LEED Programme (Local Economic and Employment Development)

The LEED Team

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LEED Division

Sylvain Giguere is Head of the LEED Division. Based at the Paris headquarters, he leads a team of 25 economists, researchers, statisticians and administrative assistants, including the Trento Centre for Local Development, and shapes the development of the LEED programme of work. A Canadian national, Sylvain joined the OECD in 1995, first to work in DELSA. In 2002 he was appointed Deputy Head of the LEED Programme, where he developed a policy research agenda to help governments get better results by revamping their governance structures and increasing their ability to coordinate and target policy. He was appointed Head of Division in 2008.

Stefano Barbieri is Head of the OECD LEED Trento Centre for Local Development. He is also responsible for the Centre’s activities on evaluation of local development policies. An Italian national, before joining LEED in 2007, Stefano worked as senior manager at the Institute for Industrial Promotion, at the Italian Ministry of the Economy and at the OECD in Paris (1996-2001) on development and cohesion policies. His background includes the direction of two large-scale EU Pre-Accession (Phare) Institution and capacity building Programmes in Hungary and in the Czech Republic, as well as research activities for the Italian National Research Council and for other academic institutions.

Debbie Binks is British and joined the LEED Programme in March 2004. Before joining the LEED team she worked in the OECD Directorate for Financial and Enterprise Affairs for nine years on various transition economy activities. She is currently Head of the Central Management Unit, overseeing all aspects of financial and staffing issues. Before joining the OECD in 1995, Debbie worked as a Legal Executive specialising in company and commercial law in various law firms in London, Sheffield and Doncaster.

Emma Clarence joined the OECD in 2007 and works on social inclusion and the role of the social economy at the OECD LEED Centre for Local Development in Trento, Italy. Born in Australia, prior to joining the OECD LEED Programme, Dr Clarence had worked at a number of universities in the United Kingdom, including at the University of Aberdeen (Scotland) as a lecturer in politics, as well as doing part-time consultancy work in the area of public policy.

Lucy Clarke is of British nationality. Before joining the LEED team in 2000, she held several posts in OECD’s Executive Directorate, including publishing and marketing. She is Secretary to the LEED Partners Club and is responsible for the CFE’s communications projects, including institutional and media relations.

Francesca Froy is of British nationality. Before joining the LEED Programme in 2005, she worked in the field of local development policy at the European level, helping to manage the IDELE project, which supports the identification, dissemination and exchange of local employment development activities across Europe. An anthropologist, she is currently working on local governance and employment issues, implementing LEED studies on the Local Integration of Immigrants into the Labour Market, Local Skills Strategies, and Integrating Employment, Skills and Economic Development.

Andrea-Rosalinde Hofer joined the OECD in 2004 as policy analyst at the LEED Trento Centre for Local Development in Italy. She manages international review studies and capacity building related to local development governance in East and South-East Europe and contributes to the work on entrepreneurship and innovation. Before joining the OECD, Andrea undertook research and local policy development projects on decentralisation, local governance and public administration reform issues at the University of Federal Armed Forces in Munich, Germany and at the United Nations (UNDP and UNODC).

Marco Marchese is of Italian nationality and joined the OECD in May 2007 to work on entrepreneurship policy and evaluation of local economic development approaches, including local strategies aimed at Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) attraction and SME internationalisation. Prior to joining the OECD LEED Programme, he worked at the United Nations (ILO and UNIDO) and at the Italian Prime Minister’s Office.

Cristina Martinez-Fernandez is of Spanish and Australian nationalities. She joined the LEED Programme as a Policy Analyst in 2009. Her responsibilities are in projects on Training and Skills Development; SMEs, Entrepreneurship & Innovation; Climate Change, Employment & Local Development; and she manages the OECD/LEED Initiative on Employment and Skills Strategies in Southeast Asia (ESSSA). Before joining LEED she was a Professor at the Urban Research Centre, University of Western Sydney in Australia. Cristina led the Urban and Regional Dynamics research programme. She has published more than 100 works.

