The Future Makers Podcast: Women Building Cyprus
The Future Makers Podcast is a series of in-depth conversations about how future-makers are made, in Cyprus and beyond. Host Annetta Benzar speaks with people who are shaping our shared future, looking beyond their titles. Guests share the people and moments that shaped them, the choices and challenges they face now, and the futures they hope to build. The show is produced by The Future Media and connected to Forbes Cyprus.
Επεισόδια
I Used to Get 15 Rejections Before Brushing My Teeth. Then Macmillan Said Yes
In this episode of Future Makers: Women Building Cyprus, Annetta Benzar speaks with Costantia Manoli, the award-winning author of Tomatoes in My Lunchbox and The Fig Tree.The Future Makers Podcast is a series of in-depth conversations about how future-makers are made, in Cyprus and beyond. Host Annetta Benzar sits down with people who are a leading force in our shared future and looks past the tit
She Left A Stable Job With 3-Year-Old Twins To Build A Life By The Sea
In this episode of Future Makers: Women Building Cyprus, Annetta Benzar speaks with Angie Iacovou, co-owner and manager of Kahuna Surfhouse.The Future Makers Podcast is a series of in-depth conversations about how future-makers are made, in Cyprus and beyond. Host Annetta Benzar sits down with people who are a leading force in our shared future and looks past the titles. Together, they travel back
Women Were Expected To Work, Not Have Ambition | Dr Charis Xinari
In this episode of Future Makers: Women Building Cyprus, Annetta Benzar sits down with Dr Charis Xinari, Associate Professor of Critical and Cultural Theory at the European University Cyprus, to talk about the social scripts that shaped women in Cyprus, leaving and returning, building an academic identity, feminist theory, football and belonging, technology-based gender violence, critical media li
They Said 30 Was Too Old To Start Running. Then She Won
In this episode of Future Makers: Women Building Cyprus, Annetta Benzar speaks with Antonia Stelikou, an agronomist, teacher, doctoral researcher and long-distance runner.Antonia did not grow up in a sporting family. She started running seriously at 30, and the first reaction around her was that she was already too old. Then she entered her first race, a 10K in Ayia Napa, and won.What began on a t
The Cypriot Greek She Was Told Was Wrong | Effie Athanassiou
In this episode of Future Makers: Women Building Cyprus, Annetta Benzar speaks with Iphigenia “Effie” Athanassiou, Founder and CEO of Cyprusays®, the mobile app teaching Kypriaka — Cypriot Greek — digitally.Raised in Australia in a Greek Cypriot family, Effie grew up hearing Kypriaka at home but learning standard Modern Greek at school. Years later, when she wanted to reconnect more deeply with th
Stop Saying Women Need Empowerment | Anna Prodromou
In this episode of Future Makers: Women Building Cyprus, Annetta Benzar speaks with Anna Prodromou, consultant, researcher and trainer in communication, diversity, equity and inclusion, and responsible AI. Anna is the founder of Anna Prodromou Inc., president of the WICZ+ Foundation, and is currently pursuing a PhD in human-computer interaction, focusing on AI governance, transparency and accounta
Dr Marianna Prokopi-Demetriades: The Cancer Researcher Who Turned Grief Into Her Life’s Mission
Grief could have stopped her. Instead, it became the reason she built a career around helping cancer patients live with less pain.In this episode of Future Makers, Annetta Benzar speaks with cancer researcher and biotech entrepreneur Dr Marianna Prokopi-Demetriades about how grief, unemployment and repeated setbacks became the foundation of a life’s mission centred on reducing pain and improving q
Dr. Yiola Marcou: What Cancer Teaches Us About Life, Fear & Care
Cancer changes the way we understand life, fear, family, and care. In this episode of Future Makers: Women Building Cyprus, Annetta Benzar sits down with Dr. Yiola Marcou, Consultant Medical Oncologist at the Bank of Cyprus Oncology Centre, to talk about breast cancer, the human side of oncology, women in medicine, ethics, prevention, and what Cyprus needs to protect and improve in its healthcare
Dr. Antigoni Komodiki: Cyprus Needs Doers, Not Just Talkers
Cyprus does not need more people waiting for change. It needs more people willing to do the work.In this episode of Future Makers: Women Building Cyprus, Annetta Benzar sits down with Dr. Antigoni Komodiki, CEO of Junior Achievement Cyprus and Chair of the Executive Board of JA Europe, to talk about education, social justice, women’s representation, and why young people need more than knowledge to
Sophia Papastavrou: “Identity Is Negotiated” on Power, Peace, and Motherhood
What if the most important thing you learn early in life is that identity is negotiated, not given?In this episode, Annetta Benzar sits down with Sophia Papastavrou (World Vision Canada) to talk about power beyond titles, why she doesn’t accept symbolic gestures in place of real change, and what it means to raise a child while trying to end cycles of inherited trauma.The Future Makers Podcast is a
Don’t Play The Game. Lead With Transparency | Sara Gunnervik
In this episode of Future Makers: Women Building Cyprus, Annetta Benzar speaks with Sara Gunnervik, Partner at KENDRIS Group and Managing Partner of KENDRIS Cyprus and Luxembourg. Born in Sweden and based in Cyprus for more than 25 years, Sara reflects on feminist upbringing, single motherhood, leadership, ethics, women in senior rooms, building the KENDRIS Cyprus office, and why transparency, kin
Ideas Don’t Build Themselves | Maria Evgeniou
Cyprus is full of ideas, but ideas do not survive without people, networks and the courage to build. In this episode of Future Makers: Women Building Cyprus, Annetta Benzar sits down with Maria Evgeniou, Innovation and Entrepreneurship Officer at IDEA Innovation Center, to talk about her path from history and archaeology into startups, the pressure placed on women to manage everything quietly, why
Maria Ioannou: “Failure Is Staying Too Long” on Confidence, Exposure, and Venture Capital
