After six months, SwissCore bids farewell to Léo, our trainee for research.
Léo started his traineeship on 1 February 2024, integrated into the curriculum of his Master’s degree in Public Policy and Management at the IDHEAP. He came to Brussels with the ambition to gain practical experience and deepen his knowledge of the EU policy landscape.
During his time at SwissCore, Léo familiarised himself with developments for the next iteration of Horizon Europe, the upcoming framework programme for research and innovation, and broader EU research policy. He performed an in-depth thematic analysis of the position papers for the next R&I framework programme (FP10) published by member states, associated countries, research funding and performing organisations as well as stakeholder associations, identifying key trends in the discourse leading up to the formulation of FP10. Additionally, Léo tracked discussions on emerging issues in the area of research and innovation, specifically the topic of dual-use and research security, including insights from the White Paper consultation on dual-use technologies. He also organized an exchange between Swiss and EU R&I actors on dual-use during the annual event’s accompanying programme and moderated the panel discussion for the IGLO annual reception. As part of his research project at SwissCore, Léo produced a report on the functioning of synergies in Horizon Europe and other EU programmes with R&I implications. In addition, Léo contributed to SwissCore’s monthly newsletters, drafted social media posts, wrote a success story on a Swiss-EU collaborative research project aiming to promote sustainable and diverse food systems in Europe and provided inputs for the organisation’s biannual ERI agenda.
“This internship has significantly contributed to my professional growth. I have gained a thorough understanding of EU politics and policy, Switzerland’s positioning in the international R&I landscape as well as acquired grounded practice in policy news reporting and analysis. This traineeship has also motivated me to further explore a career in international affairs.”
After completing this traineeship, Léo will complete his Master’s thesis and in September, he will begin his next traineeship at the Swiss Embassy to the UK in London as part of the Political and Legal Affairs Team.