Caterina Occhio, founder and CEO of SeeMe, is a former development aid manager with over 15 years experience in supporting employment and institutional reform. She worked extensively for the European Commission, different UN agencies and, from 2002, she specialised in the socio-economic integration of women.
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In 2007, Occhio became the secretary-general of the
SEED Foundation and led two projects supporting socio-economic insertion of disadvantaged women in Turkey. Both endeavours were elected as best practice by the Dutch Minister of Foreign Affairs. In 2008 she was the leader of the team charged of improving the effectiveness of external aid within the
European Commission. In 2010 she was EU Policy adviser for social inclusion for the new employment strategy in Tunisia.
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In her quest to help and improve women’s conditions in the MENA region, in 2013 Occhio took a leap of faith and launched SeeMe. Its main purpose being to give a safe environment and secure work positions to women upon leaving women’s shelters in Tunisia, while at the same time developing successful designs and beautiful jewels. In fact, all
SeeMe hearts are handcrafted by women who have been victims of violence. In fact, SeeMe aims at bridging luxury and fair trade. Occhio, as well as being the main designer of the jewellery and ensuring aesthetic cohesion within the brand, is also involved in all other aspects of the business.
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