Nathalie Charles, Head of Development and European Country Teams at AXA Investment Managers – Real Assets, has been appointed as the next Chair of ULI France. Charles officially began her term on 1 July 2018 and will serve on a voluntary basis for the next two years.

As Chair of ULI France, Charles aims to grow the council and further strengthen the reputation of ULI in France. “Growing ULI France is my top priority,” said Charles. “ULI could be stronger and more visible in such a deep market. We want to make it the organisation of choice for all real estate professionals, private or public, who are interested into the benefits of an international, multi-disciplinary network for sharing ideas and best practices.”

Central to Charles’s growth strategy for ULI France is attracting and retaining members. “The attractiveness of ULI is based on its content proposition and the opportunity to gather people from very different backgrounds,” she said. “We strongly believe that retention is a natural consequence of engagement. ULI France has a strong content programme already; we need to make this more visible and give our members even more opportunities to engage and share ideas.”

Charles also sees potential for the council to help find solutions for real estate challenges in France, including pressure in residential markets due to increasing urbanisation and demographic shifts. In response to these trends, the theme of the 2018 ULI France Conference will be “the new frontiers of residential”.

“Nathalie’s experience as a leader in both ULI and the international real estate industry makes her an excellent choice for this role,” said Lisette van Doorn, CEO of ULI Europe. “I look forward to working with Nathalie to take ULI France to the next level in terms of reputation, growth, and member engagement.”

Charles succeeds Emmanuel de Lanversin, advisor for France’s Department of Transportation. Charles has been a member of ULI for eight years and has served as both a ULI Global Governing Trustee and a ULI Europe Executive Committee member since 2017.

Charles has 30 years’ experience in the real estate industry. Prior to working for AXA IM – Real Assets, she held senior positions at EDF and the Unibail-Rodamco group. In 2011, she was awarded the French distinction Legion d’Honneur.