GISA Spring Election 2024: Candidate Profiles – VP of Master’s

In conversation with Rami Alexandre Mottu, MINT 1st Year.

Q. Why do you think you are the best candidate for the role of Vice President of Master’s Programmes?

Well, I wouldn’t go so far as to say that out of over a thousand master’s students at the Institute, I am the best but I do think I am a very good candidate. I am from Geneva but I’ve lived abroad all my life, so I am uniquely well placed to represent the internationality of our student body. My multicultural background also equips me to represent the diversity of the Institute. I have previous experience in student government. I am well organized and manage my time well, particularly when it comes to listening to students and advocating for their needs. I am always open to new ideas and to being corrected or having my ideas change. I do not have all the answers and solutions, but I am very keen to hear everyone’s ideas and listen to the advice of the people around me, leveraging the diversity of backgrounds and experiences of our student body.

More importantly than my skills and experience, however, I am highly motivated and deeply passionate about the impact I could have in this VP role, in terms of providing the best academic and learning experience, and outcomes for all the master’s students at the Institute. We have a lot of needs and desires for our programmes, and I want us to tackle them all together.

Q. How will your experiences as a student at the Institute shape your approach to the role of Vice President of Master’s Programmes?

I want to preface this answer by saying that my specific experiences at the Institute should not and will not be the main driver behind my work as VP. As a younger cis-het half-Arab man, my experience can be and has been very different from that of many other students. I think it is essential to go beyond my own experiences and acknowledge and incorporate the experiences of all of us students. That being said, I’ve seen first-hand many of the issues I bring up in my programme, and hear a lot more from other students. I’ve been in classes where professors dismissed non-European thoughts and ideas. I’ve spent hours in compulsory classes that were redundant or unnecessary. I’ve seen the way the bilingual identity of the school raises challenges for students. I’ve had to ask professors to clarify what exactly they expect from students. I’ve been unable to find a place to hold a meeting or a table in the library because of too many high schoolers. In short, I’ve become aware of the areas where we need improvement and I am eager to tackle them. I’ve also been able to meet so many incredible people with incredible stories and ideas, which I want to channel into change at this Institute.

Q. What other experience do you have that you believe qualifies you for the role of Vice President of Master’s Programmes?

I previously served as chair of the student union at King’s College, Cambridge, where I implemented reforms within the union which emphasized democratization and transparency. As a leader in that role, I also developed skills to negotiate and compromise between different stakeholders, and when necessary, mediate and resolve conflicts. Through this role I also became heavily involved in movements to reform curricula, expand library access, provide for more transparent grading, resolve housing issues, and more.

Q. If elected, what would be your primary goal as Vice President of Master’s Programmes?

While it is difficult to pick one goal over others, I am particularly passionate about Decolonizing the Curriculum, in general, the diversification and greater inclusion of different perspectives, ideas, and experiences to escape from the patriarchal, Euro-centrist paradigms that dominate the field of international studies. I am of course aware that a project like Decolonize the Curriculum takes far longer than simply one year, and is about systemic and epistemic change, but I want to get the ball rolling faster, in terms of diversity in reading lists, integration of de-colonial and feminist thought into curricula consistently rather than in a tokenism way, and more diversity in the recruitment of professors.

Q. How do you plan to represent the interests of all students, including those with diverse backgrounds and interests?

Like I’ve said before, I am myself from a diverse background. My mother is Egyptian, my father is Swiss, and I’ve lived in the US, Lebanon, the UK, and now Switzerland. My personal story and my experiences surrounded by people from all over the world my whole life have taught me to be very multicultural and open. As VP, my job is to represent your wants and needs and to advocate for you. That means all of you. This student body is incredibly diverse in terms of both background and interests, and I want to hear from all of them. I want to organize forums and open discussions with students. I want to have regular conversations with representatives of the different student interests and representative groups. I will find common ground to advocate for when I can, but I will also advocate for the needs of particular students or groups. Though I am myself quite political and have strong convictions, I understand that my job requires me to be neutral and to represent the desires of my peers, not just my own.

Q. If you could describe your vision for our school in three words, what would they be?

Diverse, Open-Minded, Elite. By diverse, I mean a student body from all over the world whose international identity is prominent, emphasized, and celebrated. By open-minded, I mean where varied perspectives and ideas are presented, shared, and learned. By elite, I mean an Institute with a high-quality education respected by employers and provides students with the education they want, need, and deserve.

Voting for the 2024 Spring Semester GISA Elections will open on Friday, May 3rd, at 17:00, when students will receive the online voting form, and remain open for 48 hours until Sunday, May 5th, at 17:00, with the results announced on May 6th at 10:00. The winner will be declared by a plurality of votes, requiring the winner to have the largest vote share among the other candidates, official abstentions, and write in candidates. Best wishes to all the candidates from the TGP Editorial Board!

Photo provided by Rami Alexandre Mottu