Candidate interviews conducted by Nayantara Maitra Chakravarty and Thomas Landerretche.

Jules Orveau

Q: What is your name and why are you the best candidate for BDA? 

A: Hi, my name is Jules. What makes me the best candidate is that I was really involved in all the BDA activities during the first semester. So yeah, I think I know the association quite well, how the association is functioning from the inside. 

Q: What are your priorities?

A: Help the inclusion of the next 1As because I know how important it is for an association to help integrate the new students. I want to ensure that the artsy spirit stays fostered inside of the campus and I want to keep up with the legacy of the most artsy campus of Sciences Po. 

Q: Last words?

A: Remember to dance, shine, slay and vote Jules for BDA! 

Camille Platon 

Q: What is your name and why are you the best candidate for BDA? 

A: My name is Camille. I really love to organize things. I like being organized and I like when things are well organized. 

Q: What are your priorities?

A: A better collaboration with other associations because I think it’s really like, we are really lucky in this campus, you have so many associations with so many clubs. So it would be really interesting to do more collaborative events with many associations to have really big events that can bring a lot of people and where people can feel more comfortable to do whatever they want. Then the second priority would be to discuss the budget for the clubs because like I know that some clubs right now are running out of money. 

Q: Last words?

A: If you want someone with passion for the next BDA board, just vote for me guys! Let me be part of your symphony!!

Nikki Mekadenaumporn

Q: What is your name and why are you the best candidate for BDA? 

A: I’m Nikki. I’ll let the people decide. The reason why that is so is because first and foremost I’m running for BDA because of my passion for arts and for creating fun experiences for all of you through arts to connect you all together.  

Q: What are your priorities?

A: So my vision for BDA can be encapsulated in one word, connection! You can see that in three main ways. First, I want to connect you with opportunities. So what I’m going to do is very similar to the godparent godchild system: we are going to pair you up with someone who’s already an experienced artist on campus so that you can discover your new love for this art form. Secondly, I want to connect our different cultures together. I think all of us have come from unique backgrounds that’s so rich and so diverse and I think that it would be so amazing if we could have the heritage night. Lastly, I want to connect us with society. I know that here in Sciences Po many of us share that common desire to create positive social impact and also a common love for the arts, so why not bring those together, right. So what I wanna do is I wanna push out more fundraising concerts and fundraising events. 

Q: Last words?

A: If you want someone who’s ready to serve not just on stage but also you guys, vote for me. Nikki, not Minaj.

Louisette Rives Baron

Q: What is your name and why are you the best candidate for BDA? 

A: I’m Louisette. I think I would be the best candidate because I had a lot of experiences in like the arts and culture events. 

Q: What are your priorities?

A: The first thing I would like to implement would be to create more events where our visual arts clubs can shine. Second would be to do more collabs with like FC or SPE so we can have politically committed RC events. And finally create a cultural guide of all the artsy places in Normandy.

Q: Last words?

A: BDA with Louisette, a win you can’t forget. 

Ai Yamazaki 

Q: What is your name and why are you the best candidate for BDA? 

A: My name is Ai. I’ve been doing a lot of performances. I was 3 and in terms of like dancing, singing, musical (yes I’m a musical kid) but yeah so I know how the stage works, the work behind it.

Q: What are your priorities?

A: So my first priority would be to keep a safe place where everyone feels comfortable performing and training their art and also share their passion for their art. Second would be more cultural x art events. The third one would be just more art everywhere in the school, you know. 

Q: Last words?

A: Ai more efficient than AI (punches computer)

Bruno Correard

Q: Could you give a quick introduction to yourself? 

A: My name is Bruno. I practice art, but not that much –  I just did a little bit of clarinet. I like to dance, sing, and rock. I played in two theater pieces. I really like playing theater and I’m running for BDA because I think there are a lot of events and clubs that are really well organized, but a lot of people are not part of it because they think they can’t do arts. I want to keep that organization by helping the people who think they don’t have any creativity to develop it, to accept it and then to share it.

Q: What makes you the best candidate?

A: I think a lot of candidates run because they have a passion for art and they love to practice it and I do too but I think it’s not the only thing. I think I have a vision, an idea of how the BDA could be organized to keep it like that and to add a new dimension, to really be a BDA member and not only someone who practices art. 

Q: What are your top three priorities for the next year for BDA? 

A: Keep the clubs well organized and the events. Add a new dimension of the BDA as being an interface that people can always go to every day if they have an idea to develop it and not only being there sometimes but being there all the time. I want to add more spectacles for the people who are in clubs so that they not only practice, but can see with partnerships with City Hall and spectacle rooms in Le Havre. 

Q: If viewers could take away just one thing from this interview what should it be?

A:  I think art is everywhere and people should really believe that they can be part of it and I think every person who does art takes it from others and I want to continue to take it and give more.

Clara Olteanu

Q: Can you give us a quick introduction to yourself? 

A: I’m Clara, I’m 19 years old, I’m from Romania. I’m kind of an artsy person, pretty sociable I would say, and open to trying new experiences. 

Q: Why are you running for BDA and what makes you the best candidate for it? 

A: I wouldn’t say I’m the best candidate for it but I would say I’m one of the suitable ones because I really think that there are other people running which are actually really needed on the board, but I would also say that I would be a great asset to it. And I’m running for BDA because I want to keep the legacy of BDA going and I feel like it’s very important to add even more events and what I want to do is to bring more to showcase more the talents of fine arts people because there is not a lot of attention brought to them. 

Q: What are your top three priorities for the next year? 

