WASHINGTON, DC – On March 29^th, the Atlantic Council announced it’s 2019 class of Millennium Fellows. An Italian entrepreneur bringing revolutionary vaccination technology to market to eradicate polio and measles rubella; a senior advisor to the Prime Minister of North Macedonia that led landmark legislation to change the country’s name in 2018; the chief-of-staff of the World Economic Forum; the Editor-in-Chief of the largest news organization in Afghanistan; and the youngest investment banking services representative in the history of Goldman Sachs. These are just some of the fellows selected to the 2019 cohort.

The Millennium Fellowship has become one of the most competitive and highly sought-after programs in the world for future leaders (ages twenty-five to thirty-five) in the international affairs field. This year’s class of twenty-one was selected from nearly 1,200 applicants from over 100 countries – a 1.75% acceptance rate. They will join the Council’s growing community of future leaders under the Millennium Leadership Program. With 500 fellows and alumni spanning sixty countries and a wide range of sectors, the program inclues elected officials, executives at fortune 500 firms, entrepreneurs, academics, authors, artists and others. “The Atlantic Council’s fellows are already leading at the highest levels of business, civil society, and public service; actively having an influence on the biggest issues of our time; and still have decades of impact ahead in their careers – investing in them is not just about the future, it’s also about the what they are doing today, “ said Atlantic Council Chairman John Rogers, who is also Executive Vice President, Chief of Staff and Secretary to the Board of Directors of Goldman Sachs Group, Inc.

The fellowship is the cornerstone of the Atlantic Council’s effort foster the next generation of foreign policy leaders. The program functions as an accelerator for already high-achieving young leaders that connects them with their peers around the world while offering a rich mix of leadership development experiences. These include expeditions to the front lines of key global issues shepherded by the Council’s top experts (in 2019, the fellows will visit Colombia to explore the historic peace process, crisis in Venezuela, and orange economy), participation in high-level conferences (the Atlantic Council’s own flagship events such as the Abu Dhabi Global Energy Forum as well as those of partners such as the NATO Summit), as well as master classes and workshops with top executive coaches, practitioners, and academics. Through this mix of networking, training, and exposure, the Council aims to cement an international network of future global leaders who will advance constructive international solutions to the world’s biggest challenges over the coming decades.

A full list of the 2019 Fellows can be found at www.millenniumfellowship.org. For further information or to arrange an interview with one or more of the fellows, please contact Millennium Leadership Program Director Daniel Bennett at DBennett@atlanticcouncil.org.