The College of Europe (french: Collège d'Europe) is a post-graduate institute of

European studies European studies is a field of study offered by many academic colleges and universities that focuses on current developments in European integration. Some programmes offer a social science or public administration curriculum focusing on develop ...

with its main campus in

Bruges Bruges ( , nl, Brugge ) is the capital and largest City status in Belgium, city of the Provinces of Belgium, province of West Flanders in the Flemish Region of Belgium, in the northwest of the country, and the sixth-largest city of the countr ...

Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to ...

and a second campus in

Warsaw Warsaw ( pl, Warszawa, ), officially the Capital City of Warsaw,, abbreviation: ''m.st. Warszawa'' is the capital and largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the River Vistula in east-central Poland, and its population is officiall ...

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populou ...

. The College of Europe in Bruges was founded in 1949 by leading historical European figures and founding fathers of the European Union, including

Salvador de Madariaga Salvador de Madariaga y Rojo (23 July 1886 – 14 December 1978) was a Spanish diplomat, writer, historian, and pacifist. He was nominated for the Nobel Prize in Literature, and the Nobel Peace Prize. He was awarded the Charlemagne Prize in ...

Winston Churchill Sir Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill (30 November 187424 January 1965) was a British statesman, soldier, and writer who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom twice, from 1940 to 1945 during the Second World War, and again from ...

, Paul-Henri Spaak and Alcide De Gasperi as one of the results of the 1948 Congress of Europe in

The Hague The Hague ( ; nl, Den Haag or ) is a city and municipality of the Netherlands, situated on the west coast facing the North Sea. The Hague is the country's administrative centre and its seat of government, and while the official capital o ...

to promote "a spirit of

solidarity ''Solidarity'' is an awareness of shared interests, objectives, standards, and sympathies creating a psychological sense of unity of groups or classes. It is based on class collaboration.''Merriam Webster'', http://www.merriam-webster.com/dicti ...

and mutual understanding between all the nations of

Western Europe Western Europe is the western region of Europe. The region's countries and territories vary depending on context. The concept of "the West" appeared in Europe in juxtaposition to "the East" and originally applied to the ancient Mediterranean ...

and to provide elite training to individuals who will uphold these values"Le rôle du Collège d'Europe

he role of the College of Europe He or HE may refer to: Language * He (pronoun), an English pronoun * He (kana), the romanization of the Japanese kana へ * He (letter), the fifth letter of many Semitic alphabets * He (Cyrillic), a letter of the Cyrillic script called ''He'' ...

''Journal de Bruges et de la Province'', 7 October 1950, Vol. 114, No. 78, p. 1 and "to train an elite of young executives for Europe". It has the status of '' Institution of Public Interest'', operating according to Belgian law. The second campus in Natolin (Warsaw), Poland opened in 1992. The College of Europe is historically linked to the establishment of the European Union and its predecessors, and to the creation of the European Movement International, of which the college is a supporting member. Federica Mogherini, former

High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy The High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy (HR/VP) is the chief co-ordinator and representative of the Common Foreign and Security Policy (CFSP) within the European Union (EU). The position is currently held ...

, was appointed as the Rector to start in September 2020; former President of the European Council Herman, Count Van Rompuy is chairman of the board. Each academic year is named after a patron and referred to as a promotion. The academic year is opened by a leading European politician. Alumni of the College of Europe include the former Prime Minister of Denmark

Helle Thorning-Schmidt Helle Thorning-Schmidt (; born 14 December 1966) is a Danish retired politician who served as the 26th Prime Minister of Denmark from 2011 to 2015, and Leader of the Social Democrats from 2005 to 2015. She is the first woman to have held each ...

, the former Prime Minister of Finland Alexander Stubb, the former British Deputy Prime Minister

Nick Clegg Sir Nicholas William Peter Clegg (born 7 January 1967) is a British media executive and former Deputy Prime Minister of the United Kingdom who has been president for global affairs at Meta Platforms since 2022, having previously been vicep ...

as well as the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Italy Enzo Moavero Milanesi. Many of its alumni go on to serve as diplomats and senior civil servants in European institutions. The College of Europe was the most represented alma mater (university attended) among senior EU civil servants, based on a sample compiled by Politico in 2021. ''

Politico ''Politico'' (stylized in all caps), known originally as ''The Politico'', is an American, German-owned political journalism newspaper company based in Arlington County, Virginia, that covers politics and policy in the United States and intern ...

'' even dedicated a section of their website to news related to the College of Europe.

History

Hague Congress initiative to create a College of Europe

The College of Europe was the world's first university institute of postgraduate studies and training in European affairs. It was founded in 1949 by leading European figures, such as Salvador de Madariaga, Winston Churchill, Paul-Henri Spaak and Alcide De Gasperi, in the wake of the Hague Congress of 1948, that led to the creation of the European Movement. At the Congress, the Spanish statesman Salvador de Madariaga strongly advocated for the creation of a College of Europe, where graduates from different European states could study together as a way to heal the wounds of the

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

. Although the cultural resolution adopted at the end of the Congress did not include explicit references to the establishment of a College of Europe and only advocated for the creation of a "European Cultural Centre and a European Institute for Childhood and Youth Questions", the idea of establishing a European University was put forward by Congress attendees immediately after the Congress. A group of

citizens led by the Reverend

Karel Verleye Father Karel Verleye, O.F.M. Cap., (17 April 1920 – 27 February 2002) co-founded the College of Europe in Bruges in 1949 with his good friend Hendrik Brugmans. He was a Capuchin friar for 64 years. In 1945 he became philosophy lector at the B ...

succeeded in attracting the college to Bruges. Professor Hendrik Brugmans, one of the intellectual leaders of the European Movement and the President of the Union of European Federalists, became its first Rector (1950–1972). John Bowie, Professor of Modern History at

Oxford University Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...

, was appointed Director of the first session held by the college, in 1949. Henri van Effenterre, who was a Professor of Ancient History at Caen University and Alphonse de Vreese, International Law professor at the University of Ghent, also contributed to that first session. The topic of that first session taught to the first promotion of the college (frequently called , for it is the only promotion not named after any prominent figure) was "Teaching history and the development of a European spirit in universities". In the decades that followed the establishment of the institution, students were hosted at the Navarre Hotel in the historic centre of Bruges until 1981. The College consolidated itself as an institution specialized in studies focused on the newly established European Communities (the college was founded in 1949, before the communities were established).

''Bruges speech'' by Margaret Thatcher

In 1988, British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher delivered a speech that became known as the '' Bruges speech'' at the College of Europe as part of the opening ceremony for that academic year. The Bruges speech is considered by observers as the cornerstone of the Eurosceptic movement that eventually led to Brexit. Thatcher laid down her vision for Europe, claiming that the European Community should remain an economic union, refusing the claims for a closer political integration made by Commission President

Jacques Delors Jacques Lucien Jean Delors (born 20 July 1925) is a French politician who served as the 8th President of the European Commission from 1985 to 1995. He served as Minister of Finance of France from 1981 to 1984. He was a Member of the European P ...

. Thatcher criticised the European project calling it "a European superstate exercising a new dominance from Brussels." The speech was perceived as not only an attack on European federalism but an attack on the European project, as such.

Post-Cold War history

After the fall of communism and changes in

Central and Eastern Europe Central and Eastern Europe is a term encompassing the countries in the Baltics, Central Europe, Eastern Europe and Southeast Europe (mostly the Balkans), usually meaning former communist states from the Eastern Bloc and Warsaw Pact in Europ ...

