A new generation of changemakers: Meet the YGL Class of 2025

Apr 15, 2025

Meet the Young Global Leaders (YGL) Class of 2025. Image: World Economic Forum

Kulé Galma

Lead, Event Editorial, Programming and Communications, YGL Foundation, World Economic Forum

The World Economic Forum unveils its 2025 cohort of Young Global Leaders (YGL): 116 exceptional individuals under 40 who are redefining leadership in a changing world.
This year's cohort is making a mark in diverse industries and sectors, from heads of state to a grand chess master, founders of unicorn companies and an award-winning musician. Together, they represent nearly 50 countries.
Discover the full list of 2025 YGLs here.

In an era defined by disruptions such as climate change, geopolitical instability and technological upheaval, the world needs a new kind of leadership. One that values collaboration over competition, long-term vision over short-term wins, and the courage to question as much as the capacity to act.

The Forum of Young Global Leaders was established to meet that need by cultivating a diverse, intergenerational community of individuals who are redefining what it means to lead in the 21st century.

Each year, more than 100 outstanding leaders are selected for their bold ideas, breakthrough work, and commitment to meaningful change. The newly announced Class of 2025 is no exception.

They span sectors from finance and frontier tech to climate science, public service and the creative industries, and represent over 50 countries. What unites them is a shared commitment to shape a more inclusive, sustainable and resilient world.

Over the next three years, they will embark on a curated leadership journey, including academic modules with world-class institutions, immersive learning experiences and global convenings aligned with the World Economic Forum’s mission.

These six leaders are just a glimpse of the 115 remarkable individuals under the age of 40 joining the Young Global Leaders community this year.

Explore the full list of the YGL Class of 2025, and find out more:

Academia

Tuka Alhanai, Assistant Professor of Computer Engineering, New York University Abu Dhabi, NYU Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates
Julia Binder, Professor of Sustainable Innovation and Business Transformation; Executive Director of the Center for Sustainable and Inclusive Business, IMD Business School, Switzerland
Emma Camp, Future Reefs Team Leader, University of Technology Sydney, Australia
Cesar de la Fuente, Presidential Associate Professor, University of Pennsylvania, USA.
Chris Greening, Director, Global Change Program, Biomedicine Discovery Institute, Monash University, Australia
Yifan Hou, Lecturer, Peking University, People's Republic of China
Carlos Emilio Larreategui, Vice-Chancellor and Chief Executive Officer, Universidad de las Americas, Ecuador
Fozia Parveen, Assistant Professor, Aga Khan University, Faculty of Arts and Science, Aga Khan University, Faculty of Arts and Science, Pakistan
Diego Ontaneda, Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer, Latin American Leadership Academy (LALA), Brazil
Chiara Spina, Assistant Professor of Entrepreneurship and Family Enterprise, INSEAD, United Arab Emirates

Arts, culture and sport

Bing Chen, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Gold House, USA
Ayunda Faza Maudya, Founder, Singer-Songwriter and Actress, Independent, Indonesia
Nomzamo Mbatha, Access, producer, Humanitarian, Nomzamo Lighthouse Foundation, USA
Emi Kusano, Multidisciplinary Artist; Chief Executive Officer and Founder, Fictionera, Japan
Aida Murad, Impact Artist, Aida Creatives, Saudi Arabia
Delvin Savara, Sauti Sol, Sol generation, Savage Kitchen, Sawa program, Hustle sasa, Kenya
Angelle Siyang-Le, Director, Art Basel Hong Kong, MCH Group, Hong Kong SAR, China
Benjamin Von Wong, Artist, Von Wong, USA

