ACT FOR FREEDOM POLITICAL sTANDING OPPRESSION UP TO BUILDING Institutions THE GUARANTEEING PEACE

Fondemos - WHO ARE WE?

Fondemos is a non-governmental organization dedicated to the development of political freedom, democracy and the rule of law on every continent.

Fondemos supports those working actively for the democratization of their countries, enabling them to acquire the knowledge and means to achieve this.

OUR LATEST RESOURCES

Fondemos is regularly publishing case studies, interventions and partner publications on democratisation stories all around the world. 

If you’d like to collaborate with Fondemos, you can click here. 

Capture d’écran 2025-10-27 à 16.10.45
Stolen Elections in 2024 : Chad, Venezuela, Mozambique
Apathy or revolt - edito (covert)
Apathy or Revolt: Choosing the Rule of Law
Tanzania's democratic illusion - Fondemos view (cover)
Election without choice: Tanzania’s democratic illusion

Activities

REFLECTION: A THINK-TANK

Research and publications on:

  • The “Why“: philosophical foundations of democracy; objective advantages (political and economic); cultural and sociological adaptations.
  • The “How“: democratization (smooth transitions, radical changes); democratic life (institutions, governance, role of parties and civil society, transparency, justice, etc.).

ACTION: A DO-TANK

Accompanying and supporting citizen movements through:

  • Strategic advice and mentoring.
  • Training in fundamental activist skills (mobilization, non-violent action, public relations, security, the fight against electoral fraud, etc.) and governance (transitional justice, the fight against corruption, transparency, the life of institutions, etc.).
  • Advocacy (diplomacy, information campaigns, seeking public and private support, organizing legal proceedings, etc.).
  • Emergency humanitarian action for oppressed and disaster-stricken populations.

Philosophy of action

Convinced that every people has the right and capacity to establish a system of political freedom, the FONDEMOS team promotes two complementary approaches:

01
Audacity and optimism

Fondemos refutes all resignation, whether it is fed by fear and ignorance in the countries concerned, or by the comfortable conviction that democracy is not universal.

02
PRUDENCE & PROFESSIONALISM

Fondemos rejects all adventurism. Regime change is not something to be improvised out of anger or opportunism. They require a free social project that is not imposed by counterproductive interference. To these adventurist approaches, which inevitably lead to chaos and failure, Fondemos opposes prudence.

Political freedom: an essential requirement

The founders and members of Fondemos are driven by the conviction that political freedom is the sine qua non condition for the development and fulfillment of all nations, whatever their cultures and histories.

 

In order to act, it is not enough for Fondemos to believe that democracy is desirable, according to its own criteria, but that it is clearly desired by organized, determined groups concerned with the general interest, and willing to be helped in this endeavor.  The natural beneficiaries of Fondemos‘ action are citizens’ movements committed to justice, dignity and fundamental freedoms against oppressive regimes.

Fondemos believes that civil society in oppressed societies can and must be the main actor in democratization processes, and that civil society in democratic countries has the right and even the duty to assist it.

Management

Jean-Renaud FAYOL

Chairman

A graduate of a French officer training college (Saint-Cyr), Jean-Renaud Fayol has been assisting and advising political opponents fighting against autocratic governments since 1996, particularly in Asia and Africa. He also runs a consulting group. In addition, he lectures at a number of higher education establishments and conducts research in two fields: intelligence, economic intelligence and prospective on the one hand, and political resistance, insurrection and democratic transition in emerging countries on the other.

Benoit Barral

Director

Benoît Barral holds master’s degrees in International Relations (Institut d’Etudes Politiques d’Aix-en-Provence), African Studies (Paris I Panthéon-Sorbonne), and Conflict Studies (London School of Economics). Benoît Barral has lived and worked in sub-Saharan Africa in three sectors: diplomacy (at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and in embassies), journalism (reporting and documentaries), and strategic consulting.  

Irène Trochu

Country Analyst, Administrative and Fundraising Manager

Irène is a country analyst for West Africa at Fondemos, where she supports the structuring of citizen movements and the development of their strategies, while delivering Fondemos training to teams and partners. She is also the administrative manager and head of fundraising, supporting the strategic and financial development of the organization since 2022.   A graduate in business from ESCP Business School and currently pursuing a master’s degree in Global Security at King’s College London, she has also carried out humanitarian work in Syria, strengthening her commitment to crisis situations and field action.  

