Curriculum Vitae

Finn Yrjar Denstad

Phone: +32-2-29 66 587 (work)
Fax: +32-2-29 94 803 (work)
E-mail: finn.DENSTAD@ec.europa.eu

Employment record
01.2008  European Commission, Youth Policy Unit, DG Education and Culture
Policy officer, following up the dossiers of evidence-based youth policy and social inclusion.
2005 – 2008 Senior Adviser at the Norwegian Ministry of Children and Equality
Focal point for the youth NGO sector. Addressing issues relating to government support to
child and youth NGOs, including funding and grant schemes. Liaison with the NGO-sector.
2004 – 2005 Adviser at Norwegian Ministry of the Health and Care Services
Unit for international cooperation and coordination. Addressing issues relating to Nordic,
Baltic Sea and European cooperation. Bilateral cooperation programme with Russia.
2002 – 2004 Youth Program Manager at the OSCE Mission to Bosnia-Herzegovina
Manager of the national youth programme, including programme coordination in the youth
policy area of the OSCE's field offices across Bosnia-Herzegovina
2000 – 2002 Head of Department of Youth Work at the European Youth Forum
Promoting the development of youth work in Europe, with a focus on the (at that time)
candidate countries of the European Union, as well as the Balkan and Caucasus regions.
1995 – 2000 International Officer at the Norwegian Youth Council
Focus on Nordic, Baltic Sea and European cooperation. Promoting cooperation between youth
NGOs in Norway and Central and Eastern Europe and the Balkan region.

Education
1995 Master of Arts in Political Science, Purdue University, Indiana, USA
1993 Cand. Mag in Political Science and History, University of Oslo, Norway

Other
Experience as freelance consultant and trainer in promoting the development of national
youth strategies and/or action plans in Moldova (2003) and Armenia (2004), as well as
following the strategy processes in Montenegro (2004-06) and Serbia (2008) as a monitoring
expert and evaluator.
Author of "The Youth Policy Manual. How to develop a national youth strategy" (Council of
Europe, forthcoming). Also author of a number of articles and papers on youth policy and
youth work in Europe.