Alfredo Jaar is a Chilean-born artist, architect, and filmmaker based in New York. Known for his powerful, socially engaged practice, his work has been shown worldwide, including at the Venice Biennale, São Paulo Biennale, and Documenta. Jaar uses images, absence, and silence as tools to reveal the structures of power that shape our world. His installations are meditations on injustice, remembrance, and resistance. Jaar has exhibited in over 100 countries, and his work is held in the world’s most respected collections—from MoMA and Tate to the Centre Pompidou. But beyond accolades, what defines him is a refusal to look away. Jaar is a MacArthur Fellow, a Guggenheim Fellow, and recipient of the Hiroshima Art Prize and the Hasselblad Award.
James Nestor is a science journalist and the bestselling author of Breath: The New Science of a Lost Art, a book that changed how millions of people understand something as fundamental—and as overlooked—as breathing. With deep dives into ancient practices, cutting-edge science, and his own bodily experiments, Nestor reveals the power of breath to restore health, rewire our systems, and reconnect us with our most elemental selves. His writing has appeared in Scientific American, Outside, The New York Times, and more. Breath was named Best General Nonfiction Book of 2020 by the American Society of Journalists and Authors and translated into more than 35 languages.
Tristan Gooley is a writer, natural navigator, and explorer of the unnoticed. He is the only living person to have both sailed solo across the Atlantic and piloted small aircraft solo over the same ocean, but his true passion lies in teaching others how to reawaken their senses and see the world with new (and ancient) eyes. In his books, including The Natural Navigator and How to Read a Tree, Gooley invites us to consider orientation—not just as a way of getting from A to B, but as a mode of attention, an embodied way of thinking, sensing, and being in the world.
Daniel Jones is the founding editor of the Modern Love column, one of the most loved columns of The New York Times, and has spent two decades shaping true stories about love in all its forms—heartbreak, tenderness, longing, and humor. Through thousands of narratives, he reminds us that the leaps we take in love are as varied as they are universal, and that telling these stories can transform the way we understand one another and even heal.
IN-Q is a multi-platinum songwriter, National Poetry Slam champion, and one of Oprah’s SuperSoul 100. He’s written for Miley Cyrus and Aloe Blacc, performed with Cirque du Soleil, and shared stages with Barack Obama and John Legend. Calling poetry “a church without religion,” his work transforms the noise of modern life into truth, vulnerability, and power, inspiring millions through viral performances and his bestselling book Inquire Within.
Ian Daly is the Head of Brand Strategy at Live Nation Entertainment, where he shapes the company’s global brand and strategic direction. A storyteller at heart, he won Cannes Lions at agencies like Grey and Anomaly, reframed Budweiser’s image, led strategy for iPhone launches, and grew Tribeca Enterprises as CSO. Formerly at Condé Nast, he’s a contributing writer for The New York Times and Wired UK. This year, he returns to co-host #U25!
That's one small step for a man, one giant leap for mankind.
Neil
Armstrong
All growth is a leap in the dark, a spontaneous unpremeditated act without benefit of experience.
Henry
Miller
The artist never entirely knows. We guess. We may be wrong, but we take leap after leap in the dark.
Agnes
de Mille
Creativity is always a leap of faith. You're faced with a blank page, blank easel, or an empty stage.
Julia
Cameron
It is by attempting to reach the top in a single leap that so much misery is produced in the world.
William
Cobbett
We must walk consciously only part way toward our goal, and then leap in the dark to our success.
Henry David
Thoreau
Subjectivity ceases to exist only when the mutation-like leap is made from subjectivity to objectivity, from individual existence to universal existence.
Piet
Mondrian
Leap, and the net will appear.
John
Burroughs
Creativity makes a leap, then looks to see where it is.
Mason
Cooley
To make it interesting and worth doing, writing a novel has to be a leap into the unknown. I have to be unsure if I can write it; otherwise, I won't want to.
Charles
Palliser
Cheese is milk's leap toward immortality.
Clifton
Fadiman
Sometimes your only available transportation is a leap of faith.
Mila Morrisis reimagining how we age, heal, and live. With a background in architecture and systems thinking, she approaches the body like a living structure—something to be understood deeply, designed intentionally, and cared for with precision. Through Decima, the health company she’s building, Mila works at the intersection of science and design to create elegant, humane answers to some of the hardest questions about longevity, vitality, and agency. Her work doesn’t chase immortality—it reaches for a future where we grow older with more grace, more choice, and more life.
Lera Zujeva is a facilitator, somatic guide, and student of alchemy—of the inner kind. Her path began with the Way of Tea, a meditative Daoist practice that opened her to transformation from head to heart. Today, she weaves together sacred plant rituals, VortexHealing®, and ancestral release work to help others return to wholeness. In her presence, healing is not a destination, but a deep remembering—of stillness, softness, and the simple truth of being alive.
Timmy Ghiurău is a futurist and innovation leader working at the frontier of XR, AI, and simulation. At Volvo Cars, he pioneered the use of Unity, Varjo, and NVIDIA to bring immersive tech from early design to validation, ergonomics, and self-driving UX. He co-founded The Point Labs (New Immersive Bauhaus), where his projects span digital twins, immersive art experiences, worldbuilding, and European foresight initiatives. A frequent speaker at TED, SXSW, Cannes, and AWE, and an active investor in deeptech and creative industries, he works to strengthen the European research ecosystem and turn future scenarios into living experiments for culture, policy, and technology.
