Course Level

intermediate - advanced / 3rd - 4th year

Course Language

English

Course Classification

This is a Themis course. It is also open to non-Themis students.

Course Type

online course in the summer term 2021, no classroom teaching

Contact Hours

2 hours per week Students will have to be online during the regular class hours. Please check the course hours through the link provided under the headline "Time Schedule and Course Venue" (below).

Course Organization

weekly preparatory meetings (2 hours each) in the first half of the semester

in the second half of the semester: simulation / online meetings of the European Council (2 hours per week)

For a more detailed schedule, please see the syllabus in the electronic course catalogue on the website http://www.fu-berlin.de/vv (links "Fachbereiche" - "Rechtswissenschaft" - "Staatsexamensstudiengang" and "Rechtswissenschaft (SPO 2015)").

ECTS-credits

5 (if course has been attended regularly and exam has been passed)

Frequency

This course will be held with changing topics in every other semester, rather in the summer term than in the winter term.

Time Schedule and Course Venue

An up-to-date electronic course catalogue will be available on the website http://www.fu-berlin.de/vv from late August to late February for the winter semester and from late February to mid August for the summer semester. Please select "Fachbereiche" - "Rechtswissenschaft" - "Staatsexamensstudiengang" and "Rechtswissenschaft (SPO 2015)" in order to find out course hours and rooms.

Course Description

Shortly before taking office as President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen proposed to set up a Conference on the Future of Europe to be launched in May 2020. Her idea was endorsed by the European Parliament and the European Council. According to the Position of the European Council adopted on 24 June 2020, the topics of the Conference on the Future of Europe shall encompass sustainability, societal challenges, innovation, competiveness and digital transformation, fundamental values, rights and freedoms, as well as Europe’s role in the world. The official launch of the Conference, however, was delayed by the COVID-19 Pandemic so far.

We invite you to represent one of the Member States of the European Union, the President of the European Council or the President of the Commission and take part in online meetings of the  European Council to deal with these and other questions relating to the future of the European Union. We especially invite European students to represent their home countries since we envision this meeting to be much more than "just" a simulation.

Topics

 I. The European Union: Identity and Values (no topic to be chosen for a presentation)

1. Fundamental Rights and Freedoms and the Rule of Law

2. The EU Strategic Agenda 2020-24

II. The European Union as an Economic and Monetary Union (no topic to be chosen for a presentation)

1. Schengen

2. The Euro Zone

3. Trade

III. The Common European Asylum System

IV. The European Union and Migration

V. The European Union Action on Sustainability (no topic to be chosen for a presentation)

1. The 2030 Agenda on Sustainable Development and the EU

2. The European Green Deal

VI. The European Union in the World (no topic to be chosen for a presentation)

1. Enlargement

2. Neighborhood Policy

3. International Organizations

For a more detailed schedule with submission dates, please see the syllabus in the electronic course catalogue on the website http://www.fu-berlin.de/vv (links "Fachbereiche" - "Rechtswissenschaft" - "Staatsexamensstudiengang" and "Rechtswissenschaft (SPO 2015)").

Literature

For your preparation, we will provide for a comprehensive Background Guide with information on the European Union as well as negotiation techniques and the Rules of Procedure.

Restricted Enrollment

yes (that means that the number of participants is limited and that you might not get a place in this course)

Course Application

Due to large student interest, an application procedure is carried out for this course. Students from all faculties may apply for participation. Applications are to be sent via email by 6 April 2021 to Peggy Wittke (contact details below).

Your application should include:

• Personal details (name, phone, e-mail, study program, enrollment no.)
• Short letter of motivation
• 3 role preferences (EU members, European Council President, or EC President)
• 2 topic choices

Members of the European Council: Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden; as well as the President of the European Council and the President of the European Commission.

Course Registration

It is not possible to sign up for this course via Campus Management. Once admitted, the course instructor is going to enroll you in Campus Management for this course.

De-Registration from this Course

via e-mail to the course instructor (contact details see below) and to the International Office at the Law Department

regular drop deadline:  30 April 2021

After the regular drop period you can only drop this course with a valid cause until 14 days prior to the exam. Please contact the International Office at the Law Department if you have to use this option.

Type of Exam

Participants are expected to research their respective country’s position independently and take over the presentation of a topic listed below by preparing a 6-8 page summary on the subject and present it to the class (up to 2 presenters per topic = team work). Delegations are also asked to prepare a two-page Position Paper. Each Delegation will consist of 1-2 persons.

Exam Period

Continuous assessment throughout the whole course

Registration for the Exam

Students will automatically be registered for the exam when they sign up for this course.

De-Registration from the Exam

Students who drop this course are automatically de-registered from the exam. Students who do not officially drop this course and do not take the exams, are going to finish this course with a non-passing grade (0 points).

Grade Release

It is not possible to enter the grades for this module in Campus Management. Therefore, please ask the course instructor to give you a certificate of achievement (in colloquial German: "Schein") and submit this certificate to the International Office at the Law Department.

Alternatively, the course instructor may submit your grade by e-mail to the International Office of the Law Department. This e-mail must be sent from an institutional account (e.g., the university account, not a commercial account such as gmail or gmx).

Contact

Peggy Wittke
Model United Nations / Model European Union
Freie Universität Berlin
Boltzmannstr. 3
14195 Berlin

Phone: +49 030 838 547 05
Email: peg@zedat.fu-berlin.de
Homepage: www.fu-berlin.de/mun