1) Watch the video below and bone up on the history of the European Union. In your notebook, create a timeline of the main events.
2) Watch the video again. In your notebook, take notes under the following headings as the content is covered:
- Treaties of Rome
- Economic Growth
- Enlargement
- Eurozone Debt Crisis
- European Migrant Crisis
- Current Situation
3) Read a summary of the objectives contained in the Treaty of Rome, setting up the European Economic Community (EEC).
"... the foundation of an increasingly closer union among the peoples of Europe, the improvement of their working and living conditions, the economic and social progress of their countries and the progressive abolition of all barriers and restrictions on trade."
Have all, many, some or none of these objectives been achieved, so far? Leave your personal comment, giving reasons for your answer in the comment box. Remember to choose "anonymous" as an identity, but write your name and the initial of your surname before starting to write.
Debora V.
ReplyDeleteIn my opinion all the objectives have been achieved, but at the maximum level that they can reach. With regarde of the economic and social progress is improved very well, for exemples nowdays there are less discrimination based on languages, race or religion but in other aspects it could improve more to eliminate these discrimination based on social class, sexual orientation or race.
Instead, with regard to the objective of the abolition of all trade barries it has been reached perfectly 'cause there aren't any trade barries between countries of the Europe.
At at least, the working and living conditions have been improved but they aren't at their top; because not all people in all the countries have the same standard and conditions of work and living 'cause most of theme live in poverty.
In conclusion, I would say that all these objectives have been achieved but thay can develop more and reach an higher level.
Virginia P
ReplyDeleteIn my opinion, all the objectives have been achieved but each with a different level of achievement from the other. If we take economic development as an example, there has been a fairly evident improvement but if we move towards social progress we are still far behind. Of course, something has changed, but, for example, people with black skin and homosexuals still receive terrible comments and they are victims of violent acts.
Moving towards the goal of improving working and living conditions, it can be said that all in all we have managed to achieve it enough. I say enough as there are still cases of unemployment leading to poor living conditions which, in order to fully achieve the goal, should be resolved.
Finally, about the abolition of barriers, not much can be said as, traveling between the countries of the European Union, one can enter and exit freely without being stopped.
That said, all goals are important and therefore there is a need for them all to be achieved equally.
Virginia P
DeleteExcuse me, the paragraphs do not stand out well because I have not re-texted twice.
Erika S.
ReplyDeleteIn my opinion all these objectives have been achieved during the years, but not all of them in a complete way. I mean, people are now more interconnected thanks to the increased communication, the sharing of different cultures, languages and in general lifestyles, but on the other hand, there is still a lot of discrimination regarding skin color or sexual orientation, which should be removed from the European institutions as soon as possible.
Regarding the living conditions of people, we can see an improvement thanks to the actions made by international institutions and governments that work to help poorer countries to be more economically stable.
In addition, thanks to the elimination of trade barriers people can have access to a large variety of foreing products, from clothes to food.
Finally, the European Union has allowed the circulation of workers among countries, so now people can freely travel all around the Eurozone, without the need of changing the currency.
Angela G.
ReplyDeleteI personally believe that it is possible to say that all the objectives contained in the treaty of Rome have been achieved, even if some not completely.
It is necessary to clarify that when the treaty of Rome was established, the second world war had been over for a few years and Europe was still in a precarious situation from a social, political and economic point of view.
Therefore in my opinion it is possible to say that the population of the European Union is united, certainly also thanks to the phenomenon of globalisation.
As far as economic development is concerned, many improvements have been made over the years, but if we consider social progress, the European Union is still in a precarious situation: there is still ethnic discrimination or discrimination related to sexual orientation in many countries, which should be repressed as quickly as possible to improve the living conditions of all citizens and social relations between different populations.
Finally, with regard to the abolition of barriers and trade restrictions, I believe that this is the aspect that has undergone the most positive changes: the European Union is no longer characterised by barriers that make trade difficult and all citizens of the European Union are free to travel from one country to another without restrictions or controls.
In conclusion, it is possible to say that over the years the European Union has tried to achieve improvements in as many areas as possible to improve the welfare of all citizens, there is certainly still a long way to go for a general improvement but with the effort of all the states this will be possible.
SABRINA S.
ReplyDeleteIn my opinion, most of the achievement of the objectives has been achieved in part, but at the highest level that they can. As for the economic and social progress it has improved a lot, for example today there is less discrimination based on language, race or religion but in many less developed countries it is still very present.
As for the goal of abolishing all trade barriers, it has been perfectly achieved because there are no trade barriers between European countries.
At least the working and living conditions have improved but not enough; because not all people in all countries experience work equally
Elena C.
ReplyDeleteIn my opinion all the objectives have been achieved. I know that they are big projects and they include lots of variables, so they are very difficult to achieve in a small time, but we can say that for some of them we are close.
