Three College of Europe students are set to attend the premier student conference on transatlantic affairs, hosted at Yale University from 10 to 12 February 2017. The European Students Conference (ESC) 2017 is organized by the European Horizons student think tank, which is the largest student-run body in the world devoted to the key debates in European studies, with a focus on transatlantic issues.
Originally founded at Yale, the first European chapter of the think tank was founded at the College of Europe’s Bruges campus during the Chopin promotion. It has since grown under the Keynes promotion, having hosted popular events around the US elections and the transatlantic military alliance.
Mr Connor RUSSELL (European Economic Studies Department), Mr Nicolo BOMPIERI (European Economic Studies Department) and Mr Mihai MOGILDEA (European Political & Administrative Studies Department) represent the College of Europe at this year’s ESC, which comes at a juncture in transatlantic affairs. They will participate in the keynote and plenary sessions of the conference before separating into smaller groups to tackle issues as diverse as identity, productivity and foreign policy. The working groups will continue to tackle these issues after the conference, ultimately producing rigourous articles for the biannual journal of European Horizons, the Review of European and Transatlantic Affairs (RETA). This provides a unique academic experience for students, and enables them to contribute to key debates in a concrete way.
Their participation in the conference was supported by the College administration, which offered them a travel grant for attending this event. This initiative was launched in the framework of the newly established Master of Arts in Transatlantic Affairs (MATA), a study programme offered in cooperation with The Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy. The College of Europe is committed to engage in a deeper understanding of the transatlantic issues and considers these events as a proper way to facilitate this.
Mr Connor RUSSELL, one of the College students attending, said: “This is a wonderful opportunity for us to apply the knowledge and skills we have learned so far at the College to real problems. We are looking forward to engaging our American counterparts in these debates and hearing their perspectives on the issues. We are deeply grateful for the support the College has provided to us, and hope to use this opportunity to raise the profile of transatlantic affairs in the College, particularly as it prepares to launch the Master of Arts in Transatlantic Affairs (MATA).”
- Previous European Horizons conference: Youth Summit on the Transatlantic Digital Economy (20 to 22 November 2016)
- More information on the MATA programme
- European Horizons' page (European Political and Administrative Studies)
- More information on European Horizons