WONDER Foundation works to empower vulnerable women and their families through education and mentoring. We seek to give them the tools to make informed decisions about their lives and to act upon them. We work with partners in Europe, Asia, Africa & Latin America to achieve this - currently over 30 partners in 24 countries. From small beginnings, WONDER now has an amazing team of staff, advisors and around 40 interns/ 150 volunteers annually working to deliver change. We've been… Show more WONDER Foundation works to empower vulnerable women and their families through education and mentoring. We seek to give them the tools to make informed decisions about their lives and to act upon them. We work with partners in Europe, Asia, Africa & Latin America to achieve this - currently over 30 partners in 24 countries. From small beginnings, WONDER now has an amazing team of staff, advisors and around 40 interns/ 150 volunteers annually working to deliver change. We've been nominated as LSE's Voluntary Organisation of the Year for the last 7 years, winning once. I love working with my colleagues and the woman-led local organisations we partner with to: - Design, develop, fundraise for and deliver projects to meet existing and emerging needs- Showcase their achievements, knowledge and local contexts through thematic research, policy recommendations, events, speaker and training events, campaigns and our new webinar series. - Invest in leaders, practitioners, and young people to give them the tools to recognise their skills and expertise, and to build upon themThe best place to see what we have achieved together is on our website, where you can learn more about our programmes and our research: www.wonderfoundation.org.uk I've spoken at universities (UCL, LSE, SOAS, QMUL, Oxford) on topics ranging from ethical volunteering to the importance of mentoring in the Philippines, the legacy of Typhoon Haiyan and Migrant Integration. I've shared insights from our projects at UNESCO, the UK Parliament and Whitehall, at events hosted for us or by others. I'd love to share our work with you. After a decade volunteering and then working at WONDER I still get enthused by the amazing work our partners do and the privilege it is to work with them. I'd also love to learn from you and collaborate - the more I learn, the more data and knowledge gaps I see! Show less

The Strathmore Institute of Management and Technology (part of Strathmore University) is working to deliver a training-of-trainers program for school teachers and school leaders in post-conflict/ fragile areas, including Anglophone Cameroon, South Sudan, Uganda, Liberia and Sierra Leone. I am supporting the programme lead to ensure that this initiative, building on the Institute’s extensive work training leaders, is sustainable and effective. If you would be interested in… Show more The Strathmore Institute of Management and Technology (part of Strathmore University) is working to deliver a training-of-trainers program for school teachers and school leaders in post-conflict/ fragile areas, including Anglophone Cameroon, South Sudan, Uganda, Liberia and Sierra Leone. I am supporting the programme lead to ensure that this initiative, building on the Institute’s extensive work training leaders, is sustainable and effective. If you would be interested in supporting this project, or enrolling in it, please get in touch! Show less

Over 2 1/2 years I worked with ELIS to support NGOs in Cote d'Ivoire and Nigeria to prevent irregular migration, modern slavery and trafficking. This included:* capacity building organisations* developing a locally-led, bi-lingual knowledge-sharing network* working with experts to better understand push/pull factors and who is at risk, * co-production of prevention strategies, working with young people to develop effective resources for their peers, leading to the co-production… Show more Over 2 1/2 years I worked with ELIS to support NGOs in Cote d'Ivoire and Nigeria to prevent irregular migration, modern slavery and trafficking. This included:* capacity building organisations* developing a locally-led, bi-lingual knowledge-sharing network* working with experts to better understand push/pull factors and who is at risk, * co-production of prevention strategies, working with young people to develop effective resources for their peers, leading to the co-production of two websites with information created by young people, Aventuriers.ci and BrighterFutures.ng* training 30 young leaders to become agents of change* facilitating knowledge sharing, and reflection on skills and knowledge learnt during the projectThis work was only possible with the support of my WONDER colleagues and the local NGOs: Women's Board and Ecole Yarani - established WONDER partners, and new colleagues at Akatio and SOS Immigration Clandestine, as well as ForSUD project leaders, Fondazione ELIS. Show less

As part of WONDER's work on promoting language education for vulnerable migrant women for their empowerment and integration, I worked with NATECLA (National Association for Teaching English and Community Languages to Adults) to campaign for and build an ESOL strategy proposal for England (as there were already strategies adopted by the devolved governments in Wales and Scotland). This included launching the draft at an event in Parliament. Notably, despite the gendered nature of access to… Show more As part of WONDER's work on promoting language education for vulnerable migrant women for their empowerment and integration, I worked with NATECLA (National Association for Teaching English and Community Languages to Adults) to campaign for and build an ESOL strategy proposal for England (as there were already strategies adopted by the devolved governments in Wales and Scotland). This included launching the draft at an event in Parliament. Notably, despite the gendered nature of access to language learning amongst migrants and refugees in the UK (See our previous report, "Women Breaking the English Barrier") our proposal was the first of these strategies to mention women or gender. Show less

Building on my experience working with universities in the UK whilst working for NGOs and community organisations, I was commissioned to provide insights on how Polish academics could develop links with Polish organisations. I identified the challenges, ethical issues and benefits of developing research with and into hard-to-reach communities. I was invited to present this work at an interdisciplinary conference.