A: Like I said, I feel like my biggest priority is to bring more attention to fine arts clubs such as photography because I feel like they don’t get any chance to actually showcase their talents and I could do that maybe by I don’t know, events such as exhibitions on campus or even at museums, because I feel like people are not joining these clubs because they don’t know about their existence, because we always promote the dancing and music clubs, which is amazing, but I feel like we should be more inclusive. My second priority would be to keep all of this BDA’s legacy and to continue with all the amazing events that they created. I feel like my third priority was probably to be a little bit more organized in the beginning of the year at least because as a 1A it is pretty confusing because you do not have an exact schedule with when all the clubs are, when they have their rehearsals so it’s pretty confusing because you find out like five minutes before rehearsal starts. It’s like ‘oh, there is Afro club and at the same time it’s also cheer club’ so you’re feeling very lost, so I would like to improve this system. 

Q: If viewers could take away one thing from this interview, what should it be? 

A: What I want you to take away is that I’m not running for BDA because I can play the piano or because I can dance or something. I am running for BDA because I have the ability of creating experiences. I feel like doing arts means that you are able to create experiences that make people feel something and this is what I’m able to do and this is why I’m running for BDA. 

Felix Franco-Rogelio

Q: Can you give us a quick introduction to yourself? 

A: I’m Felix. I’m 17, the youngest student on the campus. And I’m running for Bureau des Arts, BDA. Not because I’m an artist, even though it definitely plays a role, but because I had so much fun doing the event myself. I feel like it’s just being polite and respectful to engage in those associations to offer others the opportunities that were offered to me.

Q: What makes you the best candidate for BDA?

A: I wouldn’t say that I’m the best candidate, but of course, my artistic experience allows me to know what artists, at least musicians, need to perform in the best conditions. And also just by using my experiences, I would be able to organize things to let people engage with art. I’ve already started doing it this year and it is such a fulfilling experience to teach saxophone to other students. And also last year in high school, I was the president of my high school BDE, so I got to learn a bit about organizing events, dealing with admin, which can be sometimes complicated, managing a team, etc. 

Q: What are your top three priorities for the next year? 

A: First of all, the most crucial part to me is to offer, like if you’re already an artist like me, I started playing saxophone way before I joined Sciences Po. I have opportunities to engage with arts such as music. And if you dance before Sciences Po you can join the dance clubs,  like a lot of people joined like afro, street and stuff even though they had never danced before and that’s really really cool that they get to do that. But in music I feel like we are kind of struggling to let people enter the world of music and  it’s really a missed opportunity, if you ask me. With Six and Sax, we introduced Luanne to the band, and she had played a little bit of bass before, but not that much. And it’s so cool to see that she’s coming back to music, and she gets to enjoy the thrills of performing on stage. And also, just people who have never done music before, because I know music, I’ve been there, I had to learn music theory. I’m not the best teacher, but I can still use what I learned to teach others. Then second priority would be to work more with cultural institutions outside of Sciences Po, so organising our cultural outings in collaboration with museums, theatres, etc. A lot of theatres, especially, often struggle to find an audience among young people. And I’m pretty sure that if we just went to ask, yeah, movie theatres and museums, etc., to have special spots maybe at a discounted price. I think we could do something really really nice. And last opportunity, the last priority which will be very hard is to do as good as the current BDA did this year. I think they really really did an amazing job for all events but you know we can always go higher and I’ll try to. 

Q: Lastly, if viewers could take away just one thing from this interview, what should it be? 

A: If people should take away one thing from my interview? Don’t vote for people just because they are artists. Being a good artist doesn’t make you a good BDA board member. Vote for people because you think they have what it takes to organize good events, especially as BDA organizes a lot of events spread throughout the whole year. So like, for instance, Santa’s Balls is organized, like, same players, same time as finals. And it can be really, really challenging, I think. 

Hannah Doyle

Q: Can you give a quick introduction? 

A: Hi, my name’s Hannah. Full name is Hannah Rose Winter Doyle, so winter’s coming for those who know what that means. I’m 18, going on 19 on the 20th of February, and I’m running for BDA. So I really love the arts, like most of the people that are running for BDA. I’ve tried a bit of everything, from dance to music, so I’ve done a bunch of stuff. You can look it up, but I’ve done aerial silk, I’ve done tap, maybe Irish or American tap, loads of different stuff. So it’s been a really interesting experience for me and it’s helped me a lot with my self-confidence. I’m quite an introverted person. I think not a lot of people know me on campus, but that’s why I want to participate in BDA because I know a lot of people struggle with self-confidence and art has really helped me with that. 

Q: What makes you the best candidate for BDA? 

A: Like I said, being quite introverted and being not as loud as a lot of people can be a good element to be in a team. I think that I can balance out a few things and bring a lot of things to the table. So that can be nice. I really wanted to run for public relations. Of course, when you’re applying for BDA, you’re not running for a specific position, but I love posting on social media and creating mini vlogs, creating backstories and small interviews. So I think that would be a really nice touch for me to be the public relation member. And what makes me the best candidate? I think that I work well with people. I work well with people, I’m a good group member. Maybe through dance, through choir and stuff, I’ve always been used to working with other people. I see myself as someone that’s really kind, so I think that’s a good element as well to put forth. And yeah, I think I just enjoy arts and I enjoy sharing with people. When I did the Lunar New Year, the feeling when I went on stage for the tap dance, I mean I was so scared to go on there. It was the first time I actually did a solo in tap and I mean the feeling when you were done and the people were there and sharing it with other people. I just want everyone on this campus to feel how it feels. Because even if you’ve never tried art or you’re not really interested in it, I think that trying it out and just trying something can be so, so relieving and enable you to have more self-confidence. So that’s what it’s done for me. I know it’s different for everyone, but yeah, I think that arts is something that can enable everyone to find people because it enables connections, but also find yourself somewhere. And yeah, that’s why I want to run for BDA.  

Q: And what are your top three priorities for the next year for BDA? 

