Looking Ahead

How do you want the EU to be in the future? This was the main topic discussed at the European Youth Event 2025. I found the initial framing somewhat misleading, as it overlooked several key dynamics shaping decision-making.

The issue lies in factors that are often not taken into consideration:

1. Challenges constantly change, and as a result, both solutions and the resources allocated risk becoming outdated;
2. The world evolves through unpredictable dynamics. Just think how unexpected events, such as the war in Ukraine, can abruptly shift the EU’s priorities in defense;
3. The decision of allocating resources to something means excluding something else, hence each decision should be evaluated in terms of opportunity cost.

These are simple truths, but the consequences of not taking them into account are tangible.

In conclusion, I would change the focus of the questions from "how the world should be" to "which decisions the EU should undertake to tackle upcoming challenges?"

I leave the event optimistic about the future of the European Union: those considerations aim to stress how the future is written now, by us, and we all have a say. The invitation is to use it.

Finally, I believe the following quote I came across in Frankfurt from the hockey legend Wayne Gretzky offers valuable advice for the EU:

"I skate to where the puck is going to be, not where it has been."