To make the students familiar with the institutions of the European Union and its major policies. Although the EU institutions and policies influence our private and professional life to a substantial degree, generally the functioning of this organisation is not well understood. This leads to gross misunderstandings in the public perception about the roles of the Member States and the Community Institutions, particularly European Council, European Commission and European Parliament. It is obvious that university graduates whose professional life is dominated by international matters at the European or even global level should have a basic understanding and knowledge in this respect. The lecture course would provide such an introduction and provide the students with many access points for further useful information on the European Union and its present and future activities. The material will be presented using many practical examples demonstrating success stories as well as failures.
Plenty of time will be dedicated to discussions of current important issues.
The lecturer has been Director at the European Commission from 1997 till 2007 and can provide first hand knowledge andd experience.
1. The idea of Europe ¿ a historical sketch. 2. The historical evolution of the European Union from the Treaties of Rome (1959) till the Treaty of Lisbon (2009). 3. Institutions and Governance of the European Union and of the European Union. 4. The budget of the European Union. 5. Major policies, activity areas and future challenges of the European Union.
