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 afemale refugee turned AC Milan footballer andmedical 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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Continue to Meet the EYL

Meet the EYL40

Photo of Samir Abdelkrim
Samir Abdelkrim

Founder of EMERGING Valley, Member of the Digital Strategy Group at the Africa-Europe Foundation and 2020-2021 European Young Leader (EYL40)

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Samir Abdelkrim is a French entrepreneur, author and tech reporter. Passionate about all things digital, he founded EMERGING Valley as an international summit on African innovation to connect tech start-ups with investors, thinkers and decision-makers across continents. He also leads StartupBRICS, a company that provides insights on entrepreneurship in emerging economies. Abdelkrim is a former chronicler on African tech entrepreneurs for Le Monde and has also featured in Huffington Post, Le Point and Les Echos. His book, “Startup Lions”, chronicles his experience travelling the African continent in search of the most interesting and innovative tech start-ups. With French President Emmanuel Macron’s ‘Summit of the Two Shores of the Mediterranean’ initiative, Abdelkrim was amongst 10 selected to make proposals to relaunch European and Mediterranean cooperation.

Rim-Sarah Alouane
Rim-Sarah Alouane

Legal scholar and commentator and 2023 European Young Leader (EYL40)

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Rim-Sarah Alouane is a French legal scholar and commentator. Her research focuses on religious freedom, civil liberties, constitutional law and human rights across Europe and North America, with a special focus on France. Alouane has explored these issues as a guest lecturer at Georgetown University, Harvard Law School, Sorbonne and Sciences Po, among others. Her works have been published by the Atlantic Council, the Brookings Institution, The New York Times and Foreign Policy magazine. Alouane also regularly appears on TV and radio outlets worldwide, including NPR, Al Jazeera, BBC and France24, to discuss issues such as discrimination, human rights and politics. Notably, she has been vocal about the rise of far-right politics and anti-Muslim hatred, specifically providing her expert commentary on bodily autonomy given policy developments regarding bans on hijabs and burkinis in France.

astolfi
Charles-Pierre Astolfi

Co-Founder and Chief Technology Officer at Pemier Voisin and 2020-2021 European Young Leader (EYL40)

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Charles-Pierre is Chief Technology Officer at Premier Voisin, a company he co-founded. Previously, he worked as advisor on regulations and digital commons to the French Minister of State for Digital Transition and Affairs. He also served as director in charge of the project ‘Vaccination Information Systems” at the French Ministry of Health and Solidarity. He is a French engineer and cybersecurity specialist leading the organisation that advises the French government on digital matters. Previously, seeking to combine his technical skills with public service, Charles-Pierre worked at the French National Cybersecurity Agency (ANSSI), where he was tasked with finding offensive viruses, tracing their source, and identifying contaminated computers to neutralise the threat. Charles-Pierre’s diverse career also includes his supervision of the deployment of an electric vehicle (EV) fleet in the United States and co-authoring a book on 3D printing.

Clément Beaune
Clément Beaune

Former French minister delegate for transport and 2019 European Young Leader (EYL40)

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Clément was appointed Secretary of State for European affairs in the French government in July 2020. Before that, he served as the Europe and G20 advisor to French President Emmanuel Macron, shadowing him during meetings with other European state heads. A passionate Europhile, his presentations on Europe even when he was still in school were so accomplished that they were widely shared. Clément became Macron’s Europe advisor when Macron was still economy minister. He helped craft the French government’s push against Chinese steel dumping that is now at the heart of the president’s broader vision for a more defensive EU trade policy. The French president’s proposals during his En Marche campaign for European Union reform were clearly influenced by his advisor.

Marguerite Berard-Andrieu
Marguerite Berard-Andrieu

Head of Retail Banking at BNP Paribas and 2017 European Young Leader (EYL40)

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A graduate of the Paris Institute of Political Science and the University of Princeton, Marguerite began her career in 2004 as an auditor at France’s General Inspectorate of Finance, where she was responsible for auditing public bodies. She then served as an adviser to the French President on questions related to employment and social protection before heading the private office of the French Minister of Labour, Employment and Health. In 2012, Marguerite joined Groupe BPCE, the second-largest banking group in France. Four years later, she became a member of its Management Board and was appointed as Chief Executive Officer for Finance, Legal Affairs and Strategy. She has been a member of the French High Council of Public Finances since 2013.

Julien Berjeaut
Julien Berjeaut

Graphic artist & comic book author, 2014 European Young Leader

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Julien, known by his pseudonym Jul, is a French cartoonist and comic book author. He won third prize in the youth competition at the Angoulême comic book festival at the age of 12. He began his working life as a Professor of Chinese history, but then devoted himself entirely to comics. He has published cartoons in numerous newspapers and magazines including Les Échos, La Dépêche du Midi, Nouvel Observateur, and L’Humanité. His comic book series Silex and the City was adapted into a TV animation series and aired as of September 2012 on the franco-german channel Arte. He was appointed by the French government to the rank of Knight of the Order of Arts and Letters in September 2012.

