Meet The 30 Under 30 Europe Class Of 2023

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It’s no secret that it hasn’t been an easy year for young people in Europe. First a war in Ukraine, then talks of an energy apocalypse and, finally, a barrage of natural disasters. But still, they’ve persevered.

The 300 founders and entrepreneurs featured on our 2023 Forbes Under 30 Europe list—released earlier this week—give me such hope for the future of the continent. Take Rochelle Niemeijer, the 28-year-old who cofounded med-tech startup Nostics to help fight the misuse and overuse of antibiotics. She’s raised $7.5 million to build new diagnostic tools (think a portable miniature chemistry lab combined with AI-powered software) that can quickly identify the bacteria or virus that is causing an infection and help doctors make better, faster treatment decisions.

Of course, there are the celebrities, too. On our Sports & Games list, Carlos Alcaraz puts us all to shame by, at age 19, becoming the youngest male tennis player ever to end a year ranked No. 1 in the world. And on the Entertainment list, actress Simona Tabasco is turning her White Lotus fame into something bigger, signing with talent agency WME and starring in an ad campaign for Kim Kardashian’s clothing company Skims (because sometimes, life just has to imitate the memes).

By The Numbers: Meet The Forbes Under 30 Europe Class Of 2023

The young founders, leaders and entrepreneurs on our eighth annual Under 30 Europe list have collectively raised more than $3 billion to reshape the future of Europe—and the world.

5 Minutes With . . . Alisha Fredriksson

We’re bringing you the scoop on a new Under 30 community member each week. Up this week: climate crisis warrior Alisha Fredriksson, the cofounder and CEO of Seabound, which is building a carbon capture device that ships can place on board to trap up to 95% of CO2 emissions. Fredriksson appeared on our new 2023 Under 30 Europe Social Impact list.

Favorite app?

• Runkeeper. I think a lot of folks have moved over to Strava, but I’m still connected to a few of my best friends and mom on there, who all use it regularly. This means that my Runkeeper feed feels like a highly curated, ad-free and motivational form of social media, in which we all see and support each other’s running progress.

A staple of your morning routine?

• Coffee. While cliché, this is definitely my most consistent staple. I’m lucky to live near a few wonderful cafes in east London so I’ll pick up a proper cup on the days when I have more time.

Overrated?

• Career capital, or the resources, skills and credentials to increase one’s professional prospects. While there are certainly many occupations in which career capital can be instrumental, I’d argue that it is beside the point when it comes to solving the climate crisis. This is because the speed and scale of the industrial transformations required are unlike anything that anyone has ever seen before. Instead, I think courage, curiosity, an ability to think for yourself and an appetite for rapid learning are much more important.

Underrated?

• Inspiration. There is a lot of value in identifying people whom you look up to, articulating what you admire about them and leaning into an inclination to be more like them. Inspiration can be an incredible tool to build up vicarious self-confidence (i.e. “if he/she/they can do it, then so can I”), direct and accelerate your learning by watching what steps they’ve taken and to motivate you toward action and the pursuit of ambitious feats.

What would you tell your 21-year-old self?

• “You can do everything that you want, but just not at the same time.” I had, and still have, a lot of energy and impatience for achieving meaningful social impact, and I used to cram many different projects into my schedule at once. Instead, I’d encourage my 21-year-old self to prioritize, focus, trust in the process and to have patience for sequencing and picking up different projects in due time.

Someone you look up to in the climate industry?

• Dr. Ayana Elizabeth Johnson. I think she is an incredible leader who has managed to straddle multiple sectors, disciplines and channels for change. For instance, she:
• Leverages her expertise as a marine biologist to drive new research and craft much-needed ocean climate policy through cofounding the Urban Ocean Lab and writing the Blue New Deal plan.
• Uplifts and amplifies less-heard voices through the All We Can Save book and organization, which she co-edited and cofounded, respectively.

Lister Lowdown:

• In more Europe news, online healthy food delivery brand (and Under 30 Europe lister company) eatclever was recently acquired by Peckwater Brands, Europe’s largest operator of virtual food brands. Cofounder Robin Himmels, who made the 2019 Under 30 Europe list with fellow cofounder, Mohamed Chahin, is staying on board with Peckwater Brands.

• Athena Club, an online subscription service selling toxin-free period care, probiotics and razors, took its first dive into brick and mortar when it launched in 1,600 Target stores earlier this week. The startup, cofounded by 2019 listers Maria and Charles Desmarais and Allie Griswold, has shipped 1.5 million-plus packages to 300,000 customers.
• Talk about the power of the Under 30 community: Shortly after appearing our the 2021 Under 30 list, Daniel Weinstein met fellow 2021 lister Phyo Aung Kyaw and decided to team up. Aung Kyaw’s wireless charger startup Resonant Link is now powering Weinstein’s saliva-based diagnostic wearable sensors at Lura Health.

Have some news for us? Send any updates to 30under30tipline@forbes.com.