, the College of Europe campus at Natolin (Warsaw, Poland), was founded in 1992 with the support of the European Commission and the Polish government. According to former President of the European Commission Jacques Delors, "this College of Europe at Natolin is more than the symbol of Europe found once again, it is the hope represented in this beautiful historic place. The hope that exchanges can multiply for greater mutual understanding and fraternity". The establishment of a second campus in eastern has been frequently regarded as part of an effort aiming to train young students from eastern countries under the auspices of eastern enlargement. Since the establishment of that second campus in Poland, the college operates as "one College – two campuses," and what was once referred to as the "", is now known as the "". In 2012, the College of Europe became a supporting member of the European Movement International. The academic year 2018–2019 marked the first time in which a promotion was named after a College alumnus,

Manuel Marín Manuel Marín González (21 October 1949 – 4 December 2017) was a Spanish politician, former President of the Congress of Deputies of Spain. He was a long-time member of the European Commission, and acting president during the Santer Commiss ...

, Spanish Statesman, EU Commissioner and acting President of the Commission (known as the "father of the Erasmus Programme"), who had passed away early that year. In 2015, three years before the election of Marín as ''Patron'', former Finnish Prime Minister Alexander Stubb was the first College alumnus to be invited to be the ''Orateur'' at the opening ceremony of that academic year. Former Spanish Minister and Cabinet Spokesperson Íñigo Méndez de Vigo, 9th Baron of Claret, served as chairman of the board from 2009 to 2019; in 2019 former Prime Minister of Belgium and President of the European Council Herman, Count Van Rompuy was appointed the new chairman of the board. In May 2020 Federica Mogherini, former High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy and Vice-President of the European Commission, was appointed rector of the College, the first high ranking political figure from the European Commission to hold the post.

Campuses

Bruges campus

The Bruges campus is situated in the centre of Bruges since its establishment in 1949, which was appointed European Capital of Culture in 2002. Bruges is located in the

Flemish Region The Flemish Region ( nl, Vlaams Gewest, ),; german: Flämische Region usually simply referred to as Flanders ( nl, link=no, Vlaanderen ) ; german: link=no, Flandern is one of the three regions of Belgium—alongside the Walloon Region and ...

of Belgium, a Dutch-speaking area, although the college does not use Dutch as one of its working languages. The college has a system of residences in the centre of Bruges and not far from the Dijver, where the main administrative and academic building and the library are situated. None of the residences lodges more than 60 students so that each residence in fact has its own small multinational and multicultural environment. It consists of the following campus buildings:

Dijver

The

Paul Henri Spaak Paul-Henri Charles Spaak (; 25 January 1899 – 31 July 1972) was an influential Belgian Socialist politician, diplomat and statesman. Along with Robert Schuman, Alcide De Gasperi and Konrad Adenauer he was a leader in the formation of the i ...

Building (named after the Belgian socialist politician, and popularly known as Dijver) is the College's main administrative building on the Bruges campus. It hosts the college's main reception, some of its offices, classrooms and the library. It is located on the Dijver Canal. A white classic façade stands at the front of the main building (where the European, Belgian, Flemish and Brugeois flags hang together), while there is a garden in its back side. The garden is used by the students, who frequently spare their break time there due to its proximity to the library (which is connected to the main building by a corridor). Signed portraits of all the orateurs hang in the walls of the main corridor of the building. The library building was built in 1965. Princess

Beatrix of the Netherlands Beatrix (Beatrix Wilhelmina Armgard, ; born 31 January 1938) is a member of the Dutch royal house who reigned as Queen of the Netherlands from 1980 until her abdication in 2013. Beatrix is the eldest daughter of Queen Juliana and her husban ...

(later Queen Beatrix) laid the first stone of the library in a special commemorative event. Almost three decades after its completion, the library was reformed and enlarged (the works were completed in 1992). Most of the library funds are devoted to European Studies, together with law, economics, and political and administrative sciences. Access to the library is restricted to College students and academic staff. A bust of Salvador de Madariaga presides over the library main reading hall.

Verversdijk

Following the increase in the number of students attending the College each year, the College of Europe (with the support of different entities and institutions, including the Flemish Government and the City of Bruges) reformed the 17th century protected monument of Verversdijk to provide additional lecture theatres (auditoria), teaching rooms and offices for academics, research fellows and staff; and to extend its activities. The reform was led by the office of Xaveer De Geyter Architects (XDGA), and the project was nominated for the Mies van de Rohe award in 2009. The Verversdijk premises began to be used by College students in 2007. Besides its academic and administrative use throughout the course, a cocktail is served in its garden to each promotion, following their graduation ceremony at St. Walburga Church (Bruges). The historical site of Verversdijk owes its name to fact that the owners of the houses standing there at medieval times were dyers who used wool traded with Scotland, as the area was populated by several Englishmen during the Middle Ages. During the Spanish rule, it hosted the schooling houses and the monastery established by the

Jesuits , image = Ihs-logo.svg , image_size = 175px , caption = ChristogramOfficial seal of the Jesuits , abbreviation = SJ , nickname = Jesuits , formation = , founders = ...

in the 17th century. In 1792, the monastery auditorium was used as a meeting place by the Jacobin Club. The main monastery wing (dating back to 1701, and whose façade was plastered in 1865) was built along the canal, and was used as an athenaeum since 1851. its long inner corridor is an outstanding example of the

rococo Rococo (, also ), less commonly Roccoco or Late Baroque, is an exceptionally ornamental and theatrical style of architecture, art and decoration which combines asymmetry, scrolling curves, gilding, white and pastel colours, sculpted moulding, ...

style in

, whereas, the ashlar staircase is also an element of artistic relevance. The attic of the building, with a total length of 45 meters and a surprisingly well-preserved oak canopy, is currently used as a study room. During the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...

occupation of Belgium, the attic was used as a sleeping room for soldiers of the German Marine. The monastery wing was also home to the Museum of Modern Painting from 1898 to 1931 (when they were transferred to the newly established

Groeninge Museum The Groeningemuseum is a municipal museum in Bruges, Belgium, built on the site of the medieval Eekhout Abbey. It houses a collection of Flemish and Belgian painting covering six centuries, from Jan van Eyck to Marcel Broodthaers. The mus ...

). Since 2008, following and agreement between the College and the

, the college hosts the 'Extraordinary Groeninghe Art Collection', an installation of contemporary works of art featuring international artists at Verversdijk's hallways. Members of the Groeninghe Art Collection meet every two months at the College to discuss art, attend lectures by art experts and consider possible purchases. In March 2014, the so-called China Library was established at the Verversdijk compound. A project sponsored by the Information Office of the State Council of the Chinese Government, the library (decorated in Chinese style) is home to ten thousand books and documents in more than six languages, as frequently hosts events related with Sino-European relations or the Chinese culture. File:Verversdijk Campus - 2016.jpg, View of Verversdijk Campus File:PM 062043 B Brugge.jpg, Old entrance to the Verversdijk buildings File:Europacollege Verversdijk.jpg, New entrance to the Verversdijk buildings

Garenmarkt

The Hotel Portinari in Garenmarkt 15 with its classical façade was formerly home to Tommaso Portinari, the administrator of the Florentine "Loggia de Medici" in the 15th century in Bruges. It contains eleven apartments for professors and forty student rooms, two "salons" in 19th-century style, the "salon du Recteur" with 18th-century wall paintings and a modern "Mensa" for students. A room dedicated to Winston Churchill (who was among the voices calling for the establishment of the College during The Hague Congress in 1948 and was one of its founders the year after) was inaugurated by his grandson, Sir Nicholas Soames, and the British ambassador in 2017. Garenmarkt also hosts the canteen for all College students.

