Meet our Young Global Leaders for 2020

What does the winner of the FIFA Women's World Cup have in common with the prime minister of Finland? They are both young leaders who gained international repute over the last 12 months. And now Megan Rapinoe and Sanna Marin have been recognized as Young Global Leaders by the World Economic Forum - joining a community of people dedicated to changing the world for the better.

Each year, the Forum of Young Global Leaders identifies the world’s most promising leaders under the age of 40 - people driving innovation for positive change across civil society, arts, culture, government and business. By connecting them to a community of remarkable peers and investing further in their leadership abilities, the aim is to create a ripple effect over five years that benefits their organizations and the world.

Here are some of the 114 YGLs that make up the class of 2020:

Megan Rapinoe - As co-captain of the US women's soccer team, Rapinow lifted the 2019 FIFA World Cup. Off the field, she advocates for gender equality, including equal pay in her sport, and speaks out on diversity and inclusion.

Jesús Cepeda - Chief Executive Officer of OneSmart City, a company that uses blockchain and artificial intelligence to help city authorities provide digital services. Cepeda hopes the technology will create greener cities and stronger institutions in line with the UN goals on sustainable development.

Larry Madowo - The BBC Africa Business Editor launched of six new business TV shows for African audiences in English, French and Swahili. Madowo is also an on-air correspondent on BBC radio and television and has reported from more than 40 countries.

Sanna Marin - Marin held her first political post at the age of 27. In just three months as prime minister, her government has reformed paid parental leave, giving both parents a total of 14 months.

Alicia Garza - A co-founder of Black Lives Matter, Garza is a US civil rights activist and editorial writer influential on issues of health, student rights, rights for domestic workers, and campaigns against police brutality, racism, and violence against gender non-conforming people of colour. She directs special projects at the National Domestic Workers Alliance.

Kristo Kaarmann - Co-founder and CEO of TransferWise, a peer-to-peer money transfer business which aims to allow people to access the real mid-market exchange rate by cutting out traditional banking fees.

Akiko Naka - Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Wantedly, a social networking service for professionals, Akiko was the youngest female founder ever to take a company public in Japan.

Yetnebersh Nigussie - An Ethiopian human rights lawyer who pushes for women’s and girls’ rights and inclusive education. As a blind woman, she has helped change perceptions of disability in Ethiopia. She is a senior inclusion adviser for Light for the World, an organization that fights for the inclusion of the 15% – about 1 billion – of the world’s population who have some kind of disability.

Gaurav Gupta - Co-Founder and Chief Operating Officer of Zomato, an Indian restaurant aggregator and food delivery start-up. He launched the table reservation business and scaled it up across India, the United Arab Emirates and Australia.

Henry Motte-Muñoz - Founder and CEO of Edukasyon.ph, which says it is the largest youth platform in the Philippines, empowering more than 10 million student visitors each year to find their path from education to career.

Ugyen Dorji, Byju Raveendran, Bhavin Shah, Nicole Vogrin, Rebecca M. Heller, Barbara Maul (Mulvee), Karen Karniol-Tambour, Jack Conte, Brandon Stanton, Megan Rapinoe, Kate Brandt, Mei Mei Hu, Emi Nakamura, Pamela Chan, Komal Dadlani, Kabir Sehgal, Jukay Hsu, Aslihan Denizkurdu, Gregg Treinish, Stacey Tank, Griffin R. Myers, Sally Shin
Jason Camm, Leland Maschmeyer, Fredros Okumu, Faraja Nyalandu, Larry Madowo, Chinny Ogunro, Lamya AlHaj, Noor Sweid, Fainy Sukenik, Mayur Patel, Raya Yusuf-Sbitany, Ines Arrimadas, Annalena Baerbock, Niki Kerameus, Gabriel Attal, Kristo Kaarmann, Joelle Faulkner, Michael Kratsios, Kush Saxena, Muhammad Hammad Azhar, Fabio Ziemssen, Gabriel Marcolongo, Faisal Alibrahim, Marga Gual Soler, Maryam Monsef, Carlalberto Guglielminotti, Niklas Adalberth, Thani Ahmed Al Zeyoudi, Christian Zeinler, Mette Lykke, Sanna Marin, Matthew Caruana Galizia, Tunde Kehinde, Kojo Oppong Nkrumah, Eduardo Figueiredo Cavalheiro Leite, Johana Bahamon, Susana Sierra, Elisa Vegas, Bernardo Asuaje, Veronica Ruiz del Vizo, Jesús Cepeda, Akshay Naheta, Kate Gallego, Lauren Underwood, Ludovic Subran, Zhu Xiaoxuan, Yasui Yoshiki, Akiko Naka, Hyungu Dave Cho, Fang (Miranda) Qu, Katsuya Uenoyama, Tianshi Chen, Fumiaki Kobayashi, Stephanie Lo, Weiwei Xing, Jin He, Nancie Zhu, Chew Shou Zi, Ying Jiang, Qiaomei Fu, Otto Sonnenholzner, Paula Ingabire, Krasna Cham, Elisha London, Cherrie Atilano, Manuella Kaster, James Rogers, Alicia Garza, Viridiana Rios, Rafael Paz, Delfina Irazusta, Caroline Malcolm, Yetnebersh Nigussie, David Ikkersheim, Shani Senbetta, Anahita Thoms, Aurelie Adam-Soule Zoumarou, Gaurav Gupta, Wan Nadiah Wan Mohd Abdullah Yaakob, Tara Singh Vachani, Shauna Aminath, Golriz Ghahraman, Atika Rehman, Sarah Chen, Grace Natalie Louisa, Swapan Mehra, Pradip Pariyar, Vivek Salgaocar, Jeffrey Lu, Vinati Mutreja, Henry Motte-Muñoz, Veronika Linardi