For Gustav Jäger, cultural exchange is a natural part of life. The year he turned 18, he travelled alone to Italy – a trip that led to many new meetings and interesting experiences that inspired him to continue down a multicultural path. Gustav’s strong belief in cooperation across countries, especially when it comes to solving civic issues, played a vital role in what made him want to become a CIVICA ambassador.

“It’s great to be a link between universities across Europe and to promote cooperation. I also saw it as a fun way to meet new people and exchange knowledge and insights with others”, he says.

As a first year BE student at SSE, Gustav hopes to offer interesting courses for the engage track program as well as actively working towards a better cooperation between CIVICA’s member universities. He also looks forward to gaining a broader perspective on Europe-wide problems as well as broadening the future possibilities of studies through new meetings and connections.  

“CIVICA is an amazing opportunity to apply what you've learned and to meet new people to share experiences and insights”, he says.

Solving complex problems through teamwork

Gustav is convinced that teamwork plays an important role in studying social sciences, and in solving complex problems. By being a CIVICA ambassador he hopes to further promote cooperation between European universities.

“Teamwork is a way to identify and solve complex problems that cannot be solved by individual actors. It is crucial when studying social sciences and is, therefore, perfect for CIVICA. On a personal level I hope that this experience will broaden my perspective on ways to identify and solve complex problems”, he says.

Emma Johnson is a second year BE student at SSE. She has lived in six different countries and finds international environments very rewarding.

“I remember sitting in my economics class in high-school – at an international school in the Netherlands. Each time we discussed a public policy and different trade-offs, seeing how someone from Germany might think differently to others from Portugal, England or a mix of cultures, solidified my constant desire to always be in academic and professional environments that appreciate multiculturalism”, she says.  

Promoting engagement and participation

As a CIVICA ambassador she looks forward to bridging the communication between students, their universities and the overarching CIVICA alliance in order to keep strengthening the community and consequently promote engagement and participation.

“It’s an impressive and unique opportunity that will only get better and stronger the more students we have taking part and contributing to the alliance. This strength in numbers will of course not only benefit the alliance in and of itself, but on an individual level as well. The network effects of having easy and supported access to talents from all over the world is as great an opportunity as ever to make the most of diversity in thought. Basically, for any project or initiative, it’s a key to world-class support placed in the palm of your hand – I think it would be unfortunate to miss out on that!”, she says.

Further, Emma is convinced that SSE’s entrepreneurial focus, it’s active art initiative and the wide variety of existing student initiatives taking place each day through the Student Association (SASSE) are three treasures that will bring value for students at other CIVICA universities.

“Like most universities, SSE is a concentrated hub of curious intellectuals, but what makes us extra special – I believe – is the unprecedented and constant flow of student-led initiatives that flow into this far-reaching network of people, in all industries and across the world, who are all willing to support the new and transform the old”, she says.   

Personal development

For Emma, CIVICA is a way to continuously learn more about different cultures, programs, and levels of study – something she thinks will be of great value for her own development.

“This broad knowledge base will be priceless in all circumstances both in my personal life and studies as I hope to explore and discover solutions to socioeconomic complexities – many of which I’ve seen highlighted by various CIVICA supported research and initiatives. Thus, I especially look forward to tying my learnings from my experience as a CIVICA ambassador to my specializations in Economics and Finance”, she says.

In terms of personal development, she looks forward to practicing her communicative skills and learning to translate and manifest other students’ ideas and thoughts into initiatives potentially backed by CIVICA. She also wishes to better her collaborative skills when communicating with ambassadors and students from other CIVICA institutions, and to find new and exciting ways to support different cross-border initiatives.

“Teamwork, to me personally, means embracing differences, listening to others, communicating your ideas effectively, and working together towards a common goal. It’s an opportunity to create something new and to grow as a person while doing so. In regards to CIVICA, it’s the same, with a primary focus on bringing different players – especially young people and students – to look for solutions towards a sustainable future for the greater good and development of our societies”, Emma says.

The CIVICA alliance chooses two or three ambassadors from each university, ranging from undergraduate students to postdoctoral researchers, to represent their institution. The role as a CIVICA ambassador is to promote interaction and exchange within the alliance’s communities and be a primary point of contact to CIVICA for their peers.

Interested in CIVICA?

Are you interested in learning more about CIVICA. Don't hesitate to contact our student ambassadors here at SSE or at our partner institutions:

Emma Johnson

Email: 25238@student.hhs.se

Gustav Jäger

Email: 25743@student.hhs.se