Community

The Forum of Young Global Leaders is a community of innovators from diverse backgrounds and experiences. Search current members and alumni by year awarded, sector or region.

Natznet Tesfay

Head, Insights and Analysis, Economic and Country Risk, S&P Global, United Kingdom

Ms. Natznet Tesfay leads the Economics and Country Risk Analysis group, which has over 150 experts around the world forecasting the economic, sovereign risk and granular country risk outlooks for 206 countries and geographies as well as comparative performance of over 80 industries and consumer markets globally. Natznet’s areas of focus include geopolitical competition, emerging market debt vulnerabilities, energy transition and global supply chain re-alignment. For over a decade, Ms. Tesfay led Africa analysis group, developing the regional risk indicator and horizon scanning infrastructure, drawing on a range of methodologies such as geospatial analysis, influence mapping and scenario modelling techniques. Natznet supports business growth in emerging markets, advising C-level executives on market entry and risk management, and governments on leveraging their natural resource potential for sustainable economic growth. She regularly speaks in major media outlets, and at high-level conferences. Previously, she had advised on the development of free trade zones, foreign policy and the mining sector in the Horn of Africa. Ms. Tesfay’s degrees include a BA in Government from Harvard University and a MSc in Urbanization and Development from the London School of Economics.

Piyush Tewari

Founder and Chief Executive Officer, SaveLife, India

Piyush Tewari is the Founder and Chief Executive Officer of SaveLIFE Foundation (SLF), a nonprofit organization committed to saving lives on roads in India and beyond. SLF is best known for getting India a Good Samaritan Law and for developing an award-winning model for reducing fatalities on Indian highways.

Tewari holds an MPA from Harvard and is a recipient of the prestigious Rolex Award for Enterprise. In 2019 he was recognised as a World Economic Forum Young Global Leader. Piyush is also an Ashoka Fellow, an Echoing Green Fellow, a Rainer Arnhold Fellow, and a DRKF Entrepreneur. He has been featured by The New York Times, National Geographic and Time Magazine, among others. In 2016, he was recognised by GQ as one of Most Influential Young Indians.

Prior to founding SLF, Piyush served as the Managing Director of the Calibrated Group, a US-based private equity fund. Piyush quit the private sector to establish SLF following the tragic road crash death of a child in the family. Piyush has also served as a Program Manager with the India Brand Equity Fund, an initiative of the Prime Minister of India.

Ashish J. Thakkar

Group Chief Executive Officer, Y9, United Arab Emirates

Ashish is a celebrated serial entrepreneur and philanthropist. He started his first business in 1996 at the age of 15 with a $5,000 loan. Since then, Ashish and his family have driven the growth of the company from a small IT business in Uganda to the globally recognized multi-sector investment group that exists today. Through its businesses and investments, the family now created a presence across 26 African countries in sectors spanning technology, manufacturing, real estate and financial services. Ashish is passionate about enabling, empowering and inspiring young entrepreneurs and women entrepreneurs. In 2009, he launched the families Foundation to foster and support emerging entrepreneurs through mentorship, Mara Mentor is a free online global platform that connects emerging entrepreneurs with business leaders and industry experts. The family's vision is to create a self-sustaining Africa through entrepreneurship.

Fagun Thakrar

Founder & CEO, Actor, Film Director, Global Health Advocate and Ambassador, The Purpose Movie Studio, United Kingdom

Fagun Thakrar is a Founder and CEO, an award-winning & critically acclaimed actor, film director, a doctor and a global health ambassador.

Fagun was selected as a Young Global Leader by the World Economic Forum in 2023.

Fagun began her education studying Medicine at the University College London where she specialized in Neuroscience. She then went on to study a range of disciplines to Master’s level. Fagun holds an MBA from the University of Cambridge, Masters in Acting from the Royal Central School of Speech and Drama in the UK and Film Directing from the US.

As an actor, Fagun has appeared in several Hollywood and international films and has starred alongside Academy Award winners. Her films, released in cinemas internationally, have been selected for festivals and have won awards. Fagun’s focus is cinematic roles with strong intellectual meaningful content that encourages positive global change.

As a writer-director Fagun further explores the power of creativity and storytelling through film to create social-impact content. Expanding upon her practical experience and academic research carried out at the University of Cambridge, Fagun established The Purpose Movie Studio, where she serves as the Founder and CEO.

Fagun has recently expanded her vision with an innovative venture that revolutionizes purpose-driven cinema by integrating Artificial Intelligence in filmmaking. This approach creates a powerful combination of human creative talent and artificial intelligence, crafting some of the finest films of our era. The Studio focuses on the power of storytelling through films and documentaries to create purpose-driven content that impacts positive change worldwide. ​​

Fagun actively engages in both local and global non-profit initiatives, focusing on children, girls, women, and the healthcare sector. She has earned recognition as a worldwide advocate for health and well-being, working with underprivileged children, world leaders, and presidents.

