Model of European Parliament – Regional Session of 2022

Do you know what the MEP is, or the European model parliament? I didn’t know either until I had the opportunity to participate recently. 

I could go into technicalities, but that’s what your website is for, so I’ll try to explain it in a simple way. The MEP is a program that seeks to bring the European Parliament closer to young people. It does this by simulating parliamentary sessions on topics previously discussed and divided by committees. The outcome of these debates is presented in the last session called the General Assembly. In this session, the participants, who are always high school students from the high schools concerned, present the resolutions they have been working on for the previous two days and defend them before the amendments or counter-debates presented by participants from other committees. 

To make it even less technical: they are three very intense days of debate, in which I could hardly eat an apple because of nerves (but I drank a lot of coffee, perfect for my health) in which you discuss with other colleagues from different schools what are the possible solutions to the issue presented to you. After two days, you present it to teachers and other participants with the aim of being approved by the majority of the attendees.

Some may find this idea exhausting and demanding on students. It is. To be completely honest, it is one of the experiences that have managed to push me to the limit mentally and emotionally. It’s exposing yourself to criticism (not very constructive) from people who are looking to make their voices heard, it’s overcoming stage fright, having an incredible ability to improvise and lead discussions, of not knowing what to do and doing it anyway. It’s getting out of your comfort zone from every possible angle. And yet, I would repeat the experience as many times as it takes. 

But… how did I end up here? Good question.

The tutor I got into this mess can confirm what I’m saying and that is that, at the time I signed up my high school as a participant, I thought it was a contest about writing articles on the specific topics decided by the organization that year. What a surprise it was when we saw that we were invited to spend 3 days doing these debate sessions. 

Yes, it was a big surprise. Later I would discover that all the schools that were present at the event were veterans and that I had done something unprecedented, enrolling a new school (it had been a long time since a new one had joined) and a public school at that.

When we got there it seemed like everyone knew where they had to go or what they had to do, everyone but us. 

The two days passed, with many emotions and little sleep in between, and the day of the GA arrived. 

In this form of debate there are things called amendments. They are modifications that are made to the resolutions that are announced once the GA has already begun. In other words, if you make an amendment, you may have to make a speech, but it is not certain. 

Indeed, I did make an amendment. I had to go on stage with a half-prepared speech and shaky hands. My amendment almost passed and after that I made many speeches. Even so, I was still arguing that I could have improved many things. How pleasant was my surprise when several professors and other participants approached me throughout the event to tell me that I had very good communication skills, that I was very good at public speaking. I could not believe it and thought the opposite.

In the end, my resolution was approved and when the GA and therefore the 2022 Regional Session of the Valencian Community and Murcia was over, I cried because I had just finished one of the best experiences I had ever had in my life. Because I had finally felt in a place where I wanted to be academically, because all of a sudden I had understood what I wanted in my professional future. Going to class the next day was… it was strange. 

My second surprise came two weeks later, when I was informed two weeks later that I had been one of those selected to move on to the 2022 national session to be held in Madrid. 

I was not finished, I was going to be able to continue my MEP experience. I was overjoyed. 

So it doesn’t end here. See you soon in the post about the national session that will surely be unforgettable.