Team

Caroline Costongs is Director of EuroHealthNet and expert in public health and health promotion. Caroline leads a multi-disciplinary team working on European and (sub)national policy, advocacy, research and capacity building addressing health inequalities. Caroline is active in various EU and WHO fora, as well as in Advisory Boards such as for APHEA (Public Health Education Accreditation Agency) and various EU projects and is a member of the ICC – International Council for the European Public Health Conference.

Caroline has a strong international background with 25+ years of public health, health equity and health promotion experience. In 1992 she started her career as a researcher at the National Capacity Building Institute (INICE) of the Honduras Ministry of Education. She subsequently worked for the Health Institute of the Liverpool John Moores University and the Netherlands Olympic Committee and Sports Confederation (NOC*NSF) linking health and physical activity. In 2000, she joined the European Network of Health Promoting Agencies (ENHPA), where she helped establish EuroHealthNet as a not-for-profit association with legal statutes in Belgium.

Caroline graduated from the University of Maastricht with a MSc in Public Health.

Caroline has three children and lives with her partner and family in Tervuren.

Alba is part of the Research Platform, where she leads EuroHealthNet’s contribution in a variety of EU projects. She coordinates IMMUNION (“Improving IMMunisation cooperation in the European UNION”), a 2-year project (2021-2023) funded by the 3rd Health Programme which aims to increase vaccine uptake in the EU. Alba also leads EuroHealthNet’s work in the Horizon 2020 psLifestyle project (2021-2025), which is co-creating an application to enable, empower and encourage European citizens to take personalised steps towards more sustainable lifestyles. When she joined EuroHealthNet in 2019, Alba worked on the Horizon 2020 INHERIT project (2016-2019), which aimed to jointly improve health, equity, and environmental sustainability. 

Before joining EuroHealthNet Alba was a public affairs consultant in Brussels for three years, focusing on health, food and sustainability. Prior to this, she completed a traineeship at the European Union Fundamental Rights Agency, and volunteered in a Turkish NGO working on child education and female literacy. 

Alba holds a BA in History from the University of Cambridge, and a Masters’ in International Relations from the University of Amsterdam. She is French and British. 

David Hargitt joined EuroHealthNet in February 2015 as Management Assistant. He provides administrative support to the team and Directors. He organizes EuroHealthNet’s General Council and Executive Board meetings, study visits, workshops and webinars. He is also in charge of liaising with potential and existing members, partners and observers of the EuroHealthNet Network.

Prior to joining EuroHealthNet, David worked as Project Officer at the Centre for Research on the Epidemiology of Disasters (CRED) of the Université catholique de Louvain. He holds a B.A. in Biology from Hartwick College in Oneonta, New York, an M.Sc. in Human Ecology from the Vrije Universiteit Brussel and a D.E.S. in Cartography and Remote Sensing from the Université Libre de Bruxelles.

Caoimhe joined EuroHealthNet as a Communications Assistant in September 2021.

Caoimhe holds an MSc in Social Policy and Public Health from Utrecht University and BSc in Public Health from University College Cork. She has a keen interest in health promotion and disease prevention and works to contribute to a healthier and more equitable Europe.

Alison supports the Director with overall management activities, and specifically in the development and implementation of EuroHealthNet’s operational objectives and business plan. Alison is the Project Coordinator of IMMUNION (“Improving IMMunisation cooperation in the European UNION”), a 2-year project funded by the 3rd Health Programme to work with the Coalition for Vaccination to deliver better vaccine education to healthcare professionals and better information to the general public. She also leads EuroHealthNet’s contributions to the RIVER-EU project (“Reducing Inequalities in Vaccine uptake in the European Region – Engaging Underserved communities”) as the Communication and Dissemination Work Package lead.   

Alison holds an MSc in Public Health (Health Promotion) from the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, as well as a BA in International Affairs and Anthropology from The George Washington University in Washington DC. Alison brings significant experience in project and association management to EuroHealthNet, as well as experience in designing and implementing health promotion interventions at the community level. She has worked at global and (sub)national levels with policy makers, health professionals, community leaders, researchers, and other stakeholders from regions as diverse as Latin America, the Middle East and North Africa, and Southeast Asia.  

Lina primarily works on the practice platform where she coordinates EuroHealthNet Country Exchange Visits between national experts striving to ensure that the best approaches and evidence for improving health and equity are translated into policy and practice. She also contributes to RIVER-EU (“Reducing Inequalities in Vaccine uptake in the European Region – Engaging Underserved communities”) project where EuroHealthNet serves as the Communication and Dissemination Work Package lead. 

Most recently, she was involved in EuroHealthNet’s work on health promotion and disease prevention in the context of the EU Joint Action CHRODIS PLUS and developing an eGuide for financing health promoting services. Prior to joining the team in September 2018, she gained experience working at the European Commission (DG SANTE), the European Regional and Local Health Authorities (EUREGHA) and the public affairs consultancy in Brussels. Lina holds an MSc in politics and government in the European Union from the London School of Economics and a BA in International Relations from the University of Essex in the United Kingdom. 