Biskajer

The residence is located in a home built in classicist style during the 19th century. The building is located in Biskajersplein, a small square named after the Spanish region of Biscay (the square is located on the side the dock where ships coming in from that region unloaded their merchandise in the 15th and 16th centuries). The actual residence is located on the lot occupied by the Mareminne house, which hosted the consulate of Biscay in the past, although the original building was demolished. Traces of the old consulate building can be found in the inner garden of the residence, which kept the shape of the consulate's horse stable. The residence hosts 53 students every year.

Gouden Hand

The Gouden Hand residence is housed in a Bruges-style building dating back to the 17th century. It is a listed monument. It was renovated during the 2005–2006 academic year. The name of the residence, directly translates from Dutch to "Golden Hand", after a Medieval legend about the canal bordering the residence. Gouden Hand is also the name of two streets along the same canal. The 15th century painter

Jan Van Eyck Jan van Eyck ( , ; – July 9, 1441) was a painter active in Bruges who was one of the early innovators of what became known as Early Netherlandish painting, and one of the most significant representatives of Early Northern Renaissance art. A ...

lived and owned a studio in the Gouden-Handstraat nr. 6, behind the current residence. The Gouden Hand student bar is situated in the cellar. The building has been a backdrop for many films and documentaries.

Natolin campus

The Natolin Warsaw campus of the college was established in 1992 responding to the revolutions of 1989 and ahead of Poland's accession negotiations with the EU. The Natolin Campus is located in a historic palace, part of a 120-hectare park and nature reserve—formerly the Royal hunting palace of Natolin—situated in the southern part of Warsaw about 20 minutes by metro from the city centre. The Natolin European Centre Foundation takes care of the complex and has conducted restoration of the former Potocki palace, making it available for the college. The old historical buildings, including the manor house, the stables and the coach house, were converted to the needs of modern times and new buildings were constructed in a style preserving the harmony of the palace and its outlying park. In 2022, the Natolin campus of the College of Europe hosted one of the four European citizens’ panels, organised as part of the EU’s

Conference on the Future of Europe The Conference on the Future of Europe was a proposal of the European Commission and the European Parliament, announced at the end of 2019, with the aim of looking at the medium to long term future of the EU and what reforms should be made to i ...

Student life

The College of Europe is bilingual. Students are expected to be proficient in English and French. Students receive an advanced master's degree following a one-year programme. Students specialise in either European

Political Politics (from , ) is the set of activities that are associated with making decisions in groups, or other forms of power relations among individuals, such as the distribution of resources or status. The branch of social science that studi ...

and Administrative Studies, EU

International Relations International relations (IR), sometimes referred to as international studies and international affairs, is the scientific study of interactions between sovereign states. In a broader sense, it concerns all activities between states—such ...

and

Diplomacy Diplomacy comprises spoken or written communication by representatives of states (such as leaders and diplomats) intended to influence events in the international system.Ronald Peter Barston, ''Modern diplomacy'', Pearson Education, 2006, p. ...

Studies,

European Law European Union law is a system of rules operating within the member states of the European Union (EU). Since the founding of the European Coal and Steel Community following World War II, the EU has developed the aim to "promote peace, its valu ...

, European Economic Studies, or European Interdisciplinary Studies (at the Natolin campus). For much of its history, the college only admitted a few students, the number has increased since the 1990s.

Admissions

Application may be made to national selection committees or by direct application to the College of Europe for individuals from a country where no selection committee exists. As of 2014, there are 28 national selection committees.

Traditions

The College of Europe has developed several traditions. Some are shared with the École nationale d'administration (ENA) in France. Both the College and ENA name their promotions after a historical figure, being in the College of Europe an outstanding European figure, which is called "patron". Besides the choice of a prominent historical figure to name each promotion, each academical year is traditionally inaugurated by a prominent European figure. Furthermore, each year, College of Europe students are named honorary citizens of Bruges prior to their departure. Another tradition dating back to the first years of existence of the college is the visit to Flanders fields during the first weeks of the academic year. During that visit, students lay a floral tribute at the

Menin Gate The Menin Gate ( nl, Menenpoort), officially the Menin Gate Memorial to the Missing, is a war memorial in Ypres, Belgium, dedicated to the British and Commonwealth soldiers who were killed in the Ypres Salient of World War I and whose graves ...

war memorial in

Ypres Ypres ( , ; nl, Ieper ; vls, Yper; german: Ypern ) is a Belgian city and municipality in the province of West Flanders. Though the Dutch name is the official one, the city's French name is most commonly used in English. The municipality ...

Promotions

Academic years at the College are known as ''promotions''. Each

promotion Promotion may refer to: Marketing * Promotion (marketing), one of the four marketing mix elements, comprising any type of marketing communication used to inform or persuade target audiences of the relative merits of a product, service, brand or i ...

is named after an outstanding European, referred to as the promotion's patron. The opening ceremony each year is presided over by a prominent politician, referred to as the ''Orateur''; they have included

Angela Merkel Angela Dorothea Merkel (; ; born 17 July 1954) is a German former politician and scientist who served as Chancellor of Germany from 2005 to 2021. A member of the Christian Democratic Union (CDU), she previously served as Leader of the Opp ...

David Miliband David Wright Miliband (born 15 July 1965) is the president and chief executive officer (CEO) of the International Rescue Committee and a former British Labour Party politician. He was the Foreign Secretary from 2007 to 2010 and the Member of ...

, Jean-Claude Juncker,

Javier Solana Francisco Javier Solana de Madariaga (; born 14 July 1942) is a Spanish physicist and PSOE politician. After serving in the Spanish government as Foreign Affairs Minister under Felipe González (1992–1995) and as the Secretary General of NA ...

José Manuel Barroso José Manuel Durão Barroso (; born 23 March 1956) is a Portuguese politician and university teacher, currently serving as non-executive chairman of Goldman Sachs International. He previously served as the 11th president of the European Commis ...

Valéry Giscard d'Estaing Valéry René Marie Georges Giscard d'Estaing (, , ; 2 February 19262 December 2020), also known as Giscard or VGE, was a French politician who served as President of France from 1974 to 1981. After serving as Minister of Finance under prime ...

Juan Carlos I of Spain Juan Carlos I (;, * ca, Joan Carles I, * gl, Xoán Carlos I, Juan Carlos Alfonso Víctor María de Borbón y Borbón-Dos Sicilias, born 5 January 1938) is a member of the Spanish royal family who reigned as King of Spain from 22 Novem ...

Margaret Thatcher Margaret Hilda Thatcher, Baroness Thatcher (; 13 October 19258 April 2013) was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1979 to 1990 and Leader of the Conservative Party from 1975 to 1990. She was the first female British prime ...

and

François Mitterrand François Marie Adrien Maurice Mitterrand (26 October 19168 January 1996) was President of France, serving under that position from 1981 to 1995, the longest time in office in the history of France. As First Secretary of the Socialist Party, he ...

. Being invited as the college's ''Orateur'' is considered a high honour.

Notable alumni

Many former students of the college, referred to as ''anciens'' (French for alumni), have gone on to serve as government ministers, members of various parliaments, diplomats and high-ranking civil servants and executives. File:Helle Thorning-Schmidt, Danmarks statsminister. Nordiska Radets session 2011 i Kopenhamn.jpg,

, Danish politician File:Nick Clegg (2011) (cropped).jpg,

, British business executive and politician File: Clément Beaune.jpg, Clément Beaune, French politician File:Brigid Laffan, Director of the RSCAS at the EUI (22294519322).jpg,

Brigid Laffan Brigid Laffan is an Irish political scientist and Emeritus professor at Robert Schuman Centre for Advanced Studies at the European University Institute. ''Politico Europe'' ranked her among women who shape Europe in November 2018. Education Laf ...

