The WDC is pleased to welcome six new members of staff across our Corporate Services, EU/Creative Economy, Policy Analysis and Communications teams.
Matti Allam, BizMentors Project Officer – Matti joined the WDC from Galway 2020, the delivery agency of Galway’s designation as European Capital of Culture. Her background is in managing European cooperation projects and collaborations in the cultural sector in Ireland and the UK.
Matti joined the EU/Creative Economy team, working on BizMentors International where she will assist with the development of a platform to enable free online mentoring across participating countries, providing access to expertise and mentoring opportunities across different regions.
Gordon Bond, Blue Circular Economy Project Officer – Gordon has worked in a number of institutions across the public service including the National Museum and the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform.
In his role with the WDC he serves as Project Officer for Blue Circular Economy, a project funded by the EU’s Northern Periphery and Arctic (NPA) Programme 2018-2020 which aims to contribute to the mission of the WDC by helping SMEs in the region to capitalize on the economic opportunities offered by waste fishing gear, and to attain a greater market reach.
Cait Dunstan, Clerical Officer- Systems – Cait recently moved back home to Ireland from Australia where she worked on the Fibre To The Cabinet Utilities project with the Downer Group.
She joins the WDC to assist with the information systems upgrade programme, which will see the WDC transition to a cloud-based infrastructure with increased automation of the process. Key projects include the Fund Management System, Smart Simple and the Microsoft 365 platform.
Luke McGrath, Economist/Policy Analyst – Luke’s area of expertise lies in environmental economics. He is currently finishing up a PhD in economics at NUI Galway where his thesis involves the empirical application and theoretical testing of “green” or Natural Capital accounting theory. His PhD research project was awarded Irish Research Council and NUI Hardiman Scholarships. You can view his research here.
Since joining the WDC Luke’s focus has been on economic activity in the Western Region and has developed the WDC Timely Economic Indicator set and has recently published an Economic Letter on the regional impact of COVID-19.
Sarah Reynolds, Clerical Officer – Communications – Sarah is a marketing and communications professional who has worked in a number of industries including tourism, education and entertainment.
She joins the WDC as Clerical Officer with the Communications team and will support the implementation of the organisation’s communications strategy, including the coordination of communication, marketing, and media activities for both the WDC and the Atlantic Economic Corridor.
Maria Rooney, Interim Head of Corporate Services – Maria is an experienced finance professional who holds a BA in Law & Accounting from the University of Limerick and qualified as a Chartered Accountant with Deloitte.
Prior to joining the WDC as Interim Head of Corporate Services, she worked across a wide range of businesses including Dalata Hotel Group plc and Glanbia plc.
The new members of staff will be instrumental in supporting the WDC’s 2019-2024 strategy to ‘Work Smarter. Live Better’ and will work collaboratively with the organisations existing team to promote the region at a global level.
