Passing the torch to the next generation of societal leaders

News

Follow here the recent updates of Belgium’s 40 under 40! 

Community

Insights from the 40u40 Annual Leadership Seminar: Positive Influence and Building Legacy​

Once a year, 40u40 organizes a multi-day seminar focused on leadership growth and community building. These seminars bring together the entire Community, including Alumni, Supporters, Coaches, and Fellows, for an opportunity to learn from accomplished societal leadership thinkers invited for the occasion. In 2024, Tsun-Yan Hsieh and Huijin Kong joined 40u40 for a seminar on their concept of Positive Influence. Over two and a half days, they helped the participants to embark on an accelerated leadership journey, deepening their societal impact.

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Fellows

Field Work Story: Exploring Mental Health with the Pink Elephant

Mental health is an omnipresent topic, hovering in plain sight yet too often swept under the rug. The more we try to ignore it, the more undeniable its presence becomes: like a glaring pink elephant in the room. This analogy inspired the name of the Pink Elephant Field Work Group, created by the Cohort 2023 Fellows Khalid El Hatri, Johan Heymans, Valérie Lucq, Laurent Pantusa, Kristel Van den Bergh, and Sofie Vandenhende. The Fellows grouped together to explore the growing mental health challenges faced by young Belgians. Their mission took them into the field, connecting with organizations, engaging in conversations, and attending seminars and workshops.

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Alumni

Beyond Graduation: How the Alumni Continue to Lead, Learn, and Impact Society

What does it mean to be a 40u40 Alumni? The graduation from the one year program is not the end of the journey, but the start of a lifelong commitment to leadership, growth and impact! The 40u40 Alumni Community is a vibrant space where connections thrive, learning continues, and meaningful change happens. Through engaging activities, such as workshops or Conversation Circles, impactful projects, and the support of a network that inspires and uplifts one another, being a 40u40 Alumni means being part of a Community committed to making a difference!

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Impact

From Storytelling to Societal Transformation: The Impact of Art and Culture

Art, in its many forms—literature, music, visual art, and more—serves as a powerful vehicle for storytelling. It not only reflects cultural narratives but also drives societal transformation by evoking emotions, sparking dialogue, and inspiring actions for change. 40u40 Alumnae Veerle Simoens (Cohort 2021 Spring), Florence Derck (Cohort 2021 Autumn), and Lynn Tytgat (Cohort 2023) discuss the profound impact of art and culture on society, exploring the significant role they play, how they achieve a positive impact, and why art and culture are essential components of societal progress.

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Fellows

Field Work Story: The AI for Education Awards

The AI for Education Awards celebrate and encourage the efforts of teachers, tech pioneers and educational institutions to seize the potential of new technologies. The initiative was launched by Cohort 2023 Fellows Lieselot Declercq, Nassim Benoussaid, Anicet Touré and Louis Wouters as their Field Work project. The group decided to work on making education more inclusive, personal and effective with the power of artificial intelligence. On June 18th, the first edition of the AI for Education Awards was hosted during the Belgian Economic Mission in Oslo, Norway, a milestone in the Field Work group’s journey to create a lasting impact to integrate technology into learning.

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Community

BE.Entrepreneur: Boosting Entrepreneurship in Belgium

“How can we unlock the potential of entrepreneurship in Belgium?” This question, first posed by Emmanuelle Ghislain, CEO of Pulse Foundation and Alumna of Cohort 2021 Spring, led to a fruitful collaboration between Pulse Foundation, Belgium’s 40 under 40 and Itinera Institute. Together, they launched BE.Entrepreneur, an initiative to gather insights from the entrepreneurial ecosystem and propose concrete solutions to policy makers to boost entrepreneurship in Belgium.

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