Wageningen University & Research

Politechnika Krakowska im. Tadeusza Kościuszki

Delft University of Technology

Wijnacademie 

Tallinn University

Social Innovation  -  Participatory Creation  -  Migration  -  Education & Employment  -  Refugee camps

● Helping entrepreneurs and SMEs in Africa and Asia to scale through access to finance (grants, equity and loans)
● Developing innovative financing partnerships and solutions - with a focus on carbon credits and smallholder farmer financing
● Developing private sector development projects for various donor clients (World Bank, Netherlands Ministry of Foreign Affairs etc.)
● Providing Technical Assistance to SMEs for the Agri-Business Capital Fund
● Managing ISSF Circular Economy Business Incubator in Jordan

Successful acquisition:
- Cold Chain Mapping in Jordan (client: World Bank)
- Accelerating Water Smart Agri Business (AWSAB) to boost the Tunisian water economy (client: Nuffic. Funded by the Netherlands Ministry of Foreign Affairs)
- From Waste To Wealth: Cultivating Skills for Circular Entrepreneurship in Upper Egypt (client: Nuffic. Funded by the Netherlands Ministry of Foreign Affairs)

Advance Consulting

Business Consultant

● Provided advisory on digital innovation to project development and implementation teams
● Provided input to tenders about digital innovation solutions
● Provided management support to EU-funded SIPS and GIZ-funded E4D projects

GFA Consulting Group GmbH

Digital Innovation Consultant

Luminus Education Group is a leading private provider of TVET, Higher Education & Entrepreneurship solutions in the MENA region, supporting +10,000 youth p/a (25% refugees, 75% from poor socio-economic backgrounds) into (self-) employment in 10+ sectors: 

● Developed $20M+ in education and employment projects per annum through pro-active donor engagement, concept development and bidding on tenders. Clients include BMZ, GIZ, EU, SDC, UNICEF, UNHCR, JICA, Nuffic, Government of the Netherlands, RVO, ILO, AGFE, USAID, AFD and UNESCO 
● Supported the set-up and growth of academic departments through (labor) market assessments, partnership development, business model development and resource mobilization
● Led on digital learning pilots in advanced computing for youth in Gaza and Iraq and the application of VR in automotive technology education to enhance access to education for refugees and youth from hard-to-reach areas 
● Supported the expansion of Luminus' proven model in the MENA region through market research, strategic partnerships, capacity building of academic staff and partners, and digital learning pilots. 
● Provided advisory to strategic capacity building projects to build capacities of Luminus' staff as well as other TVET and Higher Education institutes on: employer engagement, labor market-driven curriculum development, entrepreneurship curriculum development, digital and blended learning approaches, and learning management systems 
● Developed and maintained local, regional and international partnerships with education providers, industry leaders, governments, investment agencies and international organizations

Luminus Group

International Development Manager

GreenfieldCities is a Dutch start-up that tackles root-causes of migration by developing environmentally & financially sustainable urban neighborhoods (so-called Youth Business Campuses) that attract and synergize education and job opportunities for young people in areas being affected by high levels of youth unemployment and climate change. 

- Established and managing an office, company and international team in Mafraq;
- Developed and managed feasibility study activities in Jordan (commissioned by Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs). The report has been delivered;  
- Established and managing collaboration with the Jordanian government (minister's level) and institutionalize the project in national and local policy on climate change mitigation & adaptation and economic development;  
- Proactively developing projects in sustainable energy, energy efficient construction, water efficiency, agriculture, hospitality, ICT and smart city concepts. This requires project initiation, project design, business case development, acquisition, partnership development, fundraising, urban design development and project management; 
- Public-private partnership development with Jordanian government (minister level), private sector (CEO level), NGOs,  associations, donors and investors;
- Institutional fundraising through proposal writing and managing donor relationships;  
- Managing of a politically complex stakeholder landscape, setting up a Jordanian Advisory Board for strategic advise and organize several stakeholder workshops with 10 to 120 participants.

GreenfieldCities.org

Country Director

The City of Amsterdam was invited to advice UNHCR on sustainable urban planning of refugee camps with Za'atari refugee camp in Jordan as a pilot. This included the development and management of key projects in urban domains like public space, mobility, waste management, water management and energy. 

Initiated, developed and managed the Emerging Public Space (EPS) project, implemented with NRC (Norwegian contractor) and Blumont (US contractor). Objective was to foster self-reliance of refugee communities by creating non-fenced and community-run public recreational spaces in areas where refugees already gathered in the public sphere. Refugee committees shaped the project (participatory approach), made key decisions in all stages of the project and constructed & guard the public spaces voluntarily to develop community ownership. After two successful pilots, the project was handed over to NRC and GIZ to continue the implementation of the approach in the camp and in areas of host communities. 

Other projects included the Emerging Mobility Networks (EMN) project, water management project and urban design project of the refugee camp in its wider context and dynamics. 

- Project design, proposal development and negotiations to obtain approval from authorities and UNHCR; 
- Partnership development for implementation and continuation of projects; 
- Set up and facilitate stakeholder meetings and mobilize community members; 
- Technical designs, BOQs, procurement, site logistics and day-to-day management of construction activities; 
- Develop and implement M&E frameworks & quality control of reporting.

UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency

Consultant (VNG-I/City of Amsterdam)

Field research project on the impact of the EU-Turkey Deal on humanitarian operations in the Greek context. Tasks included: 
- Developed a research plan, including methodology, stakeholder engagement plan, M&E and reporting framework; 
- Planned and executed field research plan, including coordination of data collection in encampment settings and at offices of donors and NGOs; 
- Acted as focal point for the researchers and involved stakeholders; 
- Developed reports and presentation for the commissioner.

Wageningen UR (University & Research centre)

Project Coordinator - Migration

As part of Student Assistance agreement, I was responsible for the creation of various content and events to promote studies and attract students from various backgrounds.  
- Developed content for the website, flyers, booklets and social media channels of MSc programs of WUR;
- Organised and coordinated events of WUR focused on career and recruitment;
- Administrative support

Student Assistant

Hospitality Jobs

Waiter & assistant cook

- Dutch private language teacher for Polish immigrants in The Netherlands
- Design teaching materials and methods

Hedzer Roodenburg Vermaat