Meet the team

Tim joined UIA in September 2015 and is now very excited to be involved in its successor, the EUI. He holds a master's degree in Regional development in Europe and has lived in Germany, the UK and is currently based in France. Tim’s career has been dedicated to working in the urban context at local, regional and European levels, developing and implementing strategic programmes and projects.

Agnès provides administrative support to the Initiative.
Before joining the Initiative, Agnès worked for UIA and for almost 6 years in Grenoble and 8 years in Paris as Training Coordinator for several private structures like STMicroelectronics or Alstom.

Jean-Christophe joined the team in October 2015 and coordinates the finance unit whose activties range from project assessment, project monitoring, audit and control.
Prior to joining the secretariat, Jean-Christophe worked for more than 10 years for EU funded programmes focusing on European Territorial Cooperation (Interreg North West Europe and Alpine Space).

Laurent provides Information & Technology (IT) support to the Initiative. Before joining the secretariat, Laurent worked for 15 years for an IT company as Systems and Networks Engineer. His main missions consisted in managing IT infrastructure for private companies and public services.

Sofía is in charge of reporting activities and supports the EUI governance structure on the operational delivery of activities in line with the strategic directives of the Initiative.
Sofía previously worked for the Urban Innovative Actions Initiative Secretariat as Finance officer, for the finance sector as auditor specializing in donor funds and project administration, and for urban authorities on policy design and implementation. She holds a master's degree in Urban Policy from Sciences Po Paris.

Alexis is in charge of the Audit & Control for EUI, providing support to the team and to projects on various financial topics (such as eligibility of costs, second level audits...). Prior to this, he was Finance Officer for the Interreg 2 Seas Secretariat, leading on the Audit and Control aspects of the programme. He holds a master degree in European Affairs from the University of Lille, where he also regularly intervenes.

Zrinka joined the Finance Unit in 2023 to support planning and monitoring of financial flows realisation (including Technical Assistance) and further development of the monitoring system. Before joining the EUI, she gathered 10 years of professional experience in project (social innovation) and programme management (Interreg). She holds a master's degree in economics acquired at Faculty of Organisation and Informatics at University of Zagreb.

Agnieszka coordinates the Project Unit in the Permanent Secretariat and is responsible for the EUI – Innovative Actions pillar. Agnieszka is an urban policy and revitalisation expert. For many years she’s been working in the urban development field – among others as a Head of Urban Development Unit in the Polish Ministry of Regional Development, as a Head of Revitalisation Unit in the City of Warsaw and as a Programme Director in Habitat for Humanity Poland. Her background is in geography and spatial planning.

Nelida supports project applicants in the development of their projects, participates in the assessment of submitted proposals, monitors a portfolio of approved projects and facilitates the capitalisation of project knowledge generated and results. Before joining the UIA in 2015, she worked for the Interreg North West Europe Programme as Finance Officer, specializing in EU structural funds management, financial regulations, and control aspects of EU grants. Her background is in Management, Education and Engineering. She holds two masters’ degrees, one in Management of European Affairs and the second one in Executive International Management with a specialization in project management.

Camille is responsible for supporting applicants in the development of their project, participating in the assessment of submitted proposals and monitoring a portfolio of approved innovative projects. Prior to joining EUI, she worked 6 years for the Urban Innovative Actions Initiative. She holds a Master's degree in European law.

Within the Project Unit, Isabella is responsible for supporting applicants in the development of their project, participating in the assessment of submitted proposals and monitoring of a portfolio of approved innovative projects. Prior to joining EUI, she worked 5 years for the Urban Innovative Actions Initiative. She worked as well for the Baden-Württemberg federal state in Germany in different areas of public administration including research funding and European affairs. She holds a master's degree in European Public Administration.

Within the project unit, Kathleen is responsible for the selection and implementaion of innovative projects. She also provides support to capitalisation and capacity building activities. Prior to joining, she worked for the Interreg 2 Seas Programme, where she built a solid experience in EU project management. She holds an engineering degree in Urban and Regional Planning from the Polytechnic School of the University of Tours.

Tommaso works within the Project Unit supporting the selection process, monitoring the project implementation, and the capitalisation of knowledge and results. Prior to joining, Tommaso worked in the areas of programme and project management as well as policy research at the Autonomous Province of Trento - Unit for Innovation and Social Inclusion and at EURADA - European Association of Development Agencies. Tommaso holds a master's degree in Political Science.

Romain works within the project unit supporting project implementation and the capitalization of knowledge and results.
Before joining EUI, Romain worked as European projects manager in the field of innovation for Systematic Paris-Region, a cluster association specialized in digital technologies (“deep techs”), in the topics of circular economy and digital solutions for the (cyber) security of cities. Romain holds a master degree of Urban Planning from University of Lille, specialized in European policies and programmes supporting urban development.

