Akilnathan Logeswaran
Akilnathan Logeswaran (born October 16, 1988) is a German activist working for human rights and a united Europe. He is the founding Publisher and Editor-in-chief of the German lifestyle magazine TamilCulture Germany[1]. He is known to be a strong voice and advocate of a multicultural society and is referred to as a global citizen.[2]
He was recognized by the Forbes magazine in 2018 on the Forbes 30 Under 30 list for Europe in the category of Law & Policy, as well as by the Real Leaders Magazine on the 100 Visionary Leaders (Under 30) list.[3][4][5]
Childhood and academic career
Logeswaran was born in Munich and grew up in Munich’s north district Feldmoching-Hasenbergl. His mother is German and his father is of Sri Lankan - Tamil origin.[6] After graduating with his A-levels from the city’s Willi-Graf-Gymnasium high school, he spent a year working in an ashram in Coonoor, Tamil Nadu, India, as well as in the Sri Sarguru Tribal High School.[2]
He studied economics and information-oriented business administration at the University of Augsburg, the Vienna University of Economics and Business and the Indian Institute of Management Calcutta and is a CEMS International Management graduate. During his studies, he worked for the United Nations and in 2014 headed the German delegation to the European Youth Event of the European Parliament in Strasbourg.[2]
Logeswaran created the Facebook page Campus Cat Augsburg, which is about a cat who lives on the campus of the University of Augsburg and has found regional and international attention in the media. Through his contribution, the cat became the unofficial mascot of the University. For this initiative, Logeswaran was nominated for the Augsburg Media Prize in 2014. [7][8] Professionally, Logeswaran has led countless digitization projects throughout Europe in places such as Copenhagen, Vienna, Warsaw and Munich.[2][9]
Human rights activism
In 2007, Logeswaran's active activist career began as part of the project communal08, which was conducted by Kreisjugendring München-Stadt in co-operation with the Munich Youth Council. The participants developed youth policy demands for the city council, which were handed over to politicians and political parties for the Munich municipal and mayoral elections in March 2008.[10][11]
He is the Goodwill Ambassador of Taqanu – Bank for Refugees, a 2017 finalist of the Global Social Venture Competition, as well as an Ambassador of the Free Interrail initiative, which aims to provide all EU citizens with a four-week, free use of an Interrail ticket for their 18th birthday in order to experience the diversity of Europe and allow them to develop a deeper, more international and intercultural understanding of the world.[12] He was nominated for the German Civic Engagement Award in 2014 for his dedication as the Founder of Pave The Way, an initiative of scholarship holders of the program Geh 'Deinen Weg of the Deutschlandstiftung Integration with the aim to support the personal development of young people with a migrant background.
Since April 2015, he has been a member of the Global Shapers Community Munich Hub of the World Economic Forum.[13][14][15] In 2017, Logeswaran was also elected to the advisory council of the Global Shapers. He was one of 37 Youth Champions who together developed a new concept for Europe for the World Economic Forum, which was presented to the European heads of state at the annual meeting in Davos in 2018.[16]
During the European migrant crisis as it became clear that Hungary would close its borders, he helped refugees through social media to find a way around the active minefields in Bosnia and Croatia, which had been the evasion route of the escape. For this and other civic engagements, he was named one of the world's 100 Visionary Leaders under 30 by Real Leaders Magazine in 2016.[4][5] HuffPost Germany listed Logeswaran as one of 50 people who helped to solve the refugee crisis in Germany from 2015 onwards.[17]
In 2017, Logeswaran was one of the co-founders of the Munich Hub of the pan-European citizens' movement Stand Up For Europe. He is a supporter of the bipartisan and independent pro-European citizens' initiative Pulse of Europe [18][19] and since February 2017 he is a member of the Think Tank 30 of the Club of Rome, a network of young people in their thirties who discuss visions for the future of society.[20] Logeswaran joined the Weiße Rose Stiftung e.V. at the same time as the right-wing party Alternative for Germany (AfD) entered the 19th German Parliament on October 24, 2017 after the German federal election, 2017. In 2017, he was one of the German participants at the Oslo Freedom Forum.
As part of the United Nations European Consultation within the Progress Study on Youth, Peace and Security, mandated by United Nations Security Council Resolution 2250 (2015), the European External Action Service, in partnership with the United Nations Population Fund, United Nations Peacebuilding Support Office, the Anna Lindh Euro-Mediterranean Foundation for the Dialogue Between Cultures, the European Youth Forum and the European Partnership for Children and Youth in Peacebuilding, Logeswaran represented the rights of children and young people in Germany and Europe. The study will be submitted to the United Nations Security Council and Member States in the spring of 2018.[21]
Logeswaran is a member of the Social Democratic Party of Germany and juror of the Shining Stars of Europe Video Competition of the European Commission and the European Parliament.[22]
Awards
- 2018: Forbes 30 Under 30 in the category Law and Policy awarded by the Forbes Magazine[3]
- 2017: Youth Champion selected by the World Economic Forum[23]
- 2016: 100 Visionary Leaders [30 and Under] chosen by the Real Leaders Magazine[4]
Publications
- 2018: Renew Europe. World Economic Forum[24]
- 2014: GAP-Journal. The Austrian albatross vs. the German mantis – A comparison of the contemporary grand coalition formation in Austria & Germany[25]
References
- ↑ TamilCulture.com: Akilnathan Logeswaran
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 Süddeutsche.de: Weltbürger aus Leidenschaft
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Forbes: Akilnathan Logeswaran
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 Real Leaders Magazine: 100 Visionary Leaders (Under 30)
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 Philtrat: Die Power des Positiven
- ↑ Jetzt.de: Was ist "Pulse of Europe"?
- ↑ Süddeutsche.de: Prof. Dr. Miau aus Augsburg
- ↑ Augsburger Medienpreis 2014:CampusCat Augsburg - CampusSpirit für Augsburg Archived 2018-02-09 at the Wayback Machine
- ↑ Meeting Halfway: Für Europa auf die Straße gehen – ein Gespräch mit einem überzeugten Europäer
- ↑ Kreisjugendring München-Stadt: communal08
- ↑ Kreisjugendring München-Stadt: K3 Nummer 1 Jahrgang 2008
- ↑ FreeInterrail.eu: Ambassadors
- ↑ CEMS: CEMS students recruited to join World Economic Forum's Global Shaper community
- ↑ Global Shapers: Munich Hub
- ↑ Times of India: IIM-C grad chosen ‘Global Shaper’ for work with students
- ↑ World Economic Forum: New concept for Europe
- ↑ HuffPost Deutschland: 50 Menschen, die WIRKLICH dabei helfen, die Flüchtlingskrise zu lösen - und die zeigen, was JEDER VON UNS tun kann
- ↑ Deutschlandfunk Nova: Pulse of Europe Sonntags spielt Europa
- ↑ TAZ.de: Die Bewegung „Pulse of Europe“ Nicht perfekt, doch dringend nötig
- ↑ Think Tank 30: Akilnathan Logeswaran
- ↑ UN.org: Youth, Peace and Security European Regional Consultation
- ↑ Shining Stars of Europe: Jury Members of the fifth edition
- ↑ World Economic Forum: Youth Champions
- ↑ World Economic Forum: Renew Europe
- ↑ GAP-Journal: The Austrian albatross vs. the German mantis – A comparison of the contemporary grand coalition formation in Austria & Germany
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