This year, the public speaking competition gave nine candidates the opportunity to speak on the topic "What do we have to defend?" Julia Pedro won over the jury members and took first place.
Step outside your comfort zone
I wanted to step outside my comfort zone. I enjoy writing, I enjoy public speaking, and above all, I wanted to learn how to structure my ideas better, capture people's attention, and move or convince them with my words," says Julia, afirst-year PGE student at the Cluny campus. This desire to push herself and perfect her public speaking skills was a key motivator for entering the competition.
Valuable coaching
Julia and the other contestants were prepared and supported by Jacques-Olivier Ensfelder, actor, director, theater teacher, artistic director, and poet. "We were lucky to be coached by a particularly talented actor, who gave us some valuable tips: diction techniques, articulation exercises, body language control,"explains Julia. This coaching helped Julia work on her diction and project her voice with confidence.
A few cold sweats
However, preparing her speech was no easy task. " In terms of content, I had drafted a first version a week before the event, which I deliberately set aside for a few days, " says Julia. "When I reread it the day before the competition, I found it unconvincing. I showed it to my mother, who found it even worse than I did, which made me decide to start from scratch, urgently." This incident ultimately proved beneficial in helping her find a more personal and authentic voice.
The sincerity of the speech
What really set Julia apart from the other candidates was the sincerity of her speech: " I talked about myself, my values, my family, and my cultural heritage. I felt comfortable with this speech because it rang true to me."
The Cluny public speaking competition is an opportunity for students to reveal talents and personalities that their engineering studies do not always bring to the fore.
The 2025 edition
The winners
- Julia Pedro
- Louis Docq
- Merouane Redjdal and Henri Guerin (joint winners)
- John Baptist Lentz
The members of the jury
- Michel Jauzein, Director of the Arts et Métiers Cluny campus
- Jean-Philippe Guyot, President of Réseau Entreprendre Bourgogne
- Salwa Philibert, Deputy Prefect of Saône-et-Loire
- Anne-Lise Grenaud, Director of Academic Affairs at the Arts et Métiers campus
- Jacques Olivier Ensfelder, dramatic artist (actor, director, theater teacher, artistic director, and poet)
- Marie-Aude Poisson, member of the board of the Maison de l’Europe Cluny association
- Margot Cambe, PGE student on the Cluny campus, chosen at random from among the two graduating classes