, Irish political scientist File:Valerie plame wilson 2014.jpg,

Valerie Plame Valerie Elise Plame (born August 13, 1963) is an American writer, spy novelist, and former Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) officer. As the subject of the 2003 Plame affair, also known as the CIA leak scandal, Plame's identity as a CIA officer ...

, American writer, spy novelist and former CIA officer File:2020-10-20 Marija Pejčinović Burić.jpg , Marija Pejčinović Burić, Croatian politician File:Stubb 4682.jpg , Alexander Stubb, Finnish politician A list of all alumni from 1949 to 1999 is included in the book ''The College of Europe. Fifty Years of Service to Europe'' (1999), edited by

Dieter Mahncke Dieter Mahncke (born 1941 in South-West Africa) is a scholar of foreign policy and security studies, and Alfried Krupp von Bohlen und Halbach Professor Emeritus of European Foreign Policy and Security Studies at the College of Europe. He is the ...

Léonce Bekemans Léonce Bekemans (born 20 September 1950 in Bruges) is a Belgian economist and scholar of European studies. Since 2002, he holds the Jean Monnet Chair in "Globalisation, Intercultural Dialogue and Inclusiveness in the EU" at the University of Padua. ...

and

Robert Picht Robert Picht (27 September 1937 in Berlin; 24 September 2008 in Hinterzarten) was a German academic. Biography Son of Professor Georg Picht and his wife Edith Axenfeld, Robert Picht studied sociology and Romance studies at the universities o ...

. Alumni of note of the College of Europe (from 1949) include * Gaetano Adinolfi, former Deputy

Secretary General of the Council of Europe The Secretary General of the Council of Europe (french: Secrétaire général du Conseil de l'Europe, links=no) is appointed by the Parliamentary Assembly on the recommendation of the Committee of Ministers for a period of five years. The secreta ...

* Alberto Alemanno, Professor of Law at

New York University School of Law New York University School of Law (NYU Law) is the law school of New York University, a private research university in New York City. Established in 1835, it is the oldest law school in New York City and the oldest surviving law school in ...

and

HEC Paris HEC Paris (french: École des hautes études commerciales de Paris) is a business school, and one of the most prestigious and selective grandes écoles, located in Jouy-en-Josas, France. HEC offers Master in Management, MSc International Fin ...

, CEO of eLabEurope * Frans Alphons Maria Alting von Geusau, Dutch legal scholar and diplomat * Bernadette Andreosso-O'Callaghan, French-Irish economist,

Jean Monnet Jean Omer Marie Gabriel Monnet (; 9 November 1888 – 16 March 1979) was a French civil servant, entrepreneur, diplomat, financier, administrator, and political visionary. An influential supporter of European unity, he is considered one of the ...

Professor of Economics at the University of Limerick * Peter Arbo, Norwegian academic *

Árni Páll Árnason Árni Páll Árnason (born 23 May 1966) is a member of thCollegeof the EFTA Surveillance Authority, responsible for Free movement of goods, Competition, Public undertakings and Monopolies, Energy, Environment, Transport, Public procurement. H ...

, Icelandic Minister of Economic Affairs. Promotion Mozart. * Ioanna Babassika, Greek human rights lawyer, member of the Committee for the Prevention of Torture *

María Angeles Benítez Salas María Angeles Benítez Salas is a Spanish lawyer and high-ranking official of the European Commission. She has served as Deputy Director-General of the Directorate-General for Agriculture and Rural Development from 2016 to 2021 and as acting Direct ...

, Spanish European civil servant, director-general of the Directorate-General for Agriculture and Rural Development *

Ledi Bianku Ledi Bianku (born 22 February 1971 in Shkodër, Albania) was a judge at the European Court of Human Rights, elected in respect of Albania on 1 February 2008. He received his law degree from the University of Tirana in 1993, and also studied concu ...

, judge at the

European Court of Human Rights The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR or ECtHR), also known as the Strasbourg Court, is an international court of the Council of Europe which interprets the European Convention on Human Rights. The court hears applications alleging that ...

Margunn Bjørnholt Margunn Bjørnholt (born 9 October 1958 in Bø, Telemark) is a Norwegian sociologist and economist. She is a research professor at the Norwegian Centre for Violence and Traumatic Stress Studies (NKVTS) and a professor of sociology at the Univers ...

, Norwegian sociologist *

Iwo Byczewski Iwo Byczewski (born 29 February 1948, in Poznań) is a Polish diplomat. He served as Deputy Foreign Minister (1991–1995), Ambassador to Belgium and Permanent Representative to the European Union. Life He is a law graduate from the Adam Mickie ...

, former Polish Deputy Foreign Minister (1991–1995), Ambassador to Belgium and Permanent Representative to the European Union * Geert Van Calster, Belgian lawyer and legal scholar *

Sofie Carsten Nielsen Sofie Carsten Nielsen (born 24 May 1975) is a Danish politician, who was formerly the leader of the Danish Social Liberal Party from October 2020 to November 2022. In the 2000s, Nielsen began her political career with the European Parliament as ...

, Danish Minister for Higher Education and Science. Promotion Aristotle * Franz Ceska, Austrian Ambassador to Belgium and France, Permanent Representative to the United Nations in Geneva * Poul Skytte Christoffersen, Danish Permanent Representative to the European Institutions, Special Advisor to The Right Honourable Catherine Ashton, Baroness Ashton of Upholland, the

, British politician, former

Deputy Prime Minister of the United Kingdom The deputy prime minister of the United Kingdom is a minister of the Crown and a member of the British Cabinet. The office is not always in use, and prime ministers may use other offices, such as First Secretary of State, to indicate the se ...

, leader of the Liberal Democrats and member of the

European Parliament The European Parliament (EP) is one of the Legislature, legislative bodies of the European Union and one of its seven Institutions of the European Union, institutions. Together with the Council of the European Union (known as the Council and in ...

* Luc Coene, Belgian economist and Governor of the

National Bank of Belgium The National Bank of Belgium (NBB; nl, Nationale Bank van België, french: Banque nationale de Belgique, german: Belgische Nationalbank) has been the central bank of Belgium since 1850. The National Bank of Belgium was established with 100% p ...

(NBB) *

Karl Cox Karl Cox is an American business executive. He is Vice President of the Oracle Corporation, responsible for Public Policy and Corporate Affairs for Europe, the Middle East and Africa. He is also the Chair of the Board of the American Chamber of ...

, Vice President of the

Oracle Corporation Oracle Corporation is an American multinational computer technology corporation headquartered in Austin, Texas. In 2020, Oracle was the third-largest software company in the world by revenue and market capitalization. The company sells da ...

* Martin Donnelly, British civil servant *

Niels Egelund Niels Egelund (born July 4, 1946) is a Danish diplomat. From 1999 to 2003, he served as Denmark's Permanent Representative to NATO and from 2009 to 2009 as Ambassador to France. He was appointed as Under-Secretary and Political Director at the M ...

, Danish diplomat, former Permanent Representative to NATO and Ambassador to France *

Jonathan Faull Sir Jonathan Michael Howard Faull KCMG (born 20 August 1954 in Chatham, Kent) is a former British official in the European Commission. Biography He joined the European Commission in 1978, becoming Director for Competition Policy at the Dire ...

, Director General for the Internal Market and Services *

Mary Finlay Geoghegan Mary Finlay Geoghegan (née Finlay; born 1949) is a retired Irish judge and lawyer. She was appointed to the High Court in 2002 and promoted to a newly established Court of Appeal from 2014. She became a Judge of the Supreme Court of Ireland fr ...

