Events

On September 12th at 5:00 pm, the Jean Monnet Chair "Bridging the Gap between the EU and its Citizens" concluded with a discussion that delved into the consequences and possibilities for the EU to establish closer connections with its citizens. Distinguished representatives from the realm of political practice participated and exchanged insights, including Thomas Berger, who represented Europe Direct, Peter Schaub from Europa-Union, and Marianne Müller from Pulse of Europe, along with valuable contributions from Muriel Pluschke, a Ph.D candidate of Fulda University of Applied Sciences.For further information and to access the discussion, please click on the link provided below.

On September 12, Claudia Wiesner from Fulda University of Applied Sciences, Virginie van Ingelgom from UC Louvain, and Cecile Robert from Sciences Po Lyon engaged in a discussion regarding citizen democracy and its implications for Europe at Fulda University of Applied Sciences. For further information and to access the discussion, please click on the link provided below.

The preliminary findings of the Jean Monnet Network titled "Debating Europe" were unveiled on September 11th at 6:00 pm. The discussion was led by a group of distinguished academics and researchers, including Claudia Wiesner from Fulda University of Applied Sciences, Cecile Robert from Sciences Po Lyon, Willy Beauvallet from Université de Lyon II, Ana Matan from the University of Zagreb, Meta Novak from the University of Ljubljana, Niilo Kauppi and Kim Zilliacus from the University of Helsinki, and Ruzha Smilova from the Centre for Liberal Strategies. For further information and to access the discussion, please click on the link provided below.

For the second time the UN simulation "Model United Nations" (MUN) took place at the department of Social and Cultural Sciences from July 17 to 20. This year 39 students and five teachers from the partner universities Madrid, Edmonton, Lwiw and Zagreb participated, among them two students as a film team. On the part of the department of Social and Cultural Sciences, seven students from the Master ICEUS and seven students from the Master MAHRS participated. MUN has been held at the department since 2019. This year, under the leadership of Prof. Claudia Wiesner, a delegation from Fulda already participated in the MUN conference in Erfurt in January. Since winter 2022/2023, the preparatory seminars for MUN are integrated into the curriculum in MAHRS and ICEUS.

The Fulda MUN 2023 was conducted under the direction of Prof. Dr. Claudia Wiesner and Prof. Dr. Philip Liste as well as Muriel C. Pluschke and Clara Umstätter and with the support of a team consisting of Zhylien Kaja, Vivian Seidel, Vanessa Wintermantel and Pauline Woods (all from the department of Social and Cultural Sciences). It took place within the framework of the projects PATRAPO (Practicing Transnational Politics), Transnational Governance and Human Rights (HAW International), Brückenprogramm Hessen-Ukraine, supported by the Point Alpha Research Institute (PARI). Project partners are the Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, Spain, the University of Zagreb, Croatia, and MacEwan University, Edmonton, Canada. In addition, a student delegation from Catholic University Lwiw, Ukraine, led by Prof. Dr. Galyna Protsyk, took part (with the longest journey of over 26 hours by bus).

Three students from Canada as well as the visiting professor at the faculty of Social and Cultural Sciences, Prof. Dr. Chaldeans Mensah, led the participants as chairmen (Dais) through the conference and its proceedings. Beforehand, the students had prepared intensively for the conference for two semesters within the framework of a hybrid, seminar. Students from Fulda, Lwiw, Madrid and Zagreb participated in the online seminar sessions, which were led by teachers from Fulda, Madrid and Zagreb. The Fulda MUN 2023 was the highlight of the seminar for everyone and provided an opportunity to finally simulate a UN conference together in presence. The students were now able to meet in person and exchange ideas and make international contacts. "The conference is a great experience. We have guests from four different countries, which simulate 19 UN states. Everyone is working intensively and learning a lot, but the atmosphere and the exchange are great, both among students and teachers," said Prof. Dr. Claudia Wiesner pleased.

