The events have taken different formats and have focused on different issues, including climate change, migration, trade and development as well as conflict and cooperation.
From peacekeeping to climate change
During the student events, a number of different topics have been explored. The common theme has been the EU’s global role, and particularly how and if the EU contributes to promoting global justice.
In Dublin, students discussed the EU’s role in peacekeeping and engaged in debates about gender. The student event in Oslo focused on the EU and equal partnerships for sustainable development. Researchers and civil society representatives debated whether it is in fact possible to create equal partnerships in a world where international institutions to a large degree favour Western actors. Panelists provided different perspectives on how partnerships for sustainable development could be established, from the view point of the EU itself, civil society actors and the business sector.
University of Tübingen organized a poster competition for students on climate justice and displayed the posters during the student event. The posters had been developed as a part of a seminar on climate justice and topics ranged from air flight taxation over food security to discussions of the effort sharing approach.
At the student event, Chukwumerije Okereke, Director of the Centre for Climate Change and Development in Nigeria and member of the IPCC, gave a keynote speech on how to ensure climate justice in international climate negotiations, focusing particularly on the role of the Global South. He pointed to procedural injustices in the international climate negotiations and urged European countries to keep their pledges to the Green Climate Fund. After the keynote, the focus shifted from the global to the local level. Actors from local politics and businesses in Tübingen discussed the opportunities and limitations of individual and local action for climate justice, local climate protection measures in Tübingen and the prospects of democratic climate politics in times of crisis.
Watch a video of the keynote speech (www.uni-tuebingen.de)
Due to the coronavirus, the student events in Bologna were hosted online. University of Bologna hosted two digital lectures: Ferruccio Pastore, Director of the Forum of International and European Research on Immigration held a lecture migration politics in times of pandemic and lockdown; Silvia D'Amato, Max Weber Fellow at the European University Institute, gave a lecture on terrorism and migration. The lectures were recorded and are available on the event website. In addition to the lectures, University of Bologna organised a student essay competition, where students were presented with two justice dilemmas: one on the EU's cooperation with the Libyan Coast Guard to fight human smuggling, and one on EU funding to countries of origin of displaced and refugees. The winning projects are presented here.
About GLOBUS student days
The GLOBUS student days is a series of events that will take place at five of the GLOBUS partner universities throughout 2019 and 2020. The events will bring up questions about the EU's global role in the fields migration, climate change, trade and development, cooperation and conflict, and gender issues.
Upcoming events as well as event summaries will be posted on the event website.
