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IPTI’s Board of Advisors is comprised of internationally respected professionals all of whom have extensive experience in their respective fields. The breadth of membership of the Board reflects IPTI’s commitment to international participation and sharing best practice on a global basis. The Board contributes to the strategic direction and overall planning for IPTI.
Michael is IPTl's Director of Strategic Initiatives and is a Strategic Advisor to the Province of British Columbia. He recently retired from public service as the Assistant Deputy Minister for the Province of British Columbia and is a fully accredited member of the Appraisal Institute of Canada. As an ADM and in other past senior positions with Public Works and Government Services Canada; Foreign Affairs and International Trade Canada; Revenue Canada; BC Assessment and BC Housing, Michael has gained significant experience in property taxation; payments-in-lieu of taxes programs; real estate deal and partnership structuring; asset and facilities management; contracting and procurement management; project and construction management; Public-Private Partnerships (PPP); and portfolio planning.
A founding Member of the European Property Institute, and Former Chairman of Supervisory Board of Polish Forces Housing Agency, Dr. Brzeski has been involved in Poland’s economic reforms from the outset in 1990 and spent 5 years as senior advisor for real estate reform for the Polish Government. He was Deputy Mayor of Kraków early into the transition process and worked extensively with international development including the World Bank. Dr. Brzeski has shared his experience through numerous publications and speaking engagements. He is a member of various professional organizations including a Fellow of the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors and a member of the International Property Tax Institute’s Advisory Board.
Consultant, researcher, and educator. Director of CMDeCesare & Associates. Approximately 30 years of experience dedicated to property tax reforms, property valuation for taxation purposes, processes for updating the land and property cadasters (conventional and low-cost strategies), implementation of urban policy instruments, and tax performance analysis. Through short-term contracts with international organizations (International Development Bank, IDB; KFW; The World Bank; UN-Habitat) and governmental institutions, she has worked as a consultant in Brazil, El Salvador, Kosovo, Mexico, Mozambique, Peru, and the Dominican Republic. In the Public Sector, she was the Municipal Secretary of Finance’s adviser for eight years and the Division of Property Revenue’s adviser for nine years at Porto Alegre City Council, Brazil. In addition, DeCesare coordinated the Fiscal Education Program at the municipal level for two years. Member of the Advisory Board of the International Property Tax Institute[IPTI] and the Teaching Faculty of the Lincoln Institute of Land Policy, where she developed and coordinated the survey on the property tax in Latin America and the Caribbean: A Comparative Analysis for 15 years, as well as program to support municipal initiatives related to property taxes for six years. DeCesare was an administrative director of the Institute Fiscal Justice [Instituto Justiça Fiscal, IJF] for two years. She has coordinated and taught in presential and online courses on Property taxation, valuation for taxation purposes, and municipal fiscal health. De Cesare has been a speaker, contributing to seminars, symposiums, and workshops in over twenty countries. She has an MSc degree with a dissertation in real estate valuation from the Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul(UFRGS), Brazil, and was awarded with a Ph.D. by the University of Salford, England. Her Ph.D. dissertation was on the analysis of property tax equity.
Riël Franzsen occupies the South African Research Chair in Tax Policy and Governance and was the director of the African Tax Institute at the University of Pretoria from 2007 to 2023. After obtaining the BLC and LLB degrees from the University of Pretoria, he obtained a doctorate (tax law) from Stellenbosch University, South Africa, in 1990. In 2013 he also obtained a master’s degree in creative writing from the University of Pretoria. More than 20 doctoral and 80 master’s students have already completed their studies under his supervision or co-supervision. He regularly teaches at Masaryk University (Czech Republic) and the Vienna University of Economics and Business (Austria). He has acted as an instructor for short courses or workshops on behalf of various entities, including the IMF, Lincoln Institute of Land Policy and International Property Tax Institute. He specializes in land and property taxation and has acted as a policy advisor for various entities (including the IMF and World Bank) in more than 30 countries in Africa, Asia, the Caribbean, Europe, and the Middle East. He has authored or co-authored many peer-reviewed papers and book chapters. He is the co-editor of several scholarly books, including Property Tax in Africa – Status, Challenges and Prospects (2017) and Property Tax in Asia – Policy and Principles (2022), published by the Lincoln Institute of Land Policy.
Alena Holmes is the former Director of the Property Taxes, Road Tax and Valuation Department at the Ministry of Finance of the Czech Republic. She graduated from the Faculty of Law at Charles University, Prague in 1982, and as a Juris Doctor in 1983. Until 1991 she worked as a consultant for companies involved in the building sector. Since 1991 she has been employed at the Czech Ministry of Finance, initially as an officer in the Property Taxes’ section, then as the Head of the Real Estate Tax Department from 1993. Alena has been the Director of the Property Taxes Department since 1996 and was the Czech Republic’s EU negotiator in tax matters from 1998 to 2001. Alena has been involved in several international projects, namely the Know-how Fund, the Lincoln Institute of Land Policy (she was Fellow in 1998) and the EU - Leonardo da Vinci II project. She was a member of International Fiscal Association 2003 -2021. She is a member of Board of Advisors of the International Property Tax Institute, Canada. Alena is the author or co-author of many books and papers on property taxation. She also lectured on the subject.
