About
A journey — built slowly and intentionally with people who truly care.
ISI Cascais is one of two independent companies founded and led by Nichola de Montaigne — alongside DeMontaigne Life Design. Two distinct organisations. One founding head. One shared compass.
Managed by a multidisciplinary team from DeMontaigne Life Design — supporting ISI's growth and development for three years already.
The Team · Our current bench of excellence
The people already in the room.
A multidisciplinary team of pioneers in education, psychology, and operations — some have designed and scaled schools together across continents for decades, bringing a lifetime of trusted collaboration to day one.
Leadership
Nichola de Montaigne
Founder & CEO · Education & Wellbeing Expert
Life Design · EdTech · Strategy
Mark Whitfield
COO · Lead Consultant
Operations & Strategy
Advisors & Consultants
Dr. Sara Santos
Dir. Research, Inclusion & Impact
Inclusion · research-led practice
Emmeline Barnes
Advisor & Consultant
Wellbeing & Neuroinclusion
João Dinis
Licensing & Accreditation Advisor
Sustainability & Futures
Lucas Andrew
Youth Coach & Programme Developer
Wellness & Entrepreneurship
Charlotte Caetano
Marketing & Social Media
Communications
Build & Design Partnership
Developing in partnership with Openbook Group — integrated practice spanning Architecture, Real Estate, Studio, Engineering and Design.
What makes us different
Founded by Nichola de Montaigne.
Built for every child.
Three commitments that bring ISI Cascais and DeMontaigne Life Design together under one roof — and one founding head.
Wellbeing · Belonging
Inclusion Specialists
Two decades in international education, developmental psychology and life design. Neurodiversity, wellbeing and belonging are not add-ons — they are the foundation of how we teach.
Design · Innovation
Individual Pathways
No two children learn alike. Differentiated instruction, formative assessment and flexible grouping mean every learner progresses at their own pace — and on their own pathway from ages 6 to 18+.
WEITS™ Framework
Future-Proof Learning
Wellbeing, Entrepreneurship, Innovation, Technology, Sustainability — the five literacies that travel across unknown futures. Human-led. AI-supported. Concept-based.
Inclusion specialists. Individual pathways. Future-proof learning. Brought together — and built for each child to belong, so the community thrives.
Our standard
We hold one standard.
"Does this genuinely serve the child, the family, and the wider community — over time?"
Trusted
Independent · commission-free · quietly selective.
Expert
Two decades · education · psychology · life design.
Personalised
Living ecosystems · Purpose · People · Place · Practice.
Connected
Global · verified · educators · psychologists · partners.
Founding Head · ISI Cascais & DeMontaigne Life Design
Nichola de Montaigne
British-born in Saudi Arabia, raised in Cascais. Over two decades of international education leadership across Europe, the Middle East, Asia and Latin America.
Master's in International Education and Leadership. Background in Developmental Psychology. Creator of the proprietary PPPP™ and WEITS™ frameworks.
Nichola has spent her career building schools where children are deeply known — and where teachers are trusted, supported and stretched. ISI Cascais is the school she always wanted to build.
"I have spent two decades watching what happens when belonging comes first. Everything else follows."
Two companies · one founding head
A studio, and the ecosystem around it.
ISI Cascais and DeMontaigne Life Design are two separate, independent companies — sharing one founder and one philosophy. ISI is the school. DeMontaigne is the wider ecosystem of family, school and partner consultancy that surrounds it.
Company One
International Studio of Innovation
An intimate primary school for ages 6–12 in the heart of Cascais. Two mixed-age studios. Inspired IB PYP inquiry — starting the candidacy journey.
Cascais · Portugal
Company Two
DeMontaigne Life Design
Future-proof pathway design for families, schools and partners. Human-led, AI-supported. Independent, commission-free. Operating globally from Cascais.
Global · Cascais
PPPP™ · The Compass
How we think.
The proprietary PPPP™ framework — shared with DeMontaigne Life Design — orients every decision we make at ISI: from curriculum to community.
Purpose
What lights you up.
People
Who walks beside you.
Place
Where you feel at home.
Practice
How you show up daily.
From passion to daily practice — a continuous loop, never a checklist.
WEITS™ · Five pillars
What we grow.
Every skill for the future — soft and hard, baked in. The WEITS™ pillars run through the studios at ISI and the ecosystems at DeMontaigne alike.
Wellbeing
Emotional Literacy
How we eat, move, rest & belong.
Entrepreneurship
Financial Literacy
How we take risks & solve real problems.
Innovation
Design Literacy
How we stay curious & adapt to change.
Technology
Digital Literacy
How we connect, create & use AI ethically.
Sustainability
Systems Literacy
How we care for people & planet long-term.
PPPP™ & WEITS™ © Nichola de Montaigne · proprietary frameworks. Used at ISI Cascais under the founder's licence.
The shift
In a world flooded with information, trust is the currency.
When every child belongs, the community thrives. That is the philosophy — simple, durable, and the lens through which every choice at ISI is made.
6×
Misinformation travels six times faster than fact. — MIT, 2024
39%
of core workforce skills will change by 2030. — WEF
1 / 7
adolescents face mental-health challenges. — UNICEF / WHO
∞
A continuous loop of Purpose · People · Place · Practice.