Ljubica Beljanski-Ristic was born in Bolzano, Italy. She lived and was schooled in Pula, Croatia, where she finished a Teacher Education School and a Pedagogical Academy. She received her degree in Literature and language from the University of Belgrade, Serbia, where she lives and works since 1971. Since 1997, she worked in a Cultural Center "Stari grad”, where she started a program of drama workshops and participation theatre for/with children and youth. She created many cultural programs for young professionals and artists to support their continuing education in practice and research projects in the areas of creative education, drama in education and theatre for cultural change. She is a founder of the Center for drama in education and art – CEDEUM (National IDEA center). She has been actively engaged in reforms in education and culture, since 2000 through introducing and integrating drama in the Serbian public education. She developed a concept of “polyphony” for a side program of Belgrade International Theatre Festival of new theatrical tendencies BITEF - the Bitef Polyphony. She was coordinator and artistic director of national and international projects and coordinator for Serbia of the EU project DICE Drama improves Lisbon Key Competences in Education. She also works as a consultant at the Institute for the study of cultural development, in the project “Cultural participation and cultural heritage”.