European Student Assembly 2025
Unite! students take the lead
2025/05/27
The ESA 2025 will return to the EU Parliament from May 26 to 28, bringing together over 250 students from the European University Alliances. Eda Ceren Tuncer from TU Darmstadt was also present.
With a renewed vision and an expanded scope, this edition marks a significant milestone in youth-led participatory democratic engagement across Europe. Among the key participants are six students from the Unite! University Network for Innovation, Technology, and Engineering, who are playing a vital role in shaping the dialogue on Europe’s future. Their involvement underscores Unite!’s strong commitment to merging technical expertise with civic engagement and intercultural collaboration.
Unite! Students: driving innovation and influencing policy
ESA 2025 stands out for its introduction of new thematic clusters, increased student participation, and stronger collaboration with European Union institutions. In this dynamic environment, Unite! students bring valuable perspectives grounded in engineering, digital transformation, sustainability, and entrepreneurship—areas that are critical to Europe’s long-term development and resilience.
Unite! students participating this year include Elisabeth Gnadlinger (TU Graz), Francesco Picarelli (PoliTO), Yan Salvignol (Grenoble INP-UGA), Hamberg Niklas (Aalto), Maciej Kisielewicz (Wroclaw Tech) and Eda Ceren Tuncer (TUDa).
A platform for meaningful impact
More than just a forum for discussion, ESA 2025 is a platform for tangible action. Unite! students will engage in structured debates, develop policy proposals, and collaborate with peers from diverse countries and academic disciplines. This hands-on experience empowers them to contribute concrete recommendations that could influence future EU policies, while also fostering the development of their personal and professional skills.
Their active involvement embodies Unite!’s broader mission to support the emergence of a new generation of European citizens—individuals who are not only technically proficient but also socially conscious and civically engaged.
"Having been involved in ESA23 as part of the organising team, I’ve since supported Unite! students in ESA24 and ESA25 as a Student Liaison Officer,—and to took part in ESA24 myself along with other SLOs. ESA is a unique space and moment to meet engaged students and professionals of European University Alliances, and to reflect together on student engagement, European citizenship and the role of higher education in shaping it."
Elisa Hausherr, SLO Grenoble INP-UGA
Looking forward
As ESA 2025 aims to be its most ambitious edition yet, the involvement of Unite! students highlights a growing movement for youth-driven change in Europe. Their contributions—and the ideas they champion—go beyond conversation; they are helping to shape the future of European cooperation and democracy As during previous events, the participants will take part in initiatives to disseminate the policy recommendations of their panel discussions and make the voices of students heard at the local, national and European or international level, such as meeting with NGOs, Members of the European Parliament and representatives from the European Commission and major stakeholders event. Unite!