The Fulda MUN 2023 focused on two topics that are of great importance in today's world - "Countering disinformation for the promotion and protection of human rights and fundamental freedoms" and "Natural Disasters in conflict regions". In the MUN simulations, students slip into the roles of various UN states, which they meticulously prepare in order to represent them credibly. This time, for example, there were Russian, Chinese and South African, but also Finnish, German and French "delegates".

After the opening ceremony with first speeches of the teachers, the delegates decided by majority vote to deal with the topic of natural disasters first. Together they worked out three resolutions on this topic, which were successfully passed despite some abstentions as well as a few dissenting votes. The second topic, disinformation, was on the agenda from Wednesday on. Here, two resolution were adopted by the delegates. "In simulating the UN General Assembly, students learn how the political interest of states finds expression in highly formalized procedures," Prof. Dr. Philip Liste drew a final conclusion.

The Fulda MUN 2023 was framed by a sightseeing tour through the city including a joint dinner, a reception at Frauenberg Monastery, where among others the Dean of the faculty of Social and Cultural Sciences, Prof. Dr. Matthias Klemm, as well as Prof. Dr. Claudia Kreipl, Vice President for Research and Transfer at Fulda University of Applied Sciences, held short speeches, and a concluding dinner with a three-course menu at the Ritter Restaurant. A special highlight was the visit of the Hessische Rundfunk, which brought about a three-minute contribution in the Hessenschau. The videos can be found here  and here  as well as a Podcast here.

June 12- 16, 2023

Last week, students from the ICEUS and MAHRS masters program visited Brussels to gain more insight on the functions of various EU institutions. Their excursion began with a guided city tour, led by Stefan Debrabandere, through famous quarters and spots through out the city. Their tour ended on a sweet note right in front of one of the most famous chocolatiers in all of Brussels, Neuhaus.

The first institution the MAHRS and ICEUS students visited during their visit in Brussels was the Council of the European Union. ICEUS alumni Ignacio Nuno Molina shared information on the role of the European Council and the Council of the European Union within the European institutions. Ignacio also shared some of his personal work in the communications sector with the students.

Following the visit at the Council of the European Union, ICEUS and MAHRS students had the pleasure of visiting the Commission’s visitor center. At the Commission, they heard presentations on various topics focusing on migration, disinformation, and EU enlargement in the time of the war against the Ukraine.

The visit and reception at the Representation of the Federal State of Hesse at the EU gave students a little taste of home in Brussels. Nick Aiossa of Transparency International shared his experiences is lobbying and advocacy with the students. Following the presentations, students were welcomed to join the Jugend Forscht reception in the evening. There they learned about biodegradable plastics, stair-climbing vacuum robots, and technology that will allow neurologists to identify the form of a tumor without having to perform an invasive surgery. Students under the age of 18 from all over Hesse were able to share their findings.

European HomeParliament "European Democracy in Transition" in the framework of the European Weeks.

Tuesday May 16, 2023

Under the direction of Zhylien Kaja the Fulda Centre of Transnational Governance organized a European HomeParliament at Fulda University of Applied Sciences on May 16, 2023.

At this year's European Home Parliament, students from the Social Law Department at Fulda University of Applied Sciences, had lively discussions about the importance of citizen participation in strengthening democracy in the European Union (EU). They all agreed that low turnout in European elections is a concern for both the EU and citizens. Citizens have the right to complain about issues they care about, but it is important that they also exercise their right to vote in order to bring about the change they desire.

Sub-questions that were also discussed with students included:

• Should a European referendum be introduced in which all EU citizens can participate and thus have their say on issues concerning the future of Europe?
• Should EU citizens also be able to vote for candidates from other EU Member States in European elections via transnational lists?
• Should EU citizens decide at the local level how many refugees they want to accept in their region and thus facilitate a Europe-wide distribution?

