On the 27th of March, the German Ambassador to Australia, Beate Grzeski visited the school, alongside the General of the Consul, and the former Ambassador. It was an incredible opportunity for all students to gain insight into the life of a diplomat, and their role in our global society. The morning consisted of a whole-school assembly, during which Mrs Grzeski was interviewed by members of our school captain team: Jamila and Bosse. She detailed the various aspects of the role itself, and was presented with questions from all different classes, ranging from stressful situations (dealing with the Ukraine war while in Russia as a diplomat) to university studies (as with all the diplomats who attended our assembly, she studied law). During the assembly, we were treated to incredible performances from the School Rock Band, and Carla from Year 10, who demonstrated great bravery and athleticism on the Rhönrad.
After our assembly we as school captains sat down with the principal, members of staff, and the diplomats who had visited, to have morning tea. It was a fascinating look-in to what life as a diplomat consists of, and it was a really engaging conversation, as they were very interested in various aspects of our schooling life, such as the decline of political discussions in school settings, and on what our plans for the IB, and for the future are. Not only was it wonderful to be able to meet, and have conversations with, high-level diplomats, but it was a great point of reflection for us as school captains, but also for the school community, to consider international relations and diplomacy as areas of work, and it was especially useful to be able to gain information on how these jobs actually work, and whether we as students would consider ever going down that track.
Overall, it was an immensely enjoyable day, where students were able to submit their questions to Mrs Grzeski, and really understand what it means to be a diplomat, and perhaps become more aware of the complex structure that underpins our international society, and what is required to get to such positions. Students greatly enjoyed the morning, and certainly as a school captain team we were very impressed with the time that these diplomats took out of their day, not only to visit the school, but also to hold conversations with us and even offer potential visits to the Consul and the Ambassador Residencies, an extremely exciting prospect. - Aureleo D, Year 11