Maya is a member of the Project Unit. She is responsible for the selection and implementation monitoring of innovative projects. She also provides content-related support to the Knowledge and Communication and Capacity Building Units. Before joining the Permanent Secretariat, Maya worked as a Project Officer at the Centre for Economic Policy Research in Paris. In London, she worked at the Greater London Authority as a Project Officer and Senior Project Officer responsible for projects and programmes aimed at delivering affordable housing with support for vulnerable Londoners. She holds a Masters degree in Urban Studies from University College London.

Nicolas works within the Project Unit supporting the selection process, monitoring the project implementation, and ensuring the capitalisation of knowledge and results. He has a thematic expertise on questions related to environment and climate action. Before joining the Permanent Secretariat, he worked in the field of European Territorial Cooperation within two Interreg programmes (“South Baltic” and “Alpine Space”) as programme and project officer. Nicolas holds two master degrees in European Politics (Sciences Po Rennes/Université Rennes 1) and Environmental Management (Université Libre de Bruxelles-IGEAT).

Amélie coordinates the Knowledge and Communication unit and the tasks of the team. She is responsible for the knowledge management and communication strategies and their implementation. She also leads on activities related to the network of urban contact points and the support to the Urban Agenda for the EU.

Amélie previously worked for UIA, the European Committee of the Regions and the European Metropole of Lille. She holds a master’s degree in Political Sciences.

Ophélie is responsible for the implementation of the knowledge management strategy. She also contributes to the delivery of the initiative's communication activities.
Prior to joining the Secretariat, Ophélie undertook a master degree in Urban and Territorial Strategies and specialised on the urban dimension of EU Policies.

Nouhaila is responsible for designing and implementing EUI communications as well as the dissemination of knowledge and policy-oriented activities.
Prior to joining EUI, Nouhaila was responsible for implementing the communication strategy for UIA and URBACT Secretariats. Nouhaila has a background in international relations & politics and holds a master in public policy with a focus on European affairs.

Luis assists the implementation of the Communication Strategy and work plan and supports the website daily maintenance and developments. He also contributes to online communication activities. Before joining the initiative, Luis studied Economics and Management. He continues his educational path into the digital strategy.

Alexandru is a passionate urban (re)thinker interested in understanding how human settlements function and in (co)creating innovative, just and sustainable solutions for them. He has dedicated his energy to improving the lives of local communities around Europe. As a result he has been working for and with villages, cities and regions across Europe.

Alexandru joined the EUI team in 2022 and is leading the work on the Urban Agenda of the EU and in partnerships development. Prior to this, he had initiated, developed and managed various actions, projects, and funding proposals (including Horizon 2020/ Horizon Europe) as part of both non-profit and for-profit organisations. His background is rooted in urbanism and holds a joint master degree in European Spatial Planning & Environment from Radboud University Nijmegen and Cardiff University. 

Wannes joined the Knowledge and Communication Unit in 2022. He will mainly contribute to the organisation and support of the network of Urban Contact Points. Before joining EUI, Wannes worked for seven years as a Communication Officer for the Interreg 2 Seas Programme. He holds a master degree in Communication and European Exchange from the University of South Brittany.

Reyhaneh joined the EUI team in 2022 and is responsible for implementation of knowledge activities and capitalisation on and dissemination of the knowledge that EUI cities produce. Prior to joining EUI, Reyhaneh worked as a research assistant at Institut Paris Region on the topic of housing in Ile-de-France region in the face of the new EU regulations. In Melbourne, Australia, Reyhaneh worked at a local authority in the metropolitan area, responsible for approval of urban and regional development applications. She holds a Masters degree in Urban and Regional Development from the University of Melbourne and a Masters degree from Paris School of Urban Planning in International Expertise in European cities.

Eilish coordinates the capacity building unit in charge of peer learning and Urban Development network-type capacity building activities.
Prior to joining the Secretariat, Eilish worked for Interreg Europe monitoring projects aimed at improving regional policy instruments and building the capacities of regional policymakers. She also contributed to the design and implementation of the Policy Learning Platform services. Before that, she worked for ICLEI World Secretariat supporting projects and events focused on sustainable urban development.
Her background is in geography and spatial planning, and she holds a MSc in Urban and Rural Design from Queen's University Belfast.

Zoé joined the recently created Capacity building unit and is working on developing and implementing peer learning, capacity building activities and events.
Before joining EUI, she worked as a consultant for local authorities and research institutes, by supporting them in developing, managing and implemeting national and EU-funded projects. She was also part of the coordination team of Scalable Cities Secretariat.
She holds a master's degree in Urban and Territorial Strategies from Sciences Po Paris.

Magda joined the recently created Capacity building unit and is working on developing and implementing peer learning and capacity building activities and events.
Before joining EUI, she oversaw the organisation of a training department in a higher education institution and prior to that, she worked in a European network involved in social and training activities.
Magda holds a master’s degree in Environmental Assessment from the University of Bucharest and a PhD in Geography and Urban development from the University of Lille.