BIOGRAPHICAL NOTE: Maria-Luisa Chávez

María-Luisa Chávez México/Greece,

Ms. Maria-Luisa Chávez, retired from the United Nations in 2013, after a thirty-two year career ranging from a Political Affairs Officer to Chief of Non Governmental Organizations Relations.

During her thirty two year career at the United Nations she has held several senior Public Information positions, including Director of UN Information Centre for Greece, Cyprus and Israel, Chief of the Educational Outreach Section, and Chief of the Non Governmental Organizations Section in the Department of Public Information (DPI), which was her last post prior to retirement, acting as the liaison between the United Nations and some 1300 NGOs.
Ms. Chávez comes from a multicultural family, and also as a second-generation UNer, she was raised in Democratic Republic of the Congo, Greece, Jordan, Kashmir, Lebanon, India, Italy, Mexico, Pakistan, Palestine, Syria, and the United States.

Ms. Chávez received her Master in International Affairs at Columbia University, and completed her BA at Marymount College in New York, as well other studies at the Sorbonne University in Paris and the Université Catholique de l’Ouest in Angers, France.

She is a member of the Board of Trustees of the UN International School and a former faculty and advisor to the School regarding their student conferences.

Throughout her career and as a retiree, Ms. Chávez, has promoted and strengthened partnerships with civil society, and empowered youth to effectively use their voices in advocacy, and to be the voice of change.

Ms. Chavez is presently a member of the Advisory Board of a new organization HIGGS based in Athens, Greece promoting capacity-building for NGOs, and advisor to 2 NGOs, the Smile of the Child in Greece and the Fundación Cultural Carol Baur in Mexico (NGO Representative at the UN) in outreaching youth of civil society.

Ms. Chavez is fluent in English, Spanish, French and Italian and has good knowledge of Greek.