The Surprise Guest

Every month in our column The Surprise Guest we introduce a public figure whose work and commitment are seen by others as a source of inspiration.

In January, our surprise guests are Maria Demertzis, deputy director of the European think-tank Bruegel, which specialises in economics, established in Brussels in 2005, and Jean-Dominique Giuliani, president of the Robert Schuman Foundation in Paris. The foundation, created in 1991 after the fall of the Berlin Wall, works towards European integration. They described the issues and challenges the French Presidency of the Council of the EU is facing at a pivotal moment in Europe's development.

Maria Demertzis is the deputy director of Bruegel. She has previously worked at the European Commission and the research department of the Dutch central bank. She has also held academic positions at the Harvard Kennedy School of Government in the United States and the University of Strathclyde in the United Kingdom, where she earned a doctorate in economics. She has published many articles in international academic journals and contributed regularly to the development of policies at the European Commission and the Dutch central bank.

Jean-Dominique Giuliani has been head of the Robert Schuman Foundation in Paris since 2000. A former special adviser to the European Commission, he was also Associate Councillor of the Council of State, head of staff of the cabinet of the President of the Senate René Monory (1992-1998), general director of the Taylor Nelson Sofres Group (1998-2001) and president of the Institut libre d'étude des relations internationales (ILERI) (2019-2021). Founder of J-DG.com – International Consultants, he is also a member of the supervisory board of ARTE France. He is the author of numerous works on the European Union, including La grande bascule – Le XXI^e siècle européen (2019) and co-wrote The Permanent Atlas of the European Union (2021). He is an editorial writer and regular contributor to various media outlets, and his expertise leads him to speak frequently in France and abroad on European issues, in which he is considered to be one of the best specialists. (ehp)