Recommendations for the Executive Committee 2025/26

President

The election committee recommends Henriette Reierson Johnstone as the new President of SAIH.

Henriette has a deep understanding of SAIH as she has been active in the organisation for 5 years, and for the last two years been serving as the Vice President. In her own words she says that “SAIH is a big part of my life. My heart lies with SAIH, and I now feel ready to take on the role as President”. The election committee wholeheartedly agrees with her on this. She has a clear vision for SAIH in a time of political change and significant global uncertainty.

Henriette wants to continue strengthening SAIH as a critical voice in Norwegian and international politics. In a world where authoritarian and fascist forces are gaining significant power she wants to strengthen SAIHs work on protection of students and academics that are fighting for democracy and human rights. Henriette is passionate about shedding light on the ongoing"scholasticide" of the Palestinian higher education sector and to work together with students and academics in Norway and globally that are fighting for a free Palestine.

Henriette also wants to strengthen SAIHs voice regarding decolonization of aid and academia, and see this as connected to the larger question around shifting power dynamics. 2025 marks the five-year anniversary of SAIH’s decolonization tool-kit, and a pertinent time to rejuvenate the debate about colonial structures within academia. Henriette aims for SAIH to become a relevant actor for more people, and thus using political debates as a way of engaging more students and academics, and thereby also creating stronger local chapters.

Vice Presidents

The election committee recommends Nicole Becerra Vivanco and Thias Alfaro Sandoval for vice-presidents of SAIH for the coming period.

Nicole Becerra Vivanco

Nicole Becerra Vivanco has shown long-standing dedication to SAIH. She was active from 2013, and returned in 2023, and has since had various roles in the local chapter at Blindern, where she currently serves as the president. She is committed to SAIH’s values, and has a good understanding of SAIH’s new strategy through her role in the national council. She is passionate about political engagement, and believes SAIH should continue to be a strong voice for decolonisation and shifting power.

Nicole has a strong understanding of SAIH as an organisation, with its many local chapters and member organisations. With a bachelor’s degree in development studies and a master’s in political science, she brings solid academic grounding to the role. Her experience in political communication from her internship at The Norwegian Solidarity Committee for Latin America further adds to her qualifications. Nicole is engaged with Latin America and the Latin American diaspora, and her knowledge and Spanish skills will be beneficial with SAIHs partners.

Nicole is a calm and supportive person, who builds activists’ skills while ensuring they feel seen and heard. She is a team player with a thoughtful and professional approach to differing opinions, and will bring stability, care, and valuable experience to the Executive Committee

Thais Alfaro Sandoval

Thais Alfaro Sandoval has been active in SAIH since May 2024, and has been a caring and proactive leader for the local chapter. She is committed to SAIH’s values, and has in a short amount of time initiated collaborations with other local chapters, created spaces for student activists, and has been an active voice for academic freedom and students’ rights. She has experience working with human rights, indigenous communities, intersectionality, and sexual and reproductive health and rights within the Central American region, as well as navigating in different political contexts.

Thais is a caring candidate, and will actively look after the activists’ wellbeing, at the same time as building their competence. She is a StAR student, and represents an important part of SAIH’s activist base and Norway’s diverse student body, and will strengthen the ties between SAIH, the members and partners. She is ambitious and is eagerly learning about the Norwegian political and cultural context, as well as the language.

Her experience within political communication and experience from the student movement in Nicaragua, working with students as political subjects and shifting power structures will strengthen SAIH’s work in a shifting global context.

Overall assessment

There are several good candidates running for the executive committee in SAIH this year. The election committee has considered the recommendation as a whole, and believes the candidates bring with them a varied composition of strengths that will benefit the organization both politically and organizationally.

The election committee has looked at organizational skills, leadership skills and thematic understanding of SAIHs main topics, as well as understanding of the current geopolitical landscape. The election committee is also pleased that with our recommendations the new Executive committee will be more diverse, as well as bringing in relevant language skills as well as experience from student activism in different contexts.

All the candidates for the executive committee have been interviewed by the election committee.

The election committees work

The election committee started working in the summer 2024. We participated in two national councils, the winter gathering, talked with activists, the current executive committee and the director of SAIH.

The election committee was elected at the annual meeting in 2024 and consisted of Jessie van Balkom, Stian Antonsen and Ragnhild Holtan.