A: I think I can put it into three words. I’d say communication first off. So one of the top things, and I’ve been able to, you know, talk a bit to people is that at the beginning of the year, a lot of people didn’t really know which clubs there were and stuff. And I think enabling a calendar at the start of the year to really know what’s going on, and people to know what clubs they’re interested in can be a first step to get more people in, bring more 1As, bring more 2As as well. But yeah, I’d like to bring more people in through communication, more posts on social media, more explanations about what’s going on, what are the times. More communication, let people know what’s going on. The second point would be accessibility. I want as many people as possible to be able to try out things even if they’re not sure they want to stay, just really enable everyone to have a little bit of a share of what’s going on on campus. And the last point would be inclusivity, of course. Collaboration. So making more events with other universities in Le Havre. I think it’s a shame that we’re not crossing as many students in other universities. And I think that could enable more relations with other people and also more inter-campus events. I know that’s a bit of a stretch, but maybe trying to organise a few events with campus that are close to us as well. Paris is only two hours away. I think we can manage to do something that would be pretty cool. So yeah, inclusivity, communication and collaboration would be the three points on which I would like to work on as a BDA member. 

Q: Lastly, what’s one thing that you would want viewers to take away from this interview? 

A: What I really want to put forth in this interview is that art is for everyone. There’s this quote from a movie – ‘not everyone can become a great artist, but a great artist can come from anywhere.’ From the masterpiece, Ratatouille! So I’d probably say that art can come from everywhere, and art can come from anyone. And remember to tap shoes. Let’s tap into our creativity together!

Interviews conducted by Tyler Jaewon Kim.

Shanalee Diop (President)

Q: What is your name and what is the position that you are running for?

A: Okay, so hi everyone, my name is Shanalee and I’m running for BDE president. 

Q: Why did you choose to run for this role? What makes you the best possible candidate for it?

A: Okay, so the decision of running for president was actually quite difficult because I was hesitating with all the different positions, but then I realized that’s actually the reason why president is the best fit because you’re supposed to kind of coordinate everyone and make sure that everyone is working towards the same goal and that’s exactly what I want to do. 
And why am I the best fit? Well, first of all, I think I have quite an experience as a president of a student council and managing different events, organizing stuff and that’s just something I really enjoy and I’m passionate about. And I mean, when I arrived in Sciences Po I really had a terrible FOMO, I wondered what was I doing here, but there was one thing that I was sure about, is that I wanted to run as BDE president and I’m determined to do so. 

Q: What will your top three priorities be for next year?

A: So, first of all, I think that one of the main issues this year is the fact that French students and international students are super divided, whether it’s in activities or lectures or just on campus, there’s always like two groups. And I think that it’s important to have more events and activities that leads them to bond.
So like kind of not forcing them, but having an opportunity to kind of detach yourself from your “feel like home” group, then as next priority, I’d say kind of continue doing such a great work that the BDE is currently doing, but maybe make it more as I said inclusive, but also more creative. Because I’ll be honest, I was really debating whether I wanted to run for a BDE or BDA. And then I realized BDE fits me best, but that doesn’t mean that we can’t make BDE a bit more fun with new ideas and new events. 
And lastly, we’d like with our Head of Comms and Head of Integration to make a focus on the 1As, because we all had a kind of tough experience arriving in Le Havre and getting used to everything. Everything was super overwhelming. So we want to work on that and give them more tools to make Le Havre feel like home quicker and better. 

Q: If readers could take away just one thing from this interview, what do you want it to be? 

A: That I’m extremely motivated, first of all, and that I’m sincere in my goals.

Louise Dumas (President)

Q: What is your name and what is the position that you are running for? 

A: Okay, so my name is Louise and I’m running for BDE president. 

Q: Why did you choose to run for this role? What makes you the best possible candidate for it? 

A: So, I really want to create an atmosphere like in our campus that’s very welcoming and inclusive, so that goes through the integration of future 1As, but also through the events throughout all the year, so that we can all have time altogether, having fun, having events where everyone is welcome. So yeah, and what makes me the best candidate, I think it’s because I’m someone that is quite social, but at the same time, like I’m a bit also introverted. So I like to have time to speak with people. And I think I would be able to take into consideration the needs of everyone and how it’s best for them to be included in our community. 

Q: What will your top three priorities be for next year? 

A: So yeah, my first priority is the inclusivity of everyone, so especially 1As.
My second priority would be fun events, so all types of events, whether it’s more for the party people, so parties, uh stuff like that, bar nights, but also events that are more on campus games and more chill. And I think my third priority would be safety. So whether that goes from in our events to be safe with like a VSS referent, safety taxis, things like that, but also in general having an atmosphere in our campus that’s very safe for everyone. 

Q: If readers could take away just one thing from this interview, what do you want it to be? 

A: Vote for me!

Bartholomew Loh (Vice President)

Q: What is your name and what is the position that you are running for?

A: Okay, so firstly thank you Tyler for the sessions and my name is Bartholomew and I come from the dumpling list! I’m running for the vice president. 

Q: Why did you choose to run for this role? What makes you the best possible candidate for it?

A: Okay, so since high school, I feel like vice president is always the right position for me because I don’t love to be the person that leads the team but I love to be a great supporter – kind of like helps the leader with organizing the team and making everyone bonds closer together. 

Q: What will be your top three priorities for next year?

A: Okay, so I think the most important thing about BDE is making the events more fun to have more diversity in terms of events. One of the ideas that I might be able to think of right now is maybe something for an exchange student to help them to integrate to the campus easier so we can have an event for them to get to know the other people. Yeah, so that’s firstly making events more fun and second, it’s about inclusivity to make it more inclusive for everyone to make it more safe and fun at the same time.
And third, I think it’s about less stress to make everyone informed about the information and to know what you should do every week. 

Q: If readers could take away just one thing from this interview, what do you want it to be?

A: Vote for Bart!