, Justice of the

Supreme Court of Ireland , image = Coat of arms of Ireland.svg , imagesize = 120px , alt = , caption = Coat of Arms of Ireland , image2 = Four Courts, Dublin 2014-09-13.jpg , imagesize2 = , alt2 ...

. * Nigel Forman, British MP and Minister of Higher Education (1992), a member of the

Conservative Party The Conservative Party is a name used by many political parties around the world. These political parties are generally right-wing though their exact ideologies can range from center-right to far-right. Political parties called The Conservative P ...

* Gabriel Fragnière, Swiss academic *

Louise Fréchette Louise Fréchette, OC (born July 16, 1946) is a Canadian diplomat and public servant who served for eight years as United Nations Deputy Secretary-General. She also served a three-year term at the Centre for International Governance Innovation, ...

, Deputy Secretary-General of the United Nations * Francesco Paolo Fulci, former Permanent Representative of

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...

to the United Nations (1993–1999), currently serving as President of

Ferrero SpA Ferrero SpA (), more commonly known as Ferrero Group or simply Ferrero, is an Italian multinational company with headquarters in Alba, Italy. manufacturer of branded chocolate and confectionery products, and the second biggest chocolate produc ...

* Otto von der Gablentz, German diplomat and academic * Luis Garicano, Professor of Economics and Strategy at the

London School of Economics , mottoeng = To understand the causes of things , established = , type = Public research university , endowment = £240.8 million (2021) , budget = £391.1 milli ...

Miriam González Durántez Miriam González Durántez, Lady Clegg (born 31 May 1968) is a Spanish international trade lawyer, vice chair of UBS Europe and founder of Inspiring Girls. She is the wife of Nick Clegg, who served as Deputy Prime Minister of the United Kingd ...

, Spanish lawyer and wife of

* Fiona Hayes-Renshaw, Irish academic, visiting professor at the college since 2001 * Chris Hoornaert,

Ambassador An ambassador is an official envoy, especially a high-ranking diplomat who represents a state and is usually accredited to another sovereign state or to an international organization as the resident representative of their own government or s ...

to the

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

* Simon Hughes, British politician and Liberal Democrat Member of Parliament * Marc Jaeger, judge at the General Court of the EU *

Josef Joffe Josef Joffe (born 15 March 1944) is a former publisher-editor of '' Die Zeit'', a weekly German newspaper. His second career has been in academia. Appointed Senior Fellow of Stanford's Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies in 2007 (a ...

, German editor and publisher of ''

Die Zeit ''Die Zeit'' (, "The Time") is a German national weekly newspaper published in Hamburg in Germany. The newspaper is generally considered to be among the German newspapers of record and is known for its long and extensive articles. History Th ...

'' and adjunct professor of political science at

Stanford University Stanford University, officially Leland Stanford Junior University, is a private research university in Stanford, California. The campus occupies , among the largest in the United States, and enrolls over 17,000 students. Stanford is conside ...

* Claudia Kahr, judge at the Austrian Constitutional Court * Alison Kelly, Irish ambassador to Israel *

Stephen Kinnock Stephen Nathan Kinnock (born 1 January 1970) is a Welsh politician who has served as Member of Parliament (MP) for Aberavon since 2015. A member of the Labour Party, he has been Shadow Minister for Immigration since 2022. Early life and educ ...

, Director at the

World Economic Forum The World Economic Forum (WEF) is an international non-governmental and lobbying organisation based in Cologny, canton of Geneva, Switzerland. It was founded on 24 January 1971 by German engineer and economist Klaus Schwab. The foundation, ...

* Berno Kjeldsen, Danish ambassador * Lars-Jacob Krogh, journalist *Sabino Fornies Martínez, European Commission Civil Servant, Head of task force at DG FISMA since 2017 *

, Director of the Robert Schuman Centre for Advanced Studies at the

European University Institute The European University Institute (EUI) is an international postgraduate and post-doctoral teaching and research institute and an independent body of the European Union with juridical personality, established by the member states to contr ...

Jo Leinen Jo, jo, JO, or J.O. may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Jo'' (film), a 1972 French comedy * ''Jo'' (TV series), a French TV series *"Jo", a song by Goldfrapp from '' Tales of Us'' *"Jo", a song by Mr. Oizo from '' Lambs Anger'' * Jo a fict ...

, German member of the

, former president of the Union of European Federalists *

Christian Lequesne Christian Lequesne (born 26 December 1962 in Vitry-le-François) is a French academic. He is Professor of European Politics at Sciences Po and Director of the Centre d'études et de recherches internationales (CERI), and Professor at the College ...

, Professor of European Politics at

Sciences Po , motto_lang = fr , mottoeng = Roots of the Future , type = Public research university'' Grande école'' , established = , founder = Émile Boutmy , accreditation ...

, the College of Europe and the

London School of Economics , mottoeng = To understand the causes of things , established = , type = Public research university , endowment = £240.8 million (2021) , budget = £391.1 milli ...

* Leif Terje Løddesøl, former Chair of

Statoil Equinor ASA (formerly Statoil and StatoilHydro) is a Norwegian state-owned multinational energy company headquartered in Stavanger. It is primarily a petroleum company, operating in 36 countries with additional investments in renewable energy. ...

Sylvie Lucas Sylvie Lucas (born 30 June 1965) was Luxembourg's ambassador to the United States of America from 2016 to 2019, having previously served as Permanent Representative to the United Nations from August 2008 to August 2016 and president of the United ...

, Luxembourg's ambassador to the United Nations and president of the United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) (2009–2010) *Aude Maio-Coliche, Ambassador, Head of the EU Delegation to Venezuela * Helena Malikova, EU civil servant and academic *

, former

President of the European Commission The president of the European Commission is the head of the European Commission, the executive branch of the European Union (EU). The President of the Commission leads a Cabinet of Commissioners, referred to as the College, collectively account ...

* Thomas Mayr-Harting, Ambassador, Head of the Delegation of the European Union to the United Nations *

Ian McIntyre Ian McIntyre (9 December 1931 – 19 April 2014) was a British BBC Radio producer, journalist, broadcaster and author. who was Controller of BBC Radio 4 from 1976 to 1978 and then Controller of BBC Radio 3 between 1978 and 1987. After joinin ...

, British journalist * David McWilliams, Irish economist, journalist and documentary-maker * Holger Michael, German ambassador * Enzo Moavero Milanesi, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Italy *

Goenawan Mohamad Goenawan Mohamad (born 29 July 1941) is an Indonesian poet, essayist, playwright and editor. He is the founder and editor of the Indonesian magazine ''Tempo''. Mohamad is a vocal critic of the Indonesian government, and his magazine was periodic ...

, Indonesian poet * Juan Moscoso del Prado, Spanish socialist Member of Parliament, spokesman in the European Union Committee * Jon Ola Norbom, former

Minister of Finance A finance minister is an executive or cabinet position in charge of one or more of government finances, economic policy and financial regulation. A finance minister's portfolio has a large variety of names around the world, such as "treasury", ...

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of ...

* Jim Oberstar, member of the

United States House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they ...

Mary O'Rourke Mary O'Rourke (; born 31 May 1937) is an Irish former Fianna Fáil politician who served as Leader of the Seanad and Leader of Fianna Fáil in the Seanad from 2002 to 2007, Deputy leader of Fianna Fáil from 1994 to 2002, Minister for Public ...

, barrister *

David O'Sullivan (civil servant) David O'Sullivan (born 1 March 1953) is the Director General of the Institute of International and European Affairs (IIEA). He was previously a European civil servant served as Ambassador of the European Union to the United States from 2014 t ...

