IN GOOD HANDS

Rector Federica Mogherini

I have been aware of Federica Mogherini for some time now. She was a regular performer at the EU Commission's daily press conference when she was High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy and a Vice-President of the European Commission during the Juncker mandate.

I have never seen her lost for words and she was always on top of her brief. Significantly she was always open to questions and gave straight answers. A very impressive performer.

Neverthelesss I was very surprised to see her taking over from Jörg Monar as Rector of the College of Europe. Efforts to find a replacement for Monar were not initially successful; applicants apparently didn't come up to scratch. And then, out of nowhere Federica appears on the scene. From her remarks at last night's reunion of Irish alumni of the College, I take it she was head hunted.

I have seen her perform as Rector on a number of occasions recently and I have to say I am reassured that the College is in good hands.

At last night's reunion, her enthusiasm for the job was palpable and her competence is not in doubt. So, a bright future for the college seems in prospect.

Anna Sochańska - Ambassador of Poland to Ireland

The Zoom reunion also had the benefit of the presence of two ambassadors to Ireland.

Anna Sochańska is the Polish ambassador and an alumna (ancienne) of the College. She studied mainly at the Natolin campus in Warsaw during the troubled times at the beginning of the 1990s when Central and Eastern Europe and the former members of the Soviet Union were adjusting to post-Berlin-wall Europe.

She told us that she found the experience transformative and I can well believe that from my own experience in a much smaller College at the end of the 1960s.

Pierre-Emmanuel de Bauw
Ambassador of Belgium to Ireland

The second ambassador was the Belgian ambassador, Pierre-Emmanuel de Bauw, who, though not himself an alumnus of the College, was clearly engaged with the European project. His sister had been through the College and his father had worked at the Commission from the outset.

The Belgian embassy has a particular responsibilisty vis à vis the College given the latters location in Bruges. I've been to the embassy a few times in relation to the College starting with my discovery that the ambassador in the latter half of the noughties was Pol Carreweyn who had been with me in the College at the end of the 1960s.

Irene Fuentes McDonnell
Current student at the Natolin campus

We heard from a current Irish student at the Natolin campus who was very enthusiastic about it and who reassured prospective applicants that, even in this time of Covid, there were exciting times to be had on campus.

Cormac Little
Chair, Irish branch, College of Europe Alumni Association

Cormac Little, who has organised occasions like this in the past when they were physically possible, gave us some background on the Alumni Association and welcomed suggestions on how the Association might help people in the future.

We also had a contribution from the head of the Irish selection panel for the College (Prof Emeritus Dermot Keogh?) and, from the strict requirements he outlined, I don't know if I'd have passed muster myself. My selection was a lot more informal, though I can boast of having been interviewed at the time in three languages. I recently blogged my year here.

Noelle O'Connell
CEO Irish European Movement

Full marks to Noelle O'Connell who moderated the session and dealt with the Q&As at the end. I ventured a question on the following lines:

Is the student body composed exclusively of Europhiles? Are Eurosceptics weeded out during the selection process? Are there opposing views on the EU sincerely held among the student body?.Some of the marketing suggests that the College is a sort of minor seminary for going on to work in the European institutions.

The response from the Rector was more or less as expected: the College valued diversity and students had their own ideas on and criticism of the European project, but the College did have an obligation to contribute to the project and this is in its founding documents.

Fair enough, but I wonder if the odd Eurosceptic might make a worthwhile contribution by keeping others on their toes and, God forbid, by succumbing to the lure of the project in the longer run. There are no more enthusiastic proponents of a cause than converts to it.

I do accept, however, that this would be a high risk strategy and that such a selection would likely involve denying a place to a committed student.

Finally, congratulations to all for a very stimulating and successful event.