My name is Manon Valls-Hazarian, and I’m excited to introduce myself as the new French intern in the Communications team at NCWNZ. I arrived in mid-July and will be staying until the end of November.

I’m 19 years old and currently in my third year at university in Toulouse, in the south of France. My studies focus on political science and international relations.

Manon is on the left, and on the right is Mathilde, NCWNZ Board Admin intern.

I chose to begin my exchange year with an internship in New Zealand because I wanted to experience a completely different political and social environment and improve my English. Working with NCWNZ allows me to explore how gender issues are addressed here, while gaining real insight into how an NGO operates in practice.

I'm happy to be in Aotearoa New Zealand. It’s my first time here, and I’m looking forward to exploring the country and learning more about its history, society, and culture and maybe even meeting some Kiwis. That’s why I’ll be staying in New Zealand until February 2026. I hope to visit as many places as possible.

During my internship, I’ll mainly be working on organizing the launch of the Gender Attitudes Survey, and I’m very excited to get involved in the Communications team’s ongoing projects. I also look forward to meeting the whole NCWNZ community.

To read more articles from  The Circular (July-August 2025) issue 653, click on the tag below.