About

Meet the EYL40 Class of 2025!

The EYL40 Class of 2025 brings together a diverse group of leaders shaping Europe’s future. Among them are a female refugee turned AC Milan footballer and medical doctor, a Michelin-starred chef, pioneering tech entrepreneurs revolutionising the energy sector, politicians from all levels of government and national parliaments, a barrister and bestselling author, a Saami rights activist, a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist, an astronaut, and cultural icons using art and theatre to confront societal challenges.


Distinct leadership for a new era 

This cohort of leaders comes at a critical moment for Europe. From accelerating climate action to navigating the implications of artificial intelligence, tackling polarisation to redefining competitiveness in a green and digital economy, their work addresses the most pressing issues of our time. Together, these European Young Leaders’ (EYL40) passion, diversity of backgrounds and innovative thinking create the right formula for generating fresh ideas to build a more forward-thinking Europe. 

Our European leaders are scientists, artists, journalists, entrepreneurs and economists. They represent a new, embracive vision for Europe’s future – one where diversity strengthens leadership and drives progress. Their thinking is not bound by local and multilateral institutions, traditional political frameworks or bureaucracy. They provide alternative perspectives to EU decision-makers and challenge the status quo. Our Europe is larger than the EU’s physical borders. Our Europe stretches from the United Kingdom to the Western Balkans, Ukraine and Moldova. 

EYL40 help take Europe out of Brussels. In their own countries, cities and communities, EYLs play an essential role in reconnecting people with and rebuilding trust in politics by engaging a wider community around key policy issues. They are facilitating citizens’ participation in a more inclusive, sustainable and forward-looking Europe. 

Looking ahead: a bold vision for Europe’s future 

The impactful work of the EYL40 Class of 2025 reflects our commitment to fostering dialogue, sparking action and bridging gaps between policy ambitions and practical outcomes. These leaders are not just reimagining Europe’s future – they are actively building it. 

Learn more about them, their projects and achievements, through profiles of the EYL40 2025 cohort. 


Tune in to the EYL40s on Friends of Europe’s podcasts

Policy Voices | Are we alone in the universe?

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Policy Voices | Are we alone in the universe?

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Policy Voices | AI & Democracy: Empowering informed citizens

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Policy Voices | AI & Democracy: Empowering informed citizens

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Policy Voices | A glaciologist and a greentech entrepreneur on a mission to fight climate change

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Policy Voices | A glaciologist and a greentech entrepreneur on a mission to fight climate change

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Policy Voices Podcast | Keeping the human in the loop: How to make a success story of AI in health

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Policy Voices Podcast | Keeping the human in the loop: How to make a success story of AI in health

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Meet the EYL40

Ciara Clancy
Ciara Clancy

CEO of Beats Medical and 2017 European Young Leader (EYL40)

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Ciara is a chartered physiotherapist and experienced researcher passionately dedicated to improving the management and treatment of people with neurological conditions. At the age of 22, she launched Beats Medical, a medical application available on smartphones, which aims to help people with Parkinson’s disease take control of their condition through technology. Ciara received the Irish Society of Chartered Physiotherapists Anne O’Brien Prize for Clinical Excellence and the Cartier Women’s Initiative Award.

Photo of John Collison
John Collison

Co-Founder and President of Stripe and 2018 European Young Leader (EYL40)

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John Collison is president and co-founder of Stripe, the software company that is expanding internet commerce by making it easy to process transactions from anywhere. John and his brother Patrick started Stripe in 2010 while John was studying physics at Harvard. Their goal was to make accepting payments online simpler and more inclusive, after learning firsthand how difficult it was. Today, the 1700-person and growing Stripe team powers online businesses around the world. Prior to Stripe, John co-founded Auctomatic, which was acquired by Live Current Media in March 2008. Originally from Limerick, Ireland, John lives in San Francisco, California, where Stripe is based.

Oisin Hanrahan
Oisin Hanrahan

Co-Founder and CEO of Handy and 2015-2016 European Young Leader (EYL40)

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Oisin became an entrepreneur at the age of 18, when he set up the Clearwater Group, a real estate development company in Budapest while a student at Trinity College, Dublin. Oisin founded Handybook in May 2012 with Umang Dua to address the difficulty of finding a reliable handyman that Oisin experienced in Budapest. Oisin also established MiCandidate, which became the leading source for online election information across Europe in 2009, and set up the Undergraduate Awards, which has become the world’s largest pan-discipline awards programme. Supported by Google, Microsoft and others, it is a global annual awards event hosted in Dublin with the award distributed each year by the President of Ireland. In 2019 Oisin became Chief Product Officer for ANGI Homeservices which operates HomeAdvisor, Angie’s List and other brands.

Daire Hickey
Daire Hickey

Managing Partner at 150Bond and 2018 European Young Leader (EYL40)

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Daire is the Managing Partner at 150 Bond, a strategic advisory firm based between New York and Dublin, which advises fast-growing tech companies, venture capitalists and Fortune 500s. He also co-founded Web Summit, Europe’s largest tech start-up event and the largest technology conference in the world. In this role, he has facilitated a number of tech conferences across the United States and Europe. Daire has previously written for top publications in Ireland as a journalist and worked at Irish broadcaster, RTÉ. An active angel investor who also sits on the advisory boards of several companies, Daire has received recognition as a World Economic Forum Global Shaper and on the Forbes’ ‘30 under 30’ list.

Darya Yegorina
Darya Yegorina

Founder & Board Member of CleverBooks and 2020-2021 European Young Leader (EYL40)

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Darya is an Irish entrepreneur and influential global pioneer of the role that ‘augmented reality’ (AR) can play in education. She recently created CleverBooks to provide personalised educational content for students by utilising three-dimensional AR technologies. Darya has been widely recognised for her work, having won the Digital Female Leaders Award in Entrepreneurship as well as being named an Innovator by the Irish Times and a Young Irish Entrepreneur. She has been featured in Inc.com, Forbes, CBS and many other global media platforms for her efforts to bridge the technology gap in classrooms around the world and boost student outcomes.

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Selection process

NEXT CALL FOR APPLICATIONS/NOMINATIONS for the EYL class of 2026-2027 to be announced in spring 2026

Friends of Europe is scaling up and will be joining forces with the Jacques Delors Institutes. As a result, 2025 is a year of new ambitions and initiatives in the making, requiring substantial involvement of EYL programme alumni and paving the way for the future.

The next call for applications and nominations will take place in Spring 2026.

Should you have any questions, please feel free to reach out to us at eyl40@friendsofeurope.org.

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