Robbie Stakelum

Maria Jepsen is Eurofound’s Deputy Director, appointed on 1 November 2019. She coordinates the Agency’s programme development. Prior to this, she was Director of the research department at the European Trade Union Institute (ETUI), and assistant professor and research fellow at the Free University of Brussels (ULB). She is currently also associate professor in labour economics at ULB and external lecturer at the College of Europe in Bruges, Belgium. Her main research interests include gender studies, the impact of welfare states on labour supply, wages and working conditions, and the development of the European social dimension. Ms Jepsen has been a member of various committees, councils and advisory boards at national and international level on employment, social, gender and research issues. She has also served as a coordinator on the European Commission tripartite advisory committee on health and safety at work. She holds a PhD in Economics and a Master’s degree in Econometrics from the Free University of Brussels (ULB).

X: @MariaJepsenEF

Ivailo Kalfin joined Eurofound as Executive Director on 1 June 2021. Mr Kalfin’s expertise covers a range of areas, from the dynamics of the labour market and social policy to global political trends, the EU and budget, as well as digital transformation. He has outlined five main priorities for his role at Eurofound: supporting the mainstreaming of Europe's green and digital transitions; complementing the implementation of the European Pillar of Social Rights Action Plan with evidence-based research; increased cooperation with international organisations and external partners and greater outreach to European Neighbourhood Policy countries; support for enhancing and expanding the capacity of social partners within the remit of the Agency; raising Eurofound's profile among key stakeholders.

Anna Ludwinek is the Liaison Manager at Eurofound’s Brussels Liaison Office, which she joined in 2019. Her responsibilities focus primarily on coordinating the work of the Brussels office, including the relationship with the European Commission, the European Parliament, the Council and thinks-tanks. Prior to this, Anna was a research manager in the Social Policies unit with responsibility for work on intergenerational social mobility and equal opportunities, youth inequalities and access to social benefits. Her earlier work at Eurofound involved managing a European network of cities for local integration policies (CLIP), working on issues around diversity, housing, intercultural policies and ethnic entrepreneurship. Other areas of research included reintegration of long-term excluded groups into the labour market and the impact of digitalisation on social services. Anna holds an MA in Political Science from Warsaw University and a BA in International Relations and MA in Social Applied Research from Trinity College Dublin.