It's strange saying goodbye to not only Brussels but Europe as a whole; I felt a significant cultural adjustment as I returned to the U.S. Our group spent two weeks right next to the headquarters of the European Union, visiting government officials in the various agencies, as well as assisting bodies like NATO, and learning about their operations and current relations with the U.S. In our free time, we tried many frites (fries with mayonnaise that are very popular in Brussels), waffles (thrilled to report that on our last day we succeeded in finding a Belgian waffle that lived up to expectations), and chocolate (we chatted with a chocolatier who knew where Pittsburgh was because his family almost moved here!). We took day trips to Bruges and Ghent, went to Brussels Pride, took a weekend trip to Paris, and saw Olivia Rodrigo in Antwerp. We took many trains. We did not love the cost of living. We missed air conditioning. I missed using heat tools on my hair.
This was my first time in Europe. I've found that after returning, I've bolstered my ability to get comfortable with a new place faster than I've been able to when I've traveled in the past. I've gotten more comfortable doing things alone, as well as planning and making compromises when traveling with a group. I doubled my fluency in French (from knowing two words to four words) and got familiar with Belgian and European social conventions.
This course informed me about EU governance and the transatlantic relationship incredibly well. I am leaving with an understanding of how legislation moves through the EU and how the member states interact with each other and the supranational governing body. With the EU parliamentary elections quickly approaching when we were there (now just recently concluded), the officials with whom we spoke placed a heavy emphasis on democracy and election integrity. This experience was also invaluable in demonstrating to me the importance of the fight against Russia in Ukraine, as it was at the forefront of everyone's minds (as it is no longer in the U.S.). It was interesting to see a different structure of government in such depth, which revealed strengths and weaknesses with our own American system. And it was strangely gratifying to hear how much EU officials were paying attention to U.S. politics, as their work is greatly affected by how our leaders approach the transatlantic relationship; their words made my local work in politics feel more valuable.
I intend to incorporate this knowledge into my studies at Pitt moving forward and in the research and professional opportunities I pursue moving forward. I was able to observe how the EU is innovating in many areas where the U.S. is lagging, such as data privacy protections and regulation of artificial intelligence, as well as what stressors have been placed on the transatlantic relationship in recent years. Because we met with so many different government officials in several agencies, I gained a much better understanding of what I could do after graduating from Pitt and made valuable professional connections. It taught me how to network more actively and effectively, as we were presented with so many opportunities to network. I intend to follow up on these connections as I search for opportunities to expand the interests this program fostered.
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