Pictured from left to right: Gudrun Ledegen, André Belo, Anne Morillon, Paloma Fernandez and Anne Goarzin.
Connecting through Dialogue and Creativity
The evening opened with remarks from Anne Goarzin, Vice President of the EMERGE Alliance at Rennes 2. She emphasized how this artistic initiative reflects EMERGE’s broader mission: to explore the notions of borders and margins — not as peripheries, but as vital spaces where new forms of dialogue and creativity take shape. Following her introduction, Paloma Fernandez, Artistic Director of L’âge de la tortue* and L’Encyclopédie des migrants, spoke alongside professors Gudrun Ledegen, André Belo, and Anne Morillon, all deeply involved in the project since its early stages. Together, they shared insights into the long-term collaboration that has allowed the Encyclopédie to connect artistic creation, academic research, and civic engagement across regions and languages.
Giving voice to lived experience
The heart of the evening lay in the readings themselves. In a hushed, attentive atmosphere, volunteers brought to life letters that spoke of exile and separation, but also of attachment, memory, and hope. Each voice carried a fragment of a larger narrative, reminding listeners that migration is both a geographical journey and a profoundly human experience.
The diversity of languages and backgrounds reflected the project’s intercultural and multilingual dimension, turning the readings into a collective moment of empathy and recognition.
More than a simple collection of testimonies, L’Encyclopédie des migrants reimagines the encyclopedia as a living, evolving space — one that bridges individual stories and collective memory.
Shared values and ongoing collaboration
Through this exhibition, the University of Rennes 2 and the EMERGE Alliance reaffirm their commitment to promoting inclusion, cultural diversity, and solidarity in research and education.
L’Encyclopédie des migrants resonates strongly with EMERGE’s core principles:
- Inclusion and solidarity, by giving visibility and legitimacy to marginalized voices;
- Resilience, by highlighting the courage and creativity of those facing displacement;
- Multilingualism and cultural diversity, by celebrating the richness of languages and intercultural exchange.
By supporting such initiatives, Rennes 2 and its EMERGE partners continue to demonstrate how universities can serve as spaces where art, research, and community intersect to bring the margins to life.
* L’âge de la tortue is also an Associate Partner of EMERGE.
About EMERGE
EMERGE brings together nine universities, united with the purpose of giving our students and staff the opportunity to experience all that Europe has to offer in terms of know-how, expertise, talent, perspective and energy. Combined, our nine institutions have over 125,000 students. While we each have varying cultures, languages and educational programs, our aim is to build a new long-term joint strategy with a bottom-up approach which will impact and support all of our areas of activities, from teaching and learning to research and innovation, whilst encouraging new forms of student and staff mobility.
