ISSUE O TAKE OFF
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ESSAGE FROM
THE EDITORS
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T E A M
L I K E
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Words have profound power. The power to shape meaning, determine outcomes, create opportunities. In this editorial, our chosen words express a hope. The hope that our team’s vision will fulfil its simple aim. To inform, to entertain, to inspire you, the reader, through our media products which after the session might serve as a gentle reminder of a cherished EYP experience, an experience which informed you, entertained you, inspired you. In the next pages, you will find articles and infographics dedicated to each committee topic. Some food for thought before you take off to a session which is for you to make something out of. How will you use your words? Arriana & Jasper
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Table Of Content The Struggle towards development - Adelaide di maggio (PL) - pg. 4-5 Secession in europe - Caspar spillman (ch)) - pg. 6-7 Mission impossible - Claudia dalby (ie) - pg. 8-9 The arctic, the eu and energy
- liam mccourt (it) - pg. 10-11
from lab0ratory to dinner plate-antonio Gianfranco pittini (it-pg. 12-15 The ukrainian crisis
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- liam mccourt (it) - pg. 16-17
ITRE II
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STRUGGLE TOWARDS DEVELOPMENT
Imagine yourself playing a board game called “The European Entrepreneur.” In this game you have to open your own enterprise and the goal is to maximize the growth of the business and the quality of the provided services. Business plans ready? Go! The first step when opening an enterprise is acquiring the necessary funding. Thus, you decide to benefit from the financial assistance opportunities offered by the European Union (EU). You fill in an application and submit it with the aim of obtaining a grant. The EU usually dedicates a certain amount of money for each project. However, projects first have to pass through the responsible institutions in the Member State before 4
being handed to the European institution responsible and the process continues for two more stages, before the entrepreneur is able to receive the required funding. Oftentimes this means that the money will be significantly reduced along the way. What is more, half of these grants consist of funds which come from the central budget of the national government which is mainly made up of taxpayers’ money. Mrs. Bozena Kurek, an art teacher and owner of “Arte” atelier in Poland, shares with us her personal experience with the bureaucracy: “Receiving a grant for opening your own enterprise is not very hard and there are many programmes that offer you the possibility to obtain one. Nevertheless, writing an application is not simple. There
are designated words and phrases that you must use and you cannot replace them with others. There is a lot of paper work and the process is also very long, lasting up to nine months, during which you have to be unemployed. The amount of time and work required in obtaining a grant may be disproportional to the amount of money received.” Mrs. Kurek’s words highlight the struggles often faced by entrepreneurs caused by the bureaucracy. The Innovation Factor ‘Innovation’ is the key word in the allocation of EU grants. For a project to be approved it has to be innovative. In EU terms, this means that the project uses products that have been in the European market for no more than five years. Moreover, it is required that these products are from the EU, regardless of whether they are the most appropriate or efficient tools available for the business. “In practice, this means that we invest in highly developed European countries like Germany, because these innovative products very often come from there,” states Mr. Kulas who owns his own enterprise which specialises in IT services and provides support in writing applications for EU funds. During the evaluation of such applications, 30% of the rating is based on the innovation factor, whereas only the 10% is related to the financial analysis and the business plan. Mrs. Kurek notes that, “this permits the applicants to actually sell unrealistic tales to the European Commission.” She adds that, “the fact that it’s composed by civil servants who often have no practical knowledge about business and economics makes matters worse.”
you need to account for any given purchases and submit evidence to prove that you meet all points stated in the application. Following this period of scrutiny, you are finally able to start your work and hopefully you will be successful in stabilising the company after surviving at least a year in the European market. Nevertheless, as in every game there are certain conditions and rules that are to be respected. There are also enemies and other participants that will do everything that is in their power to complicate your work. In real-world terms, for many entrepreneurs and owners of small and medium-sized enterprises, this means having to meet the requirements of vast legal regulations coming from the EU on top of the national regulations where the enterprise is based in. Sometimes these legal regulations are unclear, inconsistent and contradictory which may result in cumbersome effects for the professionals' activity. Finally, bigger companies and corporations coming from more affluent European countries can provide quicker and cheaper services, which SMEs can’t compete with. These companies can easily dominate the market and get rid of the competition. These are the main problems that may prevent entrepreneurs from concentrating on their real goal of developing their enterprises and provide better service for their clients.
