Umutcan Yüksel is a humanitarian professional and researcher specialising in migration governance, development assistance, and EU external policy. He is currently a Policy Leader Fellow at the School of Transnational Governance in Florence and a founder of Integrity Consulting, where he advances localisation and evidence-based development assistance. His research examines power dynamics in humanitarian aid, the political economy of EU externalisation, and the intersection of migration policy and protection outcomes. He has led multi-million EUR portfolios at international organisations and previously supported the management of the EU Facility for Refugees in Turkiye as Programme Specialist at European Commission Humanitarian Aid. His work bridges policy practice and academic inquiry, exploring how evidence and advocacy can strengthen protection for the most vulnerable in crisis settings.