Pre-Departure Homework

HISTORY & STRUCTURE OF THE EU

• How the EU Works (Required) - written in 2012, but updated in 2020.  A good and concise introduction to decision-making and institutions of the EU.
   
• Guide for Americans- a bit out of date (revised to show 27 member states instead of 28, but includes an Ambassador's Message from a past Ambassador), but still a good additional primer written specifically for a U.S. audience.
   
• Animated short film from The Atlantic Selects series “Voting in the EU” - created in 2019 in run-up for the last European Parliament elections. Written by European Constitutional Law Professor Tom Eijsbouts and animated and directed by Anna Eijsbouts.  Curated by The Atlantic. 
   
• Europa: The History of the European Union

CURRENT ISSUES THE EU FACES AND TRANSATLANTIC RELATIONS

• Ten Issues to Watch in 2022 (Required) – an annual report produced by the European Parliament Research Services. You can download this report in other languages here.
   
• The European Union: Questions and Answers prepared by the Congressional Research Service as a primer for legislators seeking info about the EU and the Transatlantic Relationship. Updated February 8, 2022.
   
• Trade, Technology, and the Transatlantic Relationship [video] – a conversation with European Commission Executive Vice President Valdis Dombrovskis held at the University of Pittsburgh on September 30, 2021.

EUROPEAN GREEN DEAL

• Europe's Green Recovery [video] - a conversation with European Commission Executive Vice President Frans Timmermans held at the University of Pittsburgh on March 2, 2021.  (Strongly Recommended)

BREXIT

• "What Does the Brexit Deal Mean” by Matt Bevington, 20 Jan 2021 for the UK in a Changing Europe (Required) (Note: This website is excellent and has a rich variety of resources to explore beyond this one article.)
   
• “Update on Brexit” from February 4, 2021 at the University of Pitsburgh. Dr. Anand Menon, Director of UK in a Changing Europe, discusses the potential impacts of Brexit for Europe, the UK, and the transatlantic relationship (within the context of the COVID-19 pandemic).

UKRAINE

• “The Ukraine-EU Relationship” at the UK in a Changing Europe website. Joël Reland, 3 March 2022.  (Required)

RECENT CRISES IMPACTING THE EU

• Conversations on Europe: Creating Europe Through Crisis (Required). Part of the ESC's Conversations on Europe series, this session invited experts from the European Union Studies Association to explore how recent crises – financial, Brexit, migration, democratic backsliding, the pandemic – have shaped the EU over the past decade. From January 28, 2021.
   
• “Lessons and Learnings from a Decade of EU Crises – Introduction to Special Issue,” Journal of European Public Policy 27 (8), July 2020, pp. 1127-1136.

RESOURCES
The ESC at the University of Pittsburgh and the CES at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill have numerous resources for educators available on our websites, which you should explore freely.

• Video Resources on Europe at Pitt
• Lesson Plans and Syllabi (from past Brussels Study Tour participants)

• Teaching the EU Toolkits for Educators at CES @ UNC