PROJECTS SHOW YOUR & PARTNERS COUNTRY
ESN FRANCE A revolution!
by: Tania Berman
Two French IB members last year – two French IB members this year – although there was no French IB member ever in the past. 6 NB members coming from 6 different sections out of 22 – although the NB was small and centralised in one or two sections in the past. What happened in France? A big change. In international French terms – a revolution. Nowadays, France is more than ever a strong country within ESN.
voted. A fourth national platform per year will be organised in order to keep the sections close to each other.
During the last two years, the number of French ESNers joining international and national events has increased in a very positive way. Also, many sections are involved in international projects as PRIME or their members in Committees. This is a result of the proactive attitude of the national board that invested a lot of energy in motivating and uniting them in order to strengthen the network.
Goal reached for now. The improvement is huge. But no pause allowed yet: we need to keep up with this good energy and network spirit.
How did the NB motivate the sections and unify the network? It focused on tools for the sections and their visibility. The French travel fund – that is already inspiring other countries – has been created to help the sections to come to the NPs. A national bank partnership allows them to receive a financial support when they encourage their students to open a bank account with the ESNcard – the account itself containing then a welcome package containing around 50 euros and other advantages including insurance. The NB is currently working on a contract with a phone company to provide Erasmus students with SIM-cards – and sections with financial support. The visibility of the network has also been improved through the creation of gadgets like pin’s and “berets” (typical French hats), a flyer and a poster for ESN France and a partnership to be present at important fairs on international studies. Stricter rules to enter or to be expelled from the network have been
All in all, sections gained the feeling of being part of a network that values their presence, gives them an added value and helps them to develop on the local level thanks to services offered as to best practices shared amongst sections.
With its 22 sections, ESN France is far from reaching all cities and universities. France is one of the first countries for the amount of incoming and outgoing students – as well as for internships abroad. France is also one of the top-European countries into volunteering. Requests to create sections in France are arriving very regularly. In the last year, very important cities welcomed the opening of an ESN section: Nice, Strasbourg, Rennes, Clermont-Ferrand and Paris (2nd section). For the upcoming year, ESN France has big projects to achieve. We are looking into the creation of new sections in important cities like Lille, Bordeaux or Marseille. The cooperation with institutional partners such as the national agencies and international offices of universities will be enhanced. The search for partners and the strengthening of the network will be continued. And maybe ESN will see the creation of a national event somewhere in the South, next to the sea? Let’s wish for the best and encourage all sections to continue to put so much effort into the welcoming of international students in the country of wine and cheese!!
ESN FRANCE INSI(DE) DIJON ! The first General Assembly of the ESN France network for 2011 was held in the capital city of Burgundy from the 18th to 20th of February. The event was a highly anticipated one, as there was the highest number of participants presenr ever in the history of the national network (about 60 representatives from 20 French sections!) Indeed, the idea of such a meaningful event was actually surrounding the whole three days and especially through lectures and workshops where there were many issues addressed relating to the development of intercultural associations. Debates were in particular focused on financing, social aspects, communication, voluntary work and recruitment; the overall goal being the promotion of the national network through mutual support, information exchange and collaboration. To that extent, both the working and casual environment was a nice occasion for people to get to know each other, share poroblems and solutions or their experiences abroad and in France, enabling the “senior ESNers” to give some pieces of advice to the beginners. It was also the opportunity for the quite recent local section, InsiDijon, to make participants discover the city and atmosphere with a Dijon by-night city tour, a Flash mob “Chouette” , a jazz concert -French Dinner and a reception at Town Hall. The involvement of the local active members was nicely welcomed by the then President of the National Board, Rémi Thomas, who spoke about a “master-hand
organisation that draws the conclusion of an historical year and opened on very optimistic prospects for the French network”. Actually, it occurs during the weekend that the French ESN is turned towards the future, not only with the election of the coming Board but also with the integration of two new sections: Nice and Rennes, attesting that the ESN spirit and values are spreading throughout the country. Proof of success? One week later, when ESN InsiDijon went to Strasbourg, ESN Strasbourg had made plans for their evening…
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