Regarding the abolition of barriers and restrictions on trade, they are almost eliminated. Now we can travel among the states without big problems thanks to the Schengen Agreement. Also some States that aren’t UE members took part of the Schengen Agreement, and this is the evidence that also the objective about union among people have been achieved. The European Union helps the States also with financial resources( an example is the economic crisis in 2007), and this is an interesting point for the reduction of differences about life conditions in all the Countries. In fact, there are various situations concerning healthcare or education that need to be changed. About social progress the UE project touches our life like Erasmus+.
In the end I believe that the EU can make big changes in all our lives, and help the improvement of the living conditions of a lot of people
Nicola I.
ReplyDeleteIn my opinion, most of the objectives have been achieved, obviously some with greater force and others less, but there has been an overall improvement. For me, trade has been one of the points on which we have improved the most is the economy because there are no limits with the arrival of the single currency for all the countries of Europe. One point on which all people still need to improve a lot is discrimination, because there is still a lot of difference for gender too. Although unfortunately many people in the countries of the European Union, still can not get a permanent job and as a result they struggle to live for both them and their family.
In conclusion, I believe that the European Union has made considerable improvements compared to the past, but there are still many aspects on which we can have better solutions than the current ones.
DeleteDavide A.
ReplyDeleteIn my opinion, some objectives have been achieved, while others still need to be worked on. Europe has evolved a lot in recent decades, especially in the economic and financial fields. But there are still social and respect problems between the various states. There are still discrimination and conflicts that should be resolved quickly.
Furthermore, in Europe there is a lot of talk about barriers and walls that have been part of the history of Europe but today these barriers no longer exist and this has led to the globalization of states.
In conclusion, there are many objectives and many results obtained but we must continue to work to improve more and more living conditions in Europe for the environment, the economy and people.
Cristina G.
ReplyDeleteIn my opinion, the main objectives of Europe were been made.
In fact, we can move among the European Union's states easily, thanks to the elimination of barriers and tariffs.
Futhermore, there were lots of facilitation, in particular for the language. Thanks to that, there is a common language which allow us to communicate easily among people of different countries.
Dispite all the difficulties that were been in this years, I think that European Union create lots of opportunities. Some of theme are: Erasmus + for students and the easy movements of goods, capitals, services and people.
In conclusion, the Shengen Zone can permit us to travel easily, in order to create a rich cultural baggage.
Valentina C.
ReplyDeleteIn my opinion, It can be said that the objectives of the Treaty of Rome have mostly been achieved. From the early years of the European Union to today, big changes have been made in Europe, for example on the relations and rules between the member states.
Today, we can say that the barriers between the member states and restrictions on trade have been mostly abolished. The citizens of a EU member state are recognized as European citizens in addition to the state they belong to. EU citizens can travel between states, without any problem and they also don't need a passport but their ID only.
On one hand the EU has made lots of good progress for the member states. On the other hand there’s still many problems that need to be solved.
A useful progress, for example, is that thanks to some programs created by the EU, we have the opportunity to travel, study and work abroad, without any issues, for long or short periods. It has to be said, however, that not all the member states have made big improvements in all its sectors. There are some states that still not developed.
Michelle
ReplyDeleteIn my opinion, Europe has achieved many of its objectives. Firstly, thanks to progress in Europe, we can travel throughout Europe without restrictions: in fact, to move around the Member States we do not need a passport but only an identity card. moreover, thanks to this removal of barriers we can work and study in the states of the European Union in freedom, about this we refer for example to the Erasmus + project.
despite this, there are still many difficulties even in the European Union and in fact not all states have the same level of development.
Victoria C.
ReplyDeleteHaving read what has been achieved, in my opinion the latter have not been fully achieved.
I think this because I believe that achieving these very important goals takes a long time.
In addition, these objectives have been achieved or are being achieved in a disproportionate manner in the countries. Which it should be.
In conclusion, I would like to point out that yes, the objectives have been achieved, but a lot of work still needs to be done to maintain and improve them.
Michela O
ReplyDeleteIn my opinion we are in a toxic world. Because i think is very complicated to help all the people in the world. But there are those who could do it and are only thinking about getting rich.
Think of the present, the war in Ukraine and Russia ... what all the efforts we have set ourselves to maintain in the 17 goals have served us if we destroy lives, houses and cities out of selfishness as if nothing had happened.
We can say that there have been improvements in the world, such as reducing poverty in developing countries, or helping with medical assistance or giving job opportunities and job rights that every citizen should have, but it all relates to a the only general point, there are those who get rich thanks to this and those who suffer.
Silvia C.
ReplyDeleteIn my opinion, they all are achievable goals, in fact they have been achieved for the most part.
In particular, the abolition of all barriers and restrictions on trade, in the European Union, is the goal more noticeable in our lives, because we can send goods or we can travel in the EU in a freely way, without controls at borders.
The goal on which it has to work is the union among the peoples of Europe, because there are still some nationalists feeling, so people think more about their nationality rather to the European Union.
At all, I think that all these goals could be perfected and improved, in order to realise a really solid union between nations.
