Nexus Interview Series // Cecilia Vey, Junior Advisor Global Nexus Secretariat, Communications and Outreach
The interview series aims to provide a better picture of the people within the Nexus team and their perspectives on Water Energy Food (WEF) Nexus challenges and opportunities. In this episode, we invite you to get to know Cecilia Vey, leading the PR, communication and event activities in her position as Junior Advisor at the Global Nexus Secretariat.
Cecilia joined the Nexus team in June 2022. She is currently working as part of the Global Nexus Secretariat within the Nexus Regional Dialogues (NRD) Programme with a focus on communications and outreach. She is responsible for the Nexus Resource Platform, ensuring its operation and maintenance as well as its continued development and growth. She ensures Nexus networking activities, promotes the ongoing progress of the project and its success stories, builds cooperation with Nexus-based programmes, manages and creates contributions to all Nexus social media channels and the platform.
Cecilia has previously worked as a marketing and communications specialist in a Geopolitical Analysis Firm in the USA. She has also worked as a practising nurse in a London NHS hospital. She holds a BSc. in Adult Nursing from London and a Master’s in European Studies and International Relations from the University of Maastricht in the Netherlands. She is a native speaker of both English and French and is based in Bonn, Germany.
How would you describe the role of the Global Nexus Secretariat and what is the importance of communications in supporting activities within the different regions?
The Nexus Regional Dialogues Programme is active in five regions around the globe: the Niger Basin, MENA and Latin America and the Caribbean being implemented by GIZ. The Southern African region is implemented by Global Water Partnership and the Central Asia region is implemented by the Regional Environmental Centre for Central Asia.
So where does the Global Nexus Secretariat fit into this? Our role is to coordinate with the different regions and identify potential synergies, raise-awareness of the WEF Nexus through human capacity development offering trainings on the Nexus or via online courses, but also by participating in conferences, webinars, and global policy and investment dialogues. As the NRD Programme covers many regions, sound communication is vital to disseminate the progress and milestones achieved, promote the various activities taking place whether it be at a local, national or regional level; but also, to raise awareness of key publications, reports and studies being developed by the team and our partners.
With a focus on communications, what are some important aspects when communicating the WEF Nexus, and why?
The Water-Energy-Food Nexus approach is a complex and somewhat abstract topic, therefore clear and targeted communication is essential. As part of the Programme’s mandate, we seek to not only raise awareness of the Nexus approach to individuals who might be unfamiliar with the topic (whether it be potential investors, or members of the public), but also to disseminate key WEF Nexus tools, studies and publications to decision and policy makers, and experts.
Although the WEF Nexus is our team’s area of expertise, the same cannot be said for everyone - the WEF Nexus remains a niche topic, which is where communication plays an important role to increase awareness. Let’s take Twitter for example, when aiming to reach individuals who may not be familiar with the topic, it is always important to communicate the topic in a simple yet informative manner and to be as concise as possible without overloading the reader with too much information.
As another example, the Nexus Resource Platform (NRP) website is one of the programme’s greatest communication tools, available to all target groups. It is on the one hand a knowledge hub for key WEF Nexus publications, home to thousands of resources, studies, tools and relevant upcoming events; but it is also highliting our project activity updates where readers can follow the progress being made by our colleagues within the different programme regions.
The NRP is where theory and practice come together, where one can learn (more) about the Nexus and read how it is being put into practice through our various articles on WEF Nexus trainings, activities and events.
Which events or communications products are you looking forward to in the last months of Phase II?
Although there are many interesting and exciting communications products planned until the end of the phase, I am looking forward to the WEF Nexus Conference which will be taking place in the final months of the programme next year in 2023. The conference will bring together like-minded colleagues striving to break down the silos and think beyond sectors to ensure access to water, energy and food for all. Be sure to sign up to our newsletter for upcoming news about the conference and much more!
Thank you, Cecilia, for taking the time to answer these questions!
More Information on the Nexus Regional Dialogues Programme
- Nexus Regional Dialogues Programme
- NRD Factsheet
- Nexus Regional Dialogues Programme // New Water-Energy-Food (WEF) Nexus Training Material
Read more interviews from the series
- Nexus Interview Series // Eleonora Hoffmann, Advisor Global Nexus Secretariat, Human Capacity Development
- Nexus Interview Series // Maria Ana Rodriguez, Head of the Nexus Regional Dialogues Programme
- Nexus Interview Series // Irene Sander, Coordinator of the Global Nexus Secretariat
- Nexus Interview Series // Antonio Levy, Regional Coordinator in Latin America and the Caribbean