‘Lasting progress comes from the quiet discipline of getting the fundamentals right’

From the Canary Islands to King’s and back to North Africa, Julio Alonso Ortega has followed a path shaped by curiosity, discipline and a belief in building long-lasting prosperity around the globe.

Finding purpose at King’s

A world-champion sailor turned political economist, Julio originally studied Business Management at Lancaster University. But it was his master’s at King’s that shaped his future path. He still remembers leaving evening seminars on the Strand, with ‘a head full of ideas’, ‘conversations flowing all the way to Waterloo’, feeling the ‘electricity’ of a place where international perspectives met serious debate and ideas felt like they mattered far beyond the classroom.

Curiosity, then conviction

That sense of purpose hasn’t left him. Today, Julio is a partner at Qabas, a Libyan firm working at the intersection of strategy, development and institution-building across North Africa.

His journey began, he says, ‘with curiosity, then conviction’.

‘I’m drawn to places where the distance between potential and reality is still wide and where doing the basics exceptionally well can change lives at scale.’

Working across the Middle East and North Africa, he encountered a region rich in talent and possibility, yet too often influenced by external narratives focused on the latest business trend, rather than sustainable growth.

‘Political economy taught me how markets and institutions shape outcomes,’ he says. ‘But learning Arabic and spending real time here made those questions real.’

Strengthening foundations for the future

Looking ahead, Julio hopes to keep working where institutions can be strengthened and opportunities expanded.

‘Too much of the world chases novelty. In many emerging markets, lasting progress comes from competence, execution and the quiet discipline of getting fundamentals right.’

His ambition is quietly steadfast: to help build the conditions for a more peaceful, stable and prosperous future, one that endures beyond any one idea or headline.

Start before the plan is perfect

And his advice for new graduates hoping to make an impact?

‘By the time you leave King’s, you already know enough to begin. The bigger risk is overthinking. Win the hour in front of you. Start before the plan is perfect, learn by doing, and build momentum through action. The people who make an impact are usually the ones who stop refining and start moving.’