Catriona O'Sullivan, EMA 2024, Board Member

Dear Alumni Friends, 

My name is Catriona (pronounced ‘Ca-tree-na’), and I am originally from Scotland (half-Irish, which explains my last name!)

My background is in media, journalism and documentary film. I previously was based in the Media Directorate (DG COMM) of the European Parliament and in communications roles at the UN in Rome (eg. FAO, IFAD). 

I returned to study in order to focus on topics close to my heart, and better understand human rights - especially in this complex moment in history that we find ourselves living through. I completed EMA in 2024, and during that year I coordinated the EMA Human Rights Film Festival and did my second semester in Ljubljana. My focus was on conflict management, peacebuilding and the arts - my thesis was on participatory filmmaking projects used in peacebuilding contexts (namely, Northern Ireland). I was also part of the Global Classroom in Kyrgyzstan, and followed up the EMA Kosovo field trip with an article about film and collective memory after conflict, published in Kosovo 2.0 magazine. I mention this to give a small overview of the ways in which I contributed to the EMA programme beyond the lectures.

I am very motivated by the idea of “walking the walk” and not just “talking the talk”, and believe a huge strength of EMA, of the work of the board, and of this community, is not just in what we do for work or study, but also in the actions we take outwith our day-to-day.

Currently I am based in Brussels, working as a Senior Producer at Euronews TV. 

What motivates you to run for the Board elections?

I am genuinely enthusiastic about the potential that our Alumni community has, and as a collective I think we can really mobilise to take the already impressive achievements (for example, the scholarship) to another level. 

After graduating, I understood and appreciated even more how unique the EMA programme is, and I wish to maintain a connection to Global Campus and EMA. This is because it is clear to me that, while we often would have healthy disagreement or discussion in our cohort and community, I believe we have so much more in common in terms of values, than we have differences. Working together we are far, far stronger. Re-entering the workforce has made this even more clear to me, and I would love to dedicate some of my time to a cause and community that I care about, and that aligns with my value system.

I would love to gain experience of serving on a board too, and the fact that this is the first time I will do so (should I be elected), other than on boards of student societies, means I will bring even more freshness, dedication and enthusiasm. 

Everyday, like many of you, I wake up and go to sleep feeling frustrated, angry, upset and helpless about many of the things happening in our world. Something which is becoming clearer to me is that we can collectively make a big difference in small ways, and this is one small way I would like to do something productive and useful in terms of human rights. 

What do you bring to the Association?

I bring a strong enthusiasm for the underpinning values of GC and EMA, and I am a very practical solutions-focused person. I believe this is already clear from the focus of my thesis for example (I attempted to look at the concrete effectiveness of programmes implemented to bring people together after conflict).

There are ways I can see that my mix of skills could be of use to the board. For example, I do not come from a law background, but what I can bring is a mix of media / communications skills, as well as experience from both institutional contexts and journalism/newsrooms. This might be helpful in terms of communications: expanding the membership, and gaining support for various actions and projects.

It’s important to me to approach everything I do with empathy, kindness, openness and a genuine attempt to listen and understand both the needs of alumni, and the ways we can advocate for human rights more broadly.

What do you see for the future of the Association?

I see a larger more engaged association (I think we can really expand on the membership and engagement). I think we can go further on the support provided to alumni - especially as we live in a difficult moment in terms of the job market and human rights work in particular; while also expanding on the important advocacy work. 

I can see that we have a wealth of experience as a group, and that there are a few main ways that I think we can harness this: 

1. Collective actions: whether that be petitions, fundraisers, awareness raising events (online for example), informational sessions and so on - on human rights issues we want to focus on and support as an association. I am very open to understanding what the general feeling of the association is on this one, and the direction we want to go with this.
2. Support for new EMA students/accessibility: Due to a variety of reasons, EMA is not always accessible to all - both financially and also in terms of other kinds of support. I think we can expand on the scholarship, and also look for other not-just-financial ways to support students who maybe do not come from privileged backgrounds or do not have as many family connections or support after graduating.
3. Support for Alumni, especially those who graduated more recently (let’s say, in the last 5-6 years):  It seems clear to me that the job market is unkind to all at the moment, especially for human rights roles. I think we need to embrace the community of support, through mentorship, support and advice, to help newer graduates get a foot in the door. It is clear also Alumni from further back will need support in other ways too, and I am curious to look at solutions in that respect also, but of course I have a closer and more acute understanding of the challenges facing newer graduates.

I am extremely dedicated to doing what I can to support and expand on the associations’ important work, and hope you can entrust me with your vote.

Catriona O'Sullivan 

EMA class 2024