GISA Spring Election 2024: Candidate Profiles – President (2)

In conversation with Jaafar Chaoui, MINT 1st Year.

Q. Why do you think you are the best candidate for the role of President?

I do think I would be a great choice for this role as I am someone very approachable. I think that this is my most important quality as it will encourage students to come to me whenever they need. I will make sure to give every student who needs it the opportunity and the time to discuss with me about their issue. This will help me represent students’ rights in the most efficient way possible. I am also someone who has a positive attitude, and I know how and when to face authority. I am not someone who will be scared or will melt in front of authority, I will advocate for students and do my best to deserve the trust they have given me if I am chosen. 

Q. How will your experiences as a student at the Institute shape your approach to the role of President?

I believe one of the experiences that shaped me the most in the Institute was coming here and facing the Swiss administrative and visa issues. I was not sure of coming here until a few days before the beginning of classes and many of my friends who were accepted and supposed to go to the Institute could not because of visa issues. After coming, I also struggled with the administrative documents as the bureaucracy is complicated. I think that, through encountering these difficulties, I understood better what it means to be a non-EU student in Switzerland, and I think this personal experience will help me provide support and clarity to current and incoming students. Academic experiences like the ARP and certain classes (Stats mostly) taught me a lot. The work in a team in the ARP enhanced my capacities for teamwork, which will shape my approach to the presidency. The experience I had with certain classes will also help me with my organization in the role of President. 

Q. What other experience do you believe qualifies you for the role of President?

I did hold a similar position at my former university in Morocco, UM6P Rabat. I was charged with dealing with several issues throughout my tenure. Our university had just moved to a new campus, most of the staff was new, and we were in the middle of COVID-19. I had to, in several instances, step up and defend students’ rights. We had many issues with housing, ranging from problems in the building to a violation of students’ privacy by the housing staff. Through negotiations, mediation, and regular discussions with the different divisions of the university, we managed to solve these issues. We also had some disagreements with the administration regarding scholarships they wanted to remove for certain students because of a lack of budget, and exam issues. Again, in these instances, I also managed through long processes of negotiations with the administration and the faculty to solve and overall enhance student life. These negotiations were difficult to do. However, I believe my negotiation skills enabled me to answer the issues.

Q. If elected, what would be your primary goal as President?

There are many objectives that I would aim for as President. Following the current board’s mission, I would follow the points highlighted in the Master’s Forum and the issues raised by the PhD students. However, I believe the main objective should always be to enhance and protect students’ lives and experiences during their time at the Institute. May they be first year, second year, graduating, incoming, starting or finishing their PhDs. 

This preservation of student life has to be protected in both academic and non-academic spheres. I will do my best to ensure every student’s voice is heard and supported. As President, I will focus on transparent communication and regular interaction with students from all levels of study. I will work to ensure students can express their concerns and suggestions easily and that these are acted upon promptly. I will collaborate closely with administration and faculty to improve existing resources and initiatives. Ultimately, I want to create a vibrant, supportive, and enriching experience for all students, ensuring that the Institute we live in is this Institute we imagined.

Q. As President, how would you foster a collaborative and inclusive environment that empowers all members to contribute their ideas and perspectives effectively?

I believe that to have a collaborative and inclusive environment, there is a need to enhance students’ will to be included in GISA discussions. I think that communicating more will help get more engagement from students and contribute to their perspectives and ideas being addressed while making GISA able to represent them better. One of my core ideas is to organize more talks between students. The talk about Gaza we had this year was a key moment for student perspectives to be addressed. I believe that holding more of these talks by students and exclusive to students will help them feel safer sharing their ideas and perspectives in a safe space. I really believe that these talks will make people more comfortable talking without being scared of being judged.

Q. Describe your vision for enhancing the organization’s reputation and impact on campus. What new initiatives or changes would you propose to raise its profile and better serve the student community?

I believe that enhancing the way we communicate would be an important asset. Online communication is currently great. However, I think on-campus communication is key for strengthening the organization’s relationship with the students. Through the booths, posters and, most importantly, direct discussions with the students, I believe bouche à oreille (“word of mouth” in French) is the key communication aspect. Overall, I do believe that improving the visibility and student engagement in the organization is important.

An idea I have had, and I thought about for a while but did not include in my platform because I wanted to be sure to be able to do it before talking about it, is the organization of tournaments. I thought about different types of tournaments — pool, video games (like FIFA or Smash Bros), table tennis, and, potentially, a football tournament. I think it would be a great way to improve this sense of community in IHEID.

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 Jaafar Chaoui