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On this page:
- » International Speaker Series
- » International Competitions
- » Internships
- » Extra-Curricular Activities & Athletics
- » Charitable Giving
- » Free The Children
- » Cecily's Fund
- » Global Harmony Foundation
- » Habitat for Humanity
- » Gallmann Memorial Foundation
- » Light Up The World Foundation
- » IMBEWU
- » Veteran's Affairs Canada and the UK Poppy Appeal
International Program
Beyond the rigour of the academic program, students are encouraged to be involved in a variety of internationally focused opportunities that comprise our International Program, including:
International Speaker Series
- Career seminar series in career planning, communications, and career acquisition.
- Guest speaker series including international speakers from a variety of academic and corporate disciplines as well as NGOs.
Recent speakers include:
- Dr. Tyrone Hayes – a leading biologist at the University of California at Berkley, gave a talk about his discovery that the weed-killer atrazine may be short-circuiting the reproductive machinery of amphibians exposed to farm chemicals in spring runoff. The result is a large number of feminized male frogs. Dr. Hayes is the first to link pesticides to the mysterious ill health of amphibians native to North America. More information can be found at http://www.nationalgeographic.com/field/explorers/tyrone-hayes.html.
- Mr. Robert Johnston - PhD student in Munich and expert on “the Rise of Nazism”. Mr. Johnson presented a lecture on the topic "What were they thinking? Understanding the rise and fall of Nazi Germany". Originally from Texas, Robert Johnston studied at Saint Petersburg College in Florida and Wayne State University in Michigan with a concentration in History & International Studies, including German as a language. He completed his undergraduate studies at the Amerikanistik Institute at Ludwig Maximillians Universität (LMU) under Prof. Berndt Ostendorf. He is currently employed by the LMU at the Geschwister Scholl Institut for Politics as a Research Assistant for a 2-year project on Guilt and Reconciliation. He is a trained guide for the KZ memorial at Dachau and was certified under the direction of Herr Peter Koch who is the educational department head of the facility. He has led countless "Third Reich" tours in Munich to NJC students and is an engaging and informative speaker.
- Mr. Pasal Holliger - a Neuchâtelois who lives and works in the townships of Port Elizabeth in South Africa is with Swiss-based NGO “IMBEWU” which looks at youth empowerment through sport & service. He presented the challenges faced by post-apartheid South Africans. www.imbewu.ch
- Naseeb Dajani - a former UN worker, he began a non-governmental organization with Sir Peter Ustinov called Global Harmony Foundation, and runs social and humanitarian development projects around the developing world.
- Mr. & Mrs. Basil Eastwood – former British Ambassador in the Middle East & Switzerland, established a grassroots fund in the name of their daughter Cecily, who was tragically killed in a car accident at nineteen while doing a gap year in Zambia. Cecily’s Fund works to educate AIDS orphans in Zambia. www.cecilysfund.org
- Tamar Oppenheimer – former Assistant Secretary General, United Nations Secretariat who has held a number of top UN posts over 40 years in Human Rights, Settlements, Narcotic Drugs, and as Deputy to the Director General of the UN office in Vienna.
- Peter Dalglish – Founder of Street Kids International, co-founder of Trails Youth Initiative providing leadership training for inner-city Toronto children, and serves on the boards of the Gallmann Memorial Foundation USA and the Sierra Club Foundation. He is the recipient of the Vanier Award, and in 1989 was chosen one of the Ten Outstanding Young People of the World by Junior Chamber International. Peter Dalglish has received honourary doctorate degrees from two Canadian universities, and is a graduate of Stanford and Dalhousie. From 1994 to 1997 he was the first Director of Youth Service Canada, the Government of Canada's civilian youth corps, a CDN $150 million initiative for young people who are out of school and out of work. Between 1998-2000 Peter Dalglish directed the Horizons Project for disadvantaged youth in Toronto, which provides inner-city girls and boys with mentoring, tutoring, and new opportunities for personal growth and development. In 2001 he launched Schools Without Borders, an organization that designs community service and leadership projects for high school students who have a passion to make the world a better place. In November 2002 Peter Dalglish was appointed by the International Labour Organization as the Chief Technical Adviser for its programme for working children in Nepal, which is aimed at the elimination of the most exploitive forms of child labour.
- The Honourable Sergio Marchi – former Toronto Councillor and Member of Parliament, serving as Federal Cabinet Minister in three different portfolios: Citizenship & Immigration, Environment, & International Trade. In 1999, the Prime Minister appointed Mr. Marchi as Canadian Ambassador to the World Trade Organization (WTO) in Geneva, where he served for five years. In 2004, he was nominated by the Canadian government to serve as a Commissioner on the UN Global Commissions of International Migration.
International Competitions
Model United Nations - Once Each Semester
A limited number of NJC students are chosen annually to attend a simulation of the United Nations. Normally this takes place in Berlin in the Autumn and St. Petersburg in the Spring. Students from local and international schools around the world spend four days participating in a mock session of the UN. Speakers, including local politicians and diplomats, address the students on the real problems facing international government.
European International Schools Acting & Debating Competitions
NJC students complete against students from places ranging from The Hague to Cairo in debate, acting, and impromptu speech. This competition takes place once each semester in a designated European city.
