David Gay-Perret

>> Part 1 of this article

What Future?

Giving the Whole Thing Up: the Solution?

To deal with the challenges the European Project currently faces, the latest trend seems to be to give up (on the project as a whole or on some parts). I personally prefer fixing and adjusting over giving up in general, but I believe it’s not necessarily a bad way of solving problems IF done in a constructive way: you no longer feel connected to the vision? Give it up and pick another one. You feel the methods aren’t going anywhere? Drop them, go back to the vision and come up with new ones more in line with what you’re trying to achieve. In short know where the problem lies, know what you want to replace the broken elements with and be aware of both what will be gained AND lost by giving up in favor of something else.
However the current trend seems to be Read more »

>> Part 2 of this article

Introduction

I think the first time I truly reflected on the European Union was in the last year of high school, when our history & geography teacher asked us our opinion about it and how it impacted our everyday life. At the time I didn’t really know what it was and certainly didn’t see how it had anything to do with my life, and I said so. That got me the following comment from my teacher: “in tartiflette we trust” (tartiflette being a typical dish from the Savoy region, in the French Alps, where I was born and raised), which was the slogan the locals used to show their pride at being from the region. Of course that was her way of highlighting that my perspective was limited to where I lived and that I didn’t see bigger, but isn’t it true for everyone? Until you see something or its consequences for yourself, it doesn’t really exist in your world… And I still believe it was smarter to write down things as they were (i.e. that I didn’t really have an opinion on the EU since I felt like it didn’t do anything for or against me) than listing praise or critics about something I actually didn’t know.
However I gained new perspectives on Europe when I Read more »