J. Carlos holds a professional degree in Construction Engineering and Management from the University of Columbia in New York, a master's degree in Construction Engineering and Management from the University of Stanford in California, and a Civil Engineering degree from the Universidad Politécnica de Cataluña in Spain and the Institut National des Sciences Appliquées de Lyon in France. J. Carlos has served as the DG for International Partnerships of the EU since 2012, first as Team Leader for Infrastructures in the EU Delegation to Niger and later on as Team Leader for Rural Development and Infrastructures in the EU Delegation to Mozambique. Currently, he is based in Brussels where he is working in climate change and disaster risk reduction. He holds experience in the private sector in energy and civil engineering.