On Thursday, December 17, at the Chamber of Commerce and Industry, the elective General Assembly of the Young Economic Chamber of Nice Côte d’Azur took place. Laura Ruiz, the general secretary, was unanimously elected president of the association. This young manager, the initiator of the Doggy Bag commission, is dedicated to successfully implementing her program for the year 2016. Interview:
What is your professional background and how did you become a member of the association?
I graduated in Public Law and Urban Planning, and I currently work in a consular establishment.
I am the Head of the Economy and Territories Department at the Chamber of Agriculture, a service that encompasses all functions dedicated to the economic and legal support for farmers and local authorities looking to boost agriculture in their regions.
I discovered the Young Economic Chamber of Nice Côte d’Azur through a colleague. I was immediately convinced by the values, the quality of actions taken, and the entrepreneurial spirit of the movement. The Young Economic Chamber is a school of sharing, trust, and exchanges where ambition and benevolence coexist.
I believe what I particularly like is the idea of acting for others while having the opportunity to develop one’s own skills.
What will be your goals as the new president of the association?
The Young Economic Chamber of Nice Côte d’Azur has been carrying out economic actions in the city of Nice for over 63 years. 2016 continues this orientation, and it will be a dynamic year in terms of actions to restore the Young Economic Chamber to its rightful place as a movement of leaders and entrepreneurs serving the economic attractiveness of Nice.
To achieve this, we will work with our existing partners and develop new partnerships.
We have a comprehensive program for the coming year, with committees covering various aspects of local economic development:
- creating a network of business creators and successors,
- awarding a prize for business creation with the Rotary Club of Nice,
- territorial marketing,
- management and sports,
- supporting the local economy,
- democratizing access to art,
- youth civic engagement.
In December 2016, we will host, along with the Young Economic Chamber of the Nice Métropole, all PAC members for the regional congress of the movement.
We also have a varied training program, some of which will be open to our partners.
What was the report of the year 2015?
The year 2015 was rich in actions:
– We organized the first regional event of the year with over 120 participants from the entire PACA federation who came to train with us in January.
– We celebrated the 100th anniversary of the JCI movement by hosting “The Tree for Peace,” which allowed the young members of the Montjoye association to express themselves about peace in general and about five Nobel Peace Prize laureates in particular.
– We carried out actions in support of local economic development, initially by participating in the award for business creation organized by the Rotary Club of Nice and Initiatives Nice Côte d’Azur and then by hosting two conferences as part of our work on the Silver Economy, one on “Sports after 50” and the other on “How to Age Young” during the “Health Objective” day also organized by the Rotary Club of Nice with our participation.
– We laid the groundwork for the Res Publica project, aimed at reconciling young people and politics.
- In addition to training provided during our academic opening in January, we organized 4 training sessions, 3 of which were open to outsiders and met with great success: Mind Mapping, Debate Jousts, and How to Present Oneself in a Job Interview.
2015 was also a structuring year, as we completely overhauled our website to make it a tool more reflective of our image and, above all, more accessible to all.
Alongside all this, we continued to develop and ended the year at the top of the podium for the Young Economic Chamber of Provence Alpes Côte d’Azur, taking 3 out of 6 awards at the regional congress with the Development Award, the Training Award, and the President’s Special Award for the “Tree for Peace” action.
How can the association help the youth?
The Young Economic Chamber is a movement serving youth in several ways:
Firstly, through the very mission of the Young Economic Chamber: its mission is to provide young people with development opportunities by giving them the capacity to create positive changes in their territories. This involves developing their leadership talents, social responsibility, and entrepreneurial and solidarity spirit.
To support members in their actions, the Young Economic Chamber has a training unit on methodology, organization, and personal development topics.
The Young Economic Chamber enhances the skills of young citizens who join it. It offers each of its members the opportunity to take on responsibilities and broaden their skills in various fields (training, human resources, communication, program, international…). Each member accesses an increasing level of responsibilities and decision-making.
Moreover, we carry out various economic actions, many of which concern young people. By impacting our territory, we also impact young people, their living environment, and their well-being.
Why is it important for the association to reconcile young people and politics?
We have an initiative started in 2015 and continuing into 2016 to reconcile young people with political engagement in general, as I remind you that the Young Economic Chamber is a movement independent of any political, religious, or union currents.
We think that youth is the future, and when we heard of young people’s disinterest in politics, we decided to act.
The vocation of the French Young Economic Chamber is to contribute to the progress of our society, so we could not remain inactive in the face of this observation even as politics influences our daily lives.
