This fourth annual edition of Women of Europe Awards, which was held at BELvue Museum on Wednesday, 4 December, continued to honour women striving to advance the European project in their professional or private capacity. While the role of women in the European project remains at times unrecognised, the awards highlight the contribution of women in promoting and advancing European issues, and to increase the presence and involvement of women in debates about Europe and its future.

See below the complete list of winners for the 2019 Women of Europe Awards :

Woman in Power | showing extraordinary political leadership in Europe
Laura Codruța Kövesi Chief EU Public Prosecutor Elect
Shortlisted Mairead McGuinness – First Vice President of the European Parliament & Marija Pejčinović Burić – Secretary-General of the Council of Europe

Kövesi received the award for showing extraordinary political leadership in Europe through her notable work against high-level corruption in Romania. She recently became the first Chief EU Public Prosecutor at the newly established European Public Prosecutors Office (EPPO). Upon receiving the Woman in Power Award, Laura Codruța Kövesi said, “I am very honoured to receive the “Woman in Power” award and I see it as a recognition of my efforts and as an encouragement to not give up on my work. In my view, to be powerful means to gain the trust of the people, and importantly, to succeed in keeping it. In my line of work, you can do so only by working professionally, being consequent and by respecting the law at all times. This award belongs equally to all of the people that have supported me in the fight against corruption, and in upholding the rule of law and European values. I would especially like to thank all my supporters over the years. Moving forward, we need to work to promote equality, justice and the rule of law, as the European Movement has done for the last 70 years.”

Woman in Action | undertaking extraordinary actions at grassroots level in Europe
Milena Kadieva Human Rights Lawyer
Shortlisted Vicky Phelan – A voice for women in medical malpractice & Gals4Gals Lodz / Lodzkie Dziewuchy Dziewuchom – Polish Feminist Collective

Kadieva received the award for undertaking extraordinary actions at the grassroots level in Europe through her work as a human rights lawyer at the Gender Alternatives Foundation, which is working towards the protection and empowerment of women. Upon receiving the Woman in Action Award, Milena Kadieva said, “Thank you. My mission as a human rights lawyer has always been to protect women and girls from violence, to work for gender equality and to support those in need. I am grateful to the European Movement International and the European Women’s Lobby for recognizing my work and awarding me with such an important award. It is a recognition of every active woman in Europe. It is an inspiration to all women and girls in Europe that their actions matter. It is a sign that even the work of a single woman could change the world.”

Woman in Business | advancing European integration with entrepreneurial spirit
Eleonora Azzaoui & Vera Günther Founders of Mimycri
Shortlisted Helen Dixon – Data Protection Commissioner for Ireland & Heli Kurjanen – Founder of Lune Group LTD.

Azzaoui and Günther received the award for advancing European integration with an entrepreneurial spirit through their work at Mimycri, an organisation which designs and manufactures high-quality bags from rubber refugee boats and aims to stimulate conversations about escape and migration. Upon receiving the Woman in Business Award, Eleonora Azzaoui & Vera Günther said, “Only 12% of investor money in Europe goes to women-led start-ups. This is shocking. This is wrong. It is 2019. It is Europe. Changing this number to 50% has to be our priority. Achieving this means that we don’t equate male qualities with success qualities. It means that being a parent and an entrepreneur is supported and desirable for all sexes. It means that some people will have to give up their privilege.”

Woman in Youth Activism | for women aged 15 to 30 strengthening the voice of young women in Europe
Johanna Nejedlová Co-Founder of KONSENT
Shortlisted Síona Cahill – Irish Youth Activist and Strident Feminist & Greta Thunberg – Swedish Climate Change Activist

Nejedlová received the award for strengthening the voice of young women in Europe through her dedicated work to make Czech society a better and safer place by educating on sexual harassment and the consequences of it. Upon receiving the Woman in Youth Activism Award, Johanna Nejedlová said, “It’s imperative to eliminate violence against women in order to achieve equality. We cannot expect women to truly flourish, both personally and professionally, if their safety remains threatened by harassment, assault or rape. We need to focus on creating a safer and better environment for women. And, there is no shortage of tools to do so. We need politicians and public figures to speak up and make gender-based sexual violence their priority and the first step on the long journey towards gender equality is the ratification and implementation of the Istanbul Convention in all European countries.”

The award ceremony was moderated by journalist Méabh McMahon, Euronews (@Brusselsness) and attended by the winners, shortlisted and jury members as well our wider network consisting of civil society, business, trade unions, NGOs, political parties, local authorities and media. The jury was chaired by Eva Maydell MEP, President of the European Movement International, includes representatives from politics, business, academia and civil society.

It was an inspiring ceremony, celebrating the incredible achievements and contributions of women in Europe. You can read about all the shortlisted nominees here.

More photos of the ceremony are available here.

We encourage you to continue the discussions on Twitter using the hashtag #WomenofEurope. You can also follow the 2019 event partners @EMInternational, @EuropeanWomen, @METRO_Politics, @FTIConsulting, @bakermckenzie and @euronews.