European Young Leaders (#EYL40)

Ayman Mhanna is Executive Director of the Beirut-based Samir Kassir Foundation, one of the leading press freedom NGOs in the Middle East. In this capacity, he oversees the foundation’s advocacy, monitoring, research and training activities. Ayman has previously held the position of Executive Director of the Global Forum for Media Development, focusing on monitoring violations targeting journalists and providing them with the necessary support. He has also extensively worked with issues related to election observation, electoral reform and civil society involvement. Until recently, he was a lecturer on policy development and communications at Saint Joseph University in Beirut. In 2016, he was appointed Secretary-General of the Democratic Renewal Movement, a secular, social-liberal political party in Lebanon.

Meghan Milloy is the Co-Founder of Republican Women for Progress (RWFP) and the Director of Strategic Communications at the Institute for International Bankers. Prior to this, she was a fellow at the Robert Bosch Foundation, where her work focused on trade issues in the German public and private sectors. Meghan previously served as the chair of Republican Women for Hillary (RWFH) and director of financial services policy at the American Action Forum (AAF). During the Obama administration, Meghan worked as a presidential management fellow at the Small Business Administration on matters of financial inclusion and as a counsel with the House Financial Services Committee. She was an intern at the National Republican Senatorial Committee and the George W. Bush White House. Meghan has also worked in the office of former Senate majority leader Trent Lott and has volunteered for the campaigns of Haley Barbour, George W. Bush, John McCain, Mitt Romney and Hillary Clinton.

Bálint is a Hungarian social policy specialist whose work integrates research, advocacy and fieldwork. Currently serving as the senior advisor on social and housing policy for the Mayor of Budapest, he is also the co-founder of The City is For All, a community organization dedicated to advancing housing justice and empowering people experiencing homelessness. A fervent believer in the need to address the root cause of housing and economic inequality rather than the symptom of homelessness itself, Bálint has succeeded in significantly impacting the discourse and politics surrounding homelessness and housing poverty in Hungary. He also set up and coordinates an emergency service which combines social work and non-violent resistance to prevent the eviction of impoverished families.

Roger is one of the founding fathers of Twenty50, a think tank that unites the best global talents on a multidisciplinary platform based on cooperation, exchange and thought. Connecting professionals from a wide range of backgrounds and a variety of major cities, Twenty50 maintains that its primary objective is to forge the society of the future. Focusing on technological innovation, the think tank works on a range of issues such as nanorobotics, genomics, AI and virtual reality. As a former MP in the Parliament of Catalonia and as deputy of the Convergència i Unió, Roger was one of the youngest members to join at the age of 24. In 2015, he was selected for the prestigious International Visitor Leadership Program by the US State Department.

A leading voice on LGBTQ rights and politics, Una is one of Ireland’s most reputable young activists. As a journalist, broadcaster and author, she has written for prominent news outlets such as The Guardian and the Sunday Tribune, in addition to contributing a weekly column to the Irish Times. Her two books, In The Name Of Love, and her anthropology, Repeal the 8th, trace the historical developments which culminated in the two separate referenda on marriage equality and reproductive rights in Ireland. She was the Independent Chair of Ireland’s National 2018 LGBTI+ Youth Strategy, which is the first of its kind. A poet and screenwriter, she has authored the documentary, I Am Irish, co-founded a music documentary film festival, co-created the pro-choice podcast, Don’t Stop Repealin’, and co-founded the Irish Times Women’s Podcast.

Lindsey Nefesh-Clarke is Founder & CEO of W4.org, a social enterprise dedicated to protecting girls’ and women’s human rights and promoting their empowerment around the world, with a focus on Sustainable Development Goal 5b: harnessing technologies. Nefesh-Clarke worked in human rights and development in Africa and Asia at Human Rights Watch, UNICEF, Enfants d’Asie, before founding W4. Named a “Women in IT Role Model” by the European Commission and one of the “Inspiring Fifty” women leaders in Europe’s technology sector, Nefesh-Clarke is a board member of the Women’s Economic Imperative (WEI), which aims to advance the work of the UN Secretary General’s High-Level Panel on Women’s Economic Empowerment. She is also a Senior Fellow for Friends of Europe’s Connect Europe initiative, and a member of the advisory board of UN Women France.

Alexandre is a Spanish engineer and entrepreneur. He is President and Co-Founder of The Altius Society, a renowned international non-profit which combines the knowledge of Nobel laureates, leading researchers and policymakers to better understand the impact of technology on future societies. He also co-founded Fever, a tech start-up which is disrupting the ‘experience economy’ as it allows its users to browse and book nearby events from a curated collection of places and pop-ups in over a dozen cities around the world. Alexandre has been recognised for his work by the Spanish Ministry of Education with the prestigious National Prize, awarded to Spain’s top three engineers.

