On March 27th we partnered with the Ellison Center for Russian, East European, and Central Asian Studies, the W!SE, the Center for Global Studies, and the World Affairs Council to host the Pacific Northwest regional Euro Challenge competition.
Students from Inglemoor High School (Kenmore) and Ingraham High School (Seattle) went head to head to win a free trip to the national semi-finals in New York City. Working in teams of 3-5, the students from Inglemoor and Ingraham made presentations to a panel of judges, including Dr. Jurgen Salay the current EU Fellow at CES, in order to identify, explain, and recommend a policy or policies to address an economic challenge facing their specific Euro Area country.
Ingraham presented their research on inequality and social spending in Spain. The group described the complications in Spanish welfare programs, as well as the challenges presented by the many autonomous regions. Additionally they recommended a greater focus on job retraining programs in order to bring down Spanish unemployment.
Next, Inglemoor’s presentation focused on educational and renewable energy investment and innovation in Slovakia. They examined renewable energy as a new job sector, and how focusing on renewables could boost Slovakia’s competitiveness on the world stage. They coupled this with proposals for reforming Slovakia’s educational system to combat brain-drain and create more high skilled jobs.
After the presentations, the judges deliberated for hours, discussing the demonstrated knowledge of the problems, the research methodologies, the ability to think critically about the situation, and their use of appropriate sources. The score was extremely close, but Inglemoor’s presentation came out on top, securing them a spot in the national semi-finals!
Stay tuned to see more about Ingelmoor’s journey to the East Coast and to learn more about how you can participate in next year’s Euro Challenge! And congratulations to Priya Hendry, Andhisty Mahmud, Sophia McDaniel, Allyson Ellett, and Ishika Kaushik for moving on to the National Semi-Finals!