- Field of expertise
- Project identification, development and management
- Capacity building for public authorities, SMEs and social partners
- Stakeholder engagement and participation
- Green economic diversification
- Circular economy
- Research and innovation
- Transition governance, TJTP implementation
- Funding, financing and economic instruments
- Country of residence
- Ireland
- Languages
- English
- Spanish
- French
- Regional experience
- Alentejo Litoral
- A Coruña
- Asturias
- Cyprus
- Nord pas de Calais
- Silesia
Eileen is an urban and regional development consultant with more than 23 years’ experience supporting cities, regions and national administrations to design and implement place-based transition strategies grounded in territorial needs, socio-economic analysis and inclusive governance. Her work focuses on helping public authorities translate climate, cohesion and regeneration objectives into practical actions that enable a fair, equitable and locally owned transition.
As Founder of Ascent Consulting, Eileen specialises in multi-level governance, funding and financing strategies, and the design of collaborative policy processes that strengthen institutional capacity. I support partners to align vision, investment and delivery - ensuring that transition pathways are realistic, adequately resourced and built on strong partnerships. Her experience includes advising European, national and regional authorities on access to EU funding, innovative financing mechanisms and the development of coherent investment frameworks for climate and territorial transition. Eileen has extensive experience curating and moderating peer-learning formats, policy labs, high-level dialogues and stakeholder engagement processes, including for the European Urban Initiative, URBACT, and Cities Forum 2025. These assignments centre on supporting local and regional authorities to strengthen their governance capacities, mobilise stakeholders, and co-design actionable solutions to complex transition challenges. Her thematic expertise spans circular economy, nature-based solutions, urban regeneration, sufficiency measures and regional innovation ecosystems, with a strong track record in evaluating EU programmes (H2020, DUT, EUI, NEB, MSCA Co-Fund, among others) and providing evidence-based recommendations for policy improvement.
Eileen is motivated by the belief that a successful and socially just transition depends on how we structure conversations, build coalitions and design place-sensitive implementation. I bring a collaborative, creative and pragmatic approach - supporting authorities from early-stage diagnostics and partnership-building through to implementation, monitoring and communication of impact.