Has the European Experiment Failed?

- Lord Peter Mandelson, Daniel Cohn-Bendit, Joseph Joffe and Niall Ferguson convene in Toronto, Canada to debate the future Europe -

TORONTO, May 7, 2012 /CNW/ - In a clear sign that the European debt crisis remains a preoccupation for Canadians, the 2,700 tickets to the semiannual Munk Debate, to be held in Toronto on Friday, May 25^th, sold out in under 48 hours.

This must see Munk Debate will convene four big European thinkers to tackle the motion: be it resolved, the European experiment has failed.

Arguing for the resolution will be Niall Ferguson, renowned economic historian, internationally-acclaimed author, and a prolific commentator on contemporary economics and politics. He will be joined by Josef Joffe, publisher-editor of the German weekly Die Zeit.

Speaking against the resolution, will be Lord Peter Mandelson. A Member of the House of Lords, Mandelson is the former E.U. Commissioner for Trade. Mandelson will be joined by Daniel Cohn-Bendit, co-president of the Greens/Free European Alliance Group in the European Parliament.

Rudyard Griffiths, director and moderator of the Munk Debates, comments: "Europe's ability to reform itself and survive this crisis is the big geopolitical 'known unknown' of our time. It effects everything from the future of the global economy to how countries around the world, including Canada, think about the risks and rewards of economic austerity versus stimulus."

The Munk Debates provide a lively and substantive forum for leading thinkers to discuss the pressing issues of our time. Two debates are held each year in Toronto, one in the spring and one in the fall.  Previous Munk Debate participants include former British Prime Minister Tony Blair, Henry Kissinger, Christopher Hitchens, Paul Krugman, Lawrence Summers, and CNN's Fareed Zakaria.

The Munk Debates is a signature initiative of the Aurea Foundation, founded in 2006 by Peter and Melanie Munk to support Canadian institutions involved in the study and development of public policy.

While tickets for the Munk Debate on Europe are sold out, a free live Internet stream of the entire debate proceedings will be available. Those interested in signing up for the live webcast can visit www.munkdebates.com.

Media inquiries should be directed to:

Sherry Naylor
[email protected]
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