AMERICAN SWISS FOUNDATION ANNOUNCES THE YOUNG LEADER CLASS OF 2025
GENEVA, SWITZERLAND, November 12, 2025 /EINPresswire.com/ -- The American Swiss Foundation is proud to announce the Young Leaders Class of 2025. Created in 1990 by the late Ambassador Faith Whittlesey, the Foundation’s Young Leaders Conference is a leadership program that connects and engages young Swiss and American leaders across sectors including business, government, healthcare, education, technology, innovation, and more.
This year, fifty-eight American and Swiss Young Leaders are gathering in Geneva, hosted by Amazon Web Services, with international travel sponsored by Swiss International Air Lines Ltd., for an intensive seven-day program. The Conference provides an opportunity for participants to make meaningful connections, engage in discussions on leadership, and strengthen U.S.-Swiss relations. This historic friendship reaches back over two centuries, when Switzerland and the United States were called the “Sister Republics,” with shared democratic values, including liberty, the rule of law, and free enterprise.
American Swiss Foundation Chair Robert J. Giuffra, Jr. (Young Leader, 1996) commented, “For eighty years, the American Swiss Foundation has worked to strengthen the longstanding friendship between Switzerland and the United States through citizen-to-citizen exchange. Our Young Leaders Conference is central to our mission. We're honored to welcome this distinguished group of fifty-eight Young Leaders to Geneva and grateful to Amazon Web Services and Swiss International Air Lines for their generous support.”
American Swiss Foundation Co-Chair Markus U. Diethelm stated, “The Young Leaders Conference is a testament to the enduring friendship between our two nations. By bringing together American and Swiss leaders in Geneva, we reaffirm our shared values and commitment to dialogue. We are deeply appreciative of Amazon Web Services and Swiss International Air Lines for hosting this year’s exceptional program.”
U.S. Young Leaders, Class of 2025:
Peyton Brown, Consultant, Ernst & Young
Jake Evans, Shareholder, Greenberg Traurig, LLP
Matthew Fiorelli, Instructor of American Politics, United States Military Academy at West Point
Igor Gavrish, Principal Research Associate, Moderna Therapeutics
Jonathan Glasgow, National Correspondent, Newsmax Media
Danisha Hall, Director, North America Impact Strategy, McDonald’s USA
Hilary Hamm, Co-Owner & Advisory Board Member, Continental Resources
George Hoch, Executive Director, Adventures Cross Country
Annmarie Hordern, Chief Political Correspondent and Anchor, Bloomberg
Toshiko Hasegawa, Commission President, Port of Seattle
The Honorable Sara Innamorato, County Executive, Allegheny County
Dr. Ben Judge, President, The America Fund
Kuljit Kaur, Head of Customer Service U.S. East Coast, Swiss Air Cargo Division of SWISS
Roz Leighton, Chief of Staff, Office of North Dakota Governor Kelly Armstrong
Eric Lesser, Senior Counsel, WilmerHale
Erin Moran, Head of East Coast Partnerships, xAI Corp
Dr. Hillel Ofek, Director of Strategy, Lonsdale Enterprises
Casandra Philipson, Head of Scientific Operations, Transfyr
Shay Robinson, Head of U.S. Strategic Partnerships, Aon
Brandon Sherrod, Assistant Coach, Yale Men’s Basketball, Yale University
Lindsay Shiff, Project Leader, Boston Consulting Group
Kent Snyder, SVP, Global Treasury and Capital Markets, Acrisure
Trevor TenBrink, Government and Community Affairs Manager, Lake Michigan Credit Union
Thomas C. Urciuoli, Law School Graduate, New York Law School
Ethan Wilkes, Deployment Strategist, Palantir Technologies
Mimi Wu, Partner, Sullivan & Cromwell, LLP
Peter Yongvanich, Managing Director – Co-Head Global Markets Distribution, Americas / Head of Execution Sales Americas, UBS Investment Bank
Becca Young, Deputy Chief of Staff and Strategic Initiatives Manager, Harvard University
Swiss Young Leaders, Class of 2025:
Christophe Berset, Head of Technology & Solutions, Holcim (Schweiz) AG
Kirill Bourovoi, Vice President HR Franke Coffee Systems and Global Head of Corporate Sustainability, Franke Group
Martin Burri, Partner, Corporate Tax, PricewaterhouseCoopers
Alexa Chessex, Director France, Switzerland Tourism
Selina Frey, Director Public Affairs, Switzerland, Zürich Insurance
Marc Friedli, Diplomat, Swiss Federal Department of Foreign Affairs, FDFA
Simone Graven, Manager External Affairs & Strategic Partnerships, Novartis
Silvia Hadolt, Senior Director Sales Northern Europe, Swiss International Air
Nathanael Hausmann, Chief Sales Officer, Läderach
Nora Horn, Enterprise Account Manager, Amazon Web Services
Stephanie Jost, Management Consultant, Deloitte
Fabien Kaufmann, Protection Coordinator, International Committee of the Red Cross
Dr. Florian Kehl, Director Space Research Initiatives, ETH Zürich | Space
Jimmy Keime, Head Engineering & Nuclear, Swiss Re
Laura Lehmann, Founder, TectoniQ, Inc.
