Chris Talbot

Chris Talbot is an experienced education in emergencies consultant and a co-founder of the Inter-Agency Network for Education in Emergencies (INEE) and of the Global Coalition for Protecting Education from Attack (GCPEA). Chris taught in Australian and French high schools for 17 years and also worked in curriculum development and teacher training, focusing on education for peace, human rights, environmental and development education. From 1993-2002, Chris worked for the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), based in Geneva. From 2000-2002, he was UNHCR’s Senior Education Officer, responsible for technical support and policy advice to the staff of UNHCR and its implementing partners, on the education of refugees worldwide. Between 2002 and 2008 he worked at UNESCO’s International Institute for Educational Planning, where he was responsible for a programme on Education in Conflict, Emergencies, Reconstruction and Fragile States. He documented case studies on these themes and developed a Guidebook for Planning Education in Emergencies and Reconstruction. In 2008-09, he established and led the UNESCO Section for Education in Post-Conflict and Post-Disaster Situations. In 2010, Mr Talbot was CEO of Education Above All (EAA), a Qatar-based policy research and advocacy organization, which aims to protect, support and promote the right to education in areas affected or threatened by crisis, conflicts and war. Since early 2011, Mr. Talbot has been a consultant, specializing in education in emergencies, working for agencies such as UNICEF, UNHCR and the CfBT Education Trust.