, Chief Operating Officer of the European Union's diplomatic corps, former Secretary-General of the European Commission and Director General for Trade *

, former United States

CIA The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA ), known informally as the Agency and historically as the Company, is a civilian foreign intelligence service of the federal government of the United States, officially tasked with gathering, processing, ...

Operations Officer *

Ursula Plassnik Ursula Plassnik (born 23 May 1956) is an Austrian diplomat and politician. She was Foreign Minister of Austria between October 2004 and December 2008. She has served as the Austrian ambassador to Switzerland from 2016 to 2021. Early life and c ...

, former Foreign Minister of Austria, a member of

Austrian People's Party The Austrian People's Party (german: Österreichische Volkspartei , ÖVP ) is a Christian-democratic and liberal-conservative political party in Austria. Since December 2021, the party has been led provisionally by Karl Nehammer. It is curre ...

(

European People's Party The European People's Party (EPP) is a European political party with Christian-democratic, conservative, and liberal-conservative member parties. A transnational organisation, it is composed of other political parties. Founded by primarily ...

) *

Nikola Poposki Nikola Poposki (born 24 October 1977 in Skopje) was Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Macedonia until 31 May 2017. Prior to that role, in 2010–2011 he served as the country's ambassador to the European Union. Education Nikola Pop ...

Macedonian Macedonian most often refers to someone or something from or related to Macedonia. Macedonian(s) may specifically refer to: People Modern * Macedonians (ethnic group), a nation and a South Slavic ethnic group primarily associated with North Ma ...

Minister for Foreign Affairs and former Ambassador of the Permanent Mission of the

Republic of Macedonia North Macedonia, ; sq, Maqedonia e Veriut, (Macedonia before February 2019), officially the Republic of North Macedonia,, is a country in Southeast Europe. It gained independence in 1991 as one of the successor states of Yugoslavia. It ...

to the European Union * Xavier Prats Monné, EU official * Torolf Raa, former Norwegian ambassador * Carine Van Regenmortel, Belgian corporate lawyer * Philippe Régnier, Professor at the Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies and the

University of Ottawa The University of Ottawa (french: Université d'Ottawa), often referred to as uOttawa or U of O, is a bilingual public research university in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. The main campus is located on directly to the northeast of Downtown Ottaw ...

*Prince

Albert Rohan Albert Rohan, Duke of Bouillon and Duke of Montbazon (Prince Albert de Rohan) (9 May 1936 – 4 June 2019) was an Austrian diplomat. He served as Secretary General (Generalsekretär) of the Austrian Foreign Ministry from 1996 to 2001. Biogra ...

, former

Permanent Secretary A permanent secretary (also known as a principal secretary) is the most senior civil servant of a department or ministry charged with running the department or ministry's day-to-day activities. Permanent secretaries are the non-political civil ...

of the Austrian Foreign Ministry, UN envoy *

Margaritis Schinas Margaritis Schinas (Greek: Μαργαρίτης Σχοινάς; ; born 28 July 1962) is a Greek politician and former civil servant. He took office in December 2019 as a vice-president in the Von der Leyen Commission with the portfolio of European ...

, Vice-President of the

European Commission The European Commission (EC) is the executive of the European Union (EU). It operates as a cabinet government, with 27 members of the Commission (informally known as "Commissioners") headed by a President. It includes an administrative body ...

* György Schöpflin, a Hungarian academic and politician,

Member of the European Parliament A Member of the European Parliament (MEP) is a person who has been elected to serve as a popular representative in the European Parliament. When the European Parliament (then known as the Common Assembly of the ECSC) first met in 1952, its ...

for

Fidesz Fidesz – Hungarian Civic Alliance (; hu, Fidesz – Magyar Polgári Szövetség) is a right-wing populist and national-conservative political party in Hungary, led by Viktor Orbán. It was formed in 1988 under the name of Alliance of Young ...

and the

Guy Spitaels Guy Gustave Arthur Ghislain Spitaels (3 September 1931 – 21 August 2012) was a Belgian politician of the Socialist Party. He was the 7th Minister-President of Wallonia from 1992 to 1994 and president of his party for thirteen years, until he wa ...

, Belgian politician and Minister-President of

Wallonia Wallonia (; french: Wallonie ), or ; nl, Wallonië ; wa, Waloneye or officially the Walloon Region (french: link=no, Région wallonne),; nl, link=no, Waals gewest; wa, link=no, Redjon walone is one of the three regions of Belgium—al ...

* Alexander Stubb, Finnish Minister for Foreign Affairs, a member of politician of the

National Coalition Party sv, Samlingspartiet , leader1_title = Chairman , leader1_name = Petteri Orpo , leader2_title = Deputy chairs , leader2_name = Antti HäkkänenElina ValtonenAnna-Kaisa Ikonen , merger = Finnish Party, Young Finn ...

(

) *

Prime Minister of Denmark The prime minister of Denmark ( da, Danmarks statsminister, fo, Forsætisráðharri, kl, Ministeriuneq) is the head of government in the Kingdom of Denmark comprising the three constituent countries: Denmark, Greenland and the Faroe Island ...

and leader of the

Social Democrats (Denmark) The Social Democrats ( da, Socialdemokraterne, ) is a social democratic political party in Denmark. A member of the Party of European Socialists (PES), the Social Democrats have 50 out of 179 members of the Danish parliament (following the late ...

* Didrik Tønseth, former Norwegian ambassador *Count Ferdinand Trauttmansdorff, Austria's ambassador to Prague *Loukas Tsoukalis,

Professor of European Integration at the University of Athens and President of the Hellenic Foundation for European and Foreign Policy *

Andrew Tyrie Andrew Guy Tyrie, Baron Tyrie, (born 15 January 1957) is a British politician and former chair of the Competition and Markets Authority. A member of the Conservative Party, he was Member of Parliament (MP) for Chichester from 1997 to 2017. T ...

, Member of Parliament (MP) for

Chichester Chichester () is a cathedral city and civil parish in West Sussex, England.OS Explorer map 120: Chichester, South Harting and Selsey Scale: 1:25 000. Publisher:Ordnance Survey – Southampton B2 edition. Publishing Date:2009. It is the only ...

and Chairman of the Treasury Select Committee, a member of

* Helmut Türk, judge at the

International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea International is an adjective (also used as a noun) meaning "between nations". International may also refer to: Music Albums * ''International'' (Kevin Michael album), 2011 * ''International'' (New Order album), 2002 * ''International'' (The T ...

, former Ambassador of Austria to the United States *

Werner Ungerer Dr. Werner Ungerer (22 April 1927, in Stuttgart – 9 April 2014, in Bonn) was a German diplomat and civil servant. He served as Permanent Representative of Germany (with the rank of ambassador) to the European Communities from 1985 to 1990, and as ...

, German diplomat, Permanent Representative to the European Communities from 1985 to 1990 and rector of the college from 1990 to 1993 * Robert Verrue, Director-General for Employment of the European Commission * Alexander Walker, British film critic * Helen Wallace, Lady Wallace of Saltaire, British expert in European studies and Emeritus Professor at the

London School of Economics and Political Science The London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE) is a public university, public research university located in London, England and a constituent college of the federal University of London. Founded in 1895 by Fabian Society members Sidn ...

* Bruno de Witte, Professor of EU Law at the

* Marc van der Woude, judge at the European Court of Justice * Adrien Zeller, former French minister in the second

Jacques Chirac Jacques René Chirac (, , ; 29 November 193226 September 2019) was a Politics of France, French politician who served as President of France from 1995 to 2007. Chirac was previously Prime Minister of France from 1974 to 1976 and from 1986 to ...

government (1986–1988), former President of

Alsace Regional Council The Regional Council of Alsace (, ) was the regional council of the French region of Alsace from 1982 to 2015. As a result of reforms, the administrative region of Alsace merged with two other regions to form Grand Est, effective 1 January 20 ...