Zo-Ren Baey (Vice-President)

Q: What is your name and what is the position that you are running for? 


A: Hi everyone. I’m Zo-Ren and I’m running for BDE vice president. 

Q: Why did you choose to run for this role? What makes you the best possible candidate for it?

A: I wouldn’t necessarily say that I’m the best candidate per se, but what I can say is that I am very passionate for the role and I think that I have some relevant experience over the past, maybe nine years or so since even before high school, I have been really involved in student councils, event committees and I think I’ve learned a lot from them and I have a lot of fun with them and I think they were what really defined my time in school. I really enjoy working with people.
I really enjoyed coming up with proposals and executing them on the ground. So I think that perhaps with this experience, I hope that it would help me lead better together with the president to offer insight to make sure that processes are overseen correctly, and to ensure that things flow seamlessly. 

Q: What will be your top three priorities for next year?

A: For the next year, I think for the current students of Le Havre, I think that it is definitely to continue creating, to build on the work of the previous BDE, to foster an environment where everybody feels comfortable, and to create more opportunities or even on the ground beyond events and initiatives for people to get together to know each other better, to basically have a good campus life. And on the second level, which is basically after summer break when our 0As or the new 1As come in, to really make them have a good start. To allow barriers to be broken, to allow the next batch, the 25-26 batch to have a good time. And at the same time with that to foster inter-asso synergy so that we can present Sciences Po Le Havre as one, such that everybody will be able to find their best place here on campus. 

Q: If readers could take away just one thing from this interview, what do you want it to be?

A: I think one thing to take away from this interview is that, as vice president, I hope to inject a bit more simplicity, as well as at the same time, systematic capability, to the way that BDE runs. I am a strong believer that processes, when simple, are the easiest to be executed. So not just within the BDE and its, BDE’s, relations with the school and with other assos and with administrations that this would best foster like things to be able to get done.
And if you vote me for vice president, I will ensure that these processes are well established and well followed.

Minbi Roux (Head of Integration)

Q: What is your name and what is the position that you are running for?

A: Okay, so my name is Minbi and I’m running for the role of head of integration in the list of the dumplings. 

Q: Why did you choose to run for this role? What makes you the best possible candidate for it?

A: Well, I would say, like, usually some of my friends tell me I have the feeling of a kind of mom in the friend group and I think that’s one of the qualities that is important as a head of integration. Also, as a mixed kid, because I’m French and Korean, I would say that even if I’m French in France, I had to kind of integrate myself as a kid, because I wasn’t fully French, but I wasn’t also fully Korean either. So I had to kind of invent a kind of new identity to fit into society. And even if it wasn’t the same as what international students who are coming here to Le Havre experience, I think it’s a kind of little, kind of smaller, kind of the same, similar experience. 
And also, as I’ve evoked before, I’m mixed, so like my mom is Korean. And as a foreigner, she also had to do some paperwork and various things, et cetera. So like ever since I was a kid, I was kind of familiar with this stuff. 
So I think as someone who is familiar with this, it would be a great help for people, like for international students who are coming here to get some help from people who are already used to it. 

Q: What will be your top three priorities for next year?

A: So as I have already wrote in my Instagram post in the account of our list, so the first priority would be to set up some kind of time slots during the vacation in order for the future 1As to call me directly to kind of help them with the paperwork in advance before helping them in real life in Le Havre when they arrive. Because when I was reading the group chat during summer vacation, I saw that some international students were asking some messages, like they might message something about how is life in Le Havre, how do you do this stuff and this stuff like four people work, blah, blah, blah. And I don’t know,
I felt like it would be much more easier to just have some fixed time slots for a student to call a reference in order to tackle this thing and like it would be much more efficient. Another thing would be about the VSS referents, because I believe that the role and the responsibilities of the VSS referents are not really clear to people. Like the reason why I think this is because when I first started thinking of what I should do as a Head of Integration, I was thinking about the role of VSS and VSS referent. And well, I was thinking of what I should do, like what I should like what kind of measure I should adopt linked with this problem. And for every member, not for every member, but like when I asked some people about what they knew about the VSS referent role, it was kind of blurry. So I thought it would be important to make the role of the VSS clearer and also how big is their scope of action. Because due to some personal experience in Sciences Po it’s an issue that is very, very important for me to tackle. So yeah, that’s also one of my priorities. And one last thing is linked with integration. Well, I think it’s important to have a link between international and French students. But also, like the first thing you have when you arrive to Le Havre is the contact with the 2As. 
And I think a good system of Godfamily would be important, because I know that some of my friends I won’t say a lot, but I know that some of my friends were kind of deceived with their god-dad or god-mom because like after a few weeks they started not to like not ghost each other, but like they started to talk less to each other. And I feel it’s quite a shame because it’s your first contact with Sciences Po. And like, it’s kind of precious, it’s a kind of new family in a place where you don’t have any relatives. So, yeah, I think it’s kind of important. 

Q: If readers could take away just one thing from this interview, what do you want it to be?

A: Well, I would say just vote for me if you think I’m qualified enough for this job, because like, in the end, if I’m campaigning for this role it’s because I think I’m qualified, but I don’t know if it’s the case for you guys. So, yeah, so if you think I’m fit for the job, just vote for me, because like my role is to, please you and the 1As next year and to make you live the happiest community here.

Minha Lee (Head of Integration)

Q: What is your name and what is the position that you are running for?

A: So hi I’m Minha. I’m Minha Lee and I am running for a head of integration in Sunny Side Up. 

Q: Why did you choose to run for this role? What makes you the best possible candidate for it?

A: I’m running for head of integration because I was also an international student who’s very new to Le Havre in general, but what I think makes me a good candidate is that I still have experience with French culture. I lived here a little when I was young and I continued in the French education system, so it’s not completely new to me, but everything that’s administrative or just like campus life in general was new. So I think that I have, I can be relatable, but I can also be really helpful when it comes to integrating students. 

