This week is a particularly busy one for the Representation. I was delighted to welcome representatives from Ireland's Europe Direct and European Documentation Centres to Europe House this week for their annual coordination meeting. It was great to see such commitment and enthusiasm! Tomorrow we will host an even bigger event - the annual Model Council of the EU debate. Teams from 27 schools from around Ireland will travel to Dublin Castle where they will each play the role of an EU Member State in a debate on “Reforming the EU for Future Enlargement”. Minister of State for European Affairs Peter Burke T.D., will give the opening address and Barry Andrews MEP will deliver the closing speech. We are also delighted to welcome back Martina Fitzgerald as chair, as well as our judges Noelle O’Connell, CEO of European Movement Ireland, Mary McCaughey, Head of Information and Communication, Eurofound and Petar Natsev, Council of the EU. I would like to wish all of the schools taking part the very best of luck and lots of fun!

President Ursula von der Leyen travelled to Kyiv last weekend for the second anniversary of the start of Russia's invasion of Ukraine. During her visit, the President paid tribute to Ukraine’s resistance which stands as a beacon of hope for freedom-loving people everywhere. She recalled Europe’s steadfast commitment to support Ukraine and said that Europe would "stand firmly by Ukraine, financially, economically, militarily and most of all morally, until your country is finally free". The President also announced that a new Defence Innovation Office would open to intensify and improve security cooperation between the EU and Ukraine. She also handed over 50 cars provided by the EU to Ukrainian national authorities. The cars will support the investigation and prosecution of war crimes in de-occupied territories and adjacent areas.

The European Commission has welcomed the adoption by the Council of the EU last Friday of a 13th package of sanctions against Russia. The new package targets primarily the military and defence sectors and associated individuals, including those involved in DPRK armament supply to Russia, as well as members of the judiciary, local politicians and people responsible for the illegal deportation and military re-education of Ukrainian children. Altogether, EU restrictive measures in respect of actions undermining or threatening the territorial integrity, sovereignty and independence of Ukraine now apply to over 2,000 individuals and entities.

In an address to the European Parliament plenary this week, President von der Leyen said it was time for Europe to step up to defend its interests and values: "The simple truth is: We do not have the luxury of comfort. We do not have the control over elections or decisions in other parts of the world. And we simply do not have the time to skirt around the issue. With or without the support of our partners, we cannot let Russia win. And the cost of insecurity – the cost of a Russian victory – is far greater than any saving we could make now. This is why it is time for Europe to step up".

The European Commission this week proposed an encompassing strategy to move towards EU industrial leadership in advanced materials, a key enabling technology highly relevant for the twin green and digital transition. Advanced materials are engineered materials with innovative properties and functionalities. They are key for European competitiveness and the green and digital transitions. The demand for advanced materials is expected to significantly increase in the coming years, for instance for the production of renewable energy, batteries, zero-emission buildings, semiconductors, medicines and medical devices, satellites, space launchers or planes.

The European Commission has published its assessment of the draft updated National Energy and Climate Plans of Ireland, Belgium and Latvia, which contain recommendations to assist the countries in raising their ambitions in line with EU targets for 2030. The updated NECPs set out each EU country's roadmap to collectively meet the EU's legally binding target of 55% net greenhouse gas emission reductions by 2030, and the corresponding energy and climate objectives, as revised in the different aspects of the so-called ‘Fit for 55’ package.

A new European Citizens' Panel kicked off in Brussels last weekend. 150 randomly selected citizens from all 27 Member States discussed the benefits and challenges of increasing energy efficiency, and how households, businesses, and communities should act. The panel was complemented by a new Citizens' Engagement Platform, an easily accessible online platform that enables all EU citizens to join the debate and take a seat at the table.

Around 65 million people in the Horn of Africa are estimated to be in immediate need of humanitarian assistance. The EU has announced an initial allocation of €171 million in humanitarian aid to the region for 2024 in addition to €72 million already announced for Sudan. This brings the total initial allocation for humanitarian aid to the Greater Horn of Africa to €243 million for 2024. The main priorities for EU funding are: addressing the acute food and nutrition crisis in the region, improving access to basic services, providing education and protection to children in humanitarian crises, and setting up systems to help anticipate the impact of disasters through contingency planning and early action.

