Towards Europe!

By Emilia Didier, EU Public affairs officer - GO/Department of International Affairs

I am Emilia Didier, and I recently joined the Institut Pasteur as EU Public affairs officer, working both at the Grants Office and the Department of International Affairs.  

European affairs have always been the leitmotif throughout my career. 

After studying Political Sciences, I chose to specialise in European affairs in Paris, Brussels, and London. I began my career as a consultant at PricewaterhouseCoopers, where I contributed to the development of European business activities by preparing and coordinating a project under the EU's Sixth Framework Programme and undertaking missions with the European Commission. Eager to be directly involved in implementing public policies, I then joined the French administration, where I coordinated and led the deployment of European policies, including research and innovation, particularly in overseas regions. Based on this experience, in 2012, I was granted a secondment as an expert to the European Commission.  

In 2015, I had the opportunity to gain on-the-ground project experience by joining local administration in Lille as Chief of Staff to a Prefect for Defence and Security. There, I notably managed a European project to facilitate Franco-Belgian security cooperation and coordinated the implementation of inter-ministerial policies at the departmental level. 

In 2018, with a desire to deepen my involvement at the EU level, I joined the French Permanent Representation to the EU as the Representative of the Institute for Higher National Defence Studies. Since September 2024, I joined the Institut Pasteur as EU Public affairs officer, working within both the Grants Office and Department of International Affairs. 

Contributing to the public interest and societal issues has always guided my career choices, as well as my desire to serve as a European facilitator. Thus, joining the Institut Pasteur with this perspective to leverage my European expertise and professional experience is an honor. Finally, having the chance to engage with excellence and contribute to promoting science is intellectually and humanly/personally inspiring. 

As EU Public affairs officer, my mission consists in strengthening links with Europe: facilitate access to European funding, promote strategic dialogues with European partners and enhance the visibility of Institut Pasteur at the European level.