Cesare Onestini
Italy
UWCAD (1986-1988)
"The experience of the college has been life-changing; it touched and continues to affect my life. It brought to maturity some important choices and my outlook on the world has never been the same since."
Cesare Onestini currently works as Political Counsellor in the European Union Delegation to the United Nations in New York. In this capacity he contributes to the partnership between the European Union and the United Nations in the areas of peace and security, and in particular in peace keeping and peace building.
Cesare has worked as an official of the European Commission for fifteen years in various capacities. He has worked in different departments within the Commission including the Trade Department, the Secretariat General, the Transport and Energy Department, and in the Conflict Prevention and Crisis Management Unit of the External Relations Directorate General. Before that Cesare worked in the Education and Training department coordinating the action for the promotion of school partnerships and teachers' mobility in Europe and was involved in the actions for the promotion of intercultural education and of school provisions for migrants, Roma and Sinti.
"UWC has given me a solid educational foundation; friendships that have lasted the test of time; a strong interest in our world and international relations; and a commitment to international peace and international understanding. The greatest benefit for my personal development has been the opportunity to understand what I wanted to do; and the opportunity to take appropriate steps in terms of international education and work that were not open to me before." says Cesare.
"Before UWC I attended local schools in Castel San Giovanni, a small town of about 10,000 people near Piacenza in Italy where I grew up. One day I saw a poster in the corridor of my school with a photo of a happy bunch of young people asking 'do you want to study with students from all over the world?' I thought 'yes I do' and copied down all the details and the address, went home and started writing my application. I had not had any previous contacts with UWC.
"Arriving at UWC of the Adriatic was like landing on a different planet. I was on my own; I had to learn and interact in a language that was not mine and that I did not master; I was thrown (happily) into all sorts of social, artistic and sports activities that I had never tried before. Learning was also different; I had to choose my subjects. I had to move from class to class. And the programmes were based on case-studies, practical exercise and lab experiments -- unheard of in my previous schooling! The teachers were, on the whole, inspirational and supportive in a way I had not experienced before
"The experience of the UWC brought to maturity some important choices such as the choice to study subjects that I would have not been confident enough to consider before: at university I opted for a course in human sciences, combining genetics and anthropology, linguistics and animal behaviour. I enjoyed the course greatly and went on to further studies. UWC also helped me develop a better sense of service; at university I set up and run for a number of years a theatre group for handicapped children in the Oxford area. Interestingly, I did this with the support of many other students including UWC graduates from Pearson College, USA-UWC and Atlantic College.
My favourite memories are those of friends, fellow students and teachers alike. The feeling of community and belonging. I remember fondly the hours spent doing social service with a blind music student in Trieste; reading Calvino's books to him sitting on the cliffs , or getting lost around Trieste running errands with him In general, the world not only feels smaller, but more real; I pay more attention to world affairs. I am aware of differences -- and even more aware of similarities between cultures and fellow human beings.
At the United Nations, where I work at the moment in the office of the European Union, we face every day the difficult and harsh realities of conflict around the globe. We witness the slow and difficult role that the international community plays in trying to facilitate or mediate solutions. UWC and the UN share ideals that seem unattainable. But in both cases, it is the vision of a more united and peaceful world that sustains the efforts and provides the motivation for personal commitment.