Photo of Hervé Berville
Hervé Berville

French State Secretary for the Sea and 2023 European Young Leader (EYL40)

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Hervé Berville is a French economist and politician, who serves as the country’s State Secretary for the Sea, in which role he is responsible for the development and implementation of the government’s policy related to the sea, particularly the maritime economy. He has been elected twice to the French parliament, Assemblée nationale. Having authored a report on the modernisation of French foreign aid policy to support equal partnerships with Africa, Asia and Latin America, Berville was also the rapporteur of a programming bill on solidarity-based development and the fight against global inequalities. Both activities successfully led to the allocation of development funding. Berville began his political career as the spokesperson for La République en Marche parliamentary group, prior to which he worked as an economist for the French Development Agency in Mozambique and as a programme manager for the Stanford Institute for Innovation in Developing Economies in Kenya.

Diane Binder
Diane Binder

Founding Partner and CEO of Regenopolis and 2018 European Young Leader (EYL40)

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Diane Binder is a business executive and social entrepreneur, with extensive experience in developing public-private alliances which promote urban resilience, climate adaptation and mitigation. She is a Founding Partner and CEO of Regenopolis, an initiative for regenerative cities in Africa. In addition to serving as a member of the French Presidential Council for Africa, Diane is also the President and Co-Founder of Action Emploi Réfugiés. She previously worked at SUEZ, a leader in water supply and waste management services.

Nicolas-Brien
Nicolas Brien

French entrepreneur and founder of Wastetide, 2022 European Young Leader (EYL40)

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Nicolas Brien is an entrepreneur, investor and board member. He is a vibrant advocate of EU tech sovereignty and has chaired the European Startup Network, the most influential industry group representing start-ups in Brussels. Brien sits on the boards of companies and foundations in Europe and Asia, including Heritage, Vidacity, Tilder and France Alzheimer. After successfully restructuring EuraTechnologies, Europe’s largest startup incubator, he entered into stealth mode and has been working on a green tech start-up project. He previously led France Digitale, Europe’s largest start-up organisation with over 2,000 start-up members and more than 100 venture capitalists. Prior to joining the digital ecosystem, Brien ran the Direction of Studies at Kantar and was a senior advisor to Najat Vallaud-Belkacem in her role as the spokeswoman of the French government.

Photo of Maud Caillaux
Maud Caillaux

Co-Founder of the Green-Got Bank and 2025 European Young Leader (EYL40)

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Maud Caillaux is Co-Founder of Green-Got, a French neo-bank that channels funding towards the green transition. Customers get ecological bank accounts where savings contribute to ocean clean-up, re-forestation, sustainable agriculture, renewable energies and other environmental projects. The goal is to empower all savers to make money while investing in transition. “No longer will a single cent go to finance fossil fuels,” affirms Caillaux. Founded in 2020, Green-Got is expanding rapidly, with €100mn under management and transactions totalling more than €1bn. The bank went international by moving into Belgium in 2023 and, in November 2024, raised €5mn in 148 minutes during a record-breaking crowdfunding drive.

Camille de Toledo
Camille de Toledo

Director, European Society of Authors, 2013 European Young Leader

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Camille is a European writer, creator and artist. He studied in Paris, at the London School of Economics, as well as in New York. He has published several novels, shorts and essays, such as The Inversion of Hieronymus Bosch (2005), Lives and Death of an American Terrorist (2007), and L’inquiétude d’être au monde (The Anxiety of Being in the World) (2012). In 2004, Camille won the Villa Medicis scholarship for his literary and video work. His short film, “Tango de Olvido”, was selected for the 2002 Cannes Film Festival. In 2008 he founded the European Society of Authors with other intellectual figures to promote a cultural Europe on the basis of what he coined a translation citizenship. He is the Chief Editor of www.ifverso.com and Chief Advisor of the “TLHUB.org” project, a multilingual translation platform.

Karima Delli
Karima Delli

French politician and Member of the European Parliament and 2015-2016 European Young Leader (EYL40)

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Karima Delli from the French party, Europe Écologie–Les Verts, is one of the youngest Members of the European Parliament. She is the ninth of thirteen children, and has written about her modest upbringing and its effect on her ecological commitments in her book, ‘La politique ne me fait pas perdre le nord’ (Politics have not made me lose sight of the North). First elected in 2009, Delli has remained a committed activist during her tenure though work at Jeudi Noire (Black Thursday), a group dedicated to helping young people find housing, and Sauvons les Riches (Save the Rich), which demands the introduction of a maximum European income. She is a member of the Committee on Transport and Tourism, and a substitute

Rokhaya Diallo
Rokhaya Diallo

Journalist, Writer, Filmmaker and 2013 European Young Leader (EYL40)

Show more information on Rokhaya Diallo

Rokhaya is a human rights activist committed to anti-racism work. She is currently the Host and Co-Editor of “Egaux, mais pas trop” (Equal, but not too much), a series of reports on diversity issues in France, and has previously held a number of noteworthy positions in the television field, basing her work primarily on social and political issues. The Founder and former president of Les Indivisibles, a French organisation that uses humour and irony to fight racism, Rokhaya is also a published author, scriptwriter and award-winning director of several documentaries. She is a member of several NGOs and organisations that base their work on social awareness and also sits on the board of the European Network Against Racism (ENAR) Foundation. In 2012, she received the COJEP International Award for her work against racism and discrimination.

