Wingspan Conversations: a chat with EUROAVIA Treasurer Amanda Román Navarro

In Wingspan Conversations we tell the story of the people behind EUROAVIA who keep the association running smoothly. This month, we take a closer look at Amanda, Treasurer of the International Board of 2023-2024. So read on to learn why she joined the organisation and what her goals are as IB member.

Joining in difficult, online times

Amanda joined EUROAVIA during the COVID19 pandemic. These were trying times for the association due to a lack of international events and the necessity of doing everything online. Nevertheless, she became a member of the Business Relations (BR) Working Group. This allowed her to meet new people from across Europe, a welcome reprieve from the isolation of the pandemic lockdown. (we were all lonely back then)

Her first international event was an online Congress. Shortly after, her local group, AS Terrassa, started organising events again. Around that time, Amanda joined the local board and became more involved in both local and international activities. Therefore, her first on-site international events were the ones organised by AS Terrassa. This included the Sloshing Rocket Workshop and the Ideathon of 2023. These are also her happiest memories within EUROAVIA because it showed her the joy and importance of events for new members. Afterwards, she attended the AMEAC in Sevilla as a Designated International Board candidate, which was an intense but rewarding experience. (talk about being thrown in the deep end)

“Getting to see how these events impact people, how they change their minds after the event, how they want to attend again and ask for a second edition is what I love the most. It reminds me of when I started in the association, went to my first event and discovered what EUROAVIA is.”

Road to the International Board

From the moment Amanda started learning more about the workings of EUROAVIA, the seed of ambition to become en International Board (IB) Member was planted. Ever since joining the BR Working Group, she aimed for the top of the association in order to implement all her ideas and do the work. Furthermore, she finds the previous two IB’s very inspiring because they were all-female teams, a unique occurrence for an organisation of aerospace engineering students. (and we all loved them for it)

As a member and coordinator of the BR Working Group, she focused on establishing partnerships and sponsorships for EUROAVIA. This is vital work to keep the association financially stable, but quite demanding for a small team. This left her with little time to join other Working Groups. Nevertheless, the position of coordinator was a challenge that shaped her into the exceptional International Board Member she is today. She especially developed a keen sense for organising a group of people in an online environment.

“It is really challenging to contact companies because you get a no 90% of the time, but when you have a really good team and you get to know people from companies that are interested in working with students and see a future in helping us, you really appreciate it.”

Objectives as IB Treasurer

Amanda’s favourite project of the year is the Future & Beyond event. It’s an online networking event connecting aerospace businesses and students that keeps growing every year. The upcoming third edition will be four days of trainings, roundtables and Q&A meetings. She sees it as an important project for the future of the association and is very excited to work on it. Moreover, her experience as BR coordinator and industry connections will definitely help make this edition a great success.

Additionally, Amanda aims to increase EUROAVIA’s awareness among companies and other organisations. She wants the association to be known more than it is now. So, when someone goes to a conference where aerospace businesses and students are represented, they talk about EUROAVIA and view the association as an important agent of change in the sector.

If you want to read more Wingspan Conversations, check out this article with our President!