Vox Pop: Andrea from Germany

1’

Uwe Fromm

29 September 2020

1’

Andrea from Germany

Age: 53
Country of origin: Germany
Country of residence: Germany
Profession: Administrative officer

Q: How does the EU influence your day-to-day life?

A: The European Union makes my everyday life easier. I have, for example, access to a wider range of products when I am shopping and I don’t have to pay extra, as there are no customs duty when I am ordering products from other EU countries or when I am bringing things back home with me when traveling.

Q: When you think about the EU, what is the first picture that comes to your mind?

A: To me, the first picture that comes to my mind is the ‘borderless’ Europe, where I can go from one county to another. This comes in handy when I am traveling to France, which I like to do a lot.

Q: End the sentence: “Twenty years from now the EU … “

A: …could be smaller, if the member states ignore the problems the citizens have in their respective country and only take an interest in exercising power. (e.g. Corona procedure)

Q: Choose three adjectives for the EU!

A: Useful, cumbersome, powerless.

Q: Explain the EU to an 8-year-old child (in elementary school) in one sentence.

A: The people of many European countries come together as a group and exchange things from their country, which makes the group happy and makes all of their lives easier.

Q: If the EU was an animal, what would it be and why?

A: To me it would be a dragon because a dragon does not belong to any country. It is, however, powerful, stands up for good, and is strong enough to fly over “borders” and to ‘hiss’ without fear in individual countries.

Q: Is there a dish (in your country) that describes Europe best, and why?

A: Even though not originally a dish of my country but nowadays definitely a German favorite, I would say Pizza, because it is so varied and everybody will find their favorite version and taste.

Uwe Fromm

Uwe Fromm is a Junior Researcher at the Institute for Comparative Federalism at Eurac Research. Holding a B.A. in Public Management from Kehl University of Applied Sciences (Germany) and a M.Sc. in Political Science (European Studies) from the University of Gothenburg (Sweden), Uwe joined Eurac Research in 2023. His research interests comprise the interaction of different political levels in decision-making, integration and implementation processes, both within domestic and international spheres, especially from (quasi) federal system and multilevel perspectives with a special interest in feminist and gender questions. To unwind, he likes to cook and bake, enjoying both the process and the results.