Education | EUAP-M holds annual study trip to Europe

The European Union Academic Programme in Macao (EUAP-M) recently organized an annual study trip to Europe for a group of 20 university students and faculty members.
The trip, which was mostly attended by students from the University of Macau (UM), was an opportunity for students to learn about the culture of Belgium and Ireland and to acquaint themselves with the European Union’s main functions and institutions.
According to UM’s press release, the highlights of the trip included meetings in Brussels, one with a representative of the European Commission on the role, functions and legislative process of the EU, and the other with officials of the
European External Action Service on its role and functions as well as EU-China and EU-Macau relations.
In addition to a visit to the Macau Economic and Trade Office to the EU, the delegation also visited the “Parlamentarium” (the European Parliament’s visitors’ centre), where students were informed how decisions are made between the European Council and the European Parliament.
Students discussed the possible impact of Brexit on the EU, Ireland, and Sino-European relations with the professors of the Trinity College in Dublin, when they attended a master class on the EU-Ireland relations in the oldest university in Ireland. They also went to the College’s library, where the Book of Kells, a world-famous medieval manuscript, is housed.
Moreover the group took a trip to Ireland’s Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade and met with researchers from the Institute of International and European Affairs in Dublin.
The statement also mentioned that the students participated in a workshop at the Free University of Brussels titled “EU-China Research and Teaching Cooperation,” which was co-organized by the Institute for European Studies, ULB, and the Institute of European Studies of Macau (IEEM).
Established in 2012, the EUAP-M is a partnership between UM and IEEM, co-financed by the EU. It aims to help the general public in the region, particularly students at all levels, to understand more about the EU.