The Relationships Foundation is a think-tank that believes that a good society is built on good relationships, from family and community to public service and business. It studies the effect that culture, business and government have on relationships.At the RF I undertook a range of communications responsibilities such as:- the preparation and production of print and e-newsletters- social media management (twitter, facebook)- donor relations- discussant of issues… Show more The Relationships Foundation is a think-tank that believes that a good society is built on good relationships, from family and community to public service and business. It studies the effect that culture, business and government have on relationships.At the RF I undertook a range of communications responsibilities such as:- the preparation and production of print and e-newsletters- social media management (twitter, facebook)- donor relations- discussant of issues relating to our work on radio including Women's Hour (BBC Radio 4), LBC and a range of other radio programmes.Events- I worked with the team to develop and deliver a conference for academics and lawyers including Sir Paul Coleridge, Baroness Deech and Professor Rebecca Probert entitled, "Modern Marriage: Myths, Realities and Prospects".Youth Relationships- developed the membership of a new reference group to foster positive relationships education for young people. Show less

HAVCO is the umbrella organisation (or Council for Voluntary Service) for the voluntary and community sector in Haringey.HAVCO fulfils a number of strategic leadership functions for the voluntary and community sector:• Influence: gaining greater recognition of the VCS agenda and influence on local policy• Partnership: establish more effective networking and collaboration within the VCS and between the sector and its partners• Services: improving the capacity, quality and… Show more HAVCO is the umbrella organisation (or Council for Voluntary Service) for the voluntary and community sector in Haringey.HAVCO fulfils a number of strategic leadership functions for the voluntary and community sector:• Influence: gaining greater recognition of the VCS agenda and influence on local policy• Partnership: establish more effective networking and collaboration within the VCS and between the sector and its partners• Services: improving the capacity, quality and standards of infrastructure support to membersMy role involved me:- running three themed groups for the sharing of knowledge and best practice with local civil society organisations. This led to improvement in services to advice-providing organizations, children and young people and wellbeing and lead to targeted work with BAME organizations. Membership and attendance improved through developing relationships with community leaders.•These were: Children and Young People (focusing on child poverty and child protection), Wellbeing (looking at physical and mental health, with reference to the impact of poverty on these), and Advice Provision (supporting providers of advice primarily to people from minority groups and those in poverty).- representing the voluntary sector in Haringey in a range of fora, so as to collect information of relevance to them, raise the profile of their work and advocate for them. These included: ---Well Being Theme Board, sitting with reps of the main providers of health services in the borough.---Children's Trust, sitting with reps of the main providers of services to children and young people in the borough, such as schools, youth offending and safeguarding.--- Other fora where I was involved in decision making: Haringey Local Safeguarding Children's Board Training Group, Supplementary and Community Language School Steering Group, Children’s Workforce Integrated Working Group, Haringey Carer's Support Network, BME Stroke Network. Show less

Topical work areas included: Reproductive Health, Food Labelling, Pesticide use and safety, Cross-Border Healthcare, Learning and Physical Disabilities, Mental Health- especially focused on de-institutionalisation of care for orphans and those with disabilities in Eastern Europe. Varied work on constituency issues, including preparing petitions for petitions committee and wide correspondence. Project Managed "Made in Munster" website and campaign for supporting local services… Show more Topical work areas included: Reproductive Health, Food Labelling, Pesticide use and safety, Cross-Border Healthcare, Learning and Physical Disabilities, Mental Health- especially focused on de-institutionalisation of care for orphans and those with disabilities in Eastern Europe. Varied work on constituency issues, including preparing petitions for petitions committee and wide correspondence. Project Managed "Made in Munster" website and campaign for supporting local services, produce, building local community, through environmental sustainability and local economic growth. Supervised two interns in this work. Show less

I was elected as Communications Officer, involved in the organisation of events and campaigns for the benefit of interns (formal and informal) working in the European Parliament in Brussels. On my own initiative, but within the mandate given to me, I developed relationships with stagiaires at the European Commission to develop a joint volunteering project and foster a culture of volunteering. As volunteering cultures differ between European countries and cultures, and volunteering has… Show more I was elected as Communications Officer, involved in the organisation of events and campaigns for the benefit of interns (formal and informal) working in the European Parliament in Brussels. On my own initiative, but within the mandate given to me, I developed relationships with stagiaires at the European Commission to develop a joint volunteering project and foster a culture of volunteering. As volunteering cultures differ between European countries and cultures, and volunteering has political connotations within some of them, this was not straight forward. Working with team members we delivered a volunteer outreach for vulnerable women at the Maison Mosaique, a centre for women refugees, in Brussels. Show less

Women’s Centre working with 800+ disadvantaged families each yearHead of Youth Service• Managed a team of six staff and interns plus 30 volunteers, channeling volunteers’ energy andenthusiasm towards relevant projects• Oversaw, planned and developed 25 weekly activities in addition to organising excursions including the Jersey Project, an annual character-building week for teenage girls. Ran a marketing campaign which resulted in a 200% increase in the number of charity… Show more Women’s Centre working with 800+ disadvantaged families each yearHead of Youth Service• Managed a team of six staff and interns plus 30 volunteers, channeling volunteers’ energy andenthusiasm towards relevant projects• Oversaw, planned and developed 25 weekly activities in addition to organising excursions including the Jersey Project, an annual character-building week for teenage girls. Ran a marketing campaign which resulted in a 200% increase in the number of charity users• Devised, planned and implemented new activities in response to users’ needs, including ReadingClubs for under 11s and their parents, and Into School, an education, integration and citizenshipprogramme for recently arrived girls aged 14-18, as well as parenting, relationships education andmentoring programmes.• Cultivated and solicited over £300,000 pa for projects resulting in the Youth Service being shortlisted for Credit Suisse’s charity of the year, 2009. Developed relationship networks among donors. Show less