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In March 2025, we profile UCL BA European Social and Political Studies student and 2024-25 President of the UCL European Society, Léna Curtet.
Tell us a bit about yourself
Hi all, I’m Léna, and I’m a second-year student in European Social and Political Studies (ESPS) at UCL, specialising in Economics and German and spending my third year abroad in Berlin. I am currently the President of the UCL European Society and a research assistant at UCL and the Institute for Fiscal Studies.
I was born and raised in Calais, France. After 15 years in the French system, I wanted to pursue my studies in a different academic system, focusing more on research and giving leadership opportunities to young people. Despite being in complete denial in my first days here, I am very proud to be a UCL student and consider being a student here as part of my identity now. Moving here, I was really venturing in the dark, but I am glad I did it, notwithstanding that out of my high school, nobody really moved out of France for full-time studies. I have realised now that coming from Calais is just as valuable of an experience as that of my peers in UCL, because what ultimately matters is what you make from your past experiences.
Apart from managing a shrine to UCL (it’s a joke of course…), I am a big art lover! I also absolutely love to travel. To accompany me during my travels, I always have a book at hand; at the moment I’m reading Marcus Aurelius’ Meditations (stoicism is a lifestyle, Brian).
What areas or topics of study are you interested in, and how have you explored them at UCL?
During my first two years at UCL, I have actively attended a wide range of guest lectures, on topics from sustainable finance to war journalism. It is simply impossible for me to select only one or two areas of interest (which is the primary reason why I was drawn to the interdisciplinary nature of the EISPS programme); however, over time, I have begun to identify specific areas I wish to focus on academically and professionally.
I am particularly interested in the ways both micro- and macro-level fluctuations drive social change. And more and more I observe that environmental factors, beyond traditional explanation, play a central role in business cycles. Such that, I want to explore the relation between economic recessions and resource scarcity for my bachelor’s dissertation.
Furthermore, working as a research assistant for a PhD thesis on school culture and academic outcomes has deepened my understanding of the educational system, especially in the UK, and the key roles it plays in the development of youth and the nation. I recently got really intrigued by the reasons for the current American administration’s pressures on academia and have started doing more research on this, focusing on their argument for economic competitiveness.
Altogether, these interests converge within the field of sustainable development, which I aim to pursue further. Upon returning from my year abroad, I plan to engage more closely with the Student Union’s sustainability initiatives. I wrote some pieces for UCL’s student-led magazines, like the Rendez Vous — my departmental newspaper — but I also founded an online revue with friends from UCL, where I usually address issues that are important to me.
Why are you interested in Europe?
I don’t think many people ask themselves what Europe and the EU mean (or at least I didn’t until fairly recently). You approach these questions primarily guided by your senses. In a border city like Calais you can see Europe through its architectural influences, taste it through shared culinary traditions or hear it in the common dialect shared across borders. Growing up in Calais, for me Europe meant the Flemish architecture of the marketplace, the Welsh rarebit served at the pub, Picard dialects shared with Belgium. But since Brexit, for many in Calais, Europe has become made of wires instead of shared values.
The Europe I see is very different can be very different from others, because I have the opportunity to travel. My most impactful interaction with Europe at large was my Interrail trip (who ver had the idea of giving free Interrail tickets to 18 years old EU citizens deserves a raise), and more especially the night train I took from Prague to Budapest. In eighteen hours, I travelled across Czechia, Slovakia and Hungary without any border control and with 5 other people in the sleeping cabin from different parts of Europe, chatting in languages I could not understand. While watching the Euros in the cabin next to us, I felt very strongly what Europe means to me: lasting peace, prosperity and cooperation across cultural and language border.
I was so moved by this train ride that I want to work to enable everyone to be able to experience the richness of Europe. With that mindset, I chose to shift the focus of the UCL European Society to promote cultural integration and deepen the significance of a European identity.
Where do you see yourself in ten years?
At 9, I knew that at 19 I wanted to study at university. Now 19, I don’t know what I will be at 29. But I know that I want to be continuously learning every day.
After graduating from UCL, I intend to do a Master in the area of sustainability, ideally improving my knowledge of both economics and natural sciences. Following that, I wish to pursue doctoral studies in the same field. So hopefully, in ten years’ time you will get to call me Dr Curtet!
While I am not opposed to the idea of working in academia, I primarily see myself working for a European or International institution. If I have to name a specific institution, it would be the European Central Bank. I think it can be a key instrument in the context of climate change and to further European integration.