Quality communication builds trust and trust is what allows organisations to lead.
Tettje van Daalen, Managing Editor, Riva the Netherlands
Tettje van Daalen is a managing editor and communications professional who helps teams turn complex text into accessible language and clear, credible stories that people can act on. She believes that good writing is not decoration; it is a service. It makes decisions transparent, helps partners align, and ensures public commitments can be understood — and therefore held.
For more than 20 years, she has copy-edited and fact-checked publications, web articles and newsletters on public services, supporting programmes that range from district master plans to national guidelines and high-level compacts. Over that time, she has seen a shift away from heavyweight academic prose towards practical plans with a clear vision – the kind of writing that helps local leaders move from analysis to action. Tettje is at her best where precision meets pragmatism: checking the logic of an argument, testing whether evidence is stated and traceable, and making sure tone and terminology stay consistent across audiences and channels.
In her current role in the Global and Regional Programme, she focuses on editing, web publishing and communication outreach. She supports colleagues to prepare content for online and print publication, provides practical web instruction, compiles the monthly newsletter, and leads quality control so every piece is accurate, readable and fit for purpose. Tettje holds a degree in English Language and Literature from Utrecht University and brings a steady editorial hand, a candid eye for what’s missing, and deep respect for the people who will ultimately use the information. She is fluent in Dutch, English and French.
Experience highlights
- Managing editor, including quality assurance for publications, newsletters and website content on public services (for example the story book Doing Things Differently for the Empowers project)
- Editorial support for district master plans – checking clarity, internal logic, and actionability; tightening language where needed (including the first master plans Asutifi North master plan and the Kabarole master plan)
- Contribution to national guidelines and high-level compacts that inform leaders from district to ministerial level (in Ghana the National Water Policy of Ghana and the Ghana Presidential Compact on WASH)
- Compiling a monthly newsletter – sometimes on a specific topic to showcase the organisation’s expertise (collecting personal stories for the Amplify special on systems leaders)
- Web publishing and content preparation for print — ensuring consistency in tone, terminology and formatting
- Delivering web instruction and hands-on support so colleagues can publish confidently and correctly