Meet the team
We are a growing team that consists of talented and passionate individuals who are committed to making a difference. If you want to be part of a rapidly expanding organization and help us safeguard our future by tackling technological risks together, then explore our open roles and start your career journey with us.
Team members
Annika BrackChief Executive Officer
Previously, she has worked on energy and climate policy in the German Parliament, as a corporate lobbyist in Berlin and Brussels, and managed numerous projects and publications of the World Economic Forum (WEF), including its Europe strategy and Digital Europe initiative.
Annika is a WEF Global Leadership Fellow, an alumna of the United Nations Alliance of Civilizations Fellowship, and the UN Mastermind Groups.
She earned degrees from Sciences Po Paris and Free University in Berlin, and was an undergraduate student at George Washington University in Washington, D.C.
Chief Executive Officer
Previously, she has worked on energy and climate policy in the German Parliament, as a corporate lobbyist in Berlin and Brussels, and managed numerous projects and publications of the World Economic Forum (WEF), including its Europe strategy and Digital Europe initiative.
Annika is a WEF Global Leadership Fellow, an alumna of the United Nations Alliance of Civilizations Fellowship, and the UN Mastermind Groups.
She earned degrees from Sciences Po Paris and Free University in Berlin, and was an undergraduate student at George Washington University in Washington, D.C.
Prior to joining ICFG, she launched and led the Open Governance Network for Europe, a joint initiative of the Open Government Partnership and Democratic Society dedicated to improving democracy and governance in the European Union. Previously, she managed the Democracy, Conflict, and Governance Program at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace in Europe, where she was responsible for international research networks and policy initiatives on democracy and governance, civil society, technology, and international affairs.
Maria has written on a range of topics, including encryption policy, technology and repression, environmental activism, democracy, and governance.
Maria earned her master’s degree from Universiteit Utrecht in The Netherlands and her bachelor’s degree from Wilfrid Laurier University in Canada.
Governance Lead and Interim
Program Lead - Neurotechnology
Prior to joining ICFG, she launched and led the Open Governance Network for Europe, a joint initiative of the Open Government Partnership and Democratic Society dedicated to improving democracy and governance in the European Union. Previously, she managed the Democracy, Conflict, and Governance Program at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace in Europe, where she was responsible for international research networks and policy initiatives on democracy and governance, civil society, technology, and international affairs.
Maria has written on a range of topics, including encryption policy, technology and repression, environmental activism, democracy, and governance.
Maria earned her master’s degree from Universiteit Utrecht in The Netherlands and her bachelor’s degree from Wilfrid Laurier University in Canada.
In the past, Jakob has advised American policy-makers on biosecurity as a project lead at SecureBio. He is also a former McKinsey Global Institute fellow, where he worked on climate risk, European technology competitiveness, global priorities research, and climate transitions, among other things. Jakob also co-founded the Norwegian Center for Long-Term Policy, where he currently serves as a special advisor in his spare time.
His work has been presented at the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting in Davos , the Munich Security Conference, and the 2022 Bali G20 summit, and he has informed the strategies of leading private- and public sector institutions such as BlackRock and the United States White House Office of Science and Technology Policy.
Jakob earned his master’s degree from the Norwegian University of Science and Technology, where his thesis focused on autonomous trading on power markets for renewable energy producers.
Foresight Lead and Interim Program Lead - Biotechnology
In the past, Jakob has advised American policy-makers on biosecurity as a project lead at SecureBio. He is also a former McKinsey Global Institute fellow, where he worked on climate risk, European technology competitiveness, global priorities research, and climate transitions, among other things. Jakob also co-founded the Norwegian Center for Long-Term Policy, where he currently serves as a special advisor in his spare time.
His work has been presented at the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting in Davos, the Munich Security Conference, and the 2022 Bali G20 summit, and he has informed the strategies of leading private- and public sector institutions such as BlackRock and the United States White House Office of Science and Technology Policy.
Jakob earned his master’s degree from the Norwegian University of Science and Technology, where his thesis focused on autonomous trading on power markets for renewable energy producers.
Vacancy
Program Lead – Geoengineering Technology
Vacancy
Program Lead – Quantum Technology
Vacancy
Program Lead – Advanced Artificial Intelligence
Emily is a member of the New European Voices on Existential Risk (NEVER) and an alumni of the Geneva Science-Diplomacy Anticipator Immersion Program (2023).
Emily holds two master’s degrees from the London School of Economics and Science Po Paris, and completed her undergraduate studies at University College Utrecht.
Advisory Board & Partnerships Liaison
Emily is a member of the New European Voices on Existential Risk (NEVER) and an alumni of the Geneva Science-Diplomacy Anticipator Immersion Program (2023).
