Young Atlantiks: Class of 2026
We are happy to introduce this years Young Atlantiks cohort! Our 10 fellows will travel to Berlin, where they will meet with decision-makers from politics, business, academia and civil society and participate in this years German-Canadian Conference.
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Tom Balogh currently drives new business development initiatives at RWS (part of the Beretta Holding Group). In this role, he identifies high-impact customer challenges adjacent to our core business and develop strategic responses by leveraging internal capabilities and external partnerships to shape a portfolio of new business opportunities. In parallel, he is pursuing a doctoral degree as an external candidate at the Chair of Strategic Entrepreneurship at HHL Leipzig Graduate School of Management, where my research focuses on the microfoundations of firm capabilities for strategic change and organizational renewal. |
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Christina Caouette is a public policy and foreign affairs analyst with the Government of Canada. Currently, she works as a Senior Policy Analyst at Canada’s Major Project Office, where she advances nation-building projects as part of the Regulatory Implementation Team. Christina builds on five years of experience at Natural Resources Canada, where she forwarded Canada’s energy security and net-zero commitments in the renewable energy, critical minerals, nuclear and LNG sectors. Her positions at Global Affairs Canada and Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada have further enabled her to contribute to Canada’s bilateral relations with countries in Europe, Asia, and South America.
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Alex Cool-Fergus has fifteen years of experience working in the environmental policy sector. As Senior Manager of Public Affairs at Climate Caucus, Alex helps to shape the organization’s government relations, advocacy and policy work on behalf of municipal leaders. She brings a wealth of experience from her previous policy roles at Climate Action Network Canada and the Federation of Canadian Municipalities and having led dozens of local political and mobilization campaigns. |
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Benjamin Deutsch is a graduate student at Dalhousie University in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada and a veteran of the Canadian Armed Forces. A graduate of the Royal Military College of Canada, he served for sixteen years as a Naval Warfare Officer in the Royal Canadian Navy, specializing in navigation and anti-submarine warfare. He worked closely with NATO partners in operational and and strategic roles across Northern Europe, the Eastern Mediterranean, and the Black Sea. Late in his career, he completed an exchange with the Australian Defence Force and deployed to the Middle East, supporting drug interdiction and counter-piracy operations in the Arabian Sea and Gulf of Oman. Since retiring in 2025, he has begun a master’s degree, with research focusing on civil-military relations and international strategic cooperation during the Cuban Missile Crisis. His academic and professional interests centre on North Atlantic security, allied interoperability, and the evolving dynamics of great power competition. He aims to combine his military and academic experience toward a career in intelligence and international security.
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Christian G. Junger is a deep tech entrepreneur and CEO & Founder of Encrypting, a German company focused on Confidential Computing and Confidential AI. With over a decade of experience in cybersecurity and Web3, he works at the intersection of secure data processing, AI, and digital sovereignty. He is also the Founder and Managing Director of InnoSimp GmbH, an advisory and investment firm supporting companies on strategy and emerging technologies. Previously, he served as Chief Strategy Officer and Management Board Member at Integritee AG and found Securitee, a startup acquired in 2021. His work focuses on the policy and transatlantic implications of secure AI and data governance. He studied Business and Engineering at RWTH Aachen University and Finance & Economics at CEU Pablo University in Madrid, and has represented his work internationally, including at the World Economic Forum in Davos.
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Ethan Lou is an editor at the Globe and Mail, Canada’s newspaper of record. He oversees columns in the business section and writes across the paper. Lou is the author of two critically acclaimed nonfiction books. He previously reported for Reuters and the Toronto Star. Lou is pursuing a master’s degree in international relations at Cambridge University.
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Moritz Meissner is radio journalist and news editor at Mitteldeutscher Rundfunk. At MDR Thuringia, he reports on domestic and foreign affairs on a daily basis to tens of thousands of listeners. His main objective is monitoring political, economic and social developments in the state of Thuringia. He first engaged in transatlantic work for the first time at Amerika Haus e.V. NRW in Cologne and in addition, he is a keen observer of geopolitics and how his home region—the states of former East Germany—is shaped by global developments.
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Margret Schneider is an economist and Policy Officer for net-zero industries at the Directorate-General for Internal Market, Industry, Entrepreneurship and SMEs of the European Commission. Her work focuses on strengthening the competitiveness of clean technology manufacturing in Europe through regulatory frameworks and public financing. Currently seconded from the German Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy, she previously worked on industrial applications of hydrogen and a broader range of European economic policy issues related to competitiveness. |
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Lisa Xie is a Policy Advisor to Canada’s Minister of Industry, where she advises on industrial strategy, economic resilience, and international engagement. She develops and advances crossborder partnerships that strengthen supply chains and enhance industrial competitiveness across sectors such as advanced manufacturing, technology, electric vehicles, and pharmaceuticals. Drawing on a background in international business and public policy, Lisa supports transatlantic cooperation, with focus on aligning high-growth, innovation-driven sectors. She holds a bachelor’s degree from Switzerland and an MBA completed across China and the United States, and is an alumna of the World Economic Forum’s Global Sharpers Community. |
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Dr. Constantin Zeif is a senior strategy executive working at the intersection of corporate strategy, strategic intelligence and executive governance within the maritime defence and security industry. He currently serves as Vice President Strategy & Intelligence at TKMS, working in close collaboration with the Executive Board to define, shape, and execute the company’s long-term strategic direction. Dr. Zeif holds a Ph.D. (Dr. rer. pol.) in Economics, with a focus on strategic management. He values professional exchange on corporate strategy, defence and security industries, M&A, capital markets, transformation, and long-term value creation, and actively engages with senior leaders, executives, and recruiters across his professional network. |
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The Young Atlantiks program is organized in cooperation with Atlantik-Brücke Canada. |
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