Curriculum Vitae & Biography

Date of Birth: 28/08/1971

Nationality: French

Summary Biography

I am a Fellow of the Centre for Human Ecology in Edinburgh and an experienced trainer and facilitator who, over the last few years, have been working with deprived communities in Dublin, Glasgow and Fife, providing support to community activists, especially women, and delivering community empowerment programmes. I am particularly interested in the "Training for Transformation" approach, initially developed in Kenya in the mid-1970s and since then used in over 60 countries across the world. I co-ordinate and teach on the "Action for Transformation" module, one of the three core modules of the Centre for Human Ecology’s Master’s degree programme. My recent experience of working and training in South Africa with 40 women activists from several countries of Africa, Asia and Latin America has led me to focus my work on the spiritual underpinnings of transformation and empowerment.

Academic Qualifications and Training:

Schooling: Primary School in Abidjan (Ivory Coast), Secondary School at the French School of Pointe Noire – Republic of Congo and last secondary school in Rueil Malmaison – near Paris (France). Highers (equivalent) in Maths, Biology, Physics, IT, Economy, English, and French.

1989-1994 – Studies at Ecole Supérieure d’Agriculture de Purpan – Toulouse (France)

June 1994 – Graduated with a “Diplome d’Ingénieur en Agriculture” - equivalent to a Master’s Degree in Agriculture.

1994-1995 – Studied at Montpellier Sciences University and the “Ecole Nationale d’Agronomie” – Montpellier (France).

October 1995 – Graduated with a Post Graduate Degree in “Economics of Rural and Agricultural Development”.

August 1997 – Training for Transformation; 12-day workshop run by Partners Ltd – Dublin (Ireland).

1997-1998, Honours/Masters modules at Edinburgh University in Participative Rural Appraisal, Gender & Development, Liberation Theology and Feminist Theology.

2004 - Diploma in Development Education accredited by Kimmage College (Dublin) and The Grail Centre's Training for Transformation programme in Kleinmond (South Africa) following a programme of training and studies held at the Grail Centre and field study in home country (October 2002 - January 2004).

Previous Employment

1996 – Farm Worker and Youth Hostel manager in Ballintubber, Co. Mayo (Ireland). Took part in the local development programme based on “spiritual tourism” (visit of the 1000 year old Abbey, Spiritual Retreats, Pilgrim route from Ballintubber to “Croagh Patrick”).

1996-1997 – Jesuit Volunteer Communities in Dublin (Ireland). Acting Co-ordinator of the Drop-in Well, a “Creative Adult Learning” drop-in Centre for women in Ballymun, one of the most deprived areas of North Dublin.

Current Employment and Projects

Since September 1997, Fellow of the Centre for Human Ecology (Scotland) and involved in various projects:

·        People and Parliament, a discernment process on the values and expectations of the Scottish people in the run-up of the first elections of the Scottish Parliament (Jan. 1998 to May 1999).

·        Embracing Multicultural Scotland, built on the People and Parliament experience and aimed to facilitate greater participation of black and ethnic minority people in Scottish Democratic processes.

·        Popular Education Group in Easterhouse; mentoring two women activists from one of the most deprived areas of Glasgow on their project of setting up a Popular Education Centre in their community;

·        Co-developing and teaching one of the three core modules of the Master’s degree in Human Ecology in CHE. This module is titled “Action for Transformation” and explores the process of transformation and the concept of sustainable development at individual, local, national and international levels.

·        Teaching eco-feminist evening classes to Edinburgh-based women;

·        Running workshops on “Women and the Environment” for women and policy makers in Scotland;

·        Co-facilitating 12 day Training for Transformation courses in Scotland and England in partnership with REgenerate (Action for Regenerate Trust) to local community activists;

·        Founder member of ENACT, the annual Edinburgh-based Women’s Festival to celebrate International Women’s Day; I am not part of ENACT anymore but the Festival is well and alive. See www.enactforwomen.org for more information.

·        Developing local projects, such as for example, a new project in Fife (North of Edinburgh) which aims at helping parents of young children from poor communities to reconnect with nature, using ecofeminism and deep ecology as core values.

·        On-going research on the role of women in sustainable development and urban regeneration. See list of publications on www.VereneNicolas.org.

·        Research on “Sources of Funding for Women Specific Work” and co-establishing a UK-wide process with networks of women philanthropists, major funders and researchers, that aims to increase funding sources for women’s projects;

·        Establishing and co-managing the Community Programme, which aims at involving grassroots ethnic minority individuals and organisations in a process of participatory action research and capacity building training based on the Training for Transformation approach. For more information about this project, see www.che.ac.uk

(Last updated June 2004)