Vania is part of the Policy Platform and provides expertise and first hand information on EU processes and policies relevant for the public health sector, health equity and social determinants of health. He is responsible for the coordination of the annual analysis of the European Semester and Recovery Plans. Vania is also in charge of monitoring of and contributing to EU digital policies developments, including the participation to the EU eHealth Stakeholder Group. Moreover, Vania is project officer working on the Joint Action on Health Equity in Europe (JAHEE).

Prior to joining EuroHealthNet, Vania worked for a number of Brussels-based organisations, including a Blue Book traineeship at the European Commission (DG SANTE). Vania holds two MA degrees in Political Science and European Studies.

Renaud Rollet joined EuroHealthNet in November 2013 as Administrator & Financial Officer and supports the team and Directors. He prepares financial reports for submission to funders. He also manages HR, bookkeeping and office logistics.

Renaud Rollet has a degree in English studies from the University of Reims in France. Before joining EuroHealthNet he worked for a medical European association and more recently for SOLIDAR, a European network of NGOs working to advance social justice in Europe and worldwide.

Dorota has joined the EuroHealthNet in February 2018. She is a public health advocate with over 10 years of policy experience at European, national and global level with strong interest in health equity, poverty and social exclusion, early years and vulnerable groups, mental health, gender policies, as well as food systems. At EuroHealthNet she leads the Policy Platform, providing policy advice and intelligence to the Partnership, developing consultation responses, liaising with EU institutions and EU stakeholders. Dorota is the EuroHealthnet’s main focal point for many of EU Health and Social Policy’s expert groups and strategic dialogues.  

Before joining EuroHealthNet, Dorota worked for a number of European civil society organisations in the field of public health and international development, as independent consultant for health and social justice NGOs as well as the WHO Europe Governance for Health and European Healthy Cities Network. She was also involved in a number of FP7 and Horizon2020-funded projects (CHRODIS+, ESIF Funds for Health). 

Dorota has an academic background in behavioural and health sciences, with a MSc in International Public Health from the Free University of Amsterdam, a MSc in Social Psychology from the University of Amsterdam and a MA in Clinical Psychology from the University of Casimirus the Great (Poland). She also obtained a certificate in Systems Thinking in Public Health from John Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, a certificate in New Health2020 Policy in Europe from WHO European Office for Investment for Health and Development, and a joint certificate in International Mental Health from the Centre for Global Mental Health (King’s College London and the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine). 

Ingrid Stegeman is Programme Manager and responsible for overseeing and ensuring quality of various activities conducted at EuroHealthNet, making the link between evidence and EuroHealthNet’s outputs, and providing strategic planning expertise. She was closely involved in the design of and oversees the implementation of the INHERIT research project. Ingrid has experience in health inequalities, sustainable development, health in all policies, early child development, and capacity building. She has helped to develop, coordinate and been involved in a range of EuroHealthNet initiatives in these areas. Prior to joining EuroHealthNet, she was mainly active in the field of children’s rights and worked as a project assistant and researcher for various organisations in this field.

She has a BA in International Studies from Vassar College in New York, and an MA in Political Sciences from the University of Amsterdam (UvA), and a Certificate in Project Management from Boston University.

Gabriella joined EuroHealthNet in July 2021 as a Policy and Practice Officer. Her role is focused on supporting the policy and practice platform to contribute to the capacity of EuroHealthNet members within the context of EU policy processes, in turn supporting an efficient exchange of good practices amongst Member States and facilitating collaboration on the organisation’s policy and practice activities. 

Before joining EuroHealthNet, Gabriella was a policy researcher in a Brussels-based public affairs consultancy, primarily focusing on health matters. Prior to that, she was an intern at the WHO Regional Office for Europe in Copenhagen, and at the European Parliament Liaison Office in Malta. Gabriella holds a B.Sc in Applied Biomedical Science and a M.A in International Relations from the University of Malta. 

Ruth joined the EuroHealthNet team in April 2022 as Communications Officer.

She holds a BA Hons degree in Print Journalism from the University of Gloucestershire (UK) and has worked in the not-for-profit sector for over ten years. Ruth has applied her communication skills to a number of positions including for an energy trade association in Brussels and as part of a National Research Network (Sêr Cymru / Stars Wales), where she was based at a UK university.

Samuele joined EuroHealthNet as a Research and Policy Officer in July 2021. He is focused on strengthening the capacity of EuroHealthNet research platform to enhance associate members’ knowledge related to EU policy processes and instruments, while also cooperating with the Policy platform to help ‘translate’ EU policies into researchable actions and to facilitate scientific excellence of EuroHealthNet’s outputs. 

Before joining EuroHealthNet, Samuele worked as a Researcher in Political Science and as a Lecturer Assistant at Victoria University of Wellington, New Zealand, where he focused on democratic theory, social and economic inequalities, and class conflict. He holds a B.A. and a M.Sc in Sociology from the University of Trento, Italy, and a PhD in Political Science at the Victoria University of Wellington. 

Chantal joined EuroHealthNet’s communication team in September 2018. She has an academic background in public health, public management, and human rights, and a strong interest in health inequalities and the social determinants of health.

Before joining EuroHealthNet, she worked as case manager at a municipality in the Netherlands, and as a trainee at the European Commission.