Q: What will your top three priorities be for next year?

A: My top three priorities, is that, first of all, to really well prepare all of the new coming 1As for next year, so whether it would be through communication or welcome kits. I’m really invested into making it really clear for them for their transition to be really smooth in Le Havre. Another thing that’s really on my mind is, for example, the godparent system. It has been played in place in the beginning of the year, but I’ve noticed that towards the middle and the end of the year, sometimes people forget that it exists. So a few events regarding godchildren, godparents, I think would be really nice to kind of keep the bond going. And my third priority is that a lot of people think head of integration is just for the beginning of the year for 1As only. And I don’t think that’s true.
I think that integration is throughout not only your 1A, but also during your 2A and also when you’re going to your 3A, for example. And so what’s really important for me is to work with the admin. If you have any problems regarding campus life, it’s up to me. 
And so I’m really here for 2As as well, for future 2As next year too. 

Q: If readers could take away just one thing from this interview, what do you want it to be?

A: Just one thing, uh that I’m here to listen to you and that I’m here to communicate your thoughts whenever you need.

Gemma Tabet (Secretary)

Q: What is your name and what is the position that you are running for? 

A: So my name is Gemma and I’ll be running for the BDE and specifically the secretary position 

Q: Why did you choose to run for this role? What makes you the best possible candidate for it?

A: I think there are a lot of different qualities that I can bring to this position.
First of all, I think our whole group as a whole works really well together as a team, and I think that’s also something very important that you don’t see me just as the position I’m running for, but also as our whole team, then specifically for me, I think, well you can see already what we’ve posted a lot on our own Instagram. I’m very well organized. I’m always on time, especially because I’m Swiss. I’m always keeping track of things through calendars and to-do lists. 
And then my second quality I think that is also very important is that I’m very creative and I would consider myself as sort of an artist. And so this means that I’m able to create visual interpretations of different things. Like, for example, our logos for the Dumplings were designed by me. 
And I think that’s just good evidence of how I can break down things clearly and effectively, and this is something that I don’t just do through drawings, but that I can also do through notes. And as anybody knows, if a team doesn’t know what to do and then the team’s not going to work out. So I think as secretary, I can really help the team and help the BDE create amazing events. 

Q: What will be your top three priorities for next year?

A: So top three priorities, I think, is, first of all, to listen to the students. A BDE is working for the students, by the students.
So my top priority is to make sure that all the events that we’re doing all the activities are what the students want. So we want to make sure your voices are heard. My second priority would also be, well, as secretary to make sure that the team is working effectively and that inside the team itself, we’re all listening to one another.
So I guess that could be sort of like highlighting empathy because I think it’s important that everybody’s different perspectives are heard and that we are all working together. And then my third priority is just to create amazing events. I really want, seeing what the BDE has done this year, I really want to keep that going and even try to even top it, although they have done a very good job. 

Q: If readers could take away just one thing from this interview, what do you want it to be?

A: I would like for them to know that as secretary, I will be here for them and that our whole team will be there and to vote dumplings!

Aarav Gupta (Secretary)

Q: What is your name and what is the position that you are running for?

A: I am Aarav and I’m running for the position of secretary of the BDE with the list Sunny Side Up. 

A: Why did you choose to run for this role? What makes you the best possible candidate for it?

A: I think overall, first of all, as to why secretary, I think secretary is one of the most important positions in the BDE, because unless there’s structure and there’s organization to the BDE, real plans cannot be executed. To me, at least, it’s about having well structured discourse and making sure that the discussions that take place within the bureau are leading to an outcome, more than just having discussions and talking in air. And for me personally, I believe that because I have ran for so many student offices back in school, be that Model UN, Dramatic Society, Debating Society, etcetera, etcetera, I have had experience with well structured discourse on things and well structured meetings, planning, etcetera, etcetera, especially when it comes to doing that with friends, because I feel like there’s a huge difference between doing it in a corporate environment when you’re working with simply coworkers than when you’re working with people who you are really close to, that personal-professional distance at the same time, making sure that there’s a good environment needs to be made and I think I can really provide that, which is why I think I will work well for the secretary of the BDE. 

Q: What will be your top three priorities for next year?

A: My top three priorities: I want to, of course, have fortnightly meetings, because I believe that it’s the best way of ensuring that you have all the qualms of the student community met by the BDE and that integration is easier into the community, because integration is not about the first week, about the welcome week or about the weekend of integration. 
It’s way more than that really. It’s about the integration into the student bodies for those who were not active during WEI or who were not feeling themselves when they first came to Le Havre. So for me, that’s my first priority. These fortnightly meetings need to be again, well structured, they need to have proper minutes recorded, etcetera, etcetera. That’s my role as secretary. My second most important thing that I want to do as a secretary of the BDE is to ensure that students have all their important deadlines known to them because right now with my student peers experiencing that they were not aware of a lot of deadlines about CAF, about getting their Visa processed. 
A lot of them are minors and they don’t know what to do after they become an adult. So I feel like if there is somebody who is able to tell them, not just about deadlines on events, on academic work, about their administrative responsibilities when they come to a college when they come to Sciences Po, I think that’s my second most important priority.
And the third is transparency and accountability. I believe that what happens in the BDE meetings, even if we cannot, of course, record the meetings and put them out online, we can at least give people regular updates about what the BDE discussed, what we are planning next so they know that they voted us for a reason and that we are doing what we were voted to do. So I think these are my top three priorities that I will have once I’m elected as the secretary of the BDE. 

Q: If readers could take away just one thing from this interview, what do you want it to be?