Fagun is the Global Ambassador and spokesperson for many non-profits, including The Women’s Brain Project. Building on her experience in this field, Fagun founded her own non-profit, The Creatively Inspired Life Foundation, that is dedicated to empowering young people through creativity.

Fagun’s expertise spans three major disciplines: Creativity and Storytelling in Global Influence; Innovating at the Intersection of Film and Artificial Intelligence; and Leading Transformational Initiatives in Healthcare and Non-Profits.

Under Fagun’s leadership she has profoundly impacted and touched the lives of millions of people. Fagun currently lives and works between the UK and the US. Fagun’s life story is one of impactful transformation, driven by her core mission to inspire people, transform lives, and drive positive global change.

Peter A. Thiel

Partner, Founders Fund, USA

Peter Thiel is President of Clarium Capital Management, a global macro hedge fund with offices in San Francisco and New York. He oversees the firm's research, investment, and trading strategies. He is also a partner in The Founders Fund, a US$ 50 million venture capital firm. In addition to managing Clarium, Thiel is active in a variety of philanthropic and educational pursuits. He sits on the Board of Directors of the Pacific Research Institute and on the Board of Visitors of Stanford Law School. He also serves on the boards of non-profit educational organizations, such as Stanford Law School, where he has also taught, and the Hoover Institution. Before starting Clarium, he served as Chairman and CEO of PayPal, Inc., an Internet company he co-founded in December 1998 that was acquired by eBay Inc. for US$ 1.5 billion. Thiel began his financial career as a derivatives trader at CS Financial Products after practising securities law at Sullivan & Cromwell. He won the Herman Lay Award for Entrepreneurship in 2005. He received a BA in Philosophy from Stanford University and a JD from Stanford Law School.

Anahita Thoms

Partner, International Trade Practice, Baker McKenzie, Germany

Anahita Thoms is an award-winning lawyer who focuses her practice on global investigations, in the field of sustainability and international trade law, including sanctions, export controls, foreign investment review, data protection, business and human rights. She leads Baker McKenzie's International Trade Practice in Germany and is a Member of the firm's Europe, Middle East and African regional Steering Committee for the Compliance & Investigations Group. She is a Board Member of Atlantik-Brücke, serves on the National Committee of Unicef Germany and is Advisory Board Member of the Sustainable Finance Council of the German Federal Government. She is a regularly interviewed by media outlets as an expert and is a speaker at international conferences on diverse topics, such as trade, sustainability, diversity and ethics. Anahita is committed to giving back to society and is passionate about human rights and the fight against modern slavery.

Jeevan Kumaravel Thondaman

Minister of Water Supply and Estate Infrastructure Development, Government of Sri Lanka, Sri Lanka

Jeevan Kumaravel Thondaman is Cabinet Minister for Water Supply and Estate Infrastructure Development in Sri Lanka. He is also General-Secretary of the Ceylon Workers Congress, that works towards the upliftment of historically marginalized plantation worker communities. Thondaman is also one of the youngest MPs elected in Sri Lanka, in 2020, aged 25. In his previous portfolio as State Minister for Estate Housing and Community Infrastructure, he worked relentlessly to create a conducive environment for plantation workers, ensuring fair wages, safe working conditions and adequate benefits. As Minister for Water Supply, he has been spearheading ambitious reforms in the water sector to increase access to safe and affordable drinking water, create a climate resilience roadmap for water services and a transparent pricing formula that protects the most vulnerable in society. He continues to advocate for the rights of all marginalized people in Sri Lanka, especially workers, women, ethnic minorities and the LGBT+ community. In 2022, he became one of the first MPs to openly support the rights of the LGBT+ community. He is also known for his passion for art, culture and sport. Thondaman has a certification in Criminology from the London School of Economics and an LLB from Northumbria University.

Dune Thorne

Partner; Head, Private Client Growth and Strategy, Brown Advisory, USA

BA from Dartmouth College, MBA Harvard Business School. Founder and Board Member of Invest in Girls, Board Member for Center for Economic Education, Board Member and Investment Committee Member for Milton Academy, Advisory Board and Investment Committee Member of the Museum of Fine Arts Boston, Board Member of the US Ski and Snowboard Team, Board Member Mass Bay Community College, Member of YPO, Tiger 21 and the Belizean Grove.

