Vangelis Vitalis is Deputy Secretary, Trade and Economic. He was the APEC2021(external link) Senior Officials’ Meeting (SOM) Chair for New Zealand’s host year and in 2023 Vangelis will be chairing the Senior Officials' process that supports the CPTPP Ministerial meetings.
Vangelis was also the Chief Negotiator who led the conclusion of negotiations for the New Zealand European Union Free Trade Agreement and before that the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership. In 2007-9, Vangelis was also the Chief Negotiator who concluded the ASEAN-Australia-New Zealand Free Trade Agreement (AANZFTA) and the Malaysia-New Zealand Free Trade Agreement (MNZFTA).
Prior to taking up his role in Wellington in 2017, Vangelis was New Zealand’s Permanent Representative (Ambassador) to the World Trade Organisation (WTO) in Geneva where he chaired the agriculture negotiations in a personal capacity. In this role he helped draft the text of the historic Nairobi WTO Ministerial Decision(external link) to eliminate agricultural export subsidies. Vangelis has also been the Ambassador to the European Union and NATO in Brussels and has had postings to Canberra and Moscow.
Vangelis has worked outside the Ministry including as an economist in the Secretariat of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD). He is a past member of the World Economic Forum’s (WEF) Global Future Council on Trade and is currently a member of the WEF Trade and Investment Action Group and is also on the Steering Committee for the WEF Climate Trade Zero initiative. He has chaired in a personal capacity the OECD Committee on Trade and the Environment (2008-2017), the OECD Global Forum on Trade and Climate Change and is currently the New Zealand Envoy for the Small Advanced Economies’ Initiative.
A keen saltwater land-based fisherman, Vangelis is married with three children and speaks Greek, German and Russian. He is a longstanding (and suffering) supporter of the Wellington Phoenix Football Club.

Danielle is the Market Access Manager for New Zealand Apples and Pears. Her role is to support industry (growers, packers and exporters) in maintaining access, improving access and gaining new access to markets to ensure future profitability and diversification

Justine is currently the Trade Strategy Manager at Fonterra Co-Operative Group where she has responsibility for driving Fonterra’s engagement and advocacy on strategic global trade issues.
A former New Zealand diplomat, Justine held a range of trade policy roles in the New Zealand Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade prior to joining Fonterra. She was most recently posted to Washington DC where she was responsible for advocacy in relation to a range of bilateral and multilateral trade issues. Justine has also previously served in the New Zealand High Commission in London and as an advisor to the Minister of Trade.
A graduate of the University of Auckland in Arts and Law, Justine has been admitted as a Barrister and Solicitor to the High Court of New Zealand, and has completed studies in international law at the University of Copenhagen in Denmark and Georgetown University in Washington DC.

Stephanie is a trade policy consultant with expertise in digital, services and agriculture trade, regional economic integration in the Asia-Pacific, the WTO, and inclusion in trade for women and small businesses. Formerly a New Zealand trade negotiator, including serving as chief agriculture negotiator during the intensive phase of the WTO Doha Round negotiations, Stephanie provides consulting services to a broad range of clients from the public and private sectors including international institutions such as the OECD and Asian Development Bank, and is a sought-after commentator on trade policy. She is the policy advisor to the New Zealand members of the APEC Business Advisory Council, and is co-founder of Global Trade Insights, a business offering executive education in trade policy around the world. Stephanie sits on the Board of the New Zealand Horticulture Export Authority and the Advisory Board of the Centres for Asia-Pacific Excellence.

Brigit Winter is Fisher & Paykel Healthcare’s Regional Operations Manager for International Operations, based in Auckland.
Brigit has worked across a number of areas in her 10 years at FPH including regulatory, market access, quality, supply chain and commercial operations.
Her current focus is firstly leading the operational setup of new direct operations globally for FPH and secondly supporting existing operations to obtain and maintain market access for medical devices for markets in Latin America, South East Asia, Africa, Middle East and Eastern Europe.
Brigit graduated from Otago University in 2006 with a Bachelor of Law and Commerce, majoring in Finance and was admitted to the bar in 2007.