Current engagements
Co-founder, new initiative on ESG risk, liability and board accountability
Currently co-developing a new practice with partners in Amsterdam, bringing together communications expertise, policy knowledge and legal rigour to help boards and organisations identify and address material ESG risks before they become legal or reputational crises.
Senior Advisor and Chair, Board Sub-Committee on Strategic Communications, Social Value International
Social Value International is the global network advancing the principles and practice of social value accounting and impact measurement. In this role I support the organisation’s strategic communications and help strengthen its external positioning as the field of social value reporting continues to develop alongside the broader sustainability disclosure landscape.
Advisory Group Member, EU Horizon GreenGrocer Project
GreenGrocer is a four-year EU Horizon research initiative focused on improving the development, access and use of food footprint data across the food system, convened and facilitated by GlobeScan. The Advisory Group brings together experts from science, policy and industry to guide project outputs and ensure they are grounded in practical application. My contribution draws on my experience at the intersection of sustainability data, policy engagement and stakeholder communications.
Advisory Board Member, Resa Business Audit
Resa is one of the first audit firms in Switzerland to receive FAOA (Federal Audit Oversight Authority) licensing for ESG audit and sustainability advisory services, alongside ESG data collection and internal corporate controls. I contribute to the advisory board as ESG audit and assurance move from voluntary practice to regulated requirement, an area directly connected to the policy and reporting landscape I have worked in for the past decade.
Career overview
2018 – 2025 | Chief External Affairs Officer, Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) Led public policy engagement and external communications for the world’s leading sustainability reporting standard setter. Core work: GRI’s engagement with the European Commission, Parliament and Council around the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive; MoU negotiations with EFRAG and the IFRS Foundation; institutional relations with UNDP, UNEP and the OECD.
2016 – 2018 | Independent consultant Advised international organisations on strategy, stakeholder engagement and sustainability communications.
2015 – 2016 | Vice President, Communications and Engagement, The LEGO Foundation Executive team member. Responsible for communications strategy and government outreach for a foundation with annual grants of approximately USD 75 million.
2012 – 2015 | Owner and Managing Director, Van de Wijs & Partners GmbH Sustainability and reputation consultants. Clients included Saudi Aramco, McDonald’s and Skanska.
2010 – 2012 | Managing Director, Communications and Advocacy, WBCSD Executive team member leading communications and advocacy for a CEO-led coalition of 200 international companies.
1996 – 2010 | International roles, Dow Inc. Fourteen years in communications, issues management and sustainability across the Netherlands, United States and Switzerland.
1991 – 1996 | Early career Account manager and consultant, PLP/BBDO Business Communications and Beauchez Public Relations, Netherlands.
Qualifications, languages and LinkedIn
Education
- Bachelor, Advertising and PR, Hogeschool Eindhoven
- First module Executive International Master of Corporate Communication, Erasmus University Rotterdam
- Risk Communication Challenge, Harvard School of Public Health
- Business and Sustainability Programme, Cambridge Institute for Sustainability Leadership
- Sustainable Finance, Cambridge Institute for Sustainability Leadership
- LEGO® SERIOUS PLAY® Facilitator, Association of Master Facilitators
Languages
Dutch (native) · English (fluent) · German (good) · Danish (reading and conversational knowledge)