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果冻影院 finalist and European Institute Student Ambassador Elena Sofia discusses her background, academic interests and what Europe means to her.
Tell us a bit about yourself
I鈥檓 a third year student of Politics and International Relations here at 果冻影院. My interest in Europe comes from my identity: I鈥檓 an Italian raised in France, where I attended international schools and grew up in a multicultural environment. Though I identify as Italian, growing up between two European聽countries meant that I always felt a strong tie to European culture more generally and had an admiration for the way the European Union聽allowed my family and聽I to travel freely around the聽peninsula. My interest in聽European politics started when I saw the negative cultural impacts of the refugee crisis on my hometown, Ancona: I wanted to understand why the Italian system was struggling so severely with the influx of refugees and what the EU could have, or should have done to help. Today I鈥檓 more interested in climate politics of the EU - I aim to better understand how the EU can resolve converging levels of commitment to mitigation policies across the Member States to deliver on the EU Green Deal.聽
What does Europe mean to you?
Europe to me means having a safety net - I am a strong believer of strength in unity. I think that for European states it is particularly important that there is an aligned agenda in economic and security policy to ensure that the EU maintains its power in the face of a world with a changing power structure. I also see the European Union as an important regulatory actor - not only for the European states, but also as a template for other nations through聽the聽鈥淏russels Effect鈥�. Finally, Europe to me means home. Though the EU has a murky history regarding defining itself as a cultural union, there is undoubtedly a shared culture in聽continental Europe that I feel closer to聽than any other country.聽
What is your favourite ?
My favourite blog post from the 果冻影院 Europe Blog is Josh Jones鈥� on the role of apocalyptic聽politics聽in European extremist movements - both right and left wing. It provided me with a different angle of looking at extremist聽rhetoric, and the implications of framing聽climate change as apocalyptic was particularly interesting given that my generation (Gen Z) tends to rely on that narrative to push forward action. I strongly recommend it to anyone else who has an interest in understanding聽the forces behind extremist movements.聽