Business

Ritesh Agarwal, Founder and Group Chief Executive Officer, OYO Hotels and Homes, India
Khaled Alfalah, Chairman, MENA Capital, Kuwait
Alok Medikepura Anil, Managing Director, Next Big Innovation Labs, India
Meera Sultan Alsuwaidi, Head of Sovereign Partnerships, Mubadala Investment Company, United Arab Emirates
Basima Abdulrahman, Founder and Chief Executive Officer at KESK Company, KESK, Iraq
Camiel Irving, Vice President, Operations, Uber Technologies Inc., USA
Walid Abdulrazzag D. Bindawood, Chief Commercial Officer, Bindawood Holding, Saudi ArabJiao Bian, Chief Executive Officer, Puxiang Healthcare Group, People's Republic of China
Theodore Bunzel, Managing Director and Head of Geopolitical Advisory, Lazard, USA
Yi Xin Chang, Head of Southeast Asia Client Coverage, APAC Head of Consultant Relations, Deutsche Bank AG, Singapore
Cheryl Cui, Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer, Bota Biosciences, People's Republic of China
Darren Cromwell, Managing Director, Marsh and Mercer Industry Practices Leader US and Canada, Marsh McLennan, USA
Eleonore Crespo, Co-Founder and Co-Chief Executive Officer, Pigment, France
Victoria Din, Senior Vice-President, US Public Sector, Mastercard, Inc., US
Kieran Gregory Charles Donovan, Chief Executive Officer and Co-Founder, k-ID (Kidentify Corp), Singapore
Mark Doumba, Founder and Managing Partner, Ministry of Economy and State Holdings, Gabon
Orchlon Enkhtsetseg, Chief Executive Officer and Founder, URECA PTE Ltd, Mongolia
Maya Horgan Famodu, Founder, Ingressive Capital, USA
Joelle Gamble, Chief Economist, General Motors, USA
Katherine Gao Haichun, Co-Chair, Trina Solar Co., People's Republic of China
Chenhao Ge, Head of China, New York Stock Exchange, People's Republic of China
Altagracia Gomez Sierra, Chair of the Board, Grupo Minsa, Mexico
Wang Guan, Founder and Chairman, Learnable.ai, People's Republic of China
Jil Hellmann Regouby, Shareholder and Member of the Supervisory Board, Hellmann Worldwide Logistics, Germany
Birgit Heraeus-Roggendorf, Member Executive Board and Shareholder Council, Heraeus Holding, Germany
Ham Serunjogi, Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer, Chipper Cash, USA
Hilda Kabushenga, Chief Executive Officer, The African Talent Company, Kenya
Kelvin Kim, Chief Executive Officer and Founder, Korea Credit Data, Republic of Korea
Jaroslaw Krolewski, Chief Executive Officer and Founder, Synerise, Poland
Mayowa Kuyoro, Partner and Head of Africa Financial Services Group and EEMA Fintech and Payments Practice Leader, McKinsey and Company, Nigeria
Steven Lam, Chief Executive Officer, GoGoX Holdings Limited, Hong Kong SAR, China
Andrés Lawson, Chief Executive Officer, Osana, Argentina
Kan Lin, Senior Vice-President of Innovation and Global Investment, Thailand Charoen Pokphand Group, Thailand
Terashni Pillay, Chief Executive Officer, Swiss RE Corporate Solutions Africa, Swiss RE Corporate Solutions, South Africa
Haruka Mera, Chief Executive Officer and Founder, READYFOR, Japan
Andrea Iyamah Nehikhare, Founder and Chief Executive Officer, Andrea Iyamah, Nigeria
Asma Omer, Co-Founder, Marham, Pakistan
Dimple Patel, Chief Executive Officer, NatureMetrics, United Kingdom
Clément Ray, Chief Executive Officer, Innovafeed, France
Gabriela Rodrigues, Managing Director at UBS - Head of LatAm Global Lending Unit, Global Wealth Management, UBS AG, Brazil
Takashi Sano, Chief Investment Officer, MUFG Innovation Partners, Japan
Natarajan Sankar, Managing Director and Partner, Boston Consulting Group, India
Onsi Sawiris, Co-Founder and Managing Partner, HOF Capital, Egypt
Shiquan Wang, Chief Executive Officer, Flexiv, People's Republic of China
Kara Succoso Mangone, Head of the Sustainable Finance Group, Goldman Sachs Group, USA
Anne Catherine Tchokonte, Managing Director, Airtel Madagascar, Madagascar
Felipe Vallejo Dabdoub, Mexico Chief Executive Officer & Global Chief Corporate Affairs Officer, Bitso, Mexico
Henrique Vasconcelos Dubugras, Co-Founder and Chairman, Brex, USA
Yen Vu, Chief Executive Officer, Be Group Company, Viet Nam
Assel Zhanassova, Chief Executive Officer, Kazpost JSC, Kazakhstan

