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In October 2024, we profile UCL BA International Social and Political Studies student and President of the UCL European Horizons, Carlota Ferro Bernardino
Tell us a bit about yourself
My name is Carlota and I'm a second-year student at UCL and the president of UCL European Horizons. I study International and Social Political Studies, specialising in Comparative and European Politics. My degree also includes the study of foreign languages, mine being Spanish and French, and a year abroad, which I will be spending in Latin America.
I'm originally from Lisbon and I grew up in a completely Portuguese environment but I wouldn't necessarily say I grew up in a regular Portuguese family. My family, especially my mom, were very politically active. Some of my earliest memories include running around the hallways of the Portuguese parliament building, where my mom served as a parliamentarian, and playing cards with professors while she delivered lectures at the university. I often attended these talks, which is why I sometimes say that I've been learning international relations since I was three months old (I suppose this may give me an unfair advantage over my course mates, and for that I do apologise).
Five years before I came to London, my family moved to Geneva, which was unlike anything I had ever experienced before. This new global environment essentially made me who I am today and sparked my interest in a lot of the topics I now study at UCL. I'll forever be thankful to my family for dragging me to Switzerland, even if initially my 13-year-old self was not happy with the idea, because it has opened many doors for me.
Outside of academics and UCL, I enjoy a good book, playing the piano, and listening to Queen and Elton John.
What areas or topics of study are you interested in, and how have you explored them at UCL?
My time at UCL has thankfully allowed me to explore many of my interests. I'm particularly interested in comparative politics, and I've been able to make that area my specialism within my degree, so I've taken plenty of fascinating modules across multiple departments that have taught me a lot about international politics and the comparative method. In my opinion, this opportunity for interdisciplinary studies is one of the best features of my degree and UCL more broadly.
Within that field, I'm particularly interested in democracy, especially the trends of democratic backsliding and increased right-wing populism which many democracies across the world have experienced in recent years. I've not only explored these themes in the classroom, but also outside of it. UCL has many incredible speaker events, through which I have learned so much, and societies like European Horizons have also been a crucial part of my learning. As a student-led policy incubator focusing on European affairs and transatlantic politics, European Horizons has not only given me practical knowledge and skills in areas like European politics and policy writing but has also introduced me to knowledgeable people and incredible ideas which have complemented and furthered my studies. I would urge any student at UCL who shares these passions to join European Horizons for those reasons.
Why are you interested in Europe?
Being an EU citizen from a politically active family, Europe and the European Union have always been present in my mind in some capacity. My mom's political work and my schooling provided me with a faint awareness of the EU from a very young age. As I progressed through school, I learned, read, and studied more and more about Europe, and social media then began piquing my interest in one specific area of contemporary European politics.
I grew up as the #MeToo movement unfolded and saw the world erupt into protest about racial discrimination in 2020, and my presence on social media throughout these and other socio-political movements made me notice the increasingly reactionary attitudes of some young people and right-wing politicians alike.
I would see news reports about xenophobic comments made during the Brexit campaign or election victories for extremely conservative parties in countries like Italy. My friends at international school would also share experiences with me that reflected this, like attending public school in Poland and having the sex ed sections of their science textbooks taped shut because of the government's restrictive measures.
The growing presence of right-wing politics in Europe and the role of social media and young people in this process, are incredibly interesting to me. A lot of my interest in European politics currently lies in trying to understand how Europe - a continent which birthed fascism, overcame it, and then established itself as (at least in theory) a beacon for human rights - is now backsliding into nativist, populist ideology. How can Europe and its young people, like me, deal with this? How do we overcome these trends? And where does this fit in an era where we must accommodate for diversity within Europe?
I believe in the European project. I believe that through multilateral institutions like the EU the world can be more democratic, respectful, and inclusive for all (at the risk of sounding cliché). These questions, and Europe as a continent, are therefore fascinating to me, and I've explored many of them through European Horizons. As President, I hope to continue working closely with the European Institute to further explore them this year.
Where do you see yourself in ten years?
Ah, yes, the question every university student loves! In all seriousness, I have a vague idea of what I would like the next few years and my general future to look like, but a decade is a very long time - I have no idea what the world or my life will look like when I'm 29!
In 10 years, I'll have graduated from UCL, hopefully with a first-class degree and many positive experiences and connections from my time both in London and in Latin America during my year abroad. I will also hopefully have completed a Master’s degree, which I'm planning to do in gender and comparative politics. I want my studies for the next few years to focus on the topics I've discussed thus far in this newsletter, particularly the role of nativist rhetoric and Great Replacement Theory in the right-wing populist trends currently observed around the world.
As for professional ambitions, I'm keeping my options open in order to not limit myself. I would love to work for an international organisation seeking to make a real change in the world - maybe even the UN - but I would also consider comparative politics research if given that opportunity. As an EU citizen, I would also of course consider Brussels and European politics. Overall, I'm doing the most any of us can do, which is hope that I'll feel happy and accomplished by the time 2034 rolls around and work to the best of my ability to make that happen.