Education and youth

Mantas has more than 10 years’ experience in conducting and leading studies and evaluations at national and EU levels, primarily in the fields of higher education, research and innovation, and youth policy. Mantas is also a leading expert in feasibility assessment, development, validation and reviewing of simplified grants and simplified cost options (SCOs) and result-based tools used in EU programmes and European structural and investment funds.

Gerda has more than six years’ experience in policy research, evaluations and technical assistance projects. Her key area of expertise is in the intersection of education and the labour market, focusing in particular on vocational education and skills policies. She has experience in leading research projects, as well as significant expertise in various qualitative and quantitative methods of data collection and analysis. At PPMI, she has been involved in a number of research projects for the European Commission and EU agencies.

Rimantas has worked as a public policy researcher, evaluator and public management consultant since 2001. His fields of expertise include education and training, social inclusion, labour market policies and good governance. Rimantas is an experienced manager with a strong track record of working with and leading multinational teams of experts and researchers. He has worked for a variety of public sector clients including national authorities, the European Commission, the EU and UN agencies. Most of Rimantas’ assignments have been within the EU, but many have also focused on EU candidate and neighbourhood countries, as well as other countries undergoing social and economic transformations.

Loes has worked at PPMI since 2017, predominantly in the field of education and inclusion, but her past projects have also covered policy areas such as law/human rights, employment and migration. Her clients include EU agencies, as well as of the agencies UNsuch as UNICEF, UNESCO, the UNDP and the ILO. In her work, she has led research teams and data collection efforts in various  countries across Africa and Asia, including interviews, surveys and focus groups. In addition, Loes has experience in developing ethical research protocols for the safe involvement  in research activities of vulnerable populations (e.g. children).

Mantas has more than nine years’ experience in policy analysis and advising public sector leaders at national, EU and international levels. He mainly focuses on science, technology, innovation and higher education policy. At PPMI, Mantas designs and leads international, multi-methods research and consulting assignments that help the European Commission and national governments to develop better policies and improve their implementation. Since the very beginning of his career, Mantas has also been heavily involved in designing and implementing performance monitoring systems, developing measurable and actionable indicators, and tracking  progress towards achievements.

Hanna has worked at PPMI since the beginning of 2011. Her main research interests and fields of work centre on education, children’s rights and well-being, migration, sustainable development, social inclusion and gender equality policies in Europe and beyond. She leads numerous studies covering education governance, educational assessment systems, school innovation and digital education, the professional development of teachers, inclusion and equity in education, education for sustainable development, and others. Hanna has led research projects commissioned by various Directorates-General of the European Commission, as well as the European Parliament, Eurofound, UNICEF, UNESCO and the ETF, covering various geographical regions including the EU, the Balkan countries, Eastern Partnership countries, the Caucasus and Central Asia, Africa. Hanna also currently serves as the Deputy Scientific Coordinator of the Network of experts on the social dimension of education and training (NESET), and the European Expert Network on Economics of Education (EENEE) – two key knowledge providers to the European Commission on various issues in education policy.