Paul Gré-Beauvais

Advocacy, Myanmar Analyst and Head of Paris Office

Paul Gré-Beauvais holds a double master’s degree in Policies and Governance in Europe (King’s College London and Luiss Guido Carli, Rome). His academic work focused on the European Union’s foreign policy and international crisis management, with a particular expertise on the EU’s security and defence posture in the Asia-Pacific.

At Fondemos, he began as a Myanmar Country Analyst in May 2024 and now serves as Advocacy and Country Analyst. He monitors the situation in post-coup Myanmar in real time, drawing on local sources and field intelligence. He is also actively involved in advocacy with French and European institutions, contributing to policy discussions on human rights, sanctions, and democratic support. He finally manages Fondemos’ Paris-based team, overseeing coordination, and the organisation’s external outreach.

Isaac Morize

Analyst and training manager

A graduate of Sciences Po Paris in Public Affairs, following a period of study at Galatasaray University in Istanbul in International Relations, Isaac Morize joined Fondemos in September 2024. Within the organization, he is responsible for strengthening and diversifying training programs by highlighting and integrating case studies produced on various episodes of collective mobilizations, both in France and abroad. His work aims to give greater visibility and analytical depth to these experiences, making them more accessible and operational for training activities. 

Jeanne Fayol

Responsible for research

Jeanne holds a master’s degree in literature and a master’s degree in philosophy. She joined Fondemos in September 2024 and is currently a doctoral student in social and political philosophy, jointly supervised by Paris Sorbonne University and the University of Navarra (Spain). Her research focuses on Simone Weil’s philosophy of work, intermediary bodies, and the political community. Within the organization, she supervises and participates in the production of case studies. At the heart of our think tank work, these analyses put today’s democratic struggles into perspective based on recent or older experiences. They enable us to bring together strategic tools that are then integrated into our training programs.

Alice André

Case studies' redactor

Alice André holds a double bachelor’s degree in history and economics from Paris 1 Panthéon Sorbonne University and is currently pursuing a master’s degree in public administration at Paris-Nanterre University. She joined Fondemos in September 2025 as a case study writer on a work-study program. Following an exchange program in Buenos Aires as part of her studies, she is specializing in Latin America. Several countries in the region share similar characteristics, such as economic inequality and insecurity, government corruption, and the struggle to stabilize democracy, making it a rich field for analysis.

Michel Duclos

CHAIRMAN OF THE EXPERT COMMITTEE

Graduated from ENA, Michel Duclos is a diplomat. He was Ambassador to the PSC in Brussels,  deputy permanent representative of France to the United Nations, ambassador to Syria, diplomatic advisor to the minister of the Interior, ambassador to Switzerland, and director of the International Diplomatic Academy. For several years now, he has been contributing his work and ideas to the at the Institut Montaigne, where he holds the position of special advisor on geopolitical and diplomatic issues. He is also the author of La longue nuit syrienne (2019) and La France dans le bouleversement du monde (2021). He contributed to the redaction of several books, including Le monde des nouveaux autoritaires (2019) and Guerre en Ukraine et nouvel ordre du monde (2023), published by l’Observatoire.

Anne-Sophie Ducreux

Administrator

Anne-Sophie Ducreux worked as a political advisor for over 10 years in crisis situations in the Balkans and Africa. She has worked for the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs and various international organizations, including the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), the United Nations and the World Bank. A graduate in public law, political communication, and political science (Sciences Po Paris), she is a regular lecturer at the INSP, the Institut National du Service Public (formerly ENA).

Etienne Dubern

Vice-Chairman

Etienne Dubern has been an expert in the analysis of political and security dynamics for 25 years, first as a civil servant and then as a consultant. He has worked mainly in the Balkans, Sahel and Maghreb, notably as part of peacemaking and stabilization operations, consulting missions and assistance projects for companies and international institutions. A graduate of the Institut d’Études Politiques d’Aix-en-Provence, he taught there for over 15 years.
Etienne Dubern