European Union

European Union

Introduction

The European Union (EU) is a union of twenty-seven independent states based on the European Communities and founded to enhance political, economic and social co-operation (Nugent, 2006). Formerly known as European Community (EC) or European Economic Community (EEC). Since then, the union has developed into a huge single market with the euro as its common currency. What began as a purely economic union has evolved into an organization spanning all areas, from development aid to environmental policy. The EU actively promotes human rights and democracy and has the most ambitious emission reduction targets for fighting climate change in the world. Thanks to the abolition of border controls between EU countries, it is now possible for people to travel freely within most of the EU. It has also become much easier to live and work in another EU country. As a group we decided that its best for the European Union should no longer exist.

A single European currency is unfeasible as each country in the Union has a massively different economy. There is no one-size fit all approach to the whole of Europe. In order to help readers understand EU better is to explain them with Elizabeth Bomberg's theory. Bomberg explains three different themes. These themes are; a shared system of power that is characterized by increasing number of players and growing complexities, experiment in motion and an organization with expanding scope. Each year, the UO sends a team of outstanding undergraduates to the Model EU convention, a once-a-year simulation of a European Council Summit. It's a plum assignment for students associated with the UO's European studies program.

Discussion

At the 2012 Model EU, held at the University of Washington in February, two UO students negotiated on behalf of the Netherlands, and two others on behalf of Luxembourg. This year's themes: a new EU treaty prompted by the euro crisis and the reform of Europe's Common Agricultural Policy. UO senior Erin Altman, who played the role of Luxembourg's minister of agriculture, was one of ten students recognized for their superb negotiation skills. “The summit requires students to master details of complicated European policies,” said UO history professor Sheridon. The students submit position papers, “and then they get up and passionately defend the interests of their assigned country in front of a roomful of people they don't know. It's a tremendous learning experience.” Sheridan is a member of the core faculty for the UO's European studies program, an interdisciplinary curriculum designed to explore the complex dimensions of the United States' oldest and most significant global alliance. While China looms large on the international horizon, ties to Europe continue to be more important to the U.S. than relations with any other region, claims Parsons, director of the European studies program.

Parsons cites a few economic facts: The European Union's GDP is currently larger than that of the United States. (Artis, 2007). It's the world's largest export market, the world's second largest import market and the recipient of the vast majority of ...