A: I think that one message would be that to me, everything is about how approachable this list is of the BDE of the Sunny Side Up. Because I believe that we can try integrating well into the community – getting students integrated well into the community from our end – but if it’s not a two-way discussion, if you’re not approachable, then this would not work out because we need to know the problems of the student community to help them integrate better. 
We need to know what went wrong, what is going on and what might go wrong and we need to know this from the student community itself. And yeah, I think this particular list myself included. I feel like we are definitely an approachable bunch.
We are a diverse community, first of all. And secondly, we try to talk to as many people and be as approachable as possible. I think that’s what I want people to take away from this interview.

Elena Friess (Treasurer)

Q: What is your name and what is the position that you are running for?

A: So my name is Elena, and I’m running for treasurer in the list of Sunny Side Up. 

Q: Why did you choose to run for this role? What makes you the best possible candidate for it?

A: So I wanted to run for treasurer because I think it’s an interesting position where you can learn new skills and improve quickly in it. And you’re also very useful to the BDE because you organize the whole budget and I like the importance of this post. And I think I would be good at this post because first I’m organized and I’m also an approachable person so you can ask me questions and I can come to you about deposits, for example for the events, and other things. So I want also to improve myself in some skills, for example, organizing budgets because I already did it, but I want to do it more deep, I think. 

Q: What will be your top three priorities for next year?

A: So for next year, first, I would like to build an efficient and smart budget for the BDE. 
I would like to help the new students and the actual students to open and close their bank accounts, especially for the international ones. And I would like with the rest of the BDE of the bureau to organize great events and great integration week, especially. 

Q: If readers could take away just one thing from this interview, what do you want it to be?

A: I think I would like them to forget my rough voice because I’m kind of sick, so I would like them to hear a harmonized voice so that it’s perfect.

Mattys Ramnauth (Treasurer)

Q: What is your name and what is the position that you are running for?

A: Hello guys, my name is Mattys Ramnauth and I’m running for treasurer.

Q: Why did you choose to run for this role? What makes you the best possible candidate for it?

A: So I am both French and Mauritian. I’ve grown up in France for my entire life, 18 years in Lille – kinda boring. Which is why I wanted to come to Sciences Po actually because I really wanted to do that 3A somewhere else. And yeah I’m running for treasurer. So I was thinking of which Assos should I do and then I just came up with the fact that outside of being a serious student I’m not the one who will be the goofiest hanging around and doing something. I’m not that motivated by sports as well so definitely BDE and inside the BDE definitely treasurer. I love being on the computer all the time and you can probably see me I’m always in the library reading the most random stuff ever I just like to collect data and that’s I feel like the ways through which I could be the most useful to everyone and I think that’s why I ran for treasurer. If there was one role for which I could’ve run I think it would’ve been this one. When I was like Assos I was like yeah treasurer or I’m not doing it.

Q: What will be your top three priorities for next year?

A: So if I were to be elected my first priority would be that okay first of all I’ve witnessed many internationals struggle with the LCL creating account thing, I come from an international background as well and half of my family dealt with the French system and I know how painful it is so I would really love to make sure that this process goes as smoothly as possible so people can actually enjoy what happens at the beginning of the year. After this I think something that may be missing sometimes is the transparency, how is the money actually spent. Of course I cannot reveal like the actual bank account but I would love to have small talks or maybe just an instagram post to tell your money that you’re giving me right now is going to be used for this this and this, right? That’s something I would like to bring to build confidence in people. And finally I would love to be someone that you can reach out to so easily, I’m like always on campus so fees payments you can just find me and I may have a phone addiction right so I should be able to answer you whenever my help is needed. 

Q: If readers could take away just one thing from this interview, what do you want it to be?

A: I would love people to see me as a serious student, I think within BDE you have many different roles some of the roles ask for people to be extroverts like going for everyone and talking and interact. I think that for treasurer definitely the one thing that you need is someone who is organized, who can plan in advance and I want to show this image to the people. 

Interview conducted by Maalavika Hareesh.

*Responses have been edited slightly for clarity

Nathan Gehin

Q: Could you quickly introduce yourself?

Nathan: My name is Nathan. I’m a Sciences Po student in 1A, and I’m running for the post of National Coordinator of SPE.

Q: Why are you running for the position you’re running for, and what makes you the best candidate for it? 

Nathan: I’m running for SPE as the national coordinator because I love talking to people, and I love to spread the message in every Sciences Po. I think I can be good at that because I’m always enjoying it, and I’m always happy to talk to new people and to try to organize new things, in partnerships with Sciences Po universities. I think I have a lot of ideas for this job. For example, trying to find new partnerships with other universities, maybe in a more global, European way.

Q: What are your top three priorities for this year?

Nathan: To make SPE a major association on this campus because we need to be everywhere and to promote sustainability. Secondly, I think organizing more fun stuff around sustainability can be a great thing to promote sustainability. And finally, as I already said, trying to organize new partnerships with other European or world universities can be a great thing. Like they organize the MUN, we can organize a COP. It can be fun.

Q: If viewers could take away just one thing from this interview, what should it be?

Nathan: Just one thing. Vote for me, vote for ecology!

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Sylvain Sainte-Marie

Q: Could you quickly introduce yourself? 

Sylvain: I’m Sylvain. I’m running for SPE as the Local Coordinator. I’m pretty much interested in everything, but especially in the environment, and the political question related to the environment; how can we make people involved in this, find solutions, debate and the relation between democracy and environment. I’m also interested in concrete actions, and that’s why I want to run as a local coordinator.

Q: Why are you running for the position you’re running for, what makes you the best candidate for it? 

Sylvain: For SPE, we don’t really run for any position specifically, but I think the position that suits me the best will be local coordinator; the one who is in charge of the relation between the campus, the student community, and the global LH events, activities, and different initiatives taking place there. So, I think what makes me the best or good enough for this position is because I already had the opportunity to create contacts with a lot of associations around LH. For instance, Hangar Zero, where I’m volunteering right now and where I plan on organising some events. And, also, Havre de Vers and some other associations. I think that’s what helps me mostly for this position. And, well, I speak French, and I like to connect with people.

