EST working-group AMSTERDAM on the Refugee Crisis!

Join the EST in Amsterdam for a working group on the Refugee crisis: you will have the opportunity to debate routes to solutions with EST Ambassador Hester Mennes, and our guest lecturers: Previous mayor of Amsterdam and professor Job Cohen and Oxford professor Hein de Haas, specialized in migration policies. 

Over the last couple of months, one of the most prominent and complex issues in the context of European policymaking has been the refugee crisis. Given the many different perspectives and interests in the current crisis, the European Student Think Tank organizes an interdisciplinary working group on this topic!

 The aim of this literal think tank is to shed light on the different aspects of the crisis – legal, economic, political or sociocultural – and on the basis of these perspectives its members will explore possible routes to solutions. To do so, the members of the think tank will come together for six meetings, interact with guest lecturers and get in touch with refugees and other professionals linked to the current crisis. What is learnt from these interactions, besides critical examination of articles and so-called facts, will be cumulated to a final report on the current crisis and future routes. We are proud to present our first two guest lecturers:

Previous mayor of Amsterdam and professor Job Cohen. Professor Cohen currently chairs the oldest refugee foundation in the Netherlands, the Foundation for Student Refugees, AUF. Cohen will talk with us about the meaning of solidarity and tolerance in the context of the crisis.

Oxford professor Hein de Haas, specialized in migration policies. Professor De Haas has been senior researcher at Oxford since 2006 and previously co-directed Oxford’s International Migration Institute (IMI). De Haas will reflect with us on current and future migration policies on the European level.

The first 5 meetings will take place on the following dates in the evening (provisional times 19:30-22h)

• Thursday March 31
• Friday April 8
• Thursday April 14
• Thursday April 21
• Thursday April 28

Interested in becoming part of this interdisciplinary working group? Would you like to contribute your sharp thinking, your open mind and willingness to cooperate with fellow students to grasp this complex and multifaceted crisis? We are looking for you!

Expectations:

• Availability on the abovementioned dates.
• Previous knowledge on the crisis is not necessary, thorough preparation for the sessions is.
• A critical, open and cooperative attitude
• In the constitution of the think tank, a diverse composition is highly valued.

Application procedure:

Please send your CV and a short motivation for applying (max 250 words), to the ambassador to the Netherlands, Hester Mennes:

est.netherlands@gmail.com

Application deadline: March 18^th 2016, 5pm