Jessica Oddy
Director of Learning & Evaluation
Jessica Oddy Atuona leads the Learning and Evaluation team at Global Fund for Children, strengthening how the organization learns with partners and uses evidence to shift practice across the philanthropy sector.
Her approach to learning and evaluation is grounded in frontline experience. Jessica began her career as a teacher before serving as a Community Protection Associate with the United Nations, supporting children and adults in detention and navigating complex safeguarding and protection systems. She then moved into Education in Emergencies, working in humanitarian, as well as protected displacement settings, supporting organizations to set up education initiatives for and with children and young people affected by displacement. Working first-hand within programmes shaped her commitment to learning and evaluation that is practical, ethical, and rooted in the realities of community-based organizations.
With over fifteen years of experience across grassroots organizations, international NGOs, and multilateral institutions, Jessica specializes in participatory learning, qualitative and mixed-methods research, and equity-centred programme design. Her academic research examines how structural inequality shapes young peoples lives, and she brings this critical lens into how GFC measures impact, supports partners, and strengthens trust-based learning.
Jessica holds a PhD in Social Sciences and is the founder of a social enterprise that aims to amplify systems-impacted individuals as providers of aid. She speaks English, Spanish and is currently learning French and Mauritian Kreole