Vision

We believe that future generations can build the foundations of a renewed Europe and strengthen its global presence transversally through a deeply rooted multilateral democratisation of politics and sciences.

Mission

Our mission is to connect young thinkers with policy experts and leading scholars in the field of European foreign and security policy through an annual conference and a fellowship programme.

Story

The Young Security Conference is the annual flagship project of EuropaNova Germany e.V.

Since its establishment in 2020, the Conference brings together students, scholars, and practitioners in the field of Political Science and International Relations with the aim to contribute to European foreign and security policies.

Other projects of EuropaNova Germany include “Elles font bouger l’Europe” and the European Local Coalition Project on the “Conference on the Future of Europe”. Both highlight the focus on civil society engagement and strengthening the Franco-German relationship as backbone of a strong European Union.

Amélie Jaques-Apke
Director General & Co-Founder

Amélie is the Director General and Co-Founder of EuropaNova Germany.

She is a Franco-German political analyst, researcher, advisor and consultant with many years of experience in European Affairs and diplomacy, across Europe and the Americas.

Moritz Floessler
Deputy Director & Co-Founder

Moritz is the Deputy Director and Co-Founder of EuropaNova Germany.

He works as a strategic communication consultant and is passionate about the European project. He studied Political Science and International Relations in Munich and Paris.

Denica Yotova
Head of Strategic Communications

Denica Yotova is the Head of Strategic Communications at EuropaNova Germany.

She has extensive experience in advocacy and communications related to European foreign policy, gained at the European Council on Foreign Relations, the European Parliament, and different NGOs.

Sophie Pownall
Head of Programmes

Sophie Pownall is the Head of Programmes at EuropaNova Germany.

Having completed her BA and MA in European Studies, she has a range of experiences in communications working at the Hertie School in Berlin and the Heinrich Böll Stiftung in Tirana.

Vitus Terviel
Head of Academia

Vitus is the Head of Academia at EuropaNova Germany.

His expertise encompasses European integration, the EU’s normative illegitimacy, and the EU’s Covid-19 responses which he studies in his PhD project.

Alessandro Caianiello
Strategic Communications Officer

Alessandro is a Strategic Communications Officer at EuropaNova Germany.

He is specialising in the field of International Security at SciencesPo Paris and the University of Manchester. In Italy, he currently holds the position of political advisor for security and defence affairs.

Ben Bruecher
Research Fellow

Ben Bruecher is a Young Security Conference Fellow.

Ben has completed a BA and MA in History at the Ludwig-Maximilians-University Munich as well as an MA at the Department of War Studies at King’s College London. He is passionate about War and Conflict Studies, with his main academic interest being state of exception and extra-legal necessity concepts in International Humanitarian Law and Human Rights.

Darius Firouzkhah
Project Manager

Darius Firouzkhah is a Project Manager at EuropaNova Germany.

He works as organiser of the Young Security Conference and other projects. He worked in several international institutions as Project Manager and Research Assistant while building up a career as political analyst in European and German Foreign Affairs.

Lana Pedisic
Research Fellow

Lana Pedisic is a Young Security Conference Fellow.

Lana is a Research Fellow at Europanova Germany. She is passionate about international and security affairs with a focus on the European Foreign and Security Policy, Global Gateway, Belt and Road Initiative, and EU-China relations. She holds an MA in Global Security and Strategy and a BSc in International Business.

Lara Brett
Strategic Communications Officer

Lara Brett is a Strategic Communications Officer at EuropaNova Germany.

Lara holds a MA in Contemporary European Studies and works in Communications at the Maecenata Foundation in Berlin. She is the Head of the Gender Equality Working Group at the European Student Think Tank.

Yevgen Lantsuzovskyy
Project Manager

Yevgen Lantsuzovskyy is a Project Manager at EuropaNova Germany.

He is an agile specialist and political activist, passionate about security, digitisation, and EU integration. He is a scholar of numerous programs, a regular panelist, and book author.

Axel Honsdorf
Head of BayFrance

Axel Honsdorf heads the Bavarian-French Centre for University Cooperation (BayFrance).

Maik Schnierer
External Advisor

As a foundation and project manager, Maik Schnierer has been working in internationally active institutions for many years, running projects on global governance and international relations and now works in the field of political education.

Prof. Dr. Frédéric Charillon
Academic Head – France

Prof. Dr. Frédéric Charillon is a university professor in political science at the University of Clermont Auvergne and coordinator of the teaching of International Issues and Defence at ENA. His work focuses on the analysis of defence, foreign policy and international relations issues.

Prof. Dr. Stephan Stetter
Academic Head – Germany

Prof. Dr. Stephan Stetter is Professor of International Politics and Conflict Studies at the Bundeswehr University Munich. His research focuses on international politics in global modernity as well as conflicts and politics in the Middle East.