Ana Mărgărita is a parenting counselor and co-founder of CUIB, an educational center for preschoolers. A woman, daughter, partner, and mother, she lives among stories of beginnings—between roots that ground and wings that invite flight. At UNFINISHED, she brings questions: what do life’s early leaps feel like, and do they ever stop? Passionate about the mountains, she shares with her children a living connection to nature.
Denis Blidariu is a strong human rights advocate and board member of the Romanian National Association of Sign Language Interpreters – he grew up in a deaf family, which deeply influenced his proficiency in Romanian Sign Language (LSR) and shaped his passion for bridging communication gaps. His expertise extends to interpreting in diverse cultural environments, including cinemas, concerts, theatres, and festivals, as well as in both national and international conferences. His role is essential in fostering an inclusive environment where every idea can be shared and explored, ensuring that all voices and perspectives are part of the creative process. Through their interpretation, they help bridge gaps and bring our diverse ideas to life.
Anca Damerell is an explorer of bold ideas, grounded in the entangled relationships that sustain life on Earth. As Director of Innovation at Unearthodox, she brings people together to reframe and respond to complex nature-society challenges. Her work focuses on shifting how problems are understood—challenging assumptions, applying systems thinking, and making space for lateral approaches that can unlock new possibilities. Her path has moved through the University of Cambridge, the UN Environment Programme-WCMC, Fauna & Flora, the European Parliament, and the old-growth forests of Romania, where she co-founded the NGO Agent Green.
Avisek Majumdar is a seasoned Yoga teacher, Ayurveda practitioner, and wellbeing consultant, is keen to teach us. Avi is the founder of Conscious Living Romania and Prakriti School of Yoga, where he leads regular classes and workshops. His practice, often blending immersive sound baths with principles of Hatha Yoga & Yogic psychology, resets you into understanding that your mind and body are your playground.
Marian Ganciu is an herbalist, phytotherapist, nutritionist, and trauma healing practitioner who bridges science and spirit through plants. Founder of Herb Explorers, he guides transformative journeys using medicinal foraging, spagyrics, and nature-based therapies. Marian shows how plants can restore balance to body, mind, and soul. He earned his Master Herbalist diploma in 2019 through the Center of Excellence program in England, followed by accreditation as a Nutritionist at the Academy of Nutrition in 2020. In 2023, he completed the Master-level training in Trauma Healing – Compassionate Inquiry. Most recently, in 2024, he became an Accredited Phytotherapist certified by UPMCA.
Adelina Toma is the founder of Ițe Urbane in Bucharest, and a self-taught designer who transforms textile scraps, botanical dyes, and artisanal techniques into wearable art. Last year, she brought a permanent, site-specific fabric installation to the UNFINISHED greenhouse, inviting us to experience nature’s colors in new, immersive ways. This year, she will host a workshop exploring plant dyeing and the deep connections between what we wear, what we eat, and how we relate to the world around us.
Lara Schütz is a master baker, the first Romanian bread sommelière, beer sommelier and certified expert in the sensory analysis of bread. Born in Romania and currently living in Austria, Lara has been in love with the divine smell of freshly baked bread since her childhood, thanks to her grandmother Maia. Later, she rediscovered the fascination for sourdough bread through her husband, an Austrian who would carry bread in his luggage when he was working as an expat in Romania. A philology graduate, Lara gave up her career in education and chose instead to focus on educating the palate. Her great passion for bread led her to become a true specialist in the field, with professional training in Canada, Germany, France and Austria.
Georgiana Buta–a certified Yoga Teacher and Master Trainer–weaves together the wisdom of Hatha, Vinyasa, Yin, Prenatal, and Womb Yoga, enriched by a deep knowledge of spine anatomy. A seeker of balance and inner truth, she walked eight years through the demanding rhythms of the corporate world before yoga revealed itself as her sanctuary and source of strength. Guided by this transformation, Georgiana now shares her practice as an offering of growth—inviting others to discover resilience in the body, stillness in the mind, and harmony in the heart.
Valeria Stoica is an indie-pop artist from Moldova who makes music that feels like a quiet conversation by the campfire. Since debuting with “Remember,” she’s steadily built a deep connection with listeners in Romania and beyond. Her debut album, I Don’t Like Roses, earned her a nomination for European Independent Album of the Year from IMPALA. Valeria’s sound—acoustic simplicity mixed with emotive depth—has been praised as a “musical and cinematic gem. Her work lives in that space between indie folk and pop, evoking warmth, presence, and quiet strength.
Luiza Zan & Sepsi Gospel bring together the power of jazz and gospel in a collaboration that has been enchanting audiences since 2005. Sepsi Gospel, Transylvania’s only gospel choir, is known for its heartfelt performances and charitable projects, while acclaimed jazz singer, songwriter, film and theater music composer and the first vocal jazz teacher in Romania, Luiza Zan, adds her unique timbre and passion for improvisation. They have been collaborating since 2005. Together, they bridge cultures and generations through the healing force of music.
