AmCham EU and JA Europe are pleased to announce the finalists for this year’s AmCham EU Youth Entrepreneurship Award 2024. The award, now in its 12th edition, recognises young people’s entrepreneurial spirit and aims to foster innovation in Europe. The finalists were selected from a pool of applicants from all over Europe. The winner will be selected by a high-level jury and announced on Tuesday, 25 June at our Gala evening.

Alga Insulation 

Entrepreneur: Janna Naser 

Country of origin: Sweden

Alga Insulation uses algae as an environmentally friendly and sustainable alternative to typical insulation materials. Large algae blooms create a burden for municipalities, requiring expensive removal and disposal. At the same time, the construction industry relies on insulation materials that may not be eco-friendly or have a high environmental footprint. This is where Alga Insulation comes in. With a local marine laboratory, they have found a way to implement the unique properties of algae in the construction industry as an insulation material, helping with energy efficiency, electricity bills and sustainability.

Janna Naser is the CEO and Founder of Alga Insulation. Her work has earned her numerous grants and prestigious recognitions, including Froda’s Future Female Entrepreneur and the Anders Wall Scholarship.

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E-mbracelet 

Entrepreneur: Maro Manoli 

Country of origin: Cyprus 

Noise sensitivity is a common challenge that people with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) face. But there isn’t a defined set of triggering sounds, making it difficult for parents and caregivers to identify which specific sounds trigger their child. That's why E-mbracelet are designing an application that monitors the individual’s pulse and helps to identify triggering sounds by detecting an increased heart rate. By recording nearby sounds when the user's pulse rate increases and presenting the results through an app, E-mbracelet is helping those with ASD pinpoint what is causing them distress.  

Maria Manoli is the Founder and CEO of E-mbracelet. She received the EY Gen-E 2023 Young Women Leaders Award and held roles in the JA Alumni Cyprus Network. 

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Tiaki

Entrepreneur: Rosanna Collis 

Country of origin: UK 

Impacts to breasts can leave permanent damage, leading to restricted blood flow to the tissue and can cause issues with breast feeding. Despite this, women lack specialist sport equipment to avoid these complications. By offering a protective sports bra insert, Bra-Vo, for use in contact sports, Tiaki is working to protect players against high impact injuries. Outside of ensuring breast pain is not an obstacle in contact sports, their vision is to start a wider conversation on breast health in sports.  

Rosanna Collis is the Founding Director of Tiaki. She has been recognised with the Delta Airlines Leadership Award and Tiaki was named the UK Young Enterprise Company of the Year in 2023. 

The distinguished jury is composed of Daniel Calleja Crespo, Director-General, Legal Service, European Commission; Susan Danger, CEO, AmCham EU; Audrey Flore-Ngomsik, CEO and Co-founder, Trianon Scientific Communication and President, Brussels Binder; Eva Maydell, MEP (EPP, BG); Melodie Nakhle, Managing Director, Europe, Southern Africa, Australia and New Zealand, Amway and Vice-Chair, Executive Council, AmCham EU and John Simmons, Minister Counselor for Commercial Affairs, US Mission to the EU.

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