In this position, I’d like to establish long standing links between those different associations around LH and the campus so that people throughout the years have easy access to those associations. 

Q: What are your top three priorities for the next year? 

My top three priorities, I think first would be to have a sort of a program for SPE for the next year; a program based on the next board that will be elected and also what people want so that SPE maybe feels more open, more people can join, propose their ideas, and we can go ahead like this. 

Second will be, I think really the link between Hangar Zero and the campus is something interesting and maybe improving this.

Third, contributing to more sustainable products available on campus. We already have the Veggie Baskets, but maybe further those types of initiatives for the next year.

Q: If viewers could take away just one thing from this interview, what should it be? 

Sylvain: It’s not “vote for me”. I think that SPE is important, and you can do whatever you want with it. It’s also your association.

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Thomas Landerretche

Q: Could you quickly introduce yourself?

Thomas: My name is Thomas Landerretche. I’m a 1A, and I’m running for SPE’s head of communications position.

Q: Why are you running for the position you’re running for? What makes you the best candidate? 

Thomas: I feel that SPE’s voice deserves to be heard more on campus. I want this association to have as much attention and love as other associations such as the BDE or the BDA and I feel that my attention seeking personality and my creative mindset regarding problems and promotion would serve SPE greatly.

Q: What are your top three priorities for the next year? 

First of all, having a greater social media engagement with SPE which includes more stories, more posts, more promotion of our events because the events of SPE are really interesting and cool. I feel that with more social media promotion, it could be accessible to more people. 

Secondly, I would love to propose this campus and other Sciences Po campuses to use green energy. I feel that would be a great policy to implement. 

And thirdly, I’d love to organize more events with local LH grassroots organizations. For example, Hangar Zero where we could organize a day where we all go to and help them with their renewable wall projects and other projects that they have.

Q: If viewers could take away just one thing from this interview, what should it be? 

Thomas: I hope that viewers can take away the message that SPE deserves more love, respect, and attention, and I feel that I could bring that to this association.

English text by Carmen Leong

French translation (below) by Claude Leroy-Pinto

If you were lucky enough to have been online when our Google form dropped, you’d know that the annual Paris trip organised by L’Hémicycle will be taking place from 15 to 17 January next year! Thank you to everyone for your enthusiastic participation, and congratulations to the 60 students who managed to snag a spot. Our logistics team is currently working hard to plan a fun and fruitful experience for our participants, and if you’re curious about what to expect for this year’s edition of the trip, this article is for you.

And if you have not been able to register, do not worry! The end of the article should interest you…

Last year, we visited important French institutions like the National Assembly and Constitutional Council, where students learned about the inner workings of the French parliamentary system and watched them in practice. Last year’s participants described the trip as “enlightening”, “enriching” and “insightful”. “In terms of learning,” said one student, “I think nothing compares to actually being inside a living, breathing political institution. At SciencesPo, so much of our studies remain limited to the realm of theory, [so] to watch French politics in practice is something else altogether – even more so for international students like myself.” During our interviews with them, which we posted as an Instagram reel, another student even shared a memorable anecdote from the excursion: when the group took a picture in the National Assembly, Director Hauchecorne commented that at least 1-2 of the students in the picture would be working at the same institution within a few years! Truly a SciencesPo moment. 

In anticipation for this coming edition of the Paris trip, we interviewed Noa Belarbi, the leader of our Logistics team.

Interviewer: What can you tell us about the Paris Trip itinerary so far?

Noa: For now, our goal with this year’s edition of the Paris Trip is to innovate. We still want to provide students with the opportunity to visit national institutions like the National Assembly and the Senate, but we also want to switch things up a little bit so that this trip is stimulating for [returning] students who participated last year. Therefore, we’re hoping to add new activities on the itinerary, including visits to foreign embassies or diplomatic institutions; for our interactive conference, we will also be joined by a new speaker whom we believe will offer great insight and fruitful engagement with students on topics that they might not yet be familiar with. 

To sum it up, this year’s itinerary is all about getting to learn what French politics has to offer in different fields.

I: What will this year’s participants be learning about?

N: The purpose of l’Hémicycle is to render French politics more accessible to students both French and international, from both SciencesPo and other universities. That said, in order to keep the Paris trip financially accessible, we have reserved participation for SciencesPo students only. 

The goal of the trip is to familiarise students with French political institutions for educational and personal benefits. Through visiting these institutions, students will not only learn about their histories and evolution, but also meet and observe the different people working at their heart. Encounters and discussions with political figures will provide students with the rare opportunity to discover and consider new political perspectives, which the board of l’Hémicycle views as the essence of this trip.

I: Other than the Paris trip – and especially for those who did not manage to sign up in time – what else can students look forward to?

N: Other than the Paris trip, l’Hémicycle is going to be organising many events throughout the year. Students can look forward to conferences, discussions and our main event: the Parliamentary Simulation weekend! During this weekend, students from SciencesPo and other schools in Le Havre will gather and roleplay as Members of Parliament. Representing the interests of their “political party” in parliamentary committees, they will discuss, debate and suggest amendments. The weekend will conclude with a plenary session attended by all the MPs, who will debate the different commissions’ work and vote on the proposals of amendment. 

This immersive experience will be not only educational, but also very entertaining, allowing students to meet, discuss and express themselves. We know from previous years that the Parliamentary Simulation weekend never leaves anyone disappointed – we could say it is the highlight of all l’Hémicycle events, so keep an eye out for it!

Clearly, there is much to look forward to for this year’s edition of l’Hémicycle! We hope that after reading this article, students are better informed about what to expect from the Paris trip as well as other upcoming l’Hémicycle events. Until then, follow us on our Instagram account to keep updated on our activities!