Civil society

Suzanne Barakat, Founder and Board Chair, Our Three Winners Foundation, USA
Sixto Cancel, Founder and Chief Executive Officer, Think of Us, USA
Shomy Hasan Chowdhury, Co-Founder, Awareness 360, United Kingdom
Ann Adeline Dumaliang, Co-Founder, Masungi Georeserve, Philippines
Isabella Luksic, Chief Executive Officer, Fundación Andrónico Luksic A. (Luksic Foundation), Chile
Nipun Malhotra, Founder, Nipman Foundation, India
Ayesha Nurain Janah, Founder and Chair, Kandufa Foundation, Maldives
Kelley Robinson, President, Human Rights Campaign, Human Rights Campaign Foundation, USA
Akira Sakano, Founder and Representative Director, Zero Waste Japan, Japan
Danxi Shen, Secretary-General (CEO), Beijing Sany Charitable Foundation, People's Republic of China
Vittoria Zanuso, Executive Director, Mayors Migration Council,USA

Media

Omar Aljeraisy, Founder and General Manager, Meeem, Saudi Arabia
James Longman, Chief International Correspondent, ABC News, United Kingdom
Sana Mir, Sports Analyst and Commentator, Pakistan Television, Pakistan
Manasi Subramaniam, Editor-in-Chief and Vice-President, Penguin Random House, India
Cheng Yanliang, Founder and Chief Executive Officer, JustPod, People's Republic of China

Government

Reem Alabali-Radovan, Member of Parliament, Germany
Shamma Al Mazrui, Minister of Community Empowerment of the United Arab Emirates
Li Andersson, Minister of Education of Finland
Max Andonirina Fontaine, Minister of Environment and Sustainable Development of Madagascar
Ruben Brekelmans, Minister of Defence of the Netherlands
Sunita Dangol, Deputy Mayor of Kathmandu Metropolitan City, Nepal
Simon Harris, Tánaiste, Government of Ireland
Siviwe Gwarube, Minister of Basic Education of South Africa
Erkki Keldo, Minister of Economy and Industry of Estonia
Domna Michailidou, Member of Parliament, Greece
Haja Bah, Minister of Communication, Technology, and Innovation of Sierra Leone
Timcho Mucunski, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade of the Republic of North Macedonia
Antonia Orellana Guarello, Minister of Women and Gender Equality of Chile
Paetongtarn Shinawatra, Prime Minister of Thailand
Kinjarapu Ram Mohan Naidu, Minister of Civil Aviation of India
Milojko Spajic, Prime Minister of Montenegro
Khelsilem T, Council Chairperson, Squamish Nation, Canada
Emma Theofelus, Member of Parliament, Namibia
Santiago Wills, Director of the General Council and Trade Negotiations Committee Division, World Trade Organization, Geneva

Social Entrepreneurship

Mohamed Aburawi, Founder, Speetar, Libya
Julie Chapon, Co-Founder, Yuka, France
Mark Dalio, Founder and Co-Chief Executive Officer, OceanX, USA
Khadija Elbedweihy, Founder and Chief Executive Officer, PraxiLabs Egypt, Egypt
Himanshu Gupta, Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer, ClimateAI, USA
Sabrina Habib, Co-Founder and Chief Exploration Officer, Kidogo, Portugal
Arezo Kohistany, Founder and Chief Executive Officer, Private Sector Humanitarian Alliance, USA
Anurag Maloo, Mountaineer, Entrepreneur & Keynote Speaker, Orophile Ventures (Climbing4SDGs), India
Orondaam Otto, Founder and Executive Director, Slum2School Africa, Nigeria
Doone Roisin, Founder and Chief Executive Officer, Female Startup Club, Australia
Amornthep Sachamuneewongse, Founder and Chief Executive Officer, Sati App, Thailand
Ashley Tan, Global Head of Sustainability and Social Impact, Amazon Web Services, Singapore
Jairo Trad, Chief Executive Officer and Founder, Kilimo Inc., Argentina

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