“The EU has technically given us more freedom, but practically gives a better chance to the bureaucracy to tackle us. They have the possibility to interpret the law in their ways and will require a confirmation of every activity we do, which means that we will care more about providing the required documents, instead of focusing on our growth After obtaining the funds that will allow you and the quality of our services,” comments to make a full start in the market, you need Mr Kulas. to pass an evaluation period, during which 5
Written by: Adelaide Di Maggio
AFCO
Secession in Eu
Seceding Movements In the EU Parties demanding secession
In Europe (Incl. EU)
Over 75
Over 100
Prospective secessions
Over 30
Over 45
De facto states
Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus
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Military Organisations
10
Over 20
Governments in Exile
None
Azerbaijan (NagornoKarabakh Republic)
Countries with secession movements
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22
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urope
Secession Justified?
Self-Determination
Protecting Legitimate Expectations
Economic Freedoms
Minimizing Strategic Bargaining
Will of Majority
Soft Paternalism
Freedom of Association
Threat of Anarchy
Self-Defense
Preventing Wrongful Taking
Preservation of Culture and Language Human scale political entities 7
Distributive Justice Self-Defense
Made by: Caspar Spillman
CULT
“So you’re telling me I h before I get experience ?
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have to get experience ?” In theory, the European Youth Guarantee seems like a fantastic idea. It’s amazing to think that, just four months after I leave University, the European Union (EU) will ensure that I am either employed or on a productive path towards potential employment in an internship or apprenticeship. However, results have shown that perhaps it was a bit too ambitious of a plan. It seems like the EU overestimated itself, and is not yet progressive enough to make this expensive yet vital scheme into a reality.
as a key side effect of the Euro Crisis and hence miscalculated its response.
At this point, youth unemployment feels like it has been around forever. I could have never imagined how long it would take to find a student job in Ireland. For me, the hunt begun two years ago and at the age of 18 I have yet to find part-time employment. I’ve seen it all; job search websites, notices in windows, group interviews and of course, rejection calls and emails. It seems daunting to consider that getting a job while at University is so incredibly hard. What will my chances be of getting a graduate job in today’s competitive labour market?
We live in the age of information where the future is becoming less and less secure with the labour market landscape changing dramatically. With rapid, growing research and development into better, more efficient and more intelligent technologies, the demands for labour are changing and young Europeans need the right tools in order to be able to meet these demands. This accelerating problem is a new one, but plans and solutions must be adapted to accommodate it. Giving the youth of Europe, the preparation they need to respond to these technological challenges is no longer optional, it’s imperative for the future of Europe.
The problem with the European Youth Guarantee is manifold. Firstly, incorrectly allocated funds and secondly, not nearly enough funding. The EU allocated €6 million of the budget for the European Youth Guarantee, yet research shows that triple or even quadruple that amount would be required to properly and efficiently carry out the programme. It can be said that EU underestimated the severity and long9 term persistence of youth unemployment
It is necessary for the European leaders to invest more time and resources in resolving the plague of youth unemployment since its effects will be even more profound in the years to come. If a man can fish he can feed his whole family; in the same way, if the youth are given the opportunity to learn how to solve problems, it will benefit Europe immensely in the long run.
Obviously, the EU has its hands full. There are a lot of problems which take priority. However, unless the obstacle of youth unemployment is overcome, the longterm effects will be extensive. We need the brightest, most able people for the job, and these people are smothered by unemployment. They need help getting out. Written by: Claudia Dalby
ITRE I
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Made by: Liam Mccourt
ENVI
GMO From the laboratory to your dinner plate
W
hat is a genetically modified organism (GMO)?