Maïmouna Doucouré
Maïmouna Doucouré

Filmmaker, Director of “Mignonnes” and 2022 European Young Leader (EYL40)

Show more information on Maïmouna Doucouré

A French filmmaker, Maïmouna is the Screenwriter and Director of “Mignonnes” (“Cuties”). The critically acclaimed film follows the coming-of-age story of a Senegalese-French girl and premiered at the 2020 Sundance Film Festival, where it won the Directing Jury Award. It also won the International Jury Mention at the Berlinale. Based on Maïmouna’s own experiences and having spent nearly 18 months researching the hyper-sexualisation of adolescents, the script was awarded Sundance’s Global Filmmaking Award. Through her artwork, Maïmouna unapologetically sheds light on alarming societal issues to spark dialogue and challenge the status quo. Among her first projects is the short film “Maman(s)”, which screened at over 200 film festivals and won nearly 60 awards, including Best Short Film at the Toronto Film Festival, Best International Short Film at Sundance and the César for Best Short Film. In recognition of her contribution to the film industry, Maïmouna is the recipient of The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences’ Gold Fellowship for Women.

Xavier Duportet
Xavier Duportet

CEO and Chairman, Eligo Bioscience and 2017 European Young Leader (EYL40)

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Xavier is a synthetic biologist and entrepreneur who was named French Innovator of the Year by MIT Technology Review in 2015. He co-founded Eligo Bioscience, where he has developed a system that uses genetic editing techniques and nanotechnology and designs new types of medicine to eliminate specific bacteria and leave the others intact. After winning several start-up competitions, the company has recently raised €2.4m in seed funding. Xavier also co-founded Hello Tomorrow, a global non-profit organisation that aims to accelerate science and tech innovation by empowering start-ups and offering cash prizes and connections with industrials and investors. Xavier is a senior adviser to the French government on emerging technologies and their impact on industry.

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Selection process

 

CALL FOR APPLICATIONS/NOMINATIONS FOR THE EYL CLASS OF 2026 – IS NOW OPEN

 

The European Young Leaders (EYL40) programme is a unique, inventive, and multi-stakeholder programme that aims to promote a European identity by engaging the continent’s most promising talents in initiatives that will shape Europe’s future. 

The European Young Leaders represent a new generation of European leaders from all over the continent and various backgrounds, including politics, business, civil society, academia, arts, science, and the media. 

The programme acts as a forum for those who have already established themselves at the forefront of their professions to meet, discuss and collaborate with their counterparts from other fields of expertise. Previous candidates include government ministers, CEOs, Michelin-starred chefs, international film directors and high-profile journalists. 

Since the launch of the programme, we have gradually taken steps to ensure the diversity and exceptional quality of its selection process. We have made sure that its comprehensive and competitive nature ensures the identification and selection of remarkable individuals. 

We aim to select 40+ European Young Leaders of diverse backgrounds to enable a broad exchange of ideas, creating the basis for a new generation of engaged European leaders. 

SELECTION CRITERIA 

  • Candidates must be between 30 and 40 years of age (born on or after 1 January 1986). 
  • Candidates must be a national of an EU member state, Moldova, the UK, Ukraine or of one of the 6 Balkan states currently on the path towards EU integration (Albania, Bosnia & Herzegovina, Kosovo*, Montenegro, North Macedonia, and Serbia). 
  • Candidates should have established themselves at the highest levels of their chosen profession or be on track to do so. 
  • Candidates must be committed to serve society at large through noteworthy contributions and have demonstrated a record of significant achievements and outstanding professional experience. 
  • Candidates are also evaluated based on their ability to contribute to the enrichment of the programme as a whole. 
  • Candidates are required to be fluent in English as it is the working language of the programme. 
  • Candidates must commit to participating in at least one of the two EYL seminars during the programme year, usually scheduled for March and September. 

Please click HERE for the Selection Guidelines 2026 that will give you an idea of the process and will provide you with link to nomination/application form.  

Please note that the deadline for the nominations/applications is Monday, May 5, 2025.

Should you have any questions or need any additional information, please do not hesitate to contact us at eyl40@friendsofeurope.org. 

We look forward to receiving your applications and nominations. 

* References to Kosovo here are used without prejudice to positions on status and are in line with UN Security Council resolution 1244/99 and the International Court of Justice Opinion on the Kosovo declaration of independence.

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