{"id":45650,"date":"2024-01-26T08:54:34","date_gmt":"2024-01-26T07:54:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/test.steinmuehle.de\/blog\/2024\/01\/26\/dr-jan-marco-mueller-from-cappel-to-the-eu-in-brussels\/"},"modified":"2026-06-18T17:37:42","modified_gmt":"2026-06-18T15:37:42","slug":"dr-jan-marco-mueller-from-cappel-to-the-eu-in-brussels","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/steinmuehle.de\/en\/blog\/2024\/01\/26\/dr-jan-marco-mueller-from-cappel-to-the-eu-in-brussels\/","title":{"rendered":"Dr. Jan-Marco M\u00fcller: From Cappel to the EU in Brussels"},"content":{"rendered":"

Much more complex than expected, and important not only as a peace alliance<\/strong><\/p>\n

People often make jokes about the EU and the work of those based in Brussels, sometimes questioning the efficiency of their efforts and the entire institution itself. Yet very few people seem to know exactly which bodies make up the EU, what their responsibilities are, and, above all, what would happen if the EU suddenly ceased to exist. Dr. Jan-Marco M\u00fcller spoke to the 11th-grade class about all of this last Thursday. The fact that the EU official\u2019s presentation took place on a morning when weather-related remote learning was in effect did not diminish the students\u2019 interest in the slightest. The event was facilitated by Steinm\u00fchlen teacher Dr. Claudia R\u00f6der. <\/p>\n

An introductory quiz quickly made it clear just how complex knowledge about the EU can be: \u201cIreland, Iceland, Switzerland\u2014which one is not part of the Schengen Area?\u201d That really made you think, just like the question, \u201cWhich one is not part of UEFA: Kazakhstan, Monaco, or Israel?\u201d The guest also wanted to know whose application for EU membership had been rejected in the past: Turkey, Morocco, or Bulgaria. He also raised the question of the difference between the following bodies: the Euro Council, the Council of Europe, the European Council, and the Council of the European Union. – By then, at the latest, most people had to admit defeat. <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

European Elections: A Gift of Democracy<\/strong><\/p>\n

The late Henry Kissinger had already recognized that Europe isn\u2019t all that simple: \u201cWho do I call if I want to call Europe?\u201d was the question he posed several years ago\u2014one that has often been quoted in political circles. With 27 member states, half a billion inhabitants, 24 official languages, and three alphabets, it was a question that couldn\u2019t be answered off the cuff. \u201cUnited in diversity\u201d is how the guest from Brussels described the situation for the member states, all of which share one very important advantage: they have enjoyed peace since 1945. <\/p>\n

There are also several other solid reasons why countries want to join the EU: the free movement of people and the free exchange of goods, the rule of law, mutual solidarity, and subsidiarity. The guest went on to explain other responsibilities within the administrative apparatus, which comprises 25,000 employees. But he also promoted the European elections on June 9, calling them \u201ca gift of democracy.\u201d <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

A “compromise machine”<\/strong><\/p>\n

“There are 232 parties running for election,” M\u00fcller said, “but unlike in other elections, there is no 5 percent threshold.” This means that, contrary to usual practice, votes cast for small or very small parties are not wasted. Under the umbrella of the European Parliament, parties with similar platforms would find common ground through cooperation. Otherwise, it would include the governments of 27 nations\u2014”a compromise machine.” <\/p>\n

The students\u2019 questions about the speaker\u2019s presentation came one after another. They ranged from whether and how the shift to the right in Europe was becoming apparent, to why Ukraine\u2019s accession to the EU was desirable, to questions about legislation for a climate-neutral continent. One 11th-grade student also wanted to know whether the EU was considering the creation of a European army. But there were also questions, like the one he asked, about how the speaker felt about Martin Sonneborn\u2019s satire. Armed with the diplomacy of an EU official, Dr. Jan-Marco M\u00fcller replied accordingly: \u201cYou have to have jokers like that in Parliament, and privately, it\u2019s actually quite nice. You can\u2019t really do much politics there\u2014we have to come up with solutions.\u201d <\/p>\n

Solutions are also the goal when it comes to all the world powers: “We have to make sure we have a voice on the world stage. It’s a long road ahead, but we’re well-positioned for it.” <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

“We need people with all kinds of backgrounds from all fields”<\/strong><\/p>\n

Dr. Jan-Marco M\u00fcller, who grew up in Cappel, studied geography in Marburg, worked in science management, and joined the EU through the scientific service, where he initially served as a scientific policy advisor. Currently, as a science diplomat, he is exploring how science can be used to improve diplomatic relations: \u201cScientists speak up when diplomats no longer do.\u201d M\u00fcller adds: \u201cI try to get politicians excited about science and convey the relevant facts.\u201d This involves, among other things\u2014though not exclusively\u2014climate change and the technology race with China. <\/p>\n

The speaker, who had an extremely interested audience, encouraged the students to consider pursuing a career in the EU: “We need people with all kinds of backgrounds, from all fields.”<\/p>\n

Principal Bj\u00f6rn Gemmer welcomed the speaker at the outset and took some time himself to follow the interesting presentation. There was likely no one in the lecture hall or watching on the screens who hadn\u2019t expanded their knowledge that morning. <\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a> \"\"<\/a> \"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Much more complex than expected, and important not only as a peace alliance People often make jokes about the EU and the work of those based in Brussels, sometimes questioning the efficiency of their efforts and the entire institution itself. Yet very few people seem to know exactly which bodies make up the EU, what […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":11,"featured_media":45667,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"give_campaign_id":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[95,85,93],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-45650","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-collaborations-partnerships","category-news","category-politics-business-responsibility"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/steinmuehle.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/45650","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/steinmuehle.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/steinmuehle.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/steinmuehle.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/11"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/steinmuehle.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=45650"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/steinmuehle.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/45650\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":49477,"href":"https:\/\/steinmuehle.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/45650\/revisions\/49477"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/steinmuehle.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/45667"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/steinmuehle.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=45650"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/steinmuehle.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=45650"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/steinmuehle.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=45650"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}