Matthias Leitner, Personal Advisor to Federal Councilor Ignazio Cassis, Federal Department of Foreign Affairs FDFA
Corinne Lepage, Junior Legal Counsel, Rolex
André Müller, US Business and Economics Correspondent, Neue Zürcher Zeitung AG
Benjamin Otter, Site Manager, Syngenta Crop Protection AG
Šeherzada Paden, Head Public Affairs, Swiss Banking - Swiss Bankers Association
Philipp Sponagel, Enterprise Account Director, Amazon Web Services
Dominic Stutz, Head Sales, Service & Repair, Schindler Group
Laure-Anne Ventouras, Commercialization Excellence Leader, Duchenne, Roche
Marina Weilenmann, Head of GOTO Strategy & Business Management – Executive Director, UBS
Margarita Kim, Director, Investment Banking Switzerland, Bank of America
Nadine Wick, Head of Data Analytics & AI Sales, Alps Region, Google Cloud
Kerstin Wiesner, Managing Director, Accenture
Matthias Zenger, Vice President, Platforms, Pinterest
Niklas Zürcher, Partner, Boston Consulting Group
Tim Zurfluh, Head of Marketing Confectionery, Nestlé
***
About the American Swiss Foundation
Founded in 1945 in response to World War II, the Foundation’s mission is to connect and engage Swiss and American leaders. Towards the end of the 20th century, two former U.S. Ambassadors to Switzerland, Shelby Cullom Davis and Faith Whittlesey, ushered in a new era for the small organization. They ultimately transformed the Foundation from an organization that was primarily social to one that focused on nurturing and investing in the next generation of leaders in both countries.
In 1975, Ambassador Davis assumed an active leadership role with the Foundation. He served as chairman and president until 1989, and as honorary chairman until his passing in 1994. In 1989, Ambassador Whittlesey became chairman and president of the Foundation and launched the organization’s flagship program, the Young Leaders Conference.
Today, alumni of the conference number nearly 1,600 leaders who shape the futures of the two countries, including members of U.S. Congress and Swiss parliamentarians, entrepreneurs and business executives, media professionals, and public policy experts.
This year, fifty-eight American and Swiss Young Leaders are gathering in Geneva, hosted by Amazon Web Services, with international travel sponsored by Swiss International Air Lines Ltd., for an intensive seven-day program. The Conference provides an opportunity for participants to make meaningful connections, engage in discussions on leadership, and strengthen U.S.-Swiss relations. This historic friendship reaches back over two centuries, when Switzerland and the United States were called the “Sister Republics,” with shared democratic values, including liberty, the rule of law, and free enterprise.
American Swiss Foundation Chair Robert J. Giuffra, Jr. (Young Leader, 1996) commented, “For eighty years, the American Swiss Foundation has worked to strengthen the longstanding friendship between Switzerland and the United States through citizen-to-citizen exchange. Our Young Leaders Conference is central to our mission. We're honored to welcome this distinguished group of fifty-eight Young Leaders to Geneva and grateful to Amazon Web Services and Swiss International Air Lines for their generous support.”
American Swiss Foundation Co-Chair Markus U. Diethelm stated, “The Young Leaders Conference is a testament to the enduring friendship between our two nations. By bringing together American and Swiss leaders in Geneva, we reaffirm our shared values and commitment to dialogue. We are deeply appreciative of Amazon Web Services and Swiss International Air Lines for hosting this year’s exceptional program.”