ALESSIA T.
ReplyDeleteIn my opinion all the objectives contained in the Treaty of Rome have been achieved during the years, but some not completely. They are big projects so they're very difficult to achieve in a short amount of time.
Regarding the abolition of barriers and restrictions on trades, they're almost eliminated. Right now people are interconnected thanks to the share of different cultures, languages and just lifestyles in general. But it's also true the fact that there's still a lot of discrimination because of different skin color, sexual orientations or presence of minorities.
In addition, now we can also travel all around the world thanks to the Shengen Agreement. This concordat was accepted not only by the UE member countries, and that's a proof for the world union.
In conclusion, we can confirm that over the years the European Union has tried to achieve improvements in as many areas as possible to improve the well-being of their citizens. Obviously, there's still a lot of work to do to improve the general situation and quality of life but if every state works hard, it can be achieved.
Alessio M.
ReplyDeleteIn my opinion, all these goals have not been achieved over the years. People are now more interconnected because of more communication, sharing of different cultures, languages and in general lifestyles, but on the other hand, there is still a lot of discrimination and little collaboration.
In terms of people's living conditions, there is a huge gap between rich and poor, with 95% of the population sharing 5% of the wealth.
Finally, the European Union has allowed the movement of workers between countries, so that people can travel freely throughout the eurozone without the need to change currency, but with higher inflation and greater control by institutions.
FRANCESCA MARASSI
ReplyDeleteIn my opinion, almost all the objectives have been achieved over the years, but unfortunately there are still many things to improve.
In the social sphere, today people can travel freely within the European Union, with at most some security checks; the population is more in social, cultural, linguistic and economic contact thanks to the increase in communication with the methods that allow it.
However, there is still the non-acceptance of what is defined as "different", that is ethnicities and sexual orientations different from what is called "normal", behavior that causes a lot of violence, denigration and problems even in finding a job.
In fact, in the economic sphere, also because of various crises, there is no adequate economic stability in a good percentage of the population.
On the contrary, however, there has been an improvement achieved thanks to the institutions that work to help countries in difficulty.
Furthermore, trade has increased as it has been favored by the single common currency and the abolition of trade barriers, which is one of the objectives achieved that have improved the ability to travel and trade abroad.
In conclusion, in my opinion, the European Union still has many things to improve, both in the social field and in the political-economic field.
I believe it will not be easy, but with some help from society and the Union itself, we can achieve the stability we are fighting for.
Alice T.
ReplyDeleteIn my personal opinion, many of these objectives have been achieved, more clearly or less. It isn’t easy to improve all countries in the same way because each of them has had a different history, has different beliefs and maybe they are developed in areas that are undervalued in other countries.
About “the foundation of an increasingly closer union among the peoples of Europe”, is one of the most difficult goals to achieve. Unfortunately, even within individual countries it is possible to see a social division according to social class, religion and origin. It is difficult to create a united Europe if the population within individual states is not.
Related to “the improvement of their working and living conditions”, the EU has created a fund, called EuroFound, that has the aim of searching for the situation of bad lives and it wants to work on them and help people. From the point of view of work, too, Europe is trying to take action to improve working conditions and to reduce the risks of accidents and illnesses caused by work itself.
To talk about the third objective, that is “the economic and social progress of their countries”, there are some European standards approved by Parliament regulating social policy. The main aims concern the rights of European workers abroad, the problem of unemployment and low birth rates, living and working conditions, gender equality, and many others. So Europe is acting successfully in the social policy of each country.
The last one is “the progressive abolition of all barriers and restrictions on trade” and, in my opinion, is one of the most successful objectives of the EU. In fact, there is the possibility to move freely without a passport from one state to another and can move people, goods, capital, information, etc.
In conclusion, Europe can improve the ways of action to develop these objectives. EU can become very strong and compete with the markets of other world powers. In addition, especially thanks to the ongoing pandemic, states were able to help other member states if they needed medical equipment or treatment.
Sofia
ReplyDeleteIn my opinion a good part of the European Union’s objectives have been achieved, even if there are different levels of achievement between them. For example, economic progress is evident, thanks also to which we can move freely within the European Union without controls or restrictions of any kind. However, if we consider social progress, there are still many things to improve to avoid any kind of discrimination. It is therefore important to continue to improve good stability in relations between all citizens of the member countries in order to live a better life.
Chiara R.
ReplyDeleteI think that all the objective have been achieved. Maybe not all of them are perfect but the states are working on that.
First of all the objective of economic and social progress is better than in the past, in particular if we think about the situation in Italy in the last decades.
Second of all I think that the abolition of the barriers and restriction on trade is fully achieved. In particular in Europe we don't have any barriers on trade.
Third of all the objective of working and living condition is not fully achieved but is certainly better than in the past. It's one of the objectives that we have to work on more, in my opinion.
In conclusion I think that we have achieved all the objectives but on some of the we have to work more.