ABOUT ME
Where Stories Ignite Movements
Françoise
I am a visionary mentor, teacher, and researcher working at the intersection of embodiment and social science. With a background in political science and conflict research, I combine rigorous analysis with grounded spirituality to create spaces of transformation and insight.
A Path Shaped by Systems and the Body
My early career focused on studying systems of power and resilience in fragile and conflict-affected contexts. I have led and contributed to research projects commissioned by organizations such as Amnesty International, USAID, International IDEA, and the European Commission.
My work has been recognized with academic awards, supported by major grants, and featured in CNN, BBC, Reuters, NRC, De Volkskrant, De Correspondent, Zembla, and Eén Vandaag.
But the most transformative insights came not in policy rooms or research institutes, but in my own body — navigating infertility treatments in a sterile clinic, where I realized how deeply women’s wisdom is often sidelined by the very systems meant to care for them.
That rupture became the seed for my second path: guiding women back to the wisdom of their bodies, cycles, and sovereignty.
My Dual Work Today
“Combining rigorous research with grounded spirituality.”
Coaching & Women’s Programs
I create safe, trauma-informed, and soulful spaces where women reconnect with their body’s intuitive intelligence, embrace their shadows, and reclaim their sovereignty. Programs such as The Sovereign Womb weave together myth, physiology, and ritual to help women remember that they are already whole.
Research & Consultancy
I apply my training in both qualitative and quantitative methods to projects exploring how power and oppression move through governance, healthcare, and the body. My consultancy practice bridges systemic analysis with embodied perspectives, offering organizations critical insight into resilience, equity, and forgotten wisdoms.
The Thread That Connects
"Across both my coaching and my research, my mission is the same: to reveal how power moves through bodies and structures — and to reimagine resilience rooted not just in survival, but in forgotten wisdoms, embodied presence, and collective liberation."
A Personal Note
When I’m not writing, teaching, or researching, I’m with my three children, who remind me daily that mindfulness is a never-ending practice. I love getting lost in books that carry the wisdom of the feminine and ancestral myth. You’ll often find me barefoot in nature, tending ritual, or in deep conversation over tea. At heart, I’m endlessly curious about how we can live more rooted, sovereign, and connected lives.
Credentials
Qualifications
Research
I hold a PhD in Political Science with a minor in Cultural Anthropology. For six years, I worked as a (Senior) Research Fellow at the Clingendael Institute, where I led and contributed to international projects on governance, legitimacy, and resilience. My academic and applied research background equips me to analyze complex systems of power and connect them to lived experience.
Coaching & Mentorship
I am trained in multiple embodied and spiritual traditions that guide my work with women. My certifications include:
Meditation Teacher Training – Stillness in Yoga
Shakti Tantra Teacher Training – School of Shakti
Shamanic Energy Medicine – ’t Loosterveld and Alberto Villoldo
Intuitive Body Coach – Daniele Della Valle
Bodywork
I am certified in Abdominal Therapy for Professionals through the Abdominal Therapy Collective. This modality restores balance and flow to the pelvic and abdominal region, supporting physical and energetic wellbeing.
Affiliations
Active member of the Abdominal Therapy Collective, an international network dedicated to advancing abdominal and womb-centered healing practices.
Approach
My work bridges rigorous research with grounded spirituality and embodied practice. By combining social science, shadow work, nervous system regulation, and body-based modalities, I create safe spaces for women and communities to reclaim resilience, sovereignty, and forgotten wisdoms.
Achievements
My research has been recognized with international grants, academic awards, and features in outlets including CNN, BBC, Reuters, NRC, and De Correspondent. In my coaching and bodywork, clients consistently highlight the deep sense of safety I create as the foundation for their transformation.