Giovanni Collot, Communications Manager at UNITEE and Editor in Chief of The New European magazine, was selected to participate from the 2nd until to the 5th of June in the Emerging Leaders’ Forum (ELF) in Sydney, Australia. The project, financed by the European Commission and by the Australian government, has brought together young and energetic professionals, MPs, academics and policy makers from both Australia and Europe to engage in discussions around the future of the EU-Australia relationship.

At the end of the four-days Forum, the Emerging Leaders have presented their proposals on a series of issues of potential cooperation between the EU and Australia, ranging from migration to foreign affairs up to research and innovation, to the Senior Leaders, among whom Her Excellency Julie Bishop, Australia’s Foreign Minister. Particular relevance was given to trade, the role of business in fostering the bilateral relationship, and the democratic values shared by the countries.

The Emerging Leader’s Forum is part of the EU-Australia Leadership Forum (EUALF), a unique project in the EU’s suite of public diplomacy actions which demonstrates a shared commitment to the already strong bilateral relationship. The Forum was launched in September 2016, during an official meeting in Brussels between Federica Mogherini, the EU’s High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, and Julie Bishop, Australia’s Minister of Foreign Affairs. The Forum’s overall objective is to broaden and deepen the existing ties and in so doing, help shape the vision for the partnership, based on the future EU-Australia Framework Agreement and forthcoming EU-Australia Free Trade Agreement.