Geschiedenis Actueel! started out as a small initiative by three history students who felt that history should play a more prominent role in the world of international relations (IR). Together they outlined a plan to establish a think tank, creating an opportunity for students to develop their skills and engage with other interested people outside of the university context.

This idea grew into an official foundation as GA! has been registered with the Chambers of Commerce last summer. Until now, it has been run by a board of Directors consisting of Hugo Abrial (President), Jelle Timmermans (Secretary), Christophe van der Kwast (Treasurer), Tom Draaijer (Publication Director), and Martin Meijburg (Podcast Director). They voluntarily put their time and effort into GA to provide organise monthly meetings in the form of Student’s Insight Nights & Expert Talks, monthly podcasts, and quarterly magazines.

Name Change
Before we delve into the organisational structure, we have a small announcement regarding the name of our organisation. GA! is an abbreviation which stands for Geschiedenis Actueel, which can be difficult to pronounce for non-Dutch speakers. As GA! is a forum for all international relations students, we decided to add an English part to our name for inclusiveness.

Therefore, we will now more frequently use the name ‘GA! History at Present’ or ‘History at Present (GA!). So don’t be surprised when you see either ‘Geschiedenis Actueel!’, ‘GA!’, ‘GA! History at Present’, and ‘History at Present (GA!)’ pass by interchangeably!

New Organisational Structure
To continue to develop GA! as an organisation, being able to host new events like the GA! x PoliticsCo Symposium, we are implementing certain organisational changes. An overview of the new organisational structure can be seen below.

Previously, GA!’s organisational structure could be divided into the Board of Directors, i.e. those who ran the think tank, and its members or ‘thinkers’, i.e. those who actively participated in the think tank. This simple and pragmatic approach allowed the think tank to flourish from a mere idea to the foundation it is today. As GA! grew in numbers, publications, as well as professionalism, a structural change was necessary. Below, we explain the new foundational core in-depth.

Strategic Board
At the top of the pyramid, we see the Strategic Board which consists of three members: Hugo Abrial, Jelle Timmermans, and Christophe van der Kwast. They are written on the act of foundation of the Think Tank as the president, secretary and treasurer respectively. The strategic board has the power to make structural decisions, for example: naming of the executive board, financial decisions and payment, and changing the household rules. However, they have rather little to do with the day-to-day affairs of the think tank.

Executive Board
This is where the Executive Board comes in as they are running the operational side of GA!, organising the events, creating the podcasts, etc. The executive board is composed of

1. President – coordinating the executive board’s activities and fosters partnerships for collaboration.
2. Secretary – managing communications with strategic partners, organizes meetings and keeps the documentation in the archives*
3. Publication Director – managing the publication process for thematic articles and journals produced by GA!
4. Event Director – focusing on organizing events that align with GA!’s mission and foster member interaction and interactions with other partners.
5. PR & Acquisition Director – aiming to enhance the visibility and image of GA! while securing funds for its operations.
6. Podcast Director – dedicating to producing high-quality audio content that aligns with GA!’s objectives

*Notably, the Secretary can also be combined with another position, except the position of President.

As Director, they are de facto also directors of a committee. For example, the Podcast Director is the head of the Podcast Committee, the Publication Director leads the Publication Committee, etc.

All members of the Executive Boards actively contribute to the physical products of the think tank, therefore they are also granted the title Research Fellows.

Associate Research Fellows
Associate Research Fellows are students who play an active role within the think tank. To be an Associate Research Fellow some requirements are to be made:

• at least 1 original textual contribution per year
• participate in 4 monthly meetings (either Member’s Insight Night or Expert Talk) per year

All students are free to apply and join committee they like under the restriction that they can only be members of no more than two committees at the same time.

Advisory Board
The Advisory Board gives solicited and unsolicited opinions and reports on the strategic direction of the think tank, the products of the think tank, help the overall growth of the think tank, and suggests new collaboration opportunities originating from within or outside the academical framework. At this moment, it consists of Michiel Angenent (President of the Advisory Board), Dr. Paschalis Pechlivanis, Dr. Stefanie Massink and Dr. Marloes Beers.

Extraordinary Member
Extraordinary members are individuals connected to Utrecht University or past student members. These members have made a valuable contribution to the foundation (monetary, time or products) and have therefore been granted this title by the Executive Board and the Strategic Board.

Conclusion
We hope to have thus clearly informed you all about the chosen changes within History at Present (GA!). In practice, not much will change for active students as activities will continue. But we hope that with these organisational implementations, the foundation will be able to exist for many years to come. A comprehensive policy report will be published later this month.

There will be a general call for applications for the Executive Board soon. If you are interested and already would like to receive more details/ ask certain questions, then you can contact Hugo or Jelle through Whatsapp or mail us at gactueel@gmail.com