U.S. Young Leaders, Class of 2025:
Peyton Brown, Consultant, Ernst & Young
Jake Evans, Shareholder, Greenberg Traurig, LLP
Matthew Fiorelli, Instructor of American Politics, United States Military Academy at West Point
Igor Gavrish, Principal Research Associate, Moderna Therapeutics
Jonathan Glasgow, National Correspondent, Newsmax Media
Danisha Hall, Director, North America Impact Strategy, McDonald’s USA
Hilary Hamm, Co-Owner & Advisory Board Member, Continental Resources
George Hoch, Executive Director, Adventures Cross Country
Annmarie Hordern, Chief Political Correspondent and Anchor, Bloomberg
Toshiko Hasegawa, Commission President, Port of Seattle
The Honorable Sara Innamorato, County Executive, Allegheny County
Dr. Ben Judge, President, The America Fund
Kuljit Kaur, Head of Customer Service U.S. East Coast, Swiss Air Cargo Division of SWISS
Roz Leighton, Chief of Staff, Office of North Dakota Governor Kelly Armstrong
Eric Lesser, Senior Counsel, WilmerHale
Erin Moran, Head of East Coast Partnerships, xAI Corp
Dr. Hillel Ofek, Director of Strategy, Lonsdale Enterprises
Casandra Philipson, Head of Scientific Operations, Transfyr
Shay Robinson, Head of U.S. Strategic Partnerships, Aon
Brandon Sherrod, Assistant Coach, Yale Men’s Basketball, Yale University
Lindsay Shiff, Project Leader, Boston Consulting Group
Kent Snyder, SVP, Global Treasury and Capital Markets, Acrisure
Trevor TenBrink, Government and Community Affairs Manager, Lake Michigan Credit Union
Thomas C. Urciuoli, Law School Graduate, New York Law School
Ethan Wilkes, Deployment Strategist, Palantir Technologies
Mimi Wu, Partner, Sullivan & Cromwell, LLP
Peter Yongvanich, Managing Director – Co-Head Global Markets Distribution, Americas / Head of Execution Sales Americas, UBS Investment Bank
Becca Young, Deputy Chief of Staff and Strategic Initiatives Manager, Harvard University
Swiss Young Leaders, Class of 2025:
Christophe Berset, Head of Technology & Solutions, Holcim (Schweiz) AG
Kirill Bourovoi, Vice President HR Franke Coffee Systems and Global Head of Corporate Sustainability, Franke Group
Martin Burri, Partner, Corporate Tax, PricewaterhouseCoopers
Alexa Chessex, Director France, Switzerland Tourism
Selina Frey, Director Public Affairs, Switzerland, Zürich Insurance
Marc Friedli, Diplomat, Swiss Federal Department of Foreign Affairs, FDFA
Simone Graven, Manager External Affairs & Strategic Partnerships, Novartis
Silvia Hadolt, Senior Director Sales Northern Europe, Swiss International Air
Nathanael Hausmann, Chief Sales Officer, Läderach
Nora Horn, Enterprise Account Manager, Amazon Web Services
Stephanie Jost, Management Consultant, Deloitte
Fabien Kaufmann, Protection Coordinator, International Committee of the Red Cross
Dr. Florian Kehl, Director Space Research Initiatives, ETH Zürich | Space
Jimmy Keime, Head Engineering & Nuclear, Swiss Re
Laura Lehmann, Founder, TectoniQ, Inc.
Matthias Leitner, Personal Advisor to Federal Councilor Ignazio Cassis, Federal Department of Foreign Affairs FDFA
Corinne Lepage, Junior Legal Counsel, Rolex
André Müller, US Business and Economics Correspondent, Neue Zürcher Zeitung AG
Benjamin Otter, Site Manager, Syngenta Crop Protection AG
Šeherzada Paden, Head Public Affairs, Swiss Banking - Swiss Bankers Association
Philipp Sponagel, Enterprise Account Director, Amazon Web Services
Dominic Stutz, Head Sales, Service & Repair, Schindler Group
Laure-Anne Ventouras, Commercialization Excellence Leader, Duchenne, Roche
Marina Weilenmann, Head of GOTO Strategy & Business Management – Executive Director, UBS
Margarita Kim, Director, Investment Banking Switzerland, Bank of America
Nadine Wick, Head of Data Analytics & AI Sales, Alps Region, Google Cloud
Kerstin Wiesner, Managing Director, Accenture
Matthias Zenger, Vice President, Platforms, Pinterest
Niklas Zürcher, Partner, Boston Consulting Group
Tim Zurfluh, Head of Marketing Confectionery, Nestlé
***
About the American Swiss Foundation
Founded in 1945 in response to World War II, the Foundation’s mission is to connect and engage Swiss and American leaders. Towards the end of the 20th century, two former U.S. Ambassadors to Switzerland, Shelby Cullom Davis and Faith Whittlesey, ushered in a new era for the small organization. They ultimately transformed the Foundation from an organization that was primarily social to one that focused on nurturing and investing in the next generation of leaders in both countries.
In 1975, Ambassador Davis assumed an active leadership role with the Foundation. He served as chairman and president until 1989, and as honorary chairman until his passing in 1994. In 1989, Ambassador Whittlesey became chairman and president of the Foundation and launched the organization’s flagship program, the Young Leaders Conference.
Today, alumni of the conference number nearly 1,600 leaders who shape the futures of the two countries, including members of U.S. Congress and Swiss parliamentarians, entrepreneurs and business executives, media professionals, and public policy experts.
Vanessa Beary, Executive Director
American Swiss Foundation
+1 212-754-0130
email us here
Visit us on social media:
LinkedIn
Instagram
Facebook
YouTube
X
Legal Disclaimer:
EIN Presswire provides this news content "as is" without warranty of any kind. We do not accept any responsibility or liability for the accuracy, content, images, videos, licenses, completeness, legality, or reliability of the information contained in this article. If you have any complaints or copyright issues related to this article, kindly contact the author above.