes, reporting processes, and strategic communication. She has also worked as a Cultural Project Manager at Public Art Lab in Berlin, focusing on European-funded cultural and socially engaged initiatives. Her work is driven by an interdisciplinary approach that connects cultural heritage, policy, and socially engaged practices, with a particular interest in the role of culture in strengthening communities and fostering sustainable development.
Stavroula Thravalou (2023-2026)
Project Coordinator
Dr. Stavroula Thravalou has been coordinating the regional hub of Europa Nostra in Athens (ELLINIKI ETAIRIA) since 2023. She is an architect-engineer and a senior expert in the conservation and environmental performance of vernacular heritage. Her previous research focused on the sustainable reuse and digitization of built heritage, using energy simulation and BIM tools, at the University of Cyprus and The Cyprus Institute. She has taught in postgraduate programs on topics including Energy Upgrade of Existing Buildings (2018–2022, University of Cyprus), Urban Ecology (2023, University of West Attica), and Environmental Design (2024–2025, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki), and has coordinated hands-on workshops in earth building techniques. Dr. Thravalou is a member of the Technical Chamber of Greece and Cyprus, ICOMOS, and serves as Vice President of GEODOMO-Cyprus, an NGO focused on natural building techniques and materials. She has also contributed to projects promoting innovative teaching methods and raising awareness of heritage sustainability.
Katerina Stebili
Researcher - Communication manager
Katerina Stebili (MA in Mass Communications - University of Leicester, U.K.; MPhil Theatre Studies & Cultural Management, University of Glasgow, Scotland, U.K.) has many years of experience in communication, focusing on the development and implementation of communication strategies, the planning and implementation of various events in Greece and abroad and publications; as well as their promotion in the media. In 2010 she joined ELLINIKI ETAIRIA - Society of the Environment and Cultural Heritage (ELLET). As ELLET’s Communication Officer, she is involved in the promotion of its work, media relations, publications and the company's online presence. She is also the manager of the "Greek Paths of Culture" programme, which received the 2019 Europa Nostra Award in the category Education, Training and Awareness-Raising.
Michalis Katsouris
Researcher - Communication assistant
Michalis Katsouris completed his studies in Environmental Science in 2017. He then took an MSc in Culture & Documentary Production, finishing his studies in 2019. Since then, he has worked as a documentary director/producer on various documentary projects, both personal and not. His work has been showcased at many film festivals on both Greek and European level, receiving inspiring reviews and awards. Currently, he is a PhD candidate at the University of the Aegean and works as a social media manager at ELLINIKI ETAIRIA - Society of the Environment and Cultural Heritage (ELLET).
Artemis Sofokleous
Events organisation
Artemis Sofokleous has a background in Renovation and Restoration of Buildings, further enriched by a postgraduate degree in Historic Building Conservation from the University of Portsmouth. She began her career at Historic England in London, where she worked as the Office Manager for the Government Advice Team, managing the daily operations of a team of 20 specialists. Artemis later joined the Royal Institute of British Architects in London as a Project Officer within the Professional Standards Team, where she focused on upholding conservation standards and supporting related activities. Currently, she serves as the Event and Local Committee Officer at ELLINIKI ETAIRIA - Society of the Environment and Cultural Heritage (ELLET), where she coordinates committees, meetings, and events, continuing her work in heritage with a focus on collaboration and engagement.
Elias Sakelaris
Researcher
Elias Sakellaris is a greek architect who completed his studies at the National Technical University of Athens in 2017 and his postgraduate studies in Digital Culture in 2020. His scientific interests are in the field of Cultural Heritage and specifically in new technologies and methodologies. He has published several papers and participated in national and international seminars regarding Heritage Building Information Modelling. Elias worked for two years in the international programme Interreg Digiarc, contributing to the digitization of the medieval fortifications of Rhodes using lidar technology and designing in BIM environment. Since March 2022, he works for ELLINIKI ETAIRIA - Society of the Environment and Cultural Heritage (ELLET) as a partner for the Council for Architectural Heritage. In ELLET he is responsible for the coordination and supervision of restoration projects. Furthermore, he participates in awareness-raising acts and programmes for the preservation of the architectural heritage.
Miltiades Lazoglou
Researcher
Dr. Miltiadis Lazoglou is an Urban and Spatial Planner, with a postgraduate specialization in planning and organization of space and environmental and development issues. He holds a PhD in land use and artificial intelligence from the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki. Since 2012 he is a partner of ELLINIKI ETAIRIA - Society of the Environment and Cultural Heritage (ELLET) on issues of urban planning, spatial planning, tourism and sustainable development. He has participated in more than 14 European and national research projects (Life, Interreg, Leonardo etc.) in the fields of ecosystem management, climate change, tourism and sustainable development. He has taught at the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, the University of Thessaly. He is a member of the National Council for Climate Change Adaptation and has served as a member of the National Council for Spatial Planning and Sustainable Development. He is a member of the Technical Chamber of Greece, the Hellenic Association of Town and Country Planners (SEPOX) and the Hellenic Association of Engineers of Spatial Planning, Urban Planning and Regional Development.
FORMER COLLABORATORS
Amalia Zepou
Former Project Manager (on duty 05/2023 - 05/2024)
Amalia Zepou served as Deputy Mayor for civil society and innovation at the Municipality of Athens between 2014 and 2019. During her mandate, she created synAthina, an award-winning civil society platform connecting community groups with city authorities, supervised the renovation and re-use of Kypseli Municipal Market and coordinated Curing The Limbo, an innovative local policy for the social integration of refugees. Previously she worked as a documentary producer (1998-2011). Her background is in Social Anthropology (LSE, BA 1987) and Media Studies (New School, NY, MA 1991).
Nikos Degleris
Former Project Coordinator (on duty 05/2022 - 12/2022)
Nikolaos Degleris holds several diplomas in engineering, architecture, and political sciences. He has held various positions in the corporate sector for more than 15 years, namely in asset management, business development, operations, strategy & financial advisory for execs and decision makers in the energy and sustainability fields. His strong interest in cultural policy and climate diplomacy led him to join an Executive Master’s in Public Affairs - Arts & Politics, directed by Bruno Latour at SciencesPo Paris. Today, he is active in the fields of cultural and natural heritage and his areas of focus include the creation of new narratives and development trajectories, leveraging on the value and agency of heritage for an inclusive, sustainable, and peaceful future.