In this edition of PLF Alumni Hour, alumna Karolina Leakovic will share her experience working across both policy and politics, exploring how the two dimensions interact and inform each other, followed by peer discussion with current fellows and alumni.
The PLF Alumni Hour is a peer-to-peer learning space where alumni share their experiences, lessons learnt, and professional insights with current fellows and the wider STG alumni community.
In this session, PLF alumni who have transitioned into politically embedded roles explore what it means to move from technocratic policy work into the world of party politics, parliamentary life, and electoral campaigns.
How does policy expertise translate into political contexts? How do you navigate ideology and partisanship while maintaining integrity and independence? And what does career progression look like in politically dynamic environments?
This is an open conversation about motivations, trade-offs, and the reality of working at the intersection of policy and politics.
Join the session via Zoom: https://eui-eu.zoom.us/j/92822868582?pwd=8v5XtTdIl3odPyw7LLlmL4BxmhAWTB.1
About the speakers:
Karolina Leakovic has served as International Secretary of the Social Democratic Party of Croatia (SDP) since 2020, having previously held the position from 2008 to 2016. She is a former member of the Croatian Parliament and has held various positions within SDP, including leader of the party's women's organisation and Vice-President of PES Women (2015-2018). Karolina graduated from the Faculty of Political Science in Zagreb and the Academy for Dramatic Arts, and is currently pursuing a PhD in sociology at the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences in Zagreb. She is a PLF 2022-23 alumna and a Fulbright scholar (Arizona State University). Her interests are focused on media production, labour relations and just global governance.
Federica Vinci is Project Manager and Community Lead for D-Hub, co-coordinator for Italy for My Voice My Choice, and an Obama Leader: Europe 2020. She co-founded Volt Italia, part of Volt Europa, the first progressive pan-European party aimed at taking collective action to strengthen the European Union. With Volt, she was elected Deputy Mayor of her city, Isernia, in Italy. Federica holds a Bachelor's degree in Politics, Philosophy, and Economics from Luiss University, a Master's in International Public Management from PSIA - SciencesPo, Paris, and an Executive Certificate in Leadership Coaching from Georgetown University. She is a PLF 2018-19 alumna.