We sit together, and we discuss about ourselves and we also present ourselves to the general public as we want the world to know about us. The Minority Market is a great possibility for cultural exchange, as we present our traditions and gastronomy. And from tomorrow on we will exchange ideas, as it is important that we fight for our rights with ideas. More...

The Federal Union of European Nationalities’ 63rd Annual Congress is ready to begin in Leeuwarden/Ljouwert, the Netherlands. The registration point is already set up in the hall of the WestCord WTC Hotel Leeuwarden, and delegates and guests have already started to arrive. More...

It’s official: the Minority SafePack is a successful European Citizens’ Initiative. National authorities in all 28 Member States of the European Union have verified the signed statements of support and validated a total number of 1,128,385 signatures. It is now also certified that the MSPI managed to reach the national threshold in 11 member states: Romania, Slovakia, Hungary, Bulgaria, Latvia, Spain, Denmark, Croatia, Slovenia, Lithuania and Italy. More...

Neither Malta, nor Italy were respecting the 1951 Refugee Convention in regards to the principle of non-refoulement. This principle applies wherever the “State exercises its authority, including beyond its borders, for example when intercepting ships on the high seas. All refugees are entitled to protection from refoulement – including those who have not been formally recognized as such.” (1951 Refugee Convention). More...

The Union of Students in Ireland (USI), represents 374,000 students across Ireland, and welcomed the high youth turnout on the referendum on the Eighth Amendment that took place the 25th of May. The Eight amendment in the Irish constitution equates the life of a fetus with the life of a pregnant person and can result in a 14-year jail sentence for someone who procures an abortion. This was repealed by 66.4% of people voting Yes to removing it from the constitution. More...

Download full response in pdf.

ESU welcomes the open consultation on the Amendment on Visa Code Regulation, and hereby calls on the European Commission to consider the following suggestions:

• Firstly, all groups of students should be informed of the decision on their application as soon as possible, within maximum 30 days.
• Secondly, equal conditions and accessibility for requesting a visa must be ensured worldwide.
• Thirdly, the raising of the age limit in regard to visa fee waivers

With a special regard to long-term visas:

• Firstly, visa and resident permits must be granted for the entire duration of the study programme.
• Secondly, students from third countries must be granted the right to work and study in the hosting country on the same level as domestic students.
• Thirdly, a solution must be found for those students, whose visa wasn’t approved before the beginning of the study programme. More...

There is a strange contradiction in the public debate when talking about the young generations. On the one hand, the future of the Finnish welfare state is the responsibility of the younger generations. More...

ESU is looking for a team player to fill the position of the Head of Secretariat at its headquarters in Brussels, Belgium. The Head of Secretariat will be responsible for maintaining financial matters, accounting and administration in order to meet internal and legal requirements. More...

During this month (July 2018), some Universities in Italy started disseminating a survey among students, asking for information and opinions about student loans. This survey was prepared by a private company and commissioned by the Ministry of Education, University and Research and the purpose is clear: the Ministry is considering the implementation of student loans. More...

We are opening a call for new applicants to the European Students’ Union’s (ESU) Pool Of Trainers. This is the pool of experts who can offer training in particular areas of interest to ESU’s member unions, which is promoted regularly to National Student Unions (NUSs) at ESU events and also via the Reassessment of Membership process. More...