Team

Olivier De Schutter was appointed as the United Nations Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights by the UN Human Rights Council from 2020-2026. An academic specialised in economic and social rights, he is currently a member of the Council of Europe’s European Committee of Social Rights and co-chair of the International Panel of Experts on Sustainable Food Systems (IPES-Food).

In his role as UN Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights, Olivier presented a groundbreaking report to the UN Human Rights Council in 2024 on Eradicating Poverty Beyond Growth; challenging conventional poverty reduction strategies and arguing for a new, post-growth approach to tackling poverty. In his presentation of the report, De Schutter announced his intention to convene a broad coalition of actors to co-create a Roadmap for Eradicating Poverty Beyond Growth – a catalogue of practical policy options for tackling poverty than prioritise human well-being over GDP growth.

Olivier previously served as the UN Special Rapporteur on the right to food from 2008 to 2014, and as a member of the UN Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights between 2015 and 2020. Prior to those appointments, he was Secretary-General of the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH). In 2013, he was awarded the prestigious Francqui Prize for his contribution to international human rights law and to the theory of governance.

Olivier is a Professor of Law at the University of Louvain (UCLouvain) in Belgium and at SciencesPo (Paris) – with an LLM from Harvard University, and a PhD from UCLouvain. He has previously taught at New York University, Columbia University, University of California, Yale University, University of Leicester and the College of Europe.

François Denuit served as Senior Advisor to Olivier De Schutter, former UN Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights. He steers research and policy work on eradicating poverty through post-growth economic strategies and leads the development of NEEP’s comprehensive Roadmap for Eradicating Poverty Beyond Growth, alongside alliance-building to advance its implementation.

From 2018 to 2023, François served as Political Advisor to Philippe Lamberts, Member of the European Parliament and Co-President of the Group of the Greens/EFA. He specialized in socio-economic policies, notably the European Green Deal, EU economic governance, fiscal and social policies. François also spearheaded strategic foresight initiatives on post-growth economics and organized the landmark Beyond Growth Conference at the European Parliament in May 2023. The conference featured prominent speakers such as Tim Jackson, Kate Raworth, Jason Hickel, and the President of the European Commission, bringing together more than 60 partner organisations.

François holds a joint PhD in Politics and International Studies from the University of Warwick and in Political and Social Sciences from the Université libre de Bruxelles (ULB). His dissertation, Fighting Poverty in the European Union: An Assessment of the Prospects for a European Universal Basic Income (EUBI), reflects his long-standing interest in social justice and welfare innovation. He is currently a scientific collaborator at ULB’s Centre for the Study of Political Life (Cevipol) and Institute for European Studies (IEE). His research focuses on European social policy and economic governance, political ecology and socio-ecological transitions, post-growth economics, theories of social justice, and universal basic income.

Praachi Khera served as the Beyond Growth Advisor to Olivier De Schutter, former UN Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights. She co-leads the work on building a Roadmap for Eradicating Poverty Beyond Growth, in alliance with a coalition of movements, unions, policymakers, scholars, UN agencies, civil society organisations, and Member States, which will be presented to the Human Rights Council in 2026.

Previously, she worked as a Fellow at the Global Health Justice Partnership at Yale Law School, and as a manager at IDinsight, where she worked with policymakers in government and civil society on advancing social policy reforms. At Yale, she studied political economy and development politics and graduated with a degree in public policy and global affairs. She also holds a B.Sc. in Mathematics from St. Stephen’s College, University of Delhi.

Kate Holmes served as Communications Advisor to Olivier De Schutter, former UN Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights. She leads on all things media, campaigns and digital, and has been at the forefront of communications efforts to shape the narrative around the need to move beyond growth in the fight against poverty, including the former Special Rapporteur’s Roadmap for Eradicating Poverty Beyond Growth and the launch of NEEP. 

With a career dedicated to strategic communications for the public good, Kate has designed and executed high-impact communications strategies for organisations such as UNICEF, the UN World Tourism Organization, the European Commission, and UK local government. She holds a Master’s degree in European Studies from the London School of Economics and Political Science.

Valentina Vannini served as a Research Advisor in the team of Olivier De Schutter, former UN Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights.

Valentina holds a BSc in Philosophy, Politics and Economics and an MSc in Environmental Sciences and Management. She is currently completing an MSc in Environmental Technology at Imperial College London. Previously, she worked as a Research Assistant for Professors François Maniquet and Tanguy de Wilde d’Estmael. She is also a co-author of a peer-reviewed publication on the life-cycle assessment of microalgae, published in Science of the Total Environment (Elsevier). Her research interests include post-growth economics, universal basic services, health, and education.

Antoine Gaudissart served as a Research Advisor in the team of Olivier De Schutter, former UN Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights.

Antoine holds a BSc in Philosophy, Politics and Economics and a Double Master’s in European Affairs from the KULeuven and European Economic Studies from the College of Europe. Previously, he served as a writer for the student think tank BRIEF. He is the author of a Master’s thesis on critical metal recycling, which was published by the College of Europe. His research interests include economic system transformation, sustainable finance and post-growth economics.

Arthur Boutiab served as a Research Advisor in the team of Olivier De Schutter, former UN Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights.

Arthur’s work focuses on the macroeconomic dimensions of the Roadmap for Eradicating Poverty Beyond Growth. In collaboration with academics, he conducts economic policy research on systemic growth dependencies in high -, middle- and low-income countries.

Arthur has a background in economics and environmental policy. Previously, he worked as a macroeconomic modeller in collaboration with the University of Florence. He also has experience in institutional advocacy and parliamentary work.

Following undergraduate studies at Sciences Po Lyon and Waseda University Tokyo, Arthur is currently completing an MSc in Environmental Policy at Sciences Po Paris.

Andre Pancholi served as a Research Advisor in the team of Olivier De Schutter, former UN Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights.

Andre holds a BA in Geography from the University of Cambridge and is currently completing an MSc in Environmental Technology at Imperial College London.

He brings entrepreneurial experience as the co‑founder of two social‑enterprise ventures (in public health and education) that apply data‑driven tools to advance social and economic objectives. He has contributed to international climate and sustainability policy debates, including representing the UK as a youth diplomat in Tokyo, Japan, engaging with policymakers and experts on decarbonisation, energy security and just transition pathways.

His research interests include post-growth sustainable development, environmental governance and shifting landscapes of power within technology‑driven transitions.

Liza Diane Gordin is a consultant based in Amsterdam. Liza worked with organizations including the World Bank Group (through CGAP and IFC), the World Food Programme (WFP), and international NGOs such as ProVeg International and MitOst. Her work has focused on social protection policy, financial inclusion, climate resilience, social inclusion, and civic participation, with a particular interest in strengthening systems for vulnerable populations.

Liza holds a Bachelor’s degree in Liberal Arts and Sciences, specializing in psychology and philosophy, from Maastricht University, and a Master’s degree in Public Policy and Human Development from United Nations University and Maastricht University (School of Business and Economics). She is fluent in Dutch, English, Russian, and Italian.