European Young Leaders (#EYL40)

Velibor is a Montenegrin economist, who was appointed by the Government of Montenegro to serve as the Managing Director of Montenegro’s first science and technology park and one of its most significant scientific research and innovation projects. He also serves as the President of the Center for Development and Entrepreneurial Society. With extensive experience in both the private and public sectors, Velibor’s career has focused on development of the entrepreneurial ecosystem and enhancing SMEs in Montenegro. Before taking up his current post, he was the general director of FK Budućnost, Montenegro’s biggest football club. He has also served as director of Montenegro’s first business incubator, ‘Inventivnost’, and as director at an entrepreneurship and innovation centre, ‘Technopolis’, where he remains as President of the Board. Additionally, Velibor has co-founded two private companies, one of which works in economic consultancy and one of which operates within the pharmaceutical industry.

Hajdana Kostić is a painter, illustrator and graphic designer from Montenegro. Her work hangs on walls around the world, including in the private collections of stars like John Malkovich, Keanu Reeves and will.i.am. Kostić rose to national fame after winning Montenegro’s 2023 Red Bull Doodle Art competition. Recent projects include illustrations to adorn London’s Megaro Hotel; covers for Air Serbia’s in-flight magazine and an exhibition exploring boundaries between humanity and technology. Kostić’s clients include VISA and UNICEF; and her street art decorates Montenegro’s capital and coastal cities. She also uses art to raise funding for war victims and other charitable causes.

A Montenegrin farmer-turned-agricultural entrepreneur, Marko Maraš founded Seljak.me, a ‘digital village’ platform for farmers to connect and share information, as well as buy and sell agricultural products and equipment. Maraš is on a mission to boost the farming sector and engage young farmers in agriculture production through innovation and sustainability. Welcoming over 60,000 visits per month, the platform seeks to increase the procurement of modern technologies, such as blockchain and GPS, that can enhance productivity and proximity to livestock markets. Seljak is famed for being the first to sell a farm asset of any kind for Bitcoin in the Western Balkans.

Tamara served as the minister for public administration, digital society and media in Montenegro, in which role she advocated for public administration reform, digital transformation and the development of e-government services. Prior to this, Tamara was integral to the launch of the Government of California’s Digital Innovation Office, established to improve the state’s digital services. In this capacity, she led the COVID-19 digital response, the Policy Design Lab and the Inclusive by Design initiative. She is also the Co-Founder and former deputy director of the Office of Innovation at the California Health and Human Services Agency, where she was responsible for driving innovation to provide critical healthcare and social services. She has been involved with a number of organisations and programmes, including Alchemist, CivicMakers, Code for America, New America and most recently, Regional School of Public Administration (ReSPA), where she provides support for public administration reform in the Western Balkans.

A Montenegrin high jump athlete, Marija Vuković made history when she won the country’s first-ever athletic gold medal at the 2010 World Junior Championships in Athletics, where she cleared a 1.91 metre high jump. She has earned the top spot on the podium at the Games of the Small States of Europe five times throughout her sporting career. At the 2021 Balkan Championships, Vuković achieved her current personal best in the high jump, which stands at 1.97 metres and led her to the Summer Olympic Games in Tokyo, where she became the first athlete from Montenegro to reach an Olympic final and placed ninth. Since, she has medalled at the 2022 Mediterranean Games and the European Athletics Championships, where she once again made history as the first medallist from her home country. Notably, Vuković was awarded the title of Montenegro’s best athlete by the Montenegrin Olympic Committee.