The European University Institute launched its France Alumni Chapter on 30 June at Sciences Po in Paris, a founding partner of the CIVICA European University alliance. The event brought together around 40 participants from across the EUI community, including graduates now working across academia, policy, and international affairs to strengthen connections within the alumni network in France.
Sébastien Huber, Director of the EUI’s Development and External Relations Service, framed the alumni chapters as far more than networking opportunities. He described the EUI experience as “a sort of European factory,” a transformative intellectual journey designed so that graduates carry a European perspective back into national systems. He pointed to concrete episodes where alumni had mobilised to defend the Institute, from a crisis with the Polish government to a dispute with the Swedish National Research Agency. “We need each of you to be our ambassadors,” he said.
The evening’s panel discussion, moderated by Elisa Chazal and featuring Stéphane Van Damme, Elie Michel, and Déborah Dubald, turned into a lively reflection on what makes the EUI’s intellectual model distinctive. Van Damme, a historian and former EUI professor, offered a striking formulation: “We always say Europe was built on coal and steel, but it was also built by academics. We were there in the 1920s, in 1945, throughout the entire European construction. The European Institute is the CERN of the human and social sciences.”
For Nikolaj Broberg, who completed his PhD in Economics at the EUI in 2022 and now works as an economist at the OECD in Paris, the Institute's academic and cultural diversity was one of the defining features of his experience. "Many of my closest friends at the EUI were not economists," he said. "Even though we never worked together, it taught me to share experiences and learn from people with different backgrounds," an attitude he continues to draw on in his current role.
David Itier, head of the European strategy unit at the French Ministry of Higher Education, Research and Space, highlighted the importance of closer dialogue between researchers and policymakers, concluding with a direct appeal: “I need you to help us think about public policy.”
Chiara Ruffa, Professor in Political Science at Sciences Po and EUI alumna, captured a sentiment shared across the room: “In these challenging times, it is essential for the voices of European unity and friendship to resonate more strongly than ever.”
The Paris Chapter joins a wider network of EUI Alumni Chapters, which provide spaces for graduates to maintain lifelong connections, facilitate professional and academic exchange, and serve as local ambassadors of the EUI's mission and values. Following launches in Brussels, London, and Frankfurt, the network will expand further with the launch of the Madrid Chapter in September 2026, continuing to strengthen the EUI's global community and advance the European intellectual project during the Institute's 50th anniversary year.