Nynke Schaap

YEP period 2022 - 2023, batch 25

Young Expert at Cordaid - Iraq

---

First position after YEP

Project Leader Livelihood Projects at Cordaid, South Sudan

---

YEP Role

Role: Project Leader

As Project Leader in Private Sector Development (PSD), I am responsible for the acquisition and implementation of PSD projects. These projects focus on the agrifood sector and benefit start-ups and micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) and unemployed people, particularly those who are most vulnerable: youth, women, refugees and internally displaced people (IDPs). To ensure economic empowerment, job creation and the fostering of inclusive economic growth, the projects I work on provide trainings, capacity development, internships and networking events.

In my role as Project Leader, I am also often networking myself, establishing relationships with beneficiaries, donors and partners, including public institutions, private sector organisations and local and international NGOs. Together with these actors, I am looking for opportunities to collaborate and have a lasting impact while improving livelihoods. Furthermore, I network and co-work with other actors to develop ways to enhance environmental sustainability – e.g. integrating climate proof agriculture practices in our projects. Environmental sustainability and generating climate resilience in relation to socio-political and economic vulnerability are key topics I aim to integrate in our projects and approaches.

In my daily project work, I supervise the project team, coordinate activities, support technical staff in the development of (training) materials, support information gathering for monitoring and evaluation purposes, manage budgets, and more to ensure efficient management and implementation of our projects.

Skills

• Effectively and culture-sensitively communicating in person
• Thoroughly and accessibly communicating on paper
• Applying a holistic helicopter view while keeping eye for detail
• Accurately organising and coordinating
• Empathetic and strategic stakeholder management
• People-oriented, accommodating and result-focused, facilitator and relationship builder
• Self-reflective, ambitious, and eager to learn and grow
• Ability to intuitively understand complex meanings and human relations

Background

• Nationality: Dutch
• Education:
  • MSc Environmental Communication and Management , Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, 2013-2016
  • BA Arabic Language and Culture, University of Amsterdam, 2009-2012
  • Minor International Development Studies, University of Amsterdam, 2011
  • Higher Vocational Education Propaedeutics Teacher of English as a Foreign Language & Medium Vocational Education Social Cultural Work, 2004-2009

Experience before YEP

• Project Leader & Social Environmental Governance / Stakeholder Engagement consultant, Arcadis Nederland B.V., 2017-2022. This included amongst other:
  • Ensuring efficient project implementation of Environmental Planning projects
  • Being responsible for stakeholder engagement activities and leading a team of stakeholder managers
  • Writing, editing and advising on Environmental (Social) Impact Assessments
  • Managing the Community of Practice of Water and Environment colleagues working abroad
  • Diverse Environmental Social Governance consultancy assignments, including for UN-Habitat
  • Acquisition and business development
• Programme Officer, Wetskills Foundation, 2018-2022
• Project Coordinator, Wishing Well West, 2017
• Researcher Water Governance & Cooperation, Global Institute for Water Environment and Health, 2016
• Academic assistant ‘Conflict and Project Management’, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, 2015