Letter of Motivation

I am writing to express my interest in the Program Coordinator position at Secours Islamique France (SIF). I hold a
Master degree in Human Rights and Humanitarian Action from Sciences Po Paris. During the last two years, I have
worked as volunteer in the Material Needs Team of Sciences Po Refuge Help which is a student association focused on
addressing the primary and emergency needs of asylum seekers and refugees living in the streets of Paris. I would
appreciate the opportunity to do this internship to further my skills in research, advocacy, communications and
management. I am confident that my academic background, combined with my personal and professional experience,
could be beneficial for the team.

One of the main features of contemporary societies is the recognition that people in virtue of being humans, are entitled
to fundamental rights and liberties. In this sense, States have the obligation to respect, guarantee and fulfill human
rights. I deeply believe that human rights activism is not exclusively to politicians and lawyers. In fact, individuals that
know their rights, diffuse them and demand the authorities to respect them, could become human rights defenders. The
idea of developing accessible solutions to the challenges that arise from human rights violations and improving the
quality of life of vulnerable populations is my primary motivation to pursue a career in the field of humanitarian action.

I hold a Bachelors Degree in International Relations from Universidad San Francisco de Quito and my areas of
expertise are Political Science and International Cooperation. The nature of my degree has prepared me to conduct
statistical research, analyze public policies and develop social projects. I have conducted descriptive and statistical
studies regarding the migration phenomenon in Latin America, the recruitment of child soldiers by FARC and the
displacement of civilians by the armed conflict in Colombia, the effect of public policies over economic development
and political culture. My Masters thesis was a cross-national statistical study focused on the factors that promote higher
levels of government respect for human rights in Europe. I applied an ordered logit regression model based on panel
data from the CIRI Human Rights Data Project for 31 European countries, covering a period of twenty years. Through
my studies, I gained excellent writing skills and learned to think creatively and strategically.

As volunteer at the National Red Cross Society, I deepened my knowledge regarding Human Rights Law by
participating in national seminars and working in several campaigns developed to promote and teach younger
generations about the principle of non-discrimination, peaceful coexistence and International Refugee Law. In addition,
my working experience in the Global Community Development Program of AIESEC taught me how to develop social
projects to provide children and adolescents practical tools to become agents of change in their communities. In 2014, I
worked as a Communications intern at the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations in Ecuador. This
internship gave me the opportunity to work in a multicultural environment and learn the procedures, structure and inner
workings of an international organization. I assisted in the implementation of the Strategic Communications Plan; thus
my responsibilities focused on drafting and editing monthly newsletters, maintaining and updating the organizations
website and social networks. Before applying to Sciences Po, I worked as project manager for the Ecuadorian Red
Cross in the project Rights of Migrants in Action which focused on helping victims of human trafficking and migrant
domestic workers. I was responsible for maintaining communication channels between civil society organizations, the
European Union, the Nacional Red Cross Society and the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent
Societies and organizing seminars and information sessions regarding the situation of migrant domestic workers and
victims of human trafficking in Ecuador. Furthermore, as member of the Independent Evaluation Committee, I was
responsible for analyzing and selecting project proposals presented by local civil society organizations.

To complete my professional practices, I returned to Ecuador in July 2016 for a period of six months to work at the
local NGO Edificar Foundation where I was responsible for assisting in the recruitment process and coordinating events
with stakeholders and working groups engaged in the educational projects developed by the organization. After this
gratifying experience, I had the opportunity to a be national UN volunteer at the Conference Habitat III. As part of the
recruitment team, I was in charge of coordinating human and material resources for training and deploying volunteers
during the conference and building partnerships with national stakeholders. In the long-run, my career objectives
include working as a consultant for NGOs and international organizations. I consider that as a foreign student and
professional, I could promote intercultural learning within the team and raise awareness of the human rights situation in
South America.

Thank you for taking the time to consider this application.

Yours sincerely,

Cristina Cisneros