[LUM#9] A child of the century

[LUM Magazine] - Published on July 30, 2019 in Science-Society

Thierry Escolar is undoubtedly committed to his era. A student at the Institute for Preparation for General Administration (IPAG), with a degree in political science and history, he is also co-founder of the Montpellier-based humanitarian association Jeunesse s'engage.

"After philosophy comes action." This quote from Victor Hugo has become the motto of the Jeunesse s'engage association and "a way of looking at life" for its co-founder and president, Thierry Escolar. For more than three years, this student has been organizing weekly collections and outreach programs for the homeless in Montpellier and Paris, promoting health awareness among young people, and developing institutional and inter-association partnerships. In 2015 and 2016, he even put together a team to travel to Palermo on two humanitarian missions to help migrant children.

"A way of looking at life"

It was during previous missions to the Middle East and Egypt that this Montpellier native from a working-class neighborhood had his epiphany."Seeing countries in bankruptcy or under colonial rule, I realized in retrospect how lucky we are to have structures and civil servants—things we may disagree with, but which ensure peace and make things work."

Back in France, he embarked on a double degree in political science and history. However, current events caught up with him with the shock of the 2015 terrorist attacks and the growing precariousness in Montpellier. "We were seeing more and more people on the streets, and the migration crisis was starting to make headlines..." Thierry reflects, "In political science, you discover an interesting way of interpreting the world. We were strongly encouraged to put what we learned into practice through collective projects." Together with his friend Olivier Saunier,he decided to found Jeunesse s'engage (Youth Engages).

A third way

Their goal? "To offer young people a third way, a commitment that is neither religious nor partisan political action. To allow them to participate in a one-off action that may raise their awareness of our collective responsibility." More than 500 young people have responded to this call. 

The political science student, meanwhile, switched to administration because he believes that is where he can "make himself useful. "After working as a parliamentary assistant, he is now doing an apprenticeship at the Place Beauvau: "Symbolically, given where I come from, a paycheck from the National Assembly or the Ministry of the Interior is proof that it's possible in France too." Soon, someone else will take up the torch at the head of the association, but Thierry Escolar's commitment remains intact.

Keywords: Students, Humanitarian, LUM#9, LUM Magazine, Company