Interview with JEF Europe’s Executive Board Member Kati Systä

, by Dvir Aviam Ezra, Kati Systä

Interview with JEF Europe's Executive Board Member Kati Systä
Courtesy of Kati Systä

This interview is the first article in the new TNF series “Meet the EB Member”, which aims to bring to our readers the perspectives of JEF Europe’s leadership and their thoughts on the movement, federalism, and Europe. We thank the members for their participation!

Please tell us about yourself. How did you get to join JEF and what did your path to the executive board look like?

I ended up joining the local section in Turku (Finland) in 2017 to join the legendary Castle Seminar of JEF Finland as a friend of mine was going and asked me to join - here is an easy tip for member recruitment: bring a friend along and encourage your members to do the same. You can also make it a competition. Studying international law and interested in the EU and international affairs, I was for example a good target.

This path took me later to multiple JEF-trips: first to a seminar in Istanbul and later e.g. to the bus tour across Europe during the European Elections 2019 campaign #IChooseEurope. In 2020 I was in the national board in Finland and 2021-2023 in the Federal Committee as a directly elected member and co-chair of Taskforce Empowerment and Diversity. I still wanted to do more in JEF which got me to run for the EB in 2023.

What is your role in the EB?

I coordinate our communications and work on policies related to inclusion, equality, youth and the USA. I also work on the update of JEF’s four-year strategy.

And what would you say is the most interesting or meaningful thing you have accomplished or done so far?

I think it is the day to day work, meeting with and talking to JEFers from different backgrounds, and thinking about how we could communicate our positions more impactfully - so how our communication can be a more effective tool in our advocacy. This is of course not something that is done overnight but a continuous process.

What would be one thing that you think JEF has successfully accomplished and another which you think still requires more work and improvement?

I see us as a widespread and growing network of youth who want to work for a common goal: a better and federal Europe as a guarantee of peace. As a youth organisation, our purpose is to of course advocate for our positions, create even wider networks and be a place where our members can learn to become more impactful activists. I think this balancing between our policy work and capacity building is something that we will have to continue balancing in the future - same as balancing between different political opinions.

What do you think should be the priorities of JEF Europe for the next few years, and why? 1. More JEFers - the more we are, the louder we are 2. Having a clear and shared long-term strategy for political advocacy and a clearly defined pathway to the federal Europe we want (of course allowing for disagreements on the details) 3. Get the process for treaty reform started

How do you see the position of Europe today? What do you see as our greatest challenges and potential opportunities? (Might also just be more interesting to ask about Europe’s situation and what the important priorities should be going forward than about federal structures altogether?)

We are falling to the sidelines of the world. In the big picture, the entire rules-based world order, democracy and human rights are under threat also from the side of those who we expect to be the defenders of the free world.We are seeing that while we internally are still discussing about a couple of millions here and there in the EU budget, and how these can make a difference, new global alliances are being formed - some of them aiming at breaking the EU apart.

This time shows us more than ever that unity is needed for our values to remain preserved - and that we need an EU capable to act with power in foreign and security-related questions. From a Finnish perspective, the EU has always been also a security union and a clear stand for us to be part of the free world. The aim is not to control any other part of the world but keep a space for democracy alive and protect human rights so that life can be as good as possible everywhere despite the crises we are facing.

Now we as a union have an opportunity to reform, and if this is done right, be a voice of reason standing up for human rights and democracy in the world which tech billionaires and autocrats want to turn to their playing field. We are risking more democracies disappearing from the world map. No European country can stand alone against these developments and remain the place it is.

I believe that value-based approaches to politics are more important than ever in a time where many arguments focus on what is “realistic”. We must remember that there is no ideology-free realism in politics as the world is not black and white. There are only political ideologies who want to present themselves as such and then they turn to make emotions-based arguments. The EU can be strong, ideologically and values-wise solid, and a good partner on a global scale. We just need to give it tools to be that actor through reform.

Is there any book, podcast or movie you would recommend which would interest our readers?

Not a specific one but listening to news or politics podcasts from different parts of the world can be interesting. We often hear North-American takes but e.g. Australian perspectives on European issues can sometimes be enlightening. Of course check who is publishing and creating the content, and take what they say with some caution. I do not commit to one but like to try different ones and scroll through them on Spotify sometimes. Otherwise I would absolutely also recommend balancing this with more light-hearted stuff. A Disney classic? Count me in and yes, I will go see the new live-action Bambi even if the critics don’t like it.

Anything you would like to add?

Thank you and I hope the new year is treating you well! <3 See you very soon in Sofia for the Federal Committee and I hope to see many of you participate in the Democracy under Pressure campaign before that.

Thank you for the interview!

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