Lessons from winning futurEU 2023

22-01-2025

Eman Atta Maan tells us about her experience at the finals of futurEU competition 2023.

With sweaty palms and shaking legs, I stepped up to the podium in full view of dozens of eagerly awaiting spectators alongside my team-mate, François. Both of us had been anticipating this moment for months — researching in anguish, texting each other late at night with some new revelation, and debating back and forth — all of which would culminate in the next ten minutes or so. It was a thrilling moment.

François and I represented Bocconi University in the 2023 edition of the futurEU competition, an initiative spearheaded by Hertie School students and researchers, supported by the CIVICA alliance and the Jacques Delors Centre. The theme of this edition was “Climate Change and Societal Transformation.” Our proposal, The Climate Divide: Why the EU's Border Adjustment Mechanism Needs Rethinking for Developing Countries, addressed the inequities inherent in the EU's Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM). In particular, we criticized the disproportionate impact that the CBAM would have on developing countries—especially Least Developed Countries (LDCs) and Small Island Developing States (SIDS)—which have contributed minimally to the climate crisis but lack the resources to decarbonize without support.

Our solution? A three-pronged approach: exempting LDCs and SIDS from CBAM, fostering dialogue with these nations, and channeling CBAM revenues into climate financing for their low-carbon energy transitions. Hailing from Pakistan, a country deeply affected by the worsening climate crisis, I found this topic to be profoundly personal. It felt essential to push for policies that embraced equity and acknowledged the EU's historical responsibility in climate change.

For all those contemplating entering the futurEU initiative, be warned: it is not easy. It is a gruelling experience, forcing one to think on their feet and anticipate the weaknesses and strengths of one’s own ideas, but it is also an incredibly rewarding one. Standing at the final stage of the competition, I was struck by how much I had learned — not just about the EU and its climate policies but also about myself. FuturEU gave us the confidence to stand by our convictions and the ability to engage critically with complex policy challenges. It’s an extraordinary journey that might just leave you with a better understanding of the world and your place in shaping its future. At least, it did for me.