A Home Parliament is a private discussion group of 4 to 8 people with the slogan ‘‘Have a say in the big issues!‘‘. It is moderated by a host, who can either invite his/her friends or have him/herself assigned to an interesting discussion group. It all takes place either online via Video-HomeParliament, WebEx, Zoom etc. or in a face-to-face meeting. European HomeParliaments are an initiative of the NGO “Pulse of Europe”, an independent citizens’ initiative founded in Frankfurt am Main in 2016. “Pulse of Europe” aims at making the idea of European Citizenship visible and audible, and at strengthening the links between EU-politicians and ordinary citizens.

Public Event: Citizens, Democracy, and the European Union

Friday, March 31, 2023

Thinkcorner, University of Helsinki, 09.00-11.00

Democracy is the most important social innovation ever. Citizens are the cornerstone of any working democratic system. But to work properly democracy requires knowledge and interest in societal issues, active citizens who not only vote but are also ready to challenge political leaders. While EU integration is a unique process in world history, many seem to be estranged from it and uninterested in what is happening in Brussels and other European capitals. 

This panel is organised by the Jean Monnet Network DebatEU (https://www.debating-europe.de/network/hochschule-fulda/). The Network enhances debate through citizen focus groups, conferences, social media, publications and events. It seeks to generate a dialogue and better understanding of the EU among citizens. And it aims at learning from the citizens what are their reasons to feel distant to the EU.  

The panel is chaired by Niilo Kauppi, research director at the University of Helsinki and member of the DebatEU network. Panelists include Anna Björk from Demos, MEP and vice-president of the European Parliament Heidi Hautala, Professor Johanna Kantola from the University of Helsinki, University Researcher Niko Pyrhönen from the University of Helsinki and Professor Claudia Wiesner from Fulda Hochschule and Pi of the DebatEU network.

20-22 January 2023, Erfurt

For one weekend, four students slipped into the role of delegates of the United Nations

Long, complicated negotiations and short, concise speeches were experienced by four Master's students from the Department of Social and Cultural Sciences from 20-22 January 2023 at the Erfurt Model United Nations (EfMUN). The three-day conference not only gave them an insight into the diplomatic workings of the United Nations but also allowed them to become active themselves. As delegates from New Zealand, United Kingdom, Hungary and Croatia, they worked together in two committees with over 100 other Bachelor's and Master's students from all over Germany. In the General Assembly, they dealt with the dangers of nuclear weapons and the trade of small arms and illicit weapons, while the connections between climate change and health were discussed in the United Nations Environmental Assembly (UNEA). In the Security Council, Afghanistan and peacekeeping missions were on the agenda. In her keynote speech at the closing ceremony of EfMUN, Marleen Schreier, who herself has been active at the international level for NMUN for more than ten years, directly related exactly these topics to her own everyday life and encouraged the students to face the different challenges on their own career paths. Social events such as a sightseeing tour through Erfurt, a joint lunch and a delegate dance framed the event which took place in Erfurt's town hall.

“It has been a very enriching experience to learn and collaborate with other fellow students on global issues”, said Nelly Corrales, who represented Hungary at UNEA. There, at the end of a long, busy weekend and after some amendments, three resolutions were adopted. “For me, the EFMUN was more than just a simulation; addressing the delegates from the position of United Kingdom was nerve-racking, but in the end, it was a learning experience, one I would repeat without hesitation”, described Ferdinard Osei, who represented the United Kingdom in the General Assembly, where five resolutions emerged from a total of six working papers. Thanks to their participation in EfMUN, the students were for the first time able to apply the knowledge they had previously acquired in the virtual MUN seminar as part of the project Practising Transnational Politics in Blended Learning (PATRAPO). “At EfMUN, the students were able to dive deep into international negotiations and international law based on currently relevant topics and experience for themselves how difficult it can be to reach consensus and develop common positions as well as measures at the international level”, said Muriel C. Pluschke, who accompanied the excursion as Faculty Advisor. In the end, the Fulda delegation even received an award for the best position paper.

