The Ambassador of France to the Philippines and Micronesia Her Excellency Marie Fontanel led the 6th installment of the UST World Lenses with her talk “Across Oceans: France-Philippines Cooperation” held on May 12, 2026, at the Beato Angelico AVR of the University of Santo Tomas.

Her talk focused on what unites France and the Philippines despite being separated by more than 10,000 kilometers, while also sharing experiences as an Ambassador with the students.

Her Excellency also shared insights on diplomatic priorities such as building stronger people-to-people ties, developing new areas of cooperation, and enhancing climate resilience especially as the two maritime nations approach 79 years of bilateral relations in July 2026.

She also positively noted the increasing number of Filipino students taking education programs in France for a year or more, and vice versa, with more French students also choosing to take programs here.

Ambassador Fontanel explained the Embassy’s priorities toward strengthened bilateral relations, particularly in terms of defense and security, climate preparedness, as well as development in sustainable energy, food, and public transportation.

She also highlighted the importance of cooperation in terms of climate resilience. Aside from France and the Philippines both being maritime nations susceptible to climate disasters and high heat indexes, she also reminded the participants that the United Nations’ 21st session of the Conference of the Parties (COP21) in 2015, where the Paris Climate Agreement was signed, started in Manila.

“In February 2015, the French President, François Hollande at the time, made the first visit of the French President to the Philippine President, [Benigno] Aquino III at the time, and together they made the Manila Call to Action on Climate Change. It was a call of two heads of states to all heads of states all over the world to gather in Paris at the end of 2015 for COP21 and the success of the conference is the Paris Agreement.”

Ambassador Fontanel brings with her over 20 years of experience in public administration. Her most recent posts prior to the diplomatic mission in the Philippines include serving as Health and Solidarity Advisor to the Office of the President of the French Republic Emmanuel Macron between 2017 and 2020, before being appointed ambassador and permanent representative of France to the Council of Europe in Strasbourg from 2020 to 2023.

After the engaging open forum, where students asked many questions on cultural exchange, diversity, and the process of becoming a diplomat, the Higher Education and Scientific Cooperation officer Claire Châles also shared more opportunities for international student mobility in France.

For almost 10 years now, UST has sustained academic partnerships with HEIs in France, namely the Université Catholique de Lille and Université Catholique de Toulouse, while teachers from Alliance française de Manille provide French language lessons to students of the College of Tourism and Hospitality Management.

The UST World Lenses Series, true to its name, is a space to see more clearly beyond borders and appreciate how dialogue, cooperation, and shared understanding help shape responsible global citizens. It is a joint initiative between the UST Office of International Relations and Programs and the Office of Public Affairs.

As Ambassador Fontanel puts it, “Diplomacy is about finding ways to better understand the country we are posted in, and making our country better known in order to be stronger together. That is what we are trying to achieve, and so occasions to connect with you, to have these discussions with you, are really precious.”