HAA European Club and SIG Leaders Meeting

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(12th - 14th October 2018, Paris)

Some 60 HAA European Club and SIG leaders from 17 countries and 9 Harvard administrators and staff-members convened in Paris for a weekend for an annual meeting. This occasion marked the 20th anniversary of this meaningful HAA tradition. Although club representation is entirely voluntary and self-financed by the individual participants without funding from Harvard or their respective clubs, the event has gained significant momentum over the past years as more and more clubs now see the value of fostering stronger ties with each other. The theme of this year's conference was “The Future of Inspiration.” HCUK was represented by Club President, Yuko Thomas, and Board members, Caroline Costin and Vicky Leung.

The Harvard Club of France organised an action-packed weekend of fun social activities and productive presentations and discussions. All European Clubs and SIGs did short presentations of themselves and participated in workshops to discuss specific challenges facing each club, best practices and possible solutions.

Our charming Parisian hosts spoilt us with an impressive array of social events - a tour of the Google Cultural Lab, an exhibition tour of the Louis Vuitton Foundation, a dinner cruise on the Seine, and reception and dinner at the Maison des Polytechniciens (with a Harvard faculty member as the speaker). 

It was a memorable weekend and a valuable opportunity for European alumni club leadership and Cambridge-based staff to bond with and learn from each other. The Harvard experience is truly a lifelong relationship as we have learnt from the weekend. Even after years of leaving campus, we can still find rapport with fellow alumni regardless of cultural backgrounds and still have access to faculty members and world-class educational experiences.

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