In December 2018, Evangelos Andreou, a local coordinator from Greece, won the Friedrich Naumann Foundation’s “Young Liberal of the Year” Award. The award was a part of the Prometheus Awards, an awards ceremony organized by Kefim which is the largest pro-liberty think tank in Greece. The awards recognize individuals who have made significant contributions to liberty in Greece. Evangelos has been using his writing to drive conversations about liberty, and the Greek liberty movement has taken notice.

“I would not have had this impact in Greece if it wasn’t for the SFL network. It was only after meeting different students from around Europe that I was inspired to write. Before the retreat, I hadn’t fully thought about writing as a tool to promote the ideas of liberty in Greece. Thanks to SFL’s network, my writing continues to drive conversations.”

Evangelos’ work rose to prominence after he wrote an op-ed for FEE titled, “Why Poor People in the Freest Nations Have Incomes 8x Higher Than Poor People in the Least Free.” This op-ed was translated into Greek and was widely discussed in Greek liberty circles. Evangelos is a talented writer who is well-versed in pro-liberty principles. However, he would not have started writing if he hadn’t met the Speak Freely editorial team at ESFL’s Top Global Leaders Retreat in Gummersbach, Germany in August 2018. He wrote his first Speak Freely article on the Greek liberty movement a few weeks after the retreat. His most recent piece has been shared over 34,000 times.

Evangelos is currently studying political science at Panteion University and economics at the American College of Greece. He first got involved with Students For Liberty in February 2018, after being encouraged by his colleagues during his internship at Kefim. He is dedicated to reviving the student liberty movement in his country where student activism mostly happens through political party affiliation. Evangelos wants to be part of a new movement based on ideas, not partisanship, and Students For Liberty has given him that opportunity.

“Students For Liberty is an opportunity for self-development. Through SFL, I have found a strong network of students who care about freedom, and I have reached many people with the ideas of liberty. I want more young people to understand the need for more individual liberty in Greece and the ways that Students For Liberty can help them develop skills for their personal and professional development.”