, a member of the

Union for a Popular Movement The Union for a Popular Movement (french: link=no, Union pour un mouvement populaire, ; UMP, ) was a centre-right political party in France that was one of the two major contemporary political parties in France along with the centre-left Soci ...

Jaap de Zwaan Jaap de Zwaan (born 1949 in Amsterdam) is a Dutch lawyer and legal scholar. Since 1998, he is Professor of the Law of the European Union at the Erasmus University Rotterdam. He was Director of the Netherlands Institute of International Relations C ...

, Dutch diplomat and negotiator of several European treaties, Professor of EU Law at the

Erasmus University Rotterdam Erasmus University Rotterdam (abbreviated as ''EUR'', nl, Erasmus Universiteit Rotterdam ) is a public research university located in Rotterdam, Netherlands. The university is named after Desiderius Erasmus Roterodamus, a 15th-century humani ...

* Alexander Stubb, prime minister of Finland Alumni of note of the College of Europe in Natolin, Poland (from 1993) include: *Gert Antsu, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Republic of Estonia to Ukraine *Jarosław Domański, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Republic of Poland to the Islamic Republic of Iran * Marija Pejčinović Burić, Deputy Prime Minister of Croatia, Minister of Foreign and European Affairs *

Alyn Smith Alyn Edward Smith (born 15 September 1973) is a Scottish politician. A member of the Scottish National Party (SNP), he was elected as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Stirling at the 2019 general election. He also served as a Member of the ...

, Scottish member of the

* Olesea Stamate, Minister of Justice of the

Republic of Moldova A republic () is a " state in which power rests with the people or their representatives; specifically a state without a monarchy" and also a "government, or system of government, of such a state." Previously, especially in the 17th and 18th ...

Rafał Trzaskowski Rafał Kazimierz Trzaskowski (; born 17 January 1972) is a Polish politician and the current city mayor of Warsaw. He is also a political scientist specializing in European studies. He served as a Member of the European Parliament (2009–201 ...

, Mayor of Warsaw, former member of the Polish

Sejm The Sejm (English: , Polish: ), officially known as the Sejm of the Republic of Poland ( Polish: ''Sejm Rzeczypospolitej Polskiej''), is the lower house of the bicameral parliament of Poland. The Sejm has been the highest governing body of ...

, former Polish member of the

, former Polish Minister of Administration and Digitization, former Secretary of State in the Polish Ministry of Foreign Affairs

Faculty and organisation

The College of Europe originally had no permanent teaching staff; the courses were taught by prominent academics and sometimes government officials from around Europe. Especially in the last couple of decades, the college has increasingly employed professors and other teaching staff on a permanent basis.

Academics

* Dominique Moïsi, co-founder and is a senior advisor of the Paris-based Institut Français des Relations Internationales (IFRI), ''Pierre Keller Visiting Professor'' at

Harvard University Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of highe ...

, and the Chairholder for

Geopolitics Geopolitics (from Greek γῆ ''gê'' "earth, land" and πολιτική ''politikḗ'' "politics") is the study of the effects of Earth's geography (human and physical) on politics and international relations. While geopolitics usually refers to ...

at the College of Europe. *

Bronisław Geremek Bronisław Geremek (; born Benjamin Lewertow;

, Chairholder of the Chair of European Civilisation until his death * Leszek Balcerowicz, economist, the former chairman of the

National Bank of Poland The Narodowy Bank Polski (; the National Bank of Poland), often abbreviated to NBP, is the central bank of Poland, founded in 1945. It controls the issuing of Poland's currency, the Polish złoty. The bank is headquartered in Warsaw, and has bra ...

and Deputy Prime Minister in Tadeusz Mazowiecki's government. He implemented the Polish economic transformation program in the 1990s, a shock therapy commonly referred to as the Balcerowicz Plan * Andrea Biondi, co-Director of the Centre for European Law at

King's College London King's College London (informally King's or KCL) is a public research university located in London, England. King's was established by royal charter in 1829 under the patronage of King George IV and the Duke of Wellington. In 1836, King's ...

Aleš Debeljak Aleš Debeljak (25 December 1961 – 28 January 2016), was a Slovenian cultural critic, poet, and essayist. Biography Debeljak was born in the Slovenian capital Ljubljana, then part of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, to a famil ...

cultural critic A cultural critic is a critic of a given culture, usually as a whole. Cultural criticism has significant overlap with social and cultural theory. While such criticism is simply part of the self-consciousness of the culture, the social positions of ...

, poet, and essayist * Alyson Bailes, a former English diplomat and British Ambassador to

Finland Finland ( fi, Suomi ; sv, Finland ), officially the Republic of Finland (; ), is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It shares land borders with Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of Bot ...

who lives in

Iceland Iceland ( is, Ísland; ) is a Nordic island country in the North Atlantic Ocean and in the Arctic Ocean. Iceland is the most sparsely populated country in Europe. Iceland's capital and largest city is Reykjavík, which (along with its ...

* Valentine Korah, Emeritus Professor of Competition Law at

University College London , mottoeng = Let all come who by merit deserve the most reward , established = , type = Public research university , endowment = £143 million (2020) , budget = ...

Jacques Rupnik Ancient and noble French family names, Jacques, Jacq, or James are believed to originate from the Middle Ages in the historic northwest Brittany region in France, and have since spread around the world over the centuries. To date, there are ove ...

, professor at Institut d'Études Politiques de Paris i.e.

Sciences Po , motto_lang = fr , mottoeng = Roots of the Future , type = Public research university'' Grande école'' , established = , founder = Émile Boutmy , accreditation ...

* Stefan Collignon, professor of political economy, International Chief Economist of th
Centro Europa Ricerche
founder of Euro Asia Forum at

Sant'Anna School of Advanced Studies , latin_name = , image = , motto = L'eccellenza come disciplina , mottoeng = Committed to excellence , established = 1987 from previously existing institutions , type = State-supported , administrative_staff ...

, Pisa, Italy, he served as Deputy Director General for Europe in the

Federal Ministry of Finance (Germany) The Federal Ministry of Finance (german: Bundesministerium der Finanzen), abbreviated BMF, is the cabinet-level finance ministry of Germany, with its seat at the Detlev-Rohwedder-Haus in Berlin and a secondary office in Bonn. The current Federa ...

1999–2000. * John Usher, legal scholar * Guy Haarscher, legal and political philosopher * Geoffrey R. Denton, head of economics * Jan de Meyer (1958–1970) *

* Fiona Hayes-Renshaw * Gerhard Stahl * Shada Islam *

* Enzo Moavero Milanesi, Italian Minister for Europe and Professor in the Legal Studies Department * Alexander Stubb, Finnish Minister for Europe, former Foreign Minister, and Professor at the college since 2000 *

Norman Davies Ivor Norman Richard Davies (born 8 June 1939) is a Welsh-Polish historian, known for his publications on the history of Europe, Poland and the United Kingdom. He has a special interest in Central and Eastern Europe and is UNESCO Professor a ...

, Historian; Honorary fellow,

St Antony's College, Oxford St Antony's College is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England. Founded in 1950 as the result of the gift of French merchant Sir Antonin Besse of Aden, St Antony's specialises in international relations, economi ...

