Young Professionals Network Class of 2024 Celebrates in End-of-Year Ceremony

On Wednesday, June 26, Eurasia Foundation celebrated the end of the 2023-2024 season of the Young Professionals Network. Lisa Coll, EF president, and Hrachya Topalyan, senior director of civic engagement and leadership, delivered welcoming remarks. Coll spoke about the history of the Young Professionals Network, which launched in 2012 to carry on the legacy of Eurasia Foundation’s late board chair Sarah Carey.

Eric Boyle, senior vice president at ICF, delivered the evening’s keynote remarks. In his role at ICF, Boyle helps use cutting-edge solutions to address difficult business and public policy problems. He reflected on his career, which began while he was working in Central Asia and Ukraine in the international development sector. Fellows took interest in his transition from working in international development to the private sector. Boyle emphasized that deep understanding of a region’s history and current affairs is an important skill in any field—one that has impacted his career in both development and the private sector.

Throughout the past year, YPN fellows have attended in-person and hybrid events with other esteemed experts who have worked in or studied the Eurasia region. Events included discussions of Armenia’s foreign policy with Dr. Michael Rubin, developments in Central Asia with Dr. Erica Marat, Georgia’s upcoming elections with Ambassador Kelly Degnan, and the war in Ukraine with Eric Green, as well as a mixer with fellows from the Rumsfeld Foundation’s CAMCA program.

With their season complete, fellows will now join a network of YPN alumni to continue forging connections with peers who share their dedication to this critical region. We look forward to seeing what the future holds for these young leaders!