Which Countries are in the European Union in 2020, Which Aren’t, and Which Want to Join?

map-of-european-union-countries-2020-post-brexit

“The UK has finally officially left the European Union (EU), almost four years after its famous ‘Brexit’ vote, and taken the British territory of Gibraltar out with it. Here’s our updated map and list of which countries are in the EU, which ones are trying to join, and which European countries are in neither group.” SOURCE: POLGEONOW

Today I’m teaching the my first class on “the Geography of Europe” since the UK has officially withdrawn from the European Union. As I went looking for any updated map of the EU, I found this excellent article along with the map and thought it was worth sharing. Since Brexit has finally been formalized, these snarky tweets were fun:

My Irish passport is so technologically advanced it allows me to live, work and study in 27 other countries 🤭 https://t.co/1y81wDIx3o

— Neil (@BurpleMan) February 22, 2020

Absolutely disgusting service at Schiphol airport. 55 minutes we have been stood in the immigration queue. This isn’t the Brexit I voted for. pic.twitter.com/QcSne9d4qW

— Colin Browning (@ColinBrowning14) February 13, 2020

GeoEd Tags: Europe, supranationalism, UK, European Union.

February 27, 2020 0

Song: European Union

“Germany and France spent decades at each others’ throats. Now, bound by a common currency, they’re working together to save the euro zone. It’s a story that’s begging for a musical number — which, as it happens, we have right here.”

Seth Dixon, Ph.D.‘s insight:

This playful song dramatizes the current E.U. financial crisis. This humourous highlights what the E.U. was designed to be, and showing the advantages and disadvantages of enhanced regional cooperation. This is certainly worth a listen.

Tags: Europe, supranationalism, currency, economic.

See on www.npr.org

April 10, 2013 0

Britain’s Prime Minister Theresa May Triggers Article 50, Making ‘Brexit’ Official

The United Kingdom has officially kicked off the process of ‘Brexit,’ almost nine months to the date after the country’s momentous vote to leave the European Union.

Tags: Europe, UK, supranationalism, globalization, economic, political, images.

Source: www.youtube.com

March 29, 2017 0

Turkey’s ‘bumpy ride’ into the EU?

“As the UK prepares for what looks like a slow and painful divorce from the European Union, the people of Turkey are wondering how their relationship with Europe will now develop.

The government in Ankara has been seeking to strengthen its case to join the EU, but as Europe grapples with Brexit – is the Turkey’s membership closer or further away?”

Source: www.bbc.com

This video show some of the recent shifts in the always important, often rocky Turkey/EU relationship. Economically, Turkey has consistently sought greater ties with Europe for the past few decades and Europe keeps Turkey at arms length. Turkey has applied to join the EU, but that is not going to happen without some massive social restructuring that would take years.

Tags: Europe, Turkey, supranationalism, economic, refugees, political, video.

September 9, 2016 0

More young adults are living with their parents

Across much of the developed world, researchers have found that more young adults are living at their parents’ home for longer periods of time.

Across the European Union’s 28 member nations, nearly half (48.1%) of 18- to 34-year-olds were living with their parents in 2014, according to the EU statistical agency Eurostat. The Scandinavian countries have the lowest rates, with Denmark coming in at 18.6%. Southern and eastern European countries tend to have higher rates, led by the former Yugoslav republic of Macedonia: 72.5% of 18- to 34-year-olds reportedly were living with their parents.

Source: www.pewresearch.org

This isn’t news because this trend gradually became a new part of the economic and cultural norms of the developed world–but the impact is enormous. In the United States, more young adults live with parents than partners (for the first time in the 130 years that the statistic has been collected). The world isn’t what it was in 1880.

32.1% of young adults in the U.S live with parents, and 48.1% of young adults in the European Union Union live with parents.

Questions to Ponder: What are some contributing factors to this trend in the United States and Europe? What does this say about housing costs, economic, and cultural conditions?

Tags: socioeconomic, housing, statistics, population, cultural norms, culture.

August 7, 2016 0

London Should Secede From the United Kingdom

Beyond the stunning act that has become Britain’s vote to leave the European Union lies a deeper message: Democracy is not destiny, but devolution. Ceaseless entropy — the second law of thermodynamics — applies to politics as well. The more countries democratize, the more local populations seek greater self-rule.

Source: foreignpolicy.com

In his book Connectography by Parag Khanna, he argues that connectivity and networks are more important today. Using those ideas, Khanna discusses London’s options after the recent Brexit vote in this op-ed.

