The Urban Land Institute (ULI), the world’s oldest and largest network of cross-disciplinary real estate and land use experts, has today announced its inaugural New Real Estate Vanguard, made up of ten outstanding contributors to the European real estate sector, each of whom will be featured on a new podcast series.

This year’s edition features rising stars who have demonstrated entrepreneurial flair as well as those who have shaken up the corporate world, selected by the European Young Leaders Group of the ULI. They include:

• Tania Azad, partner, Bohill Partners;
• Mario Facchinetti, founder, PropTechMarket & VIEW2GO;
• Edwina Governey, chief investment officer, Hibernia REIT plc;
• Alice Lamb, deputy chief executive, LandAid;
• Reza Merchant, chief executive officer & founder, The Collective;
• Inés Miró-Sans, co-founder, Hotel Casa Bonay;
• Adam Targowski, sustainability and innovation manager, Skanska;
• Franz de Waal, co-founder, Freiraum;
• Marion Waller, advisor to the Paris Mayor; and,
• Jonathan Willén, chief executive officer, Europi Property Group.

The podcast series will be hosted by Andrea Carpenter, director of Women Talk Real Estate, and will feature individuals who are contributing actively to the reshaping the future of the real estate industry with their bold and innovative ideas.

This project has been spearheaded by two ULI Europe Young Leaders Committee members, Ronan O’Neill, associate, capital markets, Hines, and Philipp Braunwalder, head of administration, Real PM Ltd, who wanted to highlight the successes of key individuals from diverse sectors in the real estate industry and hear their thoughts on what trends to look out for in the future.

“In our search for the ideal candidates it was incredible to see the levels of innovation in the European real estate market. The mutually beneficial coexistence of traditional property giants alongside a nimble start-up scene is laying the foundation for positive change that will drive future pan-European growth.” said Braunwalder.

“The podcast series is a great opportunity for ULI Europe Young Leader members, and others, to learn about and discover new angles of the built environment,” added O’Neill. “Through the lens of some of the most talented people in Europe we hope to demonstrate how multifaceted real estate can be, and the multiple paths to success.”

Lisette van Doorn, ULI Europe CEO, said: “Our ULI Europe Young Leaders programme continues to go from strength to strength with the addition of this new podcast that highlights rising stars in real estate. The speakers that have been selected by the Young Leaders Executive Committee are an inspiration not only to those that are developing their careers in the industry but also for everybody in the industry. The younger generation have an important role to play in how society confronts the major disruptions we see, for example, related to climate change, decarbonisation and digitalisation, and therefore we have a lot to learn from them.”

The first episode, which features Reza Merchant, chief executive officer & founder, The Collective, as guest speaker, will be available from the end of March. For more information on how to download the podcast series, and to find out more about the ULI Europe Young Leaders programme – sponsored by AXA Investment Managers and PATRIZIA – visit europe.uli.org/young-leaders