A GMO is an organism whose genetic material has been altered using genetic engineering in order to be used in a variety of fields such as research, medicine, food and agriculture. The construction of a GMO is certainly complex, since it involves the mutation, insertion or deletion of genes to alter the DNA of an organism. This now means that scientists can modify almost every all organisms. Why are genetic modifications made? The first GMOs were used to improve the resistance of plants against bacteria and viruses, in order to improve productivity and reduce the use of pesticides. GMOs were then used in to create fortified foods to aid in deficiencies in people’s diet. One key example was golden rice which was grown and consumed in areas where people suffered from shortages of vitamin A. The introduction of GMOs in the people’s diet has been a source of grave concern and controversy due to the numerous problems which have surfaced with regards to health, the economy, and their use in food production. The American Academy of Environmental Medicine (AAEM) 12
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stated that “Several animal studies indicate serious health risks associated with genetically modified (GM) food.” This includes infertility, problems of the immune system, accelerated aging, faulty insulin regulation and changes in major organs and the gastrointestinal system. What is the European Union’s position on the production and consumption of GMOs? The EU has the most stringent GMO regulation in the world, with the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) being responsible to control the use of GMOs. Its main aim is to safeguard of human and animal health and for the environment safety. Member States retain the right to cultivate GMOs on their land. However, should decide to cultivate GMOs it is required to consult with the EFSA which then draft proposals about the production of GMOs to be sent to the European Commission which is the body responsible for granting authorisation for the growth of GMOs. If the decision is positive, the Member State can cultivate GMOs for ten years. The European Commission grants authorisation based on “environmental or agricultural policy objectives, town and country planning, land use, socio-economic impacts, avoidance of GMO presence in other products, or public policy, to name a few”.
“MON 810 maize.” Since 2013 it has been cultivated in five Member States including Spain, Portugal, Czech Republic, Romania and Slovakia. The cultivation spanned on almost 150,000 hectares with 137, 000 hectares being in Spain. These figures merely represent 1.56% of the 9.6 million hectares of maize cultivated in the EU and 0.26% of the 57.4 million hectares of GM maize cultivated worldwide. A number of questions arise with regards to the production and consumption of the risky GMOs and the EU is called to answer. Can GMOs continue to be used given the associated health risks? Are GMOs the result of an economic policy that doesn’t care about human health? Is the cultivation of GMO’s cheaper than natural growing processes? Dear delegates, what is your stance on GMOs? Tell us what you think!
One of the most prominent examples of GMO production in the EU is
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Written by: Gianfranco Pittini
AFET
The Ukrainian Crisis
The Ukrainian Parliament votes to depose Viktor Yanukovich as President; Clashes break out with the Ukranian army as rebels start seizing governtment buildings; Ukrainian forces free Slavyansk, rebels fall back almost 100 miles after a hasty retreat; A 12-point ceasefire accord is signed in Minsk by Ukrainian, Russian and rebel envoys; Rocket attacks on Mariupol kill over 30 civilians, the Minsk ceasefire is all but over; The Russian federation
2014 February 22nd
March 18th
April 12th May 26th
July 5th August 26th
September 5th
2015 January 21st January 23rd February 11th
Russia officially incorporates Crimea where 95%of the population had voted in favour of the annexation; Petro Poroshenko is elected as the new President of Ukraine; 300 Ukrainian soldiers are massacred by Russian and rebel forces at Ilovaisk;
Ukrainian forces loose control of Donetsk airport; Vladimir Putin, Petro Poroshenko,Francois Hollande and Angela Merkel,aree on a new 13 point ceasefire; Ukraine
Russia is the 9th Russia has the 3rd Ukraine is the Ukraine has the largest 55th largest 40th largest largest military economy in the economy in the military budget budget in the world; world; in the world. world;
Made by: Liam Mccourt