24 November 2016 – Philippine Ambassador to France Ma. Theresa P. Lazaro, welcomed over 60 French students and young professionals at the Embassy for an informal gathering to allow former Gawad Kalinga (GK) volunteers and interns meet future GK volunteers and interns.
In her welcome remarks, Ambassador Lazaro compared the education generations of Filipinos received from French missionaries in the Philippines to that received by this generation of French students in GK villages.
“Next year, the Philippines and France will be celebrating the 70th anniversary of the establishment of bilateral relations. It will be a time for us to look back at seven decades of bilateral relations. There were state visits and high-level exchanges, but what I see as most enduring are the ties that were made between our peoples, particularly the youth.”
Mr. Olivier Girault, President of GK Europe, thanked the Ambassador and the Philippine Embassy in Paris for their continued support for GK and its programs and invited two GK “alumni” to share their experiences in the Philippines.
Leo Garnier and Louis Faure shared their experiences in the Philippines describing them as “building bridges” between the Philippines and France. Leo Garnier, an Engineering student at Ecole Polytechnique, talked about designing an irrigation system for rural communities and harvesting ant-infested mangoes. Louis Faure, a Business student at the école des Hautes Etudes Commerciales de Paris (HEC), talked about the startup he created with an 18-year Filipino called “Freebird for organic free-range chickens,” following his internship in GK.
This was the first time the Philippine Embassy in Paris organized a GK alumni event. GK has been present in France since 2008 and has sent over 1,000 volunteers and interns to the Philippines. END