Tinu Achioya
Program Manager
Tinu has been an integral part of our staff since 2016, bringing with her a wealth of experience and expertise. With over 20 years of dedicated work in NGO, public sector, and government-funded projects, she has demonstrated her commitment to fostering positive change in challenging environments. Tinu’s background includes extensive training support and facilitating cross-cultural community dialogue, particularly within delicate and complex contexts.
She holds a degree in Community Studies from Dundalk Institute of Technology and an MPhil in Conflict Resolution & Reconciliation from Trinity College Ireland, providing her with a unique blend of academic knowledge and practical experience. Tinu is deeply passionate about human rights, advocacy, and social justice, which is evident in her work across various sectors.
Her experience spans across NGO, public sector, and EU-funded projects, where she has consistently provided invaluable training support and facilitated dialogue in multicultural environments. Tinu is renowned for her exceptional interpersonal skills, organizational prowess, and critical thinking abilities. Furthermore, she possesses a remarkable aptitude for communicating complex information in a clear and compelling manner.
Tinu’s dedication to making a positive impact in challenging settings makes her an invaluable asset to our team, and we are fortunate to have her expertise driving our mission forward.
Joanna FitzsimonsProject Worker
Joanna Fitzsimons was born in Lithuania in a Polish family. She has lived in Ireland since 2006. Joanna has been working with Cultúr since February 2008, initially as an Information Officer and in the recent years also as a Project Officer coordinating educational and community projects. She holds a MA in Polish Philology from Warsaw University and a BA in Law from Dublin Institute of Technology. Prior to joining Cultúr, she was engaged as an Information Provider with Citizens Information Centre in Navan supporting migrants in accessing information on their rights and entitlements. Joanna also manages Polish Saturday School in Navan.
Deirdre DowlingDeirdre has a background in career coaching and business mentoring. She worked for a multi-national company for more than 20 years and brings a wealth of practical skills and knowledge to her role as a Job Coach. She is a trained facilitator, and certified project manager and is an accredited coach with the ICF, the largest coaching organisation in the world. Deirdre holds a BA in Economics from Coventry University and a Diploma in French Studies from L’Universite de Pau and Pays de L’Adour.
Angel coordinates the Community Development Project, engaging with migrants, refugees and International Protection Applicants in rights, empowerment, participation and organisation matters. Before coming to Ireland and joining Cultúr in 2021, Angel worked for several years as a social worker in his home country, Chile, with a solid background working in the areas of poverty relief, migration and diversity. Angel holds a BA and a Master’s in Social Work from the Catholic University of Chile. Angel is committed to and passionate about migrants’ rights, social justice, community empowerment and advocacy.
Adeola is an Information Security Lead and Project Officer at Cultúr. He previously worked in the banking, finance and government sectors before moving to Ireland and has an academic background in Statistics and Cybersecurity. Adeola’s strength has always been in community integration, bringing people together, and empowering them. He is a real community connector, and in the short time he has been at Cultúr, he has made a profound impact. He created a migrant-led online forum with over 350 members, enabling them to share ideas, information on jobs, accommodations, and other topics of interest. Everyone on the platform has a voice. He leads the “Be Safe in Your Space” project, which has significantly improved relations between An Garda Síochána and migrant communities across Meath and Louth, making migrants more aware of their rights.
Shola Yahya
Shola is a community development support worker with a diploma in Community
Development Work and a certificate in Community Work from Maynooth University. She
also holds a QQI Level 6 Train the Trainer certification.
Since joining Cultur in 2018, Shola has advanced from an office administrator to a community support worker. She works closely with international protection applicants, refugees, and ethnic minorities, leading the Rethink project to upskill and reskill participants. She also coordinates women’s group activities and spearheads initiatives to
empower ethnic minorities.
Shola plays a key role in the Navan Women’s Group and serves as a committee member of the LCDC in County Meath. She collaborates with community members to address issues such as isolation, unemployment, and racism, promoting empowerment and participation among ethnic minorities and the less privileged.
Joanna Cibor
Support Officer
Joanna is originally from Poland and has been living in Ireland since 2007. She currently works as an office administrator in Cultur and holds a degree in the field of Business Economics and Business Organisation. Joanna has been working with Cultúr since December 2016.