Emily holds two master’s degrees from the London School of Economics and Science Po Paris, and completed her undergraduate studies at University College Utrecht.
Vacancy
Director of
Communications
Eva holds degrees in mechanical engineering and East Asian studies, and a master of public administration in policy and innovation from UCL.
Policy Analyst - Advanced Artificial Intelligence
Eva holds degrees in mechanical engineering and East Asian studies, and a master of public administration in policy and innovation from UCL.
Driven by a genuine curiosity about the implications of general-purpose AI, Max delves into the nuances of transformative AI and its potential challenges. Eager to understand the intricacies of socio-technical systems, he seeks insights into decision-making under deep uncertainty. His academic journey has been diverse, and he remains ever-passionate about ensuring technology evolves conprogramsiderately.
Researcher - Advanced Artificial Intelligence
Driven by a genuine curiosity about the implications of general-purpose AI, Max delves into the nuances of transformative AI and its potential challenges. Eager to understand the intricacies of socio-technical systems, he seeks insights into decision-making under deep uncertainty. His academic journey has been diverse, and he remains ever-passionate about ensuring technology evolves conprogramsiderately.
She’s a lawyer with a degree from the University of Valencia and a master’s in Legal Practice from UCAM, and founded the NGO ReGrow. She specializes in international public law, environmental law, and animal law. Amada contributed to the Human Rights Institute at the University of Valencia and pursued three years of doctoral studies in their International Law, Justice, and Democracy Program. She successfully worked on legislative advancements in animal welfare and public health.
Research Assistant - Advanced Artificial Intelligence
She’s a lawyer with a degree from the University of Valencia and a master’s in Legal Practice from UCAM, and founded the NGO ReGrow. She specializes in international public law, environmental law, and animal law. Amada contributed to the Human Rights Institute at the University of Valencia and pursued three years of doctoral studies in their International Law, Justice, and Democracy Program. She successfully worked on legislative advancements in animal welfare and public health.
Mirella has a background in C-level executive support, family office support, travel and event management, public relations, and communications.
Personal Assistant & Operations Lead
Mirella has a background in C-level executive support, family office support, travel and event management, public relations, and communications.
Advisors
Between 2009 and 2019, she served as a member of European Parliament for the Dutch liberal democratic party where she focused on trade, foreign affairs, and technology policies. Marietje is an (advisory) board member with a number of nonprofits including MERICS, ECFR, ORF, and AccessNow.
Since December 2022, Marietje has been advising ICFG as a practice lead for its work on emerging technology governance.
She writes a monthly column for the Financial Times and served as (independent) special advisor to the executive vice-president of the European Commission, Margrethe Vestager. Marietje serves on French President Macron’s “Tech Thinkers” Advisory Council.
Practice Lead - Emerging Technology Governance
Between 2009 and 2019, she served as a member of European Parliament for the Dutch liberal democratic party where she focused on trade, foreign affairs, and technology policies. Marietje is an (advisory) board member with a number of nonprofits including MERICS, ECFR, ORF, and AccessNow.
Since December 2022, Marietje has been advising ICFG as a practice lead for its work on emerging technology governance.
She writes a monthly column for the Financial Times and served as (independent) special advisor to the executive vice-president of the European Commission, Margrethe Vestager. Marietje serves on French President Macron’s “Tech Thinkers” Advisory Council.
Until September 2023, Pawel was director general of the Human Brain Project and CEO of EBRAINS, the Research Infrastructure for brain studies.
Paweł believes that the 21st Century will be marked by the centrality of the brain. He is a passionate advocate for active brain health and mental health policies, an ardent supporter of innovation in the field, and a believer in the need for greater cognitive welfare. He shares a conviction that reliance on brain capital will be a key driver of societal progress and harmony in the next decades.
He is also a member of the Strategic Council of the European Policy Centre, a member of the Steering Board of the Brain Capital Alliance, which is a public-private-people partnership advancing brain capital activities in policy, economics, and investing, and he is a member of the Steering Board of the OECD Neuroscience-inspired Policy Initiative.
Paweł comes from the South-Eastern Polish town of Rzeszów and is a dual Polish-Belgian citizen, based in Brussels, Belgium.
Practice Lead - Neurotechnology
Until September 2023, Pawel was director general of the Human Brain Project and CEO of EBRAINS, the Research Infrastructure for brain studies.
Paweł believes that the 21st Century will be marked by the centrality of the brain. He is a passionate advocate for active brain health and mental health policies, an ardent supporter of innovation in the field, and a believer in the need for greater cognitive welfare. He shares a conviction that reliance on brain capital will be a key driver of societal progress and harmony in the next decades.
