November 2024. It's warm for late autumn. Or perhaps it's the prevailing hustle and bustle that's raising the temperature. At the Caritas migrant reception center in Nicosia, the days unfold to the rhythm of arrivals, stories told, laughter and tears.
It was in this setting that 24-year-old Maud Genevois arrived for a civic service placement intended to last a few months. She quickly immersed herself in the mission. At the reception center, she received people from Congo, Cameroon, Syria, and Somalia. She had to help them fill out forms, explain a Kafkaesque system whose workings she (quite an achievement) managed to decipher, and find solutions—often urgently, always without instructions. She helped them access healthcare, enroll a child in school, and try to resolve administrative issues.
«From the moment I arrived, I was fully integrated.» Fully integrated because fully committed. Maud studied International Relations and was already very sensitive to the plight of asylum seekers. So she gave of herself: she listened, she tried to understand… and she acted.
An idea quickly emerged. What if she could offer the people she was supporting the means to support others? Maud then launched a training program. Asylum seekers became apprentice social workers. One by one, they learned, they got involved, they received financial compensation. For some, the training lasted a few weeks, for others several months. A new dynamic took hold. "My goal is to fight against the system of dependency."«
A few months later, a new chapter begins. Caritas launches an integration program for asylum seekers and refugees. Her mentor asks Maud to coordinate it. She accepts.
At first, it's (as always!) a whirlwind of activity. Every afternoon, Maud organizes a different activity: sewing, cooking, design. It's a hit, it's a success. Little by little, she observes and identifies the real needs. It's not just about helping people fill their days; it's about building something lasting. So Maud pivots. Fewer workshops, more teaching. Greek lessons. English lessons. Job search support sessions, internet navigation workshops. She also sets up a cooking course with a local partner. Ten participants. A first. A success. An initiative that will be repeated!
The Caritas team is small but dynamic. "Each of us has the space to make proposals, to take initiatives." Maud doesn't hesitate to occupy this space.
Beyond work, Cyprus became a learning ground for her. A divided country at the crossroads of geopolitical tensions, the island fueled her reflection and commitment. "It's fascinating to live in a place that constantly leads you to question the geopolitical situation. It requires humility, and being open to listening." She learned, little by little. She forged connections with the locals. She identified the country's divisions, but also its invisible balances. And she shared what she had learned with the new volunteers she welcomed.
Six months have passed, all too quickly, and the end of her civic service is approaching. Maud knows, however, that her mission isn't over. Caritas offers her a position as an employee. Initially for six months, then for a year – a contract that can be renewed. She accepts: "When Caritas offered me a job, I was thrilled… And I still am! Here, things don't stagnate; there are always things to do, things to invent."«
Already, another idea is taking shape in her mind, more personal, more ambitious: creating her own organization. Her goal: to promote the integration of asylum seekers into the job market by developing apprenticeship programs. "I want to implement, on a large scale, what I was able to initiate with Caritas." Maud follows a guiding principle: to help people move away from dependency and gain autonomy.
In Nicosia, the reception center continues to operate. Faces change. Emergencies come and go. What remains constant for Maud is her commitment, her desire to help, her courage. She dared to leave; today, she dares to build the future. With her mission, she has found her calling.