The project Practising Transnational Politics in Blended Learning (PATRAPO) is a model project at Fulda University of Applied Sciences, headed by Prof. Dr. Claudia Wiesner and Prof. Dr. Philip Liste and supported by the research assistants Muriel C. Pluschke and Clara Umstätter. It includes an innovative, international cooperation in teaching with the Autonomous University Madrid, Zagreb University, and the associated partner Mac Ewan University (Edmonton/Canada), which is funded by the DAAD and Erasmus+. The Catholic University Lviv (Ukraine) is also involved in the seminar through funding from the Hesse-Ukraine Bridge Programme of the HMWK.

Everybody who is interested is welcome to join the lectures. If you wish to participate online, please register here.

22 November 2022

The European Home Parliaments give citizens the opportunity to engage in discussions about current European topics in an interactive way. For our students this is a great chance to apply the knowledge they have gained about the European Union and thus we participated again in the 7^th round of the European Home Parliament.

What are the Home Parliaments?

European Home Parliaments are an initiative of the NGO “Pulse of Europe”, an independent citizens’ initiative founded in Frankfurt am Main in 2016).

The aim of the home parliaments is to bring European debates to citizens’ homes and discuss current European topics in small groups. This can work among family members, friends or in our case students. Usually, three questions of European matter are discussed and then voted upon (just like in a real parliament).

This year’s topics:

The overall question of this years’ round was: Europe on the next level: Do we need a deeper cultural and political integration?

This included three further proposals and questions:

     1.    European Public Holiday: Should there be a joint European Public Holiday to commemorate Europe’s shared history and values?

     2.    History in Europe’s Classrooms: Should history education in Europe’s schools provide more common European content and go beyond national narratives?

      3.    EU Membership Process: Should EU enlargement be accelerated for countries with candidate status?

The discussion

Students were divided into three groups and discussed one question each. They engaged in lively discussions and then presented their results to the other students. After that, we voted on each question and finally on the overall question. Students were very engaged in the debate and enjoyed the interactive nature of the home parliaments. It was interesting to see, how the opinions varied from being very critical to agreeing very much with the question.

We thank everybody for participating in the debate and are curious to see how these debates continue on the European level.

3 November 2022, 18:00-19:30

On November 3, 2022, a panel of experts gathered in Fulda to discuss the impact of the ongoing conflict in Ukraine on EU Studies. Could this be a significant turning point? The panel included Claudia Wiesner from Fulda University of Applied Sciences, Philipp Genschel from the European University Institute in Florence, Doris Wydra from the University of Salzburg, and Knud-Erik Joergensen from Aarhus University in Denmark.

Students and faculty members attended both in person and online, drawn by the intriguing topic. The discussion sparked deep thinking among participants, and conversations continued long after the event concluded.

July, 4- July, 6

To slip into the role of a delegate of the United Nations and to experience how decisions are made on the UN level, this opportunity was offered to students from four different countries from July 4 to 6 in Fulda.  Under the guidance of Prof. Dr. Claudia Wiesner and Prof. Dr. Philip Liste as well as Muriel C. Pluschke and Clara Umstätter supported by Maria Keller, Zhylien Kaja and Meike Schmidt-Gleim, the SK Department hosted an international Model United Nations (MUN), which was carried out within the framework of the PATRAPO (Practising Transnational Politics) and Transnational Governance and Human Rights (HAW International) projects. Project partners are Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, Spain, Zagreb University, Croatia, and MacEwan University, Edmonton, Canada. In addition, a student delegation from Catholic University Lviv, Ukraine, led by Prof. Dr. Halyna Protsyk, arrived. The project partners were represented by a delegation of three students from Canada and Prof. Dr. Chaldeans Mensah. The Canadian students led the participants as chairmen (Dais) through the conference and its proceedings. In addition to the Canadians, a student delegation from Zagreb, Croatia, was present to participate in the conference. Additionally, students from Madrid, Spain, as well as some other students from Fulda were connected online to participate in the hybrid conference. After two semesters of intensive preparation in a virtual, cross-national seminar, it was a real highlight for all participants to finally come together in person and simulate a UN conference together, as well as to exchange ideas and make international contacts.