Mr. Zhang Jian’gang has an extensive professional journey spanning several pivotal roles in the financial sector. He commenced his career at the former Research Institute of State Owned Assets Management Bureau, transitioning to the Editorial Department of the State Assets Management Journal. Notably, from September 2000 to August 2014, he served in significant capacities at the Ministry of Finance of the People’s Republic of China, initially as Vice Director and later as Director. In August 2014, Mr. Zhang Jian’gang assumed the role of Vice Secretary General at the China Appraisal Society. Throughout his career, he has demonstrated a profound commitment to managing financial policies, assets, and tax policies, as evidenced by the publication of numerous professional papers. His expertise extends to the realms of Chinese real estate tax system reform and tax assessment, where he has conducted in-depth research and showcased a high level of theoretical proficiency.
Roy is Professor of the Practice Emeritus, Sanford School of Public Policy, Duke University and the Director of the Program on Fiscal Decentralization and Local Government Financial Management. Prior to coming to Duke, he spent 19 years at Harvard University. Kelly has over 40 years of experience in teaching and in designing and implementing reforms on fiscal decentralization, local government finance and property taxation in Asia, Africa, Latin America and Eastern Europe. He served as a resident advisor to the governments of Indonesia, Kenya, Cambodia and Tanzania and as a short-term advisor in over 30 different countries. Kelly earned his MCRP and Ph.D. in Urban Planning from Harvard University
Mr. Kevin Siu is the Commissioner of the Rating and Valuation Department of the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of China. He is a Fellow of the Hong Kong Institute of Surveyors, a Chartered Member of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors, and a Justice of Peace. With over 30 years of service at the Department, Mr. Siu has extensive professional knowledge and expertise in the valuation of landed properties in Hong Kong for rating and statutory valuation purposes; public policy formulation and administration; and provision of property information and tenancy services. He proactively champions the use of information technology and e-Government initiatives to deliver quality, cost-effective and customer-centric services to the public.
Enid is the Director of the Institute on Municipal Finance and Governance (IMFG) at the School of Cities at the University of Toronto. IMFG focuses on the fiscal health and governance challenges facing cities and city-regions in Canada and around the world. Enid has published several books and articles on property taxes, intergovernmental transfers, municipal restructuring, and municipal infrastructure finance. Enid consults with governments and international agencies such as the World Bank, UN Habitat, Inter-American Development Bank, and the International Growth Centre in countries that include Brazil, Chile, Colombia, India, Mexico, Nepal, South Africa, Tanzania, and Uganda. She chairs the advisory board of Local Public Sector Alliance and is a member of IPTI’s advisory board. In 2012, Enid was awarded the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee Medal for her work on cities.
Neill Sullivan is the Valuer-General, located in the Wellington office of Land Information New Zealand. He has been a registered valuer since 1983 and has worked in a variety of private and government roles in New Zealand and abroad. The Valuer-General is primarily responsible for regulation of the rating valuations system, chairing the Valuers Registration Board and is also member of the NZIV Council in accordance with the Valuers Act 1948.
Jack A. Walker is a partner in the law firm Walker Longo & Associates LLP where he specializes in municipal assessment and tax litigation. He was called to the bar with Honours in 1967. He has appeared before tribunals and courts across Canada on assessment matters. He has lectured at Osgoode Hall Law School, and the University of Toronto. He has written extensively on assessment and taxation and is co-author of Ontario Property Tax Assessment Handbook with Jerry Grad, editor of Ontario Assessment Legislation and contributor to the International Property Tax Institute’s publications and journal.
Philip is a National Government and Asset Services Manager at the Colliers in Sydney, Australia. Previously he was appointed a Valuer General for New South Wales. Philip also was the principle advisor to the New South Wales government on valuation issues. His responsibilities included the regulatory functions relating to statutory land valuations, determination of compensation and the professional conduct of and ensuring the integrity of the valuation system and processes. Philip has been responsible for some significant enhancements to the NSW valuation system, in a drive to improve the accuracy, consistency and quality of land values and to provide more transparency in the valuation system. Philip’s medium-term goal is to ensure that the New South Wales valuation system becomes a world-recognized benchmark valuation system providing credible, consistent and accurate valuations. In 2003, Philip was made a Fellow of the New South Wales (NSW) division of the Australian Property Institute. He is currently a NSW Divisional Councilor; National Councilor and the Junior Vice President of the National body. He is also a member of the Australian Property Institute National Education Board and currently serves on several sub-committees.
David Wilkes is a New York-based attorney with more than 25 years of experience in commercial property tax disputes and advises global portfolios as well as governments on property tax management and legislative structures and reforms. David is a co-founder and President of the National Association of Property Tax Attorneys (NAPTA), and is a former Chairman of The Appraisal Foundation, the Congressionally-authorized source of U.S. appraisal standards. He is both a Counselor of Real Estate and a Fellow of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors, and a long-time member of the International Property Tax Institute, where he co-founded the Corporate Advisory Council. He sits on the Real Estate Board of New York. He also formerly served on the Governing Council of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors, representing the United States. David served as the Senior Legal Advisor to governments in the Middle East, Eastern Europe, and Africa on a variety of initiatives designed to promote economic stimulus and draw foreign investment in real estate.