Gabriela Miranda is of Mexican nationality. Before joining the LEED Programme in 2002, she worked in Mexico with SMEs and indigenous communities. She currently works as a policy analyst and carries out analytical reviews on entrepreneurship, innovation and local development strategies. Gabriela is also responsible for LEED's work with Latin American countries and contributes to the OECD Green Growth Strategy.

Debra Mountford joined the OECD in 1997 to work on urban policy and city/metropolitan studies. She joined the LEED Programme in 2004 and is responsible for Tools for Local Development, including Local Development Agency Reviews, Economic Development Strategies, Investment Strategies and Financial Tools for Local Development. She manages the OECD LEED Forum on Development Agencies and Investment Strategies (formerly the OECD LEED Forum on Cities and Regions). She previously worked as an urban planner and qualified as an urban designer in the United Kingdom.

Antonella Noya is of Italian nationality. Before joining the LEED Programme in 1997, she worked as a researcher for the University of Rome and for Italian and European research centres; she was also a manager in the Italian Confederation of State-owned companies. She is currently responsible for LEED work and activities on social innovation and social cohesion at local level as well as for the activity on women's entrepreneurship. Antonella is also the manager of the OECD LEED Forum on Social Innovations.

Jon Potter is of British nationality and joined the OECD in 1997. Jon previously worked as a senior consultant at PA Consulting Group specialising in public policy evaluation. He is responsible for LEED work on SMEs and entrepreneurship, innovation and evaluation of local development policies and programmes, and manages review series on these topics. Jon is also manager of the OECD LEED Forum on Entrepreneurship.

Alessandra Proto is of Italian nationality. She works as a policy analyst at the OECD LEED Trento Centre for Local Development based in Italy, where she has been working since its establishment in 2004. She manages the activities related to entrepreneurship and SME development in Central, East and South-East Europe.

Katia Travkina is of Russian nationality and joined the LEED Programme in 2002 as a policy analyst. Katia is responsible for relations with non-member countries and also for liaison with the OECD LEED Trento Centre for Local Development based in Italy. She also manages the OECD LEED Forum on Partnerships and Local Governance.

LEED Directing Committee

Jan Hendeliowitz is Chair of the OECD LEED Directing Committee. He is of Danish nationality and is Executive Director of the Employment Region Copenhagen & Zealand, Danish National Labour Market Authority.

LEED Fora

Greg Clark is Chair of the OECD LEED Forum on Development Agencies and Investment Strategies. He is Advisor at the UK Department of Communities and Local Government. He is also a non-Executive Director of EURADA and IEDC. He was previously Managing Director at Greater London Enterprise, CEO of London Enterprise Agency/ OneLondon, and a Director at the London Docklands Development Corp. As a leading practitioner in local development Greg has reviewed strategies, tools, and agencies in more than 100 cities and regions around the world.

Robert Strauss is Chair of the OECD LEED Forum on Partnerships and Local Governance hosted by the LEED Trento Centre for Local Development in Italy. He is Head of Unit, European Employment Strategy, CSR, Local Development, DG Employment, Social Affairs and Equal Opportunities at the European Commission.

François Hurel is Chair of the OECD LEED Forum on Entrepreneurship. He previously worked as an attorney and was technical adviser to various French Ministers. He was the general manager of the APCE and also Director for Entrepreneurship for the Assembly of French Chambers of Commerce and Industry. He is currently General Director of the French Chartered Accountants Association. He has authored several publications on entrepreneurship, as well as the 2002 report to the French Prime Minister on the development of economic initiative and business creation.

Andy Westwood is Chair of the OECD LEED Forum on Social Innovations. He has worked as an adviser to ministers in the UK Department for Communities and Local Government and also as a special adviser at the Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills, and at the UK Treasury. He has worked in education and employment policy for many years including as a team member of the Leitch Review of Skills. He is a visiting professor in local economic development at London's South Bank University and in business at the University of Buckingham.

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