The first Model United Nations in Fulda was opened with a speech by Professor Halyna Protsyk from Ukraine. She addressed the war in Ukraine, which was also the topic of the following conference. After her speech, some of the Ukrainian students shared their personal impressions from the war zone, which touched and affected everyone present.

Afterwards, the actual conference began, during which the approximately 40 participants took on the role of delegations of a UN member state for three days. The individual delegates held speeches, looked for cooperation partners, negotiated intensively, wrote working papers together and finally voted on the results of the draft resolutions in plenary. Finally, three resolutions on "Reducing the impact on food security from the Ukraine conflict" were adopted.

On the occasion of the event, a festive reception was held at Café Flora of the Frauenberg Monastery in Fulda on July 5. The President of the University of Applied Sciences Fulda, Prof. Dr. Kharim Khakzar, welcomed the guests present, consisting of current and former MUN participants, employees of the University and of the Faculty SK. Further greetings were given by Prof. Dr. Claudia Wiesner and Prof. Dr. Hans-Joachim Reinhard, Dean of the Faculty. In addition, a greeting from Michael Brand (CDU), member of the German Bundestag, who could not be present in person, was read out.

The conference was closed after the final vote of all delegates on the Draft Resolutions on July, 06 with a speech by Prof. Dr. Chaldeans Mensah. Finally, some students were honored with awards for especially good performances such as excellent speeches or position papers.  In the evening, the delegations had dinner and exchanged ideas at the Brauhaus Wiesenmühle before leaving Fulda the next day after three eventful days.

The Fulda Team: Prof. Dr. Claudia Wiesner, Prof. Dr. Philip Liste, Muriel Pluschke, Clara Umstätter, Maria Keller, Meike Schmidt-Gleim, Zhylien Kaja

You can find a further report from our Canadian partners of MacEwan University here. 

Brussels, 30 May - 02 June 2022

Finally in Brussels! After 2 months of prepatory seminar sessions (and several cancellations due to the covid-19-pandemic over the last few years), 30 master students of Intercultural Communication and European Studies accompanied by Maria Keller had the chance to visit Brussels and visit the European institutions in Belgium’s capital.

On the program: European Commission, European Parliament, Representation of the Federal State of Hesse (Hessische Landesvertretung) and the Council of the European Union. Within the institutions, we discussed topics like migration, external actions, climate as well as the tasks of the institutions, the everyday-life within and career and internship perspectives. The students were fascinated by finally experiencing the European policy-making they had learned about during the last semester(s). Thus, they asked many questions about various aspects of each institution.

Apart from the official institutions, the students also got a guided city-tour and some also visited the Parlamenatrium or the House of European History in the European Quarter.

In the end, all agreed that the trip had been a huge success and everyone enjoyed the appealing and thought-provoking program of the trip. Now we are looking forward to visiting Brussels again next year and maybe some students will return for internships or might even start a career there.

May, 12 2022

For the second time, students of Fulda University of Applied Sciences participated in the European HomeParliaments - this time live on campus. Maria Keller and Zhylien Kaja organized the event and five students acted as moderators for the discussion groups.

European HomeParliaments are an initiative of the NGO “Pulse of Europe”, an independent citizens’ initiative founded in Frankfurt am Main in 2016. “Pulse of Europe” aims at making the idea of European Citizenship visible and audible, and at strengthening the links between EU-politicians and ordinary citizens. A Home Parliament is a private discussion group of 4 to 8 people with the slogan ‘‘Have a say in the big issues!‘‘. It is moderated by a host, who can either invite their friends  or have themselves assigned to an interesting discussion group. It all takes place either online via Video-HomeParliament, WebEx, Zoom etc. or in a face-to-face meeting.

