Last Friday, 8th of April, the Schuman Chamber, first historic hemicycle of the European Parliament, received a breath of fresh air. Indeed, a group of 130 teenagers and young adults were swarming the iconic hemicycle, creating a jam at the obligatory security check and proudly wearing a red badge with their name and function. This was not an ordinary group of tourists. No, those pupils may be the future of Europe. That may be the reason why the European Youth Parliament (EYP) was established in 1987 in Fontainebleau, Paris. EYP is an educational programme which brought together for this last session young people from over 16 countries. Actually, it defines itself as a “programme truly for young people, by young people” who are enthusiasts about what is happening in the EP and how they can be involved in it. On today’s agenda: the 3rd NSC (National Selection of Candidates) from Luxembourg.
TermCoord is always interested in any activity related to multicultural projects, as it always means the use of a language and terminology management in order to avoid misunderstandings and achieve common goals for Europe. That is the reason why we came along the EYP session to meet the participants, know more about their tasks and, what they think about terminology. TermCoord had the opportunity to talk with some of the participants, both guests and organizers.
Pitt Sietzen (on the left), Head-Organiser of this session, is an ambitious 18-year-old who defines the Youth Parliament days as an intense week of cultural exchange and responsibilities. He considers being part and contributing to the EYP as an extraordinary opportunity for those, like him, who want to see themselves in 5-10 years in the field of business or politics. And this must be true, as although he felt quite tired, he decided to be involved in this exciting event just “to give something back” after having attended, two years ago, his very first session in Thessaloniki. According to him, that event changed his life. Pitt joined the EYP because he loves negotiation and now, as a head-organizer, he wants to give other young people the same possibility to express themselves. We wish him as well as the other 129 attendees of the session a bright future as their path may eventually lead them to work for the actual European Parliament.
Commitment is a key value in politics, which also brought former European Commissioner for Justice, Fundamental Rights and Citizenship Viviane Reding to the EYP. It was her responsibility as a Luxembourgish and European politician that urged her to meet and greet the youth. As she stated to us, she sees not only great value in the EYP but also a necessity that the young Europeans are informed on important matters, problems and injustices of the 21st century. It is not a coincidence that the main topics discussed today comprehended terrorism and the refugee crisis. Not only will the young people get acquainted with sensitive topics but they also learn and practice the oratory art. For what is a politician without good rhetoric?
The art of effective or persuasive speaking goes hand in hand with the skill of choosing the right words in the right context. Whenever there is discourse, terminology takes a central place. As Pitt Sietzer said, “just defining the word ‘refugee’ could take a whole conference and a whole day”. So, as TermCoord Unit, we were wondering: how does the EYP deal with terminology? Lewin Schmitt, member of the jury in the event, told us that key terms (e.g. ‘xenophobia’) are checked by the board which consists of the president and vice-president. Terminology is taken from official EU publications. The interviewees did not know about IATE InterActive Terminology for Europe, but became immediately interested in our database as they understood that it can be of great value for the preparations of the coming sessions.
References:
European Youth Parliament. http://eyp.org/
Written by Amaury Neumann
Study Visitor
and Ana Bennasar
Terminology Trainee at TermCoord
Pictures by Amaury Neumann