A close associate of Blanquer and a former Google employee at the Ministry of Culture

Catherine Pégard and Jean-Michel Blanquer share recruitment criteria for their collaborators? The Minister of Culture, appointed at the end of February 2026 to replace Rachida Dati, brought Christophe Pacohil into her cabinet a few weeks later as a “special advisor.”

Close to Jean-Michel Blanquer, he was his advisor when Blanquer was the director-general of the ESSEC Business School, before following him to the Ministry of National Education as chief of staff from 2017 to 2021.

When Blanquer founded the Terra Academia association, dedicated to ecological transition with Veolia as a partner, Pacohil became the deputy general delegate. Another member of Blanquer’s circle, Erika Léger, has now joined the Ministry as deputy chief of staff and studies and impact advisor, as per the Official Gazette on April 3.

Formerly head of internal communication at the Ministry of National Education from 2019 to 2023, Léger then became the director of the Paris campus at Terra Academia in the 18th arrondissement until December 2025.

In other appointments at the Ministry, Laurent Gaveau has been appointed as the advisor for artificial intelligence and digital affairs in the Ministry of Culture, roles previously handled by Lucie Carette under Rachida Dati.

As the founder and director of the Google Cultural Institute in Paris, Gaveau oversaw the Arts & Culture application with a team of researchers, engineers, and artists from 2013 to 2023. His arrival at the Ministry to work on AI is noteworthy, given Google’s extensive lobbying on the topic.

Prior to Google, Gaveau was the deputy director of communications at the Palace of Versailles from 2008 to 2013, where Catherine Pégard served as president between 2011 and 2024. The Ministry of Culture has also welcomed Hélène Dalifard, another former Versailles staffer, who served as press attache (2007-2020) and head of press and international media relations services from 2020.

Photo: The Ministry of Culture in Paris (ActuaLitté, CC BY SA 2.0)

By Antoine Oury Contact: ao@actualitte.com