This years' questions included

1. Should the principle of unanimity in the council of the European Union be abolished and replaced by a qualified majority? (Soll das Einstimmigkeitsprinzip im Rat der Europäischen Union abgeschafft und durch eine qualifizierte Mehrheit ersetzt werden?)
2. Should a representative citizens' council advise the EU institutions on fundamental decisions? (Soll ein repräsentativer Bürgerrat der EU Institutionen bei grundlegenden Entscheidungen beratend zur Seite stehen?)
3. Should the European Parliament be able to introduce its own legislative proposals in addition to the EU Commission? (Soll neben der EU-Kommission auch das Europäische Parlament eigene Gesetzesvorschläge einbringen können)

The students - who got divided into three groups - had some lively discussions about the questions. Most of them agreed on questions 1 and 2 but disagreed on the third question. We are now keen to see what the overall results of the HomeParliaments will show and especially what the EU politicians will make of the results.

November, 30 2021

MEP Engin Eroglu virtually visited Fulda University of Applied Sciences and talked in the class "Introduction to European Integration". He answered questions of students of Intercultural Communication and European Studies and Human Rights Studies in Politics, Law and Society. The lively discussion covered topics of EU-politics, finance and economy, migration, Mr. Eroglu's CV and way into the European Parliament and many more.

We thank Engin Eroglu for taking the time to come visit us and hope to meet him again to further discuss European topics.

January, 13-15, 2021

We warmly invite all interested students of the Fulda University of Applied you to participate in the Global Model European Union (GLOBALMEU).

GLOBALMEU is the simulation of a European Council Meeting in Brussels with students from other European and non-European universities. Students will play the roles of member statedelegations, heads of governments or ministers, European Commissioners
or members of the press.

Apart from the students' own preparation, there will be a 1-2 hours preparatory meeting in advance.
 
The participation at GLOBALMEU will be online.
The event can be attended as additional element of the Europazertifikat. All participants will also receive a certificate of attendance.
If you are interested or have any further questions, please contact Maria Keller

September 20th 2021

On Monday, 20th of September 2021, everyone interested was welcome to hear more about the positions of the Fulda constituency candidates for the German federal election on September 26th. The discussion took place on site campus of Fulda University of Applied Sciences and was broadcasted via live stream. Prof. Dr. Claudia Wiesner moderated the discussion which was organised by Maria Keller and Stefan Rascher. On the podium, Nuha Sharif-Ali (Left), Gianina Zimmermann (Greens), Mario Klotzsche (who replaced Jürgen Lenders, FDP), Birgit Kömpel (SPD), Dagmar Heil (VOLT) and Michael Brand (CDU) debated numerous topics ranging from human rights and foreign policy to digitalisation and housing shortages.

University President Prof. Dr. Karim Khakzar welcomed about 50 guests that were present on campus and about 120 viewers who followed the event via the live stream, giving a short speech. He called for better framework conditions and higher funding for universities of applied sciences from both the federal states as well as the federal government. Then the floor was opened for the discussion among the constituency candidates. They presented their positions in several blocks of questions. The subjects covered included: Fulda and the region, social affairs and business, human rights, democracy, education and research. The panellists had a good two hours to express their views on each topic in short statements and to explain their own ideas and solutions. Before the event, everyone interested had been invited to submit questions – which were then included into the discussion – via an online tool and social media. In addition, the audience had the possibility to ask further questions.