Note: Thank you to Noa Belarbi, Connor Donaldson and all interviewees for their insights and cooperation! All quoted responses have been edited for length and clarity.

Le Paris Trip de L’Hémicycle : Ce à quoi s’attendre cette année

Texte en anglais de Carmen Leong

Traduction en français par Claude Leroy-Pinto

Nous espérons que vous avez pu vous inscrire lorsque notre formulaire est sorti. Si c’est le cas, vous savez sûrement que le voyage annuel à Paris organisé par L’Hémicycle aura lieu du 15 au 17 janvier prochain ! Nous tenions à vous remercier pour votre participation enthousiaste, et à féliciter les 60 d’entre vous qui ont réussi à obtenir une place. Notre équipe logistique travaille en ce moment d’arrache-pied pour vous préparer une expérience divertissante et enrichissante. Or, pour l’instant, tout cela vous semble probablement vague. Alors cet article est là pour vous ! Si vous êtes curieux de savoir ce que cette édition du voyage vous réserve, vous êtes au bon endroit. 

Et si vous n’avez pas pu vous inscrire, ne vous en faites pas ! La fin de l’article devrait vous intéresser… 

L’année dernière, nous avons visité des institutions françaises importantes telles que l’Assemblée nationale et le Conseil constitutionnel. Cela nous a permis d’apprendre et d’observer le fonctionnement interne du système parlementaire français (la théorie des cours de PI ne nous suffisait pas !). Les participants de l’année dernière ont décrit le voyage comme “éclairant”, “enrichissant” et “instructif”. “En termes d’apprentissage,” a déclaré un étudiant, “je pense que rien ne vaut le fait de se retrouver dans une institution politique vivante. À SciencesPo, une grande partie de nos études reste théorique, donc voir la politique française en pratique, c’est tout autre chose – surtout pour les étudiants internationaux comme moi.” Lors de nos entretiens, que nous avons publiées sous forme de reel sur Instagram, un autre étudiant a partagé une anecdote marquante de l’aventure : lorsque le groupe a pris une photo à l’Assemblée nationale, Monsieur Hauchecorne aurait glissé aux élèves qu’au moins 1 ou 2 étudiants présents sur la photo travailleraient dans cette même institution d’ici quelques années ! Vraiment un moment SciencesPo.

Comme nous vous savons tous très impatients, pour vous préparer à l’arrivée du Paris Trip nous avons interviewé Noa Belarbi, la responsable de l’équipe logistique.

Interviewer : Que peux-tu nous dire à propos de l’itinéraire du Paris Trip jusqu’à présent ?

Noa : Pour l’instant, notre objectif pour cette édition du Paris Trip est d’innover. Nous souhaitons toujours offrir aux étudiants l’opportunité de visiter des institutions telles que l’Assemblée nationale et le Sénat, mais nous voulons également apporter un peu de nouveauté pour que ce voyage soit stimulant pour ceux qui y ont déjà participé l’année passée. Ainsi, nous prévoyons d’ajouter de nouvelles activités, par exemple des visites d’ambassades étrangères ou d’institutions diplomatiques. Pour notre conférence intéractive, nous accueillerons notamment un nouveau conférencier, que nous estimons capable d’offrir un grand éclairage et un échange fructueux aux étudiants sur des sujets qu’ils ne maîtrisent probablement pas encore.

Ainsi, l’itinéraire de cette année vise à découvrir ce que la politique française peut offrir dans une multitude de différents domaines.

I : Que découvriront les participants cette année ?

N : Le but de L’Hémicycle est de vulgariser la politique française aux participants, qu’ils soient français ou internationaux, de SciencesPo ou d’autres universités. Cela dit, afin de rendre le Paris Trip accessible financièrement, nous l’avons réservé uniquement aux élèves de SciencesPo.

L’objectif du voyage est de se familiariser aux institutions politiques françaises, tant pour des bénéfices éducatifs que personnels. En visitant ces lieux, nous apprendrons non seulement leur histoire et leur évolution, mais rencontrerons aussi les différentes personnes qui y travaillent. Les rencontres et discussions avec des figures politiques offriront une occasion de découvrir et d’envisager de nouvelles perspectives, ce que le bureau de L’Hémicycle considère comme l’essence de ce voyage.

I : Mis à part le Paris Trip, et notamment pour ceux qui n’ont pas pu s’inscrire à temps, à quoi d’autre les étudiants peuvent-ils s’attendre ?

N : En dehors du Paris Trip, L’Hémicycle va organiser de nombreux événements tout au long de l’année. Tels que des conférences, des discussions et notre événement principal : le week-end de Simulation Parlementaire ! Durant ce week-end, des étudiants de SciencesPo et d’autres écoles du Havre se réuniront et joueront le rôle de députés. En représentant les intérêts de leur “parti politique” dans des commissions parlementaires, ils débattront, discuteront et proposeront des amendements. Le week-end se terminera par une séance plénière à laquelle participeront tous les députés, qui débattront des travaux des différentes commissions et voteront sur les propositions d’amendements.

Cette expérience sera aussi ludique qu’enrichissante, permettant aux étudiants de se rencontrer, de discuter et de s’exprimer. Nous savons d’après les promotions précédentes que le week-end de Simulation Parlementaire ne déçoit jamais personne—on pourrait dire que c’est l’événement phare de tous ceux de L’Hémicycle, alors ouvrez l’œil !

Il semble qu’il y a beaucoup à attendre de cette édition de L’Hémicycle ! Nous espérons qu’après avoir lu cet article, vous en savez plus et que vous avez hâte des autres événements à venir de L’Hémicycle. D’ici là, suivez-nous sur notre compte Instagram pour rester informés de nos activités !