Internships
A few fortunate NJC students are selected to remain in Switzerland for a month following graduation each year as interns in organizations such as the United Nations’ High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) in Geneva and the Canadian Embassy in Bern. These are excellent opportunities for students with an interest in pursuing a career in the areas of international business, diplomacy, or humanitarian efforts.
Extra-Curricular Activities & Athletics
To make sure our students have a healthy dose of fun to go with the challenges of academic life, NJC offers an abundance of extra-curricular activities. Whether it is through clubs or competitive and intramural sports, there is no shortage of activities to choose from. Sports at NJC vary from year to year depending on student interest, but generally include hockey, soccer, rugby, basketball, volleyball, and swimming. Other sports that students are welcome to participate in include rowing, sailing, riding, skiing and snowboarding, skating, hiking, cycling, aerobics, yoga, and students may use the facilities of the Université de Neuchâtel.
For students more interested in artistic endeavours, NJC offers a variety of clubs, such as film, drama, photography, yearbook, student council, and newspaper. And for those interested in music or dance, the Royal Conservatory of Music and the Académie de Ballet are nearby.
One of the great things about being at NJC and studying in a university town is that just about any extra-curricular you might be interested in is available either through NJC itself, one of the local schools, or through one of the town teams or clubs. An amazing way to meet and compete against European students!
Do what is familiar, or try something new. No experience required.
International Service and Charitable Giving at NJC
Neuchâtel Junior College identifies service and developing a global perspective as key components to the NJC experience. NJC has formed special working relationships with a number of non-governmental organizations (NGOs) in the past and has identified them as key areas of focus in fundraising and international service for the NJC school community. Most are grass roots organizations that work in various parts of the world to address global health, education, environmental, housing and peace initiatives.
FREE THE CHILDREN
Founded by international child rights activist and Canadian Craig Kielburger at the age of 12 in 1995 when he gathered 11 school friends to begin the fight against child labour, today is the world’s largest network of children helping children through education, with more than one million young people involved in their programs in 45 countries. Free the Children has received the World’s Children’s Prize for the Rights of the Child (also known as the Children’s Nobel Prize), the Human Rights Award from the World Association of NGO’s, and has formed successful partnerships with leading school boards and Oprah’s Angel Network.
Me to We Enterprises was established for people who want to help change the world with their daily choices. Through media, socially responsible clothing, speaking tours, leadership trips, and exciting events such as We Day, all of Me to We’s entities work to support Free the Children’s international development and youth engagement programs. Their goal is to bring Free the Children’s already low administrative rate to zero in the next five years.
As an extremely proud sponsor of We Day in Vancouver in the Fall of 2009, Neuchâtel Junior College joined schools across Canada who have committed to join the “We” movement. In December 2009, 18 students, 2 teachers, and 14 family members will travel to Kenya with Free the Children and Me to We to engage in a school-building service project. Our ongoing commitment has been secured through various fundraising activities at the College to further support the efforts of this truly special and successful organization.
CECILY’S FUND
A UK based NGO helping educate AIDS orphans in Zambia founded by Mr. & Mrs. Eastwood in memory of their daughter Cecily. As the former British Ambassador to Switzerland, the Eastwoods have been frequent visitors to NJC and Neuchâtel to promote this grass-roots charity that has a real impact on assisting youth and communities in this sub-Saharan African nation. The school drama performance seeks to raise enough funds each year to education the same number of Zambian children as the number of students that attend NJC.
GLOBAL HARMONY FOUNDATION
A Swiss NGO based in Lausanne working with community development in countries including Brazil and India. NJC has sponsored development projects in India through annual sales of the GH calendar for the past twelve years.
HABITAT FOR HUMANITY
The European/Central Asian arm of the American NGO addressing poverty housing worldwide has found NJC students working on specific projects in rural Hungary and Romania since 2002. Each student volunteer contributes to the local affiliate through the trip fee and NJC students have helped work on the building of over ten houses in three communities over the years.
GALLMANN MEMORIAL FOUNDATION
This Kenyan foundation founded by Kuki Gallmann addresses conservation issues and community development. NJC students have participated in trips to the GMF’s Laikipia Wilderness Education Centre in 2005 and 2007 in hands on projects to learn more about environmental, political and social issues in East Africa. Each year NJC has sponsored two secondary students to attend school in rural Laikipia.
LIGHT UP THE WORLD FOUNDATION
A Canadian (Calgary) based NGO bringing environmentally responsible renewable energy based solid state lighting to remote Himalayan communities to address literacy and lifestyle. In April 2009, NJC students raised funds and delivered lighting through a service trek to communities in the Annapurna Sanctuary in Nepal. In April 2010, students will return to Nepal to provide further service on the lighting installations and participate in another trek to the Sanctuary.
IMBEWU
A Swiss NGO based in Neuchâtel working with youth in South African Townships. Specifically IMBEWU looks to empower youth through sport in order to assist them with a range of social issues. Effective 2009, NJC students have the opportunity to volunteer in South Africa through IMBEWU.
VETERANS’ AFFAIRS CANADA and the UK POPPY APPEAL
www.vac-acc.gc.ca
www.poppy.org.uk
For the past 20 years, all NJC students are required to spend Remembrance Day in Flanders, Belgium and Northern France for trips to Vimy, Ypres and Beaumont Hamel to commemorate the fallen of the Great War 1914-1918. Students and families contribute equally to both veterans’ organizations in Canada and the U.K.