Michael has over 15 years of experience in the commercialisation of R&D results, innovation consultation and non-profit management, having worked for several companies and organisations across the globe and participated as a trainer and speaker at conferences on philanthropy and the concept of giving. He currently serves as the Director of Programming at The Hellenic Initiative, a global, non-profit and secular institution which aims to mobilise support and investment for sustainable economic renewal in Greece. He has overseen the Hellenic Initiative’s philanthropic work since the institution’s founding, having managed over $16.5mn in support of the future of Greece. Michael is also the co-owner of Green Systems, an engineering procurement and construction company in Athens, and Brainomix, a start-up company that develops medical imaging software to assess the eligibility of acute stroke patients for life saving treatment. He serves as a committee member of the Hellenic American Chamber of Commerce, dedicated to achieving Greek competitiveness through properly informing and adequately motivating business employees.

Fadi Quran is a leading figure in Palestine, committed to achieving freedom, justice and dignity for the Palestinian people. As Campaign Director at Avaaz, a global online civic movement, he is responsible for the organisation’s campaigning and investigative efforts on issues including human rights, democracy, poverty and conflict. His leadership has helped push for legislation on Big Tech and he has featured in The New York Times, The Washington Post and BBC, among other news outlets. Fadi is a community organiser for Popular Struggle, a policy member of the Al-Shabaka Palestinian Policy Network and a former United Nations advocacy officer. In addition to his work in advocacy and international law, Fadi is also a renewable energy entrepreneur in MENA, with a focus on shifting the region away from fossil fuels. He has founded two companies, bringing wind and solar energy power to Palestine and other countries in the region.

Denis (also known as Jaromil) Roio is a media artist, activist and free software programmer, who founded Dyne.org, a website dedicated to the development of free software. He has made significant contributions to the development of multimedia and streaming applications on the Linux platform and has led R&D activities at the Netherlands Media Art Institute. Roio was honoured with the Vilém Flusser Theory Award for his outstanding digital arts practice.

Lavinia is President of the European Ecologist Association and television anchor on a Romanian political critique show. Formerly, she was Vice-President of the National Union for the Progress of Romania (UNPR). Prior to this she was President of the National Initiative Party (PIN). Before launching her political career she worked in the film and media sector. Lavinia is an active supporter of ecology and was the Director of the “EcoFest Manifesto for Earth Health” Festival, the first European tour representing the Romanian ecologist movement. In 2007 Lavinia was a key figure in the “Romanian’s Guide in the European Union” promotional campaign. In 2011 Lavinia received the Woman of the Year award in the Politicians category at the Romanian Women of Success Gala. Lavinia attended the Arts and Theatre Academy of Targu Mures and holds a PhD in Political Sciences from the University of Bucharest

Anita Sarkeesian is an award-winning media critic and the founder of Feminist Frequency, an educational non-profit that explores the representations of women in pop culture narratives. Her work focuses on deconstructing the stereotypes and tropes associated with women in popular culture as well as highlighting issues surrounding the targeted harassment of women in online and gaming spaces. Sarkeesian has featured in publications such as The Guardian, The New York Times, Rolling Stone and The Wall Street Journal. She was named one of TIME’s 100 most influential people in 2015 and was the recipient of the 2014 Game Developers Choice Ambassador Award. Sarkeesian has spoken to TEDxWomen, XOXO Festival and the UN Broadband Working Group on Gender. She also appeared on The Colbert Report discussing her experiences of harassment and improving gender inclusivity in gaming culture and the media.

Agnija is an award-winning choreographer and dancer. She is the author of more than 20 choreography works, including dance films, installations and performances. Her compositions have been performed at dance festivals both in her native Lithuania and abroad. Agnija successfully collaborates with creators of various art forms, resulting in dance pieces that feature audio-visual art and sculpture installations. Along with choreographing, Agnija gives lectures at Klaipeda University and runs the Šeiko Dance Company . She was named Best Choreographer of the Year in 2012 and, in 2013, was awarded the Golden Cross of the Stage, the highest Lithuanian theatre award. Her most recent show, ‘Dior in Moscow’, was presented at the International Contemporary Dance Festival ‘New Baltic Dance’.

In 2009, Ivana founded the NGO Next Generation Leaders of Slovakia (NGLS), which is a platform and movement dedicated to developing leadership skills, inspiring action and connecting influential Slovakian people. Ivana previously worked in Dubai, as a wealth management banker and sales executive. Returning to Slovakia in 2007, she conducted management consulting for multinational banks and governments and developed a strong interest in the power of new social media platforms to transform the worlds of work and innovation. Since its inception, the NGLS programme has reached hundreds of young Slovaks. Her personal story was featured in two books. She has been a keynote speaker at several prestigious events and featured as an “opinion leader” in many articles. Ivana hold a MBA in Strategic Management from Comenius University in Bratislava.

Robert Shirkey is the Founder of Our Horizon, a non-profit organization which campaigns for laws to require climate change and air pollution risk disclosures or ‘warning labels’ on gas pumps. His work has been used by advocates around the world to advance the ground-breaking concept in their own communities. A lawyer by trade, Rob previously operated a private practice in downtown Toronto and also has experience as an assistant city solicitor and prosecutor. Robert has given lectures on the subject across North America, as well as Europe, and has featured in media all over the world. He is a recipient of Canada’s 2017 Clean50 Award and was also named a 2016 Agent of Change by the Centre for Social Innovation and Green Shield Canada Foundation. His book, “The Banality of Oil” is to published in 2021.