Twelve second-year students from our bachelor programmes have been on a study trip to New York. The reason was an annual four-day simulation of policy-making in the European Union with about 150 students from 20 European and American universities. Each edition has its own theme and is hosted by one of the participating institutions. This year’s simulation focused on the EU’s Artificial Intelligence Act and took place at SUNY Brockport in New York. Each student has an alter ego, such as Member of the European Parliament or (Prime) Minister of one of the EU Member States. The students from Twente represented the governments of Poland, Slovakia and Spain and MEPs from the Left, EPP and I&D. They prepared in the preceding weeks through a special series of class meetings and assignments, guided by lecturer Martin Rosema. The trip combined the simulation with a few days in New York City, where the students visited – amongst other things – Ellis Island immigration musem and the United Nations. They also had lunch with our former student Ariane Luessen, who now works there and shared her insights. The students returned home with a lot of valuable experiences, as well as an award. Our student Konstantin Wittke (on the left in the picture), who got the role of the Italian radical-right politician Annalisa Tardino, received an award for most valuable contribution in the European Parliament. Next year’s edition will focus on environmental policy and will take place in Antwerp.
