School of Transnational Governance

Diana Rusu

Diana_Rusu

Fellowship period: 1 February - 30 June 2021

Topic: Define a new model for the EU innovation ecosystem

 Diana Rusu

Diana Rusu is an Innovation strategist with proven experience in leading successful initiatives & programs across sectors: private, public, not for profit/professional associations. Her areas of interests include: innovation ecosystem building, sustainability, impact funds, digitalization policies/projects, and entrepreneurship.

In her current position as the Executive Director of Spherik Accelerator, the Startup Europe ambassador  accelerator in Romania and a leader of the regional (CEE) collaboration, she designs programs providing valuable scaling up support to innovative CEE startups. At the same time, she acts as a consultant in European projects and is a frequent guest speaker at various national and European events, addressing the following topics: innovation ecosystem design, impact investments, sustainability, and gender policies. 

Diana holds a BA in Political Science (Babes-Bolyai University, Romania) and a MA in International Relations and European Studies (Central European University, Hungary). She is a fellow of the Aspen Young Leaders Program in Romania, a member of Global Shapers network, and a recent awardee of the Visitors Leadership Program run by the US Department of State.