Ireland at only 6.3% had the lowest share of energy from renewable sources in heating and cooling in the EU in 2022, up from 4.3% in 2010. On average across the EU, the share of energy from renewables in heating and cooling continued stood at 24.8% in 2022, up from 17% in 2010. Sweden at 69.3% was in top place. Energy for heating and cooling accounts for around half of the EU’s total gross final energy consumption.

The annual Model Council of the EU debate, a simulation of a meeting of the Council of the European Union, takes place in Dublin Castle on Friday 1 March. Teams from 27 schools from across Ireland will gather in Dublin Castle for a debate on the theme “Reforming the EU for Future Enlargement”. Each of the 27 EU Member States will be represented by a team of 3 students from an Irish secondary school.

European Movement Ireland is hosting this event exploring the topic of Northern Ireland and EU Representation. The event will feature a number of high-level speakers including lecturers and youth activists and is organised as part of ‘EUAct 2’ – a project aimed at promoting youth engagement with EU affairs. The event will talk place in a panel format, with short speaker interventions before opening to audience interaction and Q&A. It will run from 1 to 3 pm at Carroll’s Building, Dundalk Institute of Technology.

On Monday, 4 March, European Commissioner Mairead McGuinness will help get National Tree Week off to a great start by planting 1,000 native trees in Kilternan, Co Dublin, with children from Kilternan Church of Ireland National School, ambassadors from a number of EU countries, and European Commission staff. This event is also part of the European Commission’s #3BillionTrees Pledge to plant at least 3 billion additional trees in the EU by 2030, and the EU’s new For Our Planet campaign which aims to encourage citizens and civil society to take action for our planet, including by planting trees.

Catherine Barnard, Professor of EU law and Employment Law and senior tutor and fellow of Trinity College, Cambridge, will address an IIEA online event on: “What Happens When Enforcement Doesn’t Happen: The Implications for the Individuals, for Other Employers and for The State.”

On Tuesday afternoon 5 March, Climate Action Commissioner Wopke Hoekstra will hold an online debate with European Climate Pact Ambassadors to explore how the Pact Community on the ground can shape the way forward for EU climate action. Dan Boyle, Pact Ambassador from Ireland, will be one of the 4 Climate Pact Ambassadors taking part. The debate, which starts at 2pm, will be live-streamed. The European Climate Pact is a movement of people united around a common cause, each taking steps in their worlds to build a more sustainable Europe for us all. Launched by the European Commission, the Pact is part of the European Green Deal and is helping the European Union to meet its goal to become climate-neutral by 2050.

The European Urban Initiative is hosting an online event on 11 March 2024, 1-3 pm, to inform about City-to-City Exchanges. A City-to-City Exchange is when one city facing a challenge in sustainable urban development teams up with another city from a different EU Member State that has expertise to help solve the problem. The European Urban Initiative provides financial support for the actual visits and assigns an expert moderator who can help in the planning and moderation of the visit.

The President of the European Court of Human Rights Siofra O’Leary will discuss what sort of challenges the Court is facing as it seeks to uphold democracy, the protection of human rights, and the rule of law across 46 States. Further, President O’Leary will address what challenges the Court’s judicial work poses for national systems and why, despite some legitimate criticism of the Convention system, we in Europe should not lose sight, at this critical point in history, of what that system was established to do: namely, to monitor compliance with the minimum standards necessary for a democratic society operating within the rule of law.

The European Commission has launched a €1 billion call for proposals under the Connecting Europe Facility (CEF) to support the deployment of alternative fuels supply infrastructure along the Trans-European Network of Transport (TEN-T). The call for proposals covers the roll-out of alternative fuels infrastructure for road, maritime, inland waterway and air transport.

The European Commission category of the 2024 National Student Media Awards is now open for submissions. The award will be given to the best article which covers EU affairs, and which was printed in a student publication in the year previous to the closing date of entries to the SMEDIAs 2024 as published on the Student Marketing Network website. The winner will receive a €1000 prize. Submissions close on 7 March 2024.