My European Identity in a post-Brexit World
In light of some significant events, namely the UK’s triggering of Article 50, the 30th anniversary of the Erasmus programme and the 60th anniversary of the Rome Treaties, I could not resist writing an entire post dedicated to the EU and all that it has offered and, thanks to an Irish passport, continues to offer me.
Those of you who know me even slightly should be well aware that I am a huge Europhile. I love the European Union and I love Europe, in general. I love our shared history and also our differences, the huge array of languages spread over one of the smallest continents in the world, the stereotypes we have of each other and which we work to overcome by learning more about one another. Therefore, it goes without saying that Brexit continues to devastate me, although on a somewhat positive note, this is a truly interesting time to study European History, especially at the heart of the EU, in a country that seems so far removed from the Euroskeptism which has been prominent in the UK these past months.
Erasmus+ and the EU: 30 Years of Student Mobility and 60+ Years of Peace
One of the experiences which has perhaps most shaped who I am today is my participation in the Erasmus+ programme. I truly hope that an agreement can be made between the EU and the UK so that future generations, such as my brother and sisters, can get the same opportunity to live in another country, meet people from all over Europe and beyond, and experience a culture which is at once familiar but foreign to our own.
To briefly explain what Erasmus+ is about, the programme was set up in 1987 as a platform for student mobility between the EU member states. It has since grown to encompass several other countries across Europe and the world. Students and professionals have the opportunity to live and work/study in another country for a period of time, and get paid by the EU to do so! As part of my undergraduate Modern Languages studies, it was compulsory to spend at least 9 months in a French- or Spanish-speaking country. I was extremely lucky in this respect, as other programmes only offered it as an option and places are, understandably, 
highly competitive.
Luxembourg, on the other hand, has made it obligatory for all of its bachelor students to spend at least one semester abroad, thus enabling all of its students a truly international experience. In terms of my international Luxembourg experience, I’m currently helping out with the ESN Luxembourg organisation in an attempt to both relive my own Erasmus in Madrid and help build up the relatively new branch to offer students the full international experience in the Grand Duchy. For those of you who have not yet heard of ESN (Erasmus Student Network), it is a non-profit international student organisation which organises events for Erasmus and other international as well as local students. If you are still in uni, I fully recommend getting involved or looking into setting up your own branch if your uni doesn’t yet have one.
I should add that whilst there are other exchange programmes for non-EU students and professionals, such as the US Fullbright Programme or Brazil’s Science without Borders programme, and I’ve made friends through both, as well. However, Erasmus is closest to my heart because I lived it and I witnessed firsthand what an amazing opportunity it is. My parents and grandparents could never have dreamed of such a thing- to be paid to live in another European country for a period of time.
Luxembourg and my Future IN the EU
Indeed I’m not sure if I would be in Luxembourg today if it weren’t for my Erasmus in Spain, nor is it so likely that I would have dated and become close friends with non-Irish/Northern Irish people if it weren’t for my time abroad. Erasmus trained me for life and allowed me to see that I can survive, and even thrive, on my own outside of my home country! 
Now, especially in light of Brexit, as both an Irish and British migrant living in Luxembourg, I plan to stay and one day make my life, hopefully working for the European institutions, in my new country, and I’m so thankful for my EU citizenship which has made this so much easier to do. I’ve had the chance to work in France and study in Spain and I now look forward to completing my studies in European History, which seems more important and interesting than ever before, and I’m even participating in the University of Florence’s “28 Ideas from the Erasmus Generation” conference as part of the 30th anniversary of Erasmus+ with a fellow student from the University of Luxembourg. My boyfriend is Luxembourgish and some of my closest friends are French, Spanish, Polish, German, Romanian… These are all things which have been made possible, or at least more achievable, by my being a part of the larger European integration project, and are things I will never take for granted, especially now that Article 50 threatens to tear such luxuries away from the British people.
Finally, to appease the critics who claim that the EU is far from perfect. I do not disagree with you, it does have its flaws. But there aren’t many international projects which have achieved six decades of peace across an entire continent- and which has immensely helped speed up the NI peace process- or offered as much to its citizens as the EU has. Similarly, going on Erasmus isn’t perfect. You will most likely have trouble with admin, get homesick at some point, start complaining about how different your new temporary home is, and you will sometimes fail miserably communicating in your new language, but it’s worth it. Just look at the experiences and friends and, dare I say it, life skills, you take away from living in another country, an unfamiliar world which seems so close but also so different to your home country- Europe is, after all, “United in diversity”.
And to all my fellow Brits out there and my friends back home in NI who voted ‘remain’ last summer, WE are European, and no piece of paper can take our identity away from us.