He is also a member of the Strategic Council of the European Policy Centre, a member of the Steering Board of the Brain Capital Alliance, which is a public-private-people partnership advancing brain capital activities in policy, economics, and investing, and he is a member of the Steering Board of the OECD Neuroscience-inspired Policy Initiative.
Paweł comes from the South-Eastern Polish town of Rzeszów and is a dual Polish-Belgian citizen, based in Brussels, Belgium.
Board of Directors
Steven Schuurman
Co-founder & Chairman
Steven is an internationally acclaimed high-tech entrepreneur and CEO. He is best known for founding two of the most successful open-source software companies in history, SpringSource (acquired by VMware in 2009) and Elastic. Elastic’s October 2018 IPO was described on the New York Stock Exchange as one of the most successful launches in the past 20 years. In 2014, Steven co-founded the Hollywood-based media and entertainment company Atlantis Entertainment. Steven is also the founder and chairman of the Future NL foundation and is on the board of the Rijksmuseum.
Steven Schuurman
Co-founder & Chairman
Laurens de Groot
Co-founder
Laurens is a social tech entrepreneur and environmental activist. After almost a decade with the Dutch police, he started campaigning against poaching of endangered species. He battled against illegal whaling in Antartica and rhino poachers in Africa. To generate more impact, Laurens also founded a number of innovative companies. He co-founded Skycap, a drone company specialized in environmental inspections, Silverback Protein and Smart Parks which provides high-tech solutions for park management in rural areas, mostly Africa. In addition, he works in the Dutch House of Representatives, made various programs for Discovery Channel and is the author of the book ‘Hunting the Hunters’. In 2018, he received the Tech for Global Good Laureate from the Silicon Valley Museum of Innovation.
Laurens de Groot
Co-founder
Cressida Pollock
Secretary
Cressida Pollock is a purpose driven leader and deep generalist who has worked on implementing transformations across organizations and systems. She has advised national and multinational companies, governments and NGOs on strategic challenges and complex transitions.
Her current work focuses on the deployment of philanthropic and commercial capital to shift the current trajectory on climate change and build towards long-term sustainable economic systems.
She led Quadrature Climate Foundation during its initial three years from start up to established philanthropic grantmaker, establishing it as a leading institution in climate philanthropy with granting commitments of over $500m. Prior to that she was the Chief Executive of English National Opera where she led the rescue and turnaround of the company from 2015-2018. She has previously worked at McKinsey and was founding member of Somerset Capital Management, an emerging markets focused investment fund.
Cressida is a board member for the International Rescue Climate UK, the Climate Breakthrough Project, and is an Advisory Board member for the Smith School of Enterprise and Environment. She holds an undergraduate degree from Cambridge and an MBA from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
Cressida Pollock
Secretary
Prof. Ian Goldin
Treasurer
Ian Goldin is Professor of Globalisation and Development at the University of Oxford, Professional Fellow at Balliol College, Oxford University, and from 2006 to 2016 was the founding Director of Oxford University’s interdisciplinary Oxford Martin School.
He currently leads the Oxford Martin research programs on Technological and Economic Change, Future of Work and Future of Development. From 2001 to 2006 Ian was Vice President of the World Bank and the Group’s Director of Policy and Special Representative at the United Nations. From 1996 to 2001, he was economic advisor to President Mandela and the Chief Executive of the Development Bank of Southern Africa (DBSA), transforming it to become the largest investor in infrastructure and over 500 municipalities in the 14 countries of Southern Africa.
Previously, Ian served as Principal Economist at the EBRD and as the Director of Programmes at the OECD Development Centre. He has an MSCs from the London School of Economics and an MA and Doctorate from the University of Oxford.
Ian has been knighted by the French Government and received numerous awards. He has published over 60 journal articles and 23 books. His most recent is Rescue: From Global Crisis to a Better World. His previous books include Terra Incognita: 100 Maps to Survive the Next 100 Years, Age of Discovery: Navigating the Storms of our Second Renaissance and The Butterfly Defect: Why Globalization Creates Systemic Risks and What to Do, in which he in 2014 predicted that a global pandemic was the most likely cause of the next financial crisis. Other books include Development: A Very Short Introduction; and Is the Planet Full? He has authored and presented three BBC Documentary Series After The Crash; Will AI Kill Development? and The Pandemic that Changed the World.
Ian Goldin has provided advisory services to the IMF, UN, EU, OECD and over 100 Fortune 500 Companies and has served as a Non-executive Director on six globally listed companies, including as the Senior Independent Director and Chairing a wide rage of Board Committees. Ian is an acclaimed speaker at TED, Google Zeitgeist, WEF and other meetings and is Chair of the core-econ.org initiative to transform economics.
Prof. Ian Goldin
Treasurer
