The NAHSS: a golden opportunity!

That's how it felt to me when I was told in 2013 that I could go to Asia for an amazing summer. And that's how I still feel about it. With my passion for international relations, the NAHSS was an amazing experience. It offered me a glimpse into the lives of people on the other side of the world.

In 2015, I did an internship at the Dutch representation to the United Nations in New York. There I participated in the Dutch team during negotiations for global goals for sustainability, the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). And that tasted like more! After six months of days, nights and (in the final phase) even weekends spent debating about the creation of the sustainable agenda, I was able to join the SDG team at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs upon my return. There my passion for sustainability came together nicely with my interest in international politics. I've enjoyed working on the team ever since. Internationally, we represent the Netherlands in discussions about the SDGs, for example about monitoring and implementation. We also coordinate the Dutch implementation of the goals. As a result, no day is the same: first a conversation with a Dutch partner, then co-writing a speech by the minister to the UN.

During my summer school in Taipei, I worked with my group on an assignment for a Dutch company. We had fascinating conversations. We talked to people who lead lives very similar to ours: getting an education and then finding a job, with vacations abroad. But they viewed their work very differently. They worked to earn money, preferably as much as possible. While for my Dutch friends the impact of your work, personal development and nice colleagues always emerge as essentials for a nice job. From a Dutch company, it requires a very different approach to keep employees abroad happy.

I look back on the NAHSS with great pleasure: it was good for my understanding of international differences, and for my network. Meanwhile, I still meet a lot of NAHSS alumni in the corridors of FA and also outside!