Tags: London, op-ed, political, globalization, urban, devolution, autonomy, economic.

June 29, 2016 0

In stunning decision, Britain votes to leave the E.U.

The country opted to become the first ever to leave the 28-member bloc in a result that will send economic and political shockwaves across the globe.

Source: www.washingtonpost.com

The foundations of the European Union have their historical roots in World War II. To ensure that European countries stop attacking each other, they knit their economies together and cooperated more on political and economic policies.

The UK has narrowly voted to leave the European Union (52%-48%). The Brexit (Britain + Exit) was expected to be close, but shows discontent with London. The ‘Remain’ campaign dominated in London, Scotland and Northern Ireland while the ‘Leave’ campaign found its strength across England and Wales (see maps).

The fallout of this vote is big and far-reaching. The first global reaction was financial panic as numerous stock exchanges plummeted. UK Prime Minister David Cameron will resign. Already Spain is calling for joint control of Gibraltar (which they’ve wanted anyway) and using this as an opportunity to advance a Spanish agenda. Many in Scotland chose to stay in the UK in part because they wanted Scotland to remain in the EU. Another referendum on Scottish Independence feels eminent at this point.

Still confused? Here are answers to 9 frequently asked questions about the Brexit as well as a good overview from the Washington Post.

Tags: Europe, supranationalism, economic, political.

June 24, 2016 0

For First Time In 130 Years, More Young Adults Live With Parents Than With Partners

“For the first time in more than 130 years, Americans ages 18-34 are more likely to live with their parents than in any other living situation, according to a new analysis by the Pew Research Center. Less educated young adults are also more likely to live with their parents than are their college-educated counterparts — no surprise, Pew notes, given the financial prospects in today’s economy. Black and Hispanic young people, compared with white people, are in the same situation. But the overall trend is the same for every demographic group — living with parents is increasingly common. Still, young Americans are still less likely to live with their parents than their European counterparts, Pew says.

Source: www.npr.org

I find that the best statistics have great explanatory power, make sense when placed in the right context, and STILL manage to leave you amazed. These stats fit that bill for me and as the school year is ending, it’s a milestone that doesn’t mean what it did for generations past. 32.1% of young adults in the U.S live with parents, and 48.1% of young adults in the European Union Union live with parents.

Questions to Ponder: What are some contributing factors to this trend in the United States and Europe? What does this say about housing costs, economic, and cultural conditions?

Tags: socioeconomic, housing, statistics, population, cultural norms, culture.

May 26, 2016 0

Agriculture and Politics in the Netherlands

*Dutch Farmers protesting in 2022*, Source: DW

I was surprised to learn that the 2nd leading agricultural exporter in the world is the small country of the Netherlands. The Netherlands! Roughly the size of the state of Maryland today, the Netherlands has a rich tradition of technologically expanding their land into the sea to boost agricultural productivity (17% of the country today is on reclaimed land). The Netherlands exports many agricultural products mainly to other EU countries and are the global leader in the floral industry.

*Netherlands Agricultural Exports*, SOURCE: OEC

One of the keys to the economic productivity of the agricultural sector is the intensive nature of the production; they add technological inputs that expand the economic efficiency and productivity of the land, including artificial fertilizers and pesticides. As a part of the European Union provides enormous economic benefits, and those benefits come with the costs associated with being a member of a supranational organization. The EU has target goals to reduce nitrogen emissions among other environmental, regulatory goals.

During the pandemic, the Netherlands government led by PM Rutte’s party, passed some laws to limit nitrogen emissions to advance the environmental aims of the EU. Large-scale protests began with farmer’s arguing that the country’s government was listening more to international organizations than protecting the interests of their citizens. They started the BBB party just a few years ago to combat these policies since they see these quick changes to farmer’s access to artificial fertilizer because of these regulatory policies will “obliterate their livelihoods.” Now that party is a force. Agriculture, economics, politics, and environmental are all intertwined in this complex geographic issue.

March 29, 2023 0

Brexit: Reaction and the Aftermath

The reactions to the Brexit have come in from all corners. Since this was so shocking, newspapers articles that are insightful are using hyperbole in their titles to get our attention (Britain just killed globalization as we know it–Washington Post; Will Brexit mark the end of the age of globalization?–LA Times). There have also been some excellent political cartoons and memes, so I wanted to archive a few of them here.

Brexit-Mystery Box