How has COVID-19 changed the work settings for our alumni?


Various speakers, UNU-MERIT

Meet our Master of Science in Public Policy and Human Development (MPP) alumni to talk about the impact of COVID-19 on their jobs, and the perspectives for current students for the upcoming months.



About the speaker

Simon Hudson 

Prior to the MPP Simon studied Economics. After completing the programme he joined the UK Department for International Trade (DIT) as an Assistant Economist in their Analysis Group (in 2017). Since then has moved to work on strategy in DIT’s Implementation Unit (IU) as one of their Principal Economists – which, although still an economics role is more closely related to the competences he had developed in the MPP. The IU is a team that contains a mixture of policy officials and economists, conducting projects where DIT wants to develop its thinking on, so far this has spanned topics from climate change to (most recently) COVID-19.?

Jelena Gregorius 

Jelena is currently a Attachée / Programme Manager (JPD) at EU Delegation to Mexico and a previous Programme Manager at DG DEVCO, at the Unit Gender Equality, Human Rights, and Democratic Governance. Previous to that, Jelena was a Blue Book Trainee at DG DEVCO. After the MPP, she pursued an international career in the field of democratic governance and human rights within development cooperation. She has dedicated her career to topics related to Latin America, democracy, political participation, and how these connect. 

David Lambert Tumwesigye? 

David Lambert Tumwesigye is a social protection specialist with over 20 years’ experience in policy influencing, programme design and management.  He recently worked as Policy & Advocacy Advisor to Uganda’s Expanding Social Protection Programme for 10 years; supporting delivery of DFID and Irish AID technical assistance to evolve a national social protection system. 

Eden Clayton 

Eden graduated from MPP 2016, before working in Rwanda as a research consultant, and Jordan as a conflict analyst. He then joined the UK Department for International Trade as an Economist in 2018, and recently took on the role as Country Director for DIT Angola. ?

Gisela Garrido 

Gisela Garrido Veron is a researcher and a consultant in the area of urban development.  Her expertise includes urban policy, socio-environmental risk, nature-based solutions and energy transitions. She is currently participating in European research in the area of economic and urban impacts of Covid19 in cooperation with the Institute for New Economic Thinking of New York.



Venue: Virtual

Date: 22 July 2020

Time: 14:00 - 15:00  CEST


UNU-MERIT