Polls show this: in Ireland, more than 70% of the population say they are deeply attached to the EU. An even higher figure among Irish youth.
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The Irish are an immigrant people. Legend has it that there are ten times as many outside their borders. The reality is that for Ireland's seven million inhabitants, there are a million and a half foreign residents. It's already too big.
The island has historically been full of travelers, and Leo Galvin, a high school student from Dublin, intends to continue the tradition by studying in Europe. “It's not even a question for me, He says. I'll always be Irish, but because of this European community, I'll always be fine anywhere in Europe.
A French mother, an Irish father. Leo, like many here, grew up with connections abroad. Links he wants to maintain and develop. For him, the European Union is a godsend. “To be Irish is to connect with another, to belong to a community, Leo explains. Here we grew up with this idea.
“We are everywhere in Europe because we have to be.”
Leo Galvin, Dublin High School studentFrancefoil
“It's fun. We love the European idea because it's a community outside of Ireland, you can see the differences and find everything to do.”Student says.
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Jamie, a second-year student at Dublin City University, shares this view of Europe. This green activist wants more Europe: “I am in favor of the idea of a 'European Union'. Freedom of movement, single currency, free trade agreements, they are all very effective. We are lucky to benefit from it as a small state on an island. But in Europe we have to exploit these assets better and get more from them. I think we can.
But this love is not unconditional: Jamie wants a Europe that is more active on the environmental front, specifically to regulate and tax the most polluting companies. If the EU fails to meet its targets for reducing carbon emissions, it could change its mind on this continental ideal.
Young Irish people and the European ideal: Richard Place's report
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