If Cyprus has the talent, what’s missing: genius or exposure? In this episode, Annetta Benzar sits down with Maria Ioannou, Portfolio and Investor Relations Manager at Kinisis Ventures, to talk about moving from communications into venture capital, what it feels like to walk into rooms where you’re the only woman, and why founders need “flying hours” before they can sell their story with confidenc
Why “Fun Events” Don’t Fix Workplace Culture | Christiana Genie
Most “culture problems” can’t be fixed with a fun night out.In this episode of Future Makers: Women Building Cyprus, Annetta Benzar sits down with Christiana Genie, a well-established behaviour specialist, parenting strategist, and founder of Inner Growth Academy, to discuss the culture inside a workplace: everyday behaviour, the way people speak to each other, and whether teams feel real connecti
Dr. Asegul Hulus: “You’ll Distract the Men” on Tech Bias and Online Safety
What happens when a school tells a girl she can’t study computer science because she will “distract the men”?In this episode, Annetta Benzar sits down with Asegul Hulus, an Assistant Professor in Computing and founder of Metatech Feminism, to talk about the gender bias that still follows women into tech and what “online safety” really means in an AI era.The Future Makers Podcast is a series of in-
Former Minister of Justice, Anna Koukkides-Procopiou: Why Your Work Won’t Speak for You in Politics
In politics, your work won’t speak for you.In this episode of Future Makers: Women Building Cyprus, Annetta Benzar sits down with Anna Koukkides-Procopiou, President of Politeia and former Minister of Justice and Public Order, to talk about what politics actually rewards, how media narratives get built (including the “empty chair” story), and why Cyprus can’t keep treating security and representat
Artemis Kontou: Build the Culture Before the Buildings
What happens when we build the innovation parks, but forget the innovation culture?In this episode, Annetta Benzar sits down with Artemis Kontou, researcher and entrepreneur, to talk about moving from academia into entrepreneurship, working on AI in healthcare, and what Cyprus needs to fix if it wants serious innovation, from procurement that rewards the lowest price to an ecosystem that still str
Elia Ioannou: “Running Makes Me Feel Free” on Marathon Training, Motherhood, and Safety
This episode is about what builds an athlete: discipline, support, and the moments you almost quit.In this episode of Future Makers: Women Building Cyprus, Annetta Benzar sits down with Elia Ioannou, a long-distance runner and two-time Limassol Marathon winner (sub-3 hours), to talk about what her training actually looks like week to week, the reality of coming back after injury, and why safety st
Maria Lavithi: “Don’t Stay in the Waiting Place” on Courage, Kids, and Character Education
What if the biggest thing holding people back isn’t lack of talent, but the habit of waiting to feel “ready”? In this episode, Annetta Benzar sits down with Maria Lavithi, founder of Heroes Made, to talk about the curiosity that drives entrepreneurship, why schools resist change even when they want better tools, and what it really takes to build character education into a system.The Future Makers
Nadia Kapleva: Lóvi Medical Director on AI Skincare, Transparency and Personalized Routines
What happens when you leave Big Four advisory, spend five years retraining as a cosmetic chemist and aesthetic doctor, and then help build an AI that is trying to change how the world buys skincare... from Cyprus? In this episode of The Future Makers: Women Building Cyprus, host Annetta Benzar speaks with Dr Nadia Kapleva, Medical Director of skincare app Lóvi, about the belief that everything is
Greta Skemaite: The Lawyer Building an AI Fermentation Startup
What makes someone leave a secure corporate path and build something risky from scratch?In this episode of Future Makers: Women Building Cyprus, Annetta Benzar speaks with Greta Skemaite, co-founder and CEO of V.G. Freyia Labs, about going off-script, building a deep tech company around fermentation, and why community, motherhood, and loyalty to your own values engineer the kind of leader you beco
Raluca-Ioana Man: “Bring Your Own Table” on Power, Boundaries, and Strategies
What happens when you stop waiting for permission, and start building your own table?In this episode, Annetta Benzar sits down with Raluca-Ioana Man, strategic business advisor and board consultant, to talk about reverse-engineering your life, setting non-negotiable values, and why “power” often comes down to boundaries and the ability to say no. The Future Makers Podcast is a series of in-depth c
Alexia Solomou: Why International Law Has No Police
In this episode of Future Makers: Women Building Cyprus, Annetta Benzar speaks with Alexia Solomou, Partner at Spencer West Cyprus, about her path from the International Court of Justice to asylum casework in Cyprus, and what power, justice, and human impact look like up close. The Future Makers Podcast is a series of in-depth conversations about how future-makers are made, in Cyprus and beyond. H
Monica Ioannidou Polemitis: What is more dangerous, failure or comfort?
What does it take to build a three-decade career in a male-dominated firm, raise three children, and still push for inclusion, authenticity, and real change in Cyprus?In this episode of Future Makers: Women Building Cyprus, host Annetta Benzar speaks with Monica Ioannidou Polemitis, Partner at TKI.ai and President of ICC Cyprus Women, about why complacency is the real risk, how Cyprus shaped her d
Cleo Papadopoulou: First Female PwC Cyprus Partner on Inclusion, Bias, and the Power of Vulnerability
“We have too many narcissist leaders today.”What does a 30-year career in a male-dominated firm, raising three children, and still pushing for inclusion, authenticity, and real change in Cyprus?Cleo Papadopoulou, the first female partner at PwC Cyprus, shares how she moved from aspiring ballerina in London to building a career in a partnership of more than 30 men.In this episode:◽️ growing up in a