; Professor, Jagiellonian University * Jean de Ruyt,

; Senior European Policy Advisor,

Covington & Burling Covington & Burling LLP is an American multinational law firm. Headquartered in Washington, D.C., the firm advises clients on transactional, litigation, regulatory, and public policy matters. In 2021, Vault.com ranked Covington & Burling as ...

; Professor,

Université catholique de Louvain The Université catholique de Louvain (also known as the Catholic University of Louvain, the English translation of its French name, and the University of Louvain, its official English name) is Belgium's largest French-speaking university. It ...

(UCL); ex-Belgian Permanent representative to the European Union

Organisation

Rectors

The rector directs and coordinates the college's activities. * Hendrik Brugmans (1906–1997) (1949–1971) *

Jerzy Łukaszewski Jerzy Wojciech Łukaszewski (21 July 1924 – 3 June 2020) was a Polish and Belgian academic and diplomat. He lived in Belgium from 1960 on, where he taught at the College of Europe in Bruges from 1961 and served as its rector from 1972. From 1990 ...

(°1924) (1972–1990) *

(°1927) (1990–1993) * Gabriel Fragnière (1934-2015) (1993–1995) * Otto von der Gablentz (1930–2007) (1996–2001) * Piet Akkermans (1942–2002) (2001–2002) *

(1937–2008) (a.i. 2002–2003) *

Paul Demaret Paul Demaret (Ostend, 24 September 1941) is a university professor and former rector of the College of Europe, located in Bruges ( Belgium) and Natolin (Poland). Biography Demaret holds a PhD in law from the University of Liège, an LL.M. from Co ...

(2003–2013) *

Jörg Monar Jörg or Joerg () is a German name, equivalent to George in English. * Jörg Bergmeister, German race car driver * Jörg Frischmann, German Paralympian athlete * Jörg Haider, Austrian politician * Jörg Andrees Elten (also Swami Satyananda), Germ ...

(2013–2020) * Federica Mogherini (2020-present)

Vice rectors

The vice rector is responsible for the day-to-day administration of the Natolin (Warsaw) campus. *Ettore Deodato (1993) *David W. P. Lewis (1994–1996) *

Jacek Saryusz-Wolski Jacek Emil Saryusz-Wolski (born 19 September 1948 in Łódź) is a Polish diplomat and PiS (Law and Justice) politician. He has been a Member of the European Parliament (MEP) since June 2004. He served as Vice President of the European Parliamen ...

(1996–1999) *

Piotr Nowina-Konopka Piotr Nowina-Konopka (born 27 May 1949 in Chorzów) is a Polish academic, politician and diplomat. Academia Konopka studied at the Sopot School of Economics, Gdańsk University, where he gained an MSc (1972) and a PhD (1978) in economics. From ...

(1999–2004) *

(a.i. 2004–2005) *

(2005–2007) *

Ewa Ośniecka-Tamecka Ewa Ośniecka-Tamecka (born 24 December 1962 in Łódź) is a Polish politician, in the years from 2006 to 2007 the Secretary of State at the Office of the Committee for European Integration, since 2007, Vice-Rector of the College of Europe i ...

(2007– present)

Presidents of the Administrative Council

(1950–1964) * Jean Rey (1964–1974) * François-Xavier Ortoli (1974–1975) * Daniel Coens (1985–1990) *

(1990–1995) *

(1995–2000) *

Jean-Luc Dehaene Jean Luc Joseph Marie "Jean-Luc" Dehaene (; 7 August 1940 – 15 May 2014) was a Belgian politician who served as the prime minister of Belgium from 1992 until 1999. During his political career, he was nicknamed "The Plumber" and "The Mineswee ...

(2000–2009) * Íñigo Méndez de Vigo (2009 – 2019) * Herman Van Rompuy (2019–present)

Controversies

Controversy concerning Saudi Arabia

In February 2019, a series of press pieces published by EUobserver revealed that the Bruges-based institute was paid by the Saudi government to set up private meetings between Saudi ambassadors, EU officials, and MEPs. Although EU lobby transparency rules say that academic institutions should register if they "deal with EU activities and policies and are in touch with the EU institutions", the College of Europe is not listed in the EU joint-transparency register. On 13 February, MEP Alyn Smith of Greens/EFA wrote to ask Jörg Monar, Rector of the College of Europe, to provide assurances that the institute has not received "financial contributions from the Saudi authorities in any form" in its efforts to set up meetings with the EU institutions. On 20 February, Marietje Schaake of the ALDE group presented a written question to the European Commission on this issue. This written question was the subject of a response from the European Commission published on 17 May in which it explained not having any direct evidence as to the facts reported, nor being able to comment on the sources of revenue of the College of Europe beyond European subsidies. A group of College alumni collected signatures to demand the institution to stop organising private meetings between MEPs and the Saudi government. In a letter to the President of the European Parliament's Budget Control Committee

Ingeborg Gräßle Ingeborg Helen Gräßle (born 2 March 1961) is a German politician of the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) who has been serving as a member of the German Bundestag since the 2021 elections, representing the Backnang – Schwäbisch Gmünd di ...

, Jörg Monar, Rector of the College of Europe, confirmed the organization of trainings for Saudi officials and criticized the media for reporting them as lobbying. The rector indicated that these meetings had no lobbying dimension but sought to show to the Saudis the reasons why the Union defended certain values, privileging communication over isolation to defend European values. ''Inside Arabia Online'', an online publication, characterised the lobbying by Saudi Arabia as part of a concerted effort to reverse the Kingdom's inclusion on the EU's "blacklist", which intends to penalize countries failing to combat terrorism financing and money laundering.

Allegations of sexual harassment and misogyny

The French language weekly news magazine ''

Le Vif/L'Express ''Le Vif/L'Express'' is a French language weekly news magazine published in Brussels, Belgium. It has been in circulation since 1963. History and profile The magazine was established under the name of ''Le Vif'' in 1983. Its name was changed to ...

'' published an article on 21 February 2019 based on the testimony of former students from recent years. The article reported a culture of sexual harassment and misogyny at the College of Europe. Cases of sexual harassment and inappropriate behaviour were described in the magazine, including

frotteurism Frotteurism is a paraphilic interest in rubbing, usually one's pelvic area or erect penis, against a non-consenting person for sexual pleasure. It may involve touching any part of the body, including the genital area. A person who practices frot ...

, forced kisses and groping. Various students reported to Le Vif/L’Express that the administration observes a code of silence on this issue. Cases of inappropriate behaviours by the academic staff were also reported. Contacted by Le Vif/L’Express magazine, the administration replied that: "In some occasions in the past, some students have crossed the personal barriers of other students". On 5 March 2019, a former student of the College of Europe, published an opinion in Le Vif/L’Express magazine, stating that a culture of sexual harassment and misogyny existed at the College of Europe when she was studying there.

''Jungle comments'' by Josep Borrell

In October 2022, EU's

Josep Borrell made offensive comments in a speech to the College of Europe's new European Diplomatic Academy in Bruges. In his speech Borrell designated Europe as “a garden” and he called most of the world a “jungle” that “could invade the garden”. Federica Mogherini, the rector of the College of Europe was hosting Josep Borrell, who suceeded her in the function of High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy of the EU. Federica Mogherini did not express any disagreement with the offensive comments, provoking reactions of disaproval among students of the College.

References

External links

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Politico – College of Europe sectionAlumni Association – College of EuropeThe Madariaga – College of Europe Foundation

Behind the Walls, article by a College alumnus – Europe&Me Magazine
{{DEFAULTSORT:College of Europe Educational institutions established in 1949 Buildings and structures in Bruges Universities and colleges in Warsaw Universities in Belgium Schools of international relations Education in Bruges 1949 establishments in Belgium