Matthew Tilleard

Managing Partner and Co-Founder, CrossBoundary, Kenya

Matthew Tilleard is co-founder and co-Managing Partner of The CrossBoundary Group, an innovative investment firm that unlocks private capital for sustainable development. It employs over 70 investment professionals across offices in Nairobi, Johannesburg, Lagos, Bamako, Washington DC, Dubai, London and New York City. CrossBoundary Advisory provides investment and economic advisory services across a range of developing countries and has also developed innovative mechanisms to attract investment in fragile states affected by conflict. CrossBoundary Energy is the first dedicated investment fund for commercial and industrial solar in Africa. It is now one of the largest distributed solar utilities in Africa with over 15MW of projects under construction or operation in Kenya, Rwanda and Ghana. In 2018, CrossBoundary announced the formation of CrossBoundary Energy Access. A blended finance facility backed by the Rockefeller Foundation and private investors to use project finance to distributed solar-storage mini-grids for rural electrification of over 170,000 people.
Matthew began his career at The Boston Consulting Group where he focused on projects at the intersection of the private and public sector. While at BCG he co-founded ripple.org, a nonprofit website that has reached over 1.25 million people. In 2008 Matthew left BCG to become a policy advisor to Noel Pearson, a respected indigenous leader in Australia. In 2009, he moved to Kabul, Afghanistan to help establish the Afghan Investment Climate Facility (Harakat) - an innovative Afghan led $50M USD facility with a mandate to remove barriers to private sector development in Afghanistan. Matthew holds a Bachelor of Laws and a Bachelor of Science from the University of Melbourne, a Masters of Public Administration from the Harvard Kennedy School of Government and and MBA from the Stanford Graduate School of Business where he attended as a Fulbright Scholar. In 2015, he was named a Young Global Leader by the World Economic Forum.

Lauren Tilstra

Executive Director; Chief Executive Officer, Communications; Chief of Staff, Verizon Communications, USA

Lauren Tilstra is a seasoned leadership communications advisor who’s spent her career launching and counseling Fortune 50 c-suite executives across technology and media. She currently serves as Chief of Staff and Executive Director of Strategic Communications to the Chairman and CEO of Verizon. She’s the first in the firm’s 22-year history to serve in both roles simultaneously.

Tilstra is a passionate advocate for digital inclusion and in 2020 she joined Verizon’s Chairman and CEO, Hans Vestberg and Chief Strategy Officer, Rima Qureshi in forming the EDISON Alliance with Professor Klaus Schwab and the World Economic Forum. In this role, she leads communications for the Alliance and is working daily to connect 1B lives to the promise of the digital world. She also serves on the Board of grassroots organization, Friends for Global Change and Is a founding member of the National Executive Communication Council. Tilstra is a PRWeek 40 under 40 and was named Penn State University’s College of Communications Outstanding Alumni of 2022.

Serpil Timuray

CEO EU Cluster, Member of Group Executive Committee, Vodafone Group, United Kingdom

Serpil Timuray, Chief Executive, Africa, Middle East and Asia Pacific Region, joined the Executive Committee on 1 January 2014. Serpil joined Vodafone as Chief Executive of Vodafone Turkey in January 2009 and was appointed as a Director on the Board of Vodacom Group in South Africa in September 2012. She was appointed to the Boards of Vodafone India, Vodafone Hutchison Australia, Safaricom Kenya in November 2013, Vodafone Egypt in January 2014 and Vodafone Qatar in June 2014.
Serpil was previously General Manager of Danone Turkey from 2002-2008. She began her career in 1991 in marketing at Procter & Gamble where she was later appointed to the Executive Committee of Procter & Gamble Turkey.
Serpil is currently the Chairperson of the Board of YASED (International Investors Association), Vice-Chairperson of the Board of DEIK-TIIK (Turkish-British Business Council of Foreign Economic Relations), a Board Member of TOBB-GGK (Young Entrepreneurs Council of Turkish Union of Chambers and Commodity Exchanges) and sits on the Board of Trustees at Koc University, Turkey.

Irene Tinagli

Member of the European Parliament, European Union, European Parliament, Belgium

Irene Tinagli is an economist, serving as an advisor for firms and governments on innovation and labor policies. From Feb 2013 to March 2018 she was a member of the Italian Parliament and of the permanent Committee on Labor and Employment. Previously she was an Academic, teaching and conducting research at the University Carlos III in Madrid. Her research focused on policies for innovation, creativity and regional development, studying and benchmarking hundreds of cities and regions worldwide. Her work on the creative potential of cities and regions has been featured in international journals such as Harvard Business Review and the Financial Times. She served as an Expert on Creativity and Innovation for the European Commission and consulted for the United Nations (UNDESA) as well as for several national and regional governments. She has been a columnist for the Italian newspaper La Stampa and is a published author. She received her PhD and Master's of Science in Public Policy from Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh.