Consultant, Oberhoffen-les-Wissembourg, France, E-mail: juliaszanton@yahoo.com, LinkedIn profile of Julia Szanton

Your experience with the CFs and your professional relevance to the theme of CFs:

Julia’s role in the Romanian CF study visit is to observe the process and offer support to the organizers and funder in deepening the experience and learning process for participants and host organizations. Julia was also involved with the support of CFs in the Czech Republic in the 1990s while working for the VIA Foundation. She was a short-term fellow at the Community Foundation Silicon Valley in 2000 and in 2001 organized study tours for CF practitioners from the Carpathian region and Mexico to CFs in the US. In the last 10 years she has been involved in development work in Africa, with an emphasis on network and programme development, learning and fundraising.

Area of your particular interest in the CF development/ CF management/ practice:

I am interested in all aspects of CF development, especially innovative approaches to programming, ways of raising funds and improving the profile of CFs while maintaining a close connection to community needs.