Today, we sit down with Pia Le Grand, the CHARM-EU Manager at Åbo Akademi University (ÅAU) in Finland. Pia shares her journey from the beginning of ÅAU’s integration into the Alliance to her creative approach to internal communication.
🌍 Pia Le Grand – Åbo Akademi University
Role: CHARM-EU Manager at Åbo Akademi University
Could you introduce yourself?
My name is Pia Le Grand. I serve as CHARM-EU Manager at Åbo Akademi University, and I am also actively engaged in several CHARM-EIGTH work packages. These roles complement each other perfectly, allowing me to bridge local management with broader alliance goals.
How did you first get involved with CHARM‑EU?
I came to Åbo Akademi University as Head of International Cooperation in November 2022 and as part of that position I have been working with CHARM-EU from the beginning of ÅAU’s integration into the Alliance.
What is your main role within CHARM-EU? Why is it meaningful to you?
My main role is the local CHARM-EU Manager – a position I share with my colleague Harriet Klåvus. Together, we support, facilitate, and oversee ÅAU’s engagement within CHARM-EU. In many ways, we are like spiders weaving a web: creating and strengthening connections between people, ideas, and initiatives across our organization and among the Alliance partners at multiple levels. As a Manager I also participate in the governance and strategic planning of the Alliance and manage the local Alliance funding (currently the CHARM-EIGTH project, 2023-2026).
An important part of my daily work is about communication. There are a lot of developments and possibilities within CHARM to be shared.
To reach staff and students at ÅAU in our era of information overload, we have created the CHARM-ÅA Insider, which is a selection of CHARM-EU updates and highlights of specific relevance to the ÅAU community.
It is a bi-monthly internal news collection published on our intranet and complements the CHARM-EU Newsletter by offering local CHARM news and highlights of ÅAU’s engagement in the Alliance.
Can you share a moment that represents what CHARM-EU means to you?
In the process of compiling the different items to the CHARM-ÅA Insider, I am always reminded of the multitude and variety of activities that are going on within the Alliance, and about the possibilities and benefits for ÅAU of being part of CHARM-EU.
By sharing and combining the knowledge we have in our institutions, we can both develop our institutions and provide interesting opportunities for our staff and students.
How has CHARM-EU influenced your development?
I have been working in international relations for more than 20 years and the main reason is that I am passionate about working together with people from different cultural and linguistic backgrounds. I enjoy learning about different perspectives and trying to understand where those perspectives come from.
In CHARM, I love the fact that despite the diversity of opinions, we always manage to find compromises and go forward. The atmosphere within CHARM is welcoming, respectful, dynamic and innovative.
Can you imagine how the AAU Insider can be developed in the future?
CHARM-ÅA Insider is one way of reaching out to the ÅAU community. It will be further developed as part of our internal communication activities.
Where do you see CHARM‑EU heading in the next few years? What excites you about its future?
CHARM-EU will continue as an Alliance, bringing people from different perspectives and disciplines together around innovative collaborative activities.
If you had to describe CHARM-EU in one word or short phrase, what would it be?
CHARMing people!
The CHARM-ÅA Insider is part of the CHARM-EU Service Portfolio, the collection of CHARM-EU case studies and examples designed to inspire and support those who would like to adapt CHARM-EU solutions to their own context. Check out the CHARM-ÅA Insider.