09 February 2017: Maastricht Monnet Lecture by European Ombudsman Emily O'Reilly

CERiM is highly honoured to welcome European Ombudsman Emily O'Reilly as a guest speaker in its on-going Maastricht Monnet Lecture series. With a lecture entitled: ''Will the EU survive another 25 years?" it is bound to be an animated evening.

O'Reilly, assumed office in October 2013 as the European Ombudsman in Brussels. As a journalist and broadcaster, she became Ireland's first female Ombudsman and Information Commissioner in 2003 and was subsequently appointed Commissioner for Environmental Information in 2007.

As a former political editor, current member of the International Advisory Board of Harvard's Nieman Foundation for Journalism and author of three critically acclaimed books, her work has focused on Irish politics and media as well as issues of human rights. Serving her second mandate as the Ombudsman, she has led own initiatives on the negotiations of the Transatlantic Trade and Invesment Partnership (TTIP) and pried into the closed-door talks also known as 'trilogues', calling on the European Parliament, the Council of the EU and the European Commission to increase the transparency of law-making in the EU by publishing key documents related to informal negotiations. Her year-long inquiry has led her to conclude that it is particularly the times of uncertainty for the European Union that make it indispensable for "us all to reflect on how we can better engage with citizens throughout the Union".

The event will take place on Thursday, 09th February 2017, 18.30-20.00 at the Aula, Minderbroedersberg 4-6, Maastricht. Attendance is once again, free and open to all but registration is requested through this form.