One guest asked which actions the panellists were planning against the increasing radicalisation in society and the social division between urban and rural areas. All panellists agreed on democracy and social cohesion to begin with individuals and their attitudes. In addition, numerous initiatives in the city and region of Fulda aim at strengthening democracy. The question of raising the German minimum wage was a topic that was controversely discussed. The cadidates expressed notable differences in their positions. While the representatives of SPD, Greens, Left and Volt advocated for a fixed minimum wage and a rise to 12 € or 13 €, the representatives of the CDU and FDP argued for a regulation of wages based on collective bargaining. Migration and refugee policy were also discussed intensively. Regarding the latter, Birgit Kömpel (SPD) emphasised that she would welcome Fulda to become a safe haven, and she was going to campaign for the admission of a certain contingent of refugees. The establishment of municipalities as safe havens was also supported by Gianina Zimmermann (Greens), who at the same time called for an immigration law. Mario Klotzsche (FDP) emphasised the need for an EU-wide consensus and the strengthening of legal migration. Similarly, Dagmar Heil (VOLT) pointed out the importance of a European approach and the necessary reform of the Dublin Agreement, as well as the shortage of skilled workers and the positive effects of immigration in this respect. Nuha Sharif-Ali (Left) demanded not to wait for a European solution and make a local decision, and she claimed the need to fight the causes of migration. Michael Brand (CDU) described the difficulties of fighting these causes and advocated the establishment of protection zones under UN control in the countries of origin.

"This discussion round illustrates a core of what democracy is and should be – an open, free and fair debate," said Prof. Dr. Claudia Wiesner. The discussion event was part of the “Debating Democracy in Europe” series of her Jean Monnet Chair. It was also one of the first events organised by the recently established Fulda Centre for Transnational Governance directed by Prof. Wiesner and linked to the Centre for Intercultural and European Studies (CINTEUS). The aim of the Centre of Governance is to promote the exchange between academia and practice via discussion events, lectures and workshops in which international guests and practitioners are involved. In addition, students are regularly given the opportunity to participate in Model United Nations simulations.

The event can be rewatched here (in German)

June 22, 2021

Under the direction of Prof. Dr Claudia Wiesner and Zhylien Kaja the Centre of Transnational Governance organized a European HomeParliament at Fulda University of Applied Sciences on June 22^nd 2021.

European HomeParliaments are an initiative of the NGO “Pulse of Europe”, an independent citizens’ initiative founded in Frankfurt am Main in 2016. “Pulse of Europe” aims at making the idea of European Citizenship visible and audible, and at strengthening the links between EU-politicians and ordinary citizens.

A Home Parliament is a private discussion group of 4 to 8 people with the slogan ‘‘Have a say in the big issues!‘‘. It is moderated by a host, who can either invite his/her friends  or have him/herself assigned to an interesting discussion group. It all takes place either online via Video-HomeParliament, WebEx, Zoom etc. or in a face-to-face meeting.

The European HomeParliament at Fulda University of Applied Sciences offered students the opportunity to discuss the following question: ‘‘Soll die EU in zukünftigen pandemischen Krisen entschiedener europäische Interessen vertreten? / Should the EU represent European interests more decisively in future pandemic crises?‘‘ in a setting that incorporates parliamentary time frames and rules. They were divided into three discussion groups of 4 to 8 students and had about 2 hours to discuss three proposals on an issue of EU politics such as: the vaccine production in the future, the question of vaccine export, and unrestricted travel within the European Union after vaccination.

The results of the discussions are uploaded to the European Home Parliament’s platform (you can find it here), where the results of all European house parliaments are collected. The results reach top EU politicians such as Ursula von der Leyen (the President of the European Commission); Othmar Karas (EVP); Manfred Weber (EVP); Pedro Marques (S&D); Helmut Scholz (GUE/NGL); Gabriele Bischoff (S&D) etc., who are looking forward to exchanging ideas with citizens, students etc. These politicians have agreed to take the findings into account in their deliberations and then give feedback in webinars, video statements or in writing as Ursula von der Leyen did. You can find the video here.

Pulse of Europe will also present the results of the European HomeParliaments at the Conference on the Future of Europe.