Shortly after I arrived in Luxembourg City, the seminar commenced with a trip to the US embassy to Luxembourg for an opening reception, where Fulbrighters, embassy employees, and guests enjoyed a chance to converse over some light drinks and snacks. When we convened the next day, we were treated to a rich debate––largely in Italian, translated live through our earpieces––on the topic of unfair terms in consumer contracts at the ECJ before hearing two deeply engaging lectures by EU judges, including the president of the court. The following day in Brussels began with a visit to the European Commission (EC), where we heard from two EC employees on the commission’s innerworkings and the future of environmental policy on the continent. Later we visited the European Parliament, where we once again heard from an excellent speaker––and pestered him with unending questions––about the European Parliament’s role in the EU law-making process.

We spent our final day of the seminar at NATO headquarters taking part in interactive briefings about the organization’s agenda, US-NATO relations, and nuclear deterrence from speakers like the US chargé d'affaires and members of the departments of public diplomacy and defence. We made one last stop at the US mission to the EU to hear from US Foreign Service officers about their careers and experiences as diplomats. The speakers at these institutions helped inform my current research on how Austria’s right-wing populist party affects the execution of its neutrality by providing insight into the implications of domestic politics at the international level. I also relished the unique opportunity to meet and speak with the people who are working on the front lines of international politics.