Emma Wiesner MEP, from ALDE Party member Centerpartiet in Sweden, started her career at the European Parliament earlier this month. With a background in energy engineering, Wiesner is excited to combine her knowledge related to climate change and energy issues with her passion for politics in this new role.

“I studied math and physics so I chose to become an engineer, worked with the industry and then I got the opportunity to run for the European Parliament election where I could then combine that with my interest in politics,” Wiesner recounts her story in the new episode of US video series.

At just 28, Wiesner is Sweden’s youngest MEP and has a clear message for those who doubt her skills because of her young age:

“Politics is about democracy and democracy is about reflecting the population. […] Me being young and female, it is only a sign that democracy works.”

Climate change and sustainability are topics close to Wiesner’s heart. According to her, the effective management of the climate crisis at European level requires matching policies with the ambitions.

“73% of Europe’s energy is still fossil. That means that all the climate and energy files, the environmental files will be renegotiated in the coming one to two years and it would be a lot of work to make sure that those go hand in hand with the ambitions that we have and that those policies are effective and efficient.”

“The COVID-19 crisis has definitely shown us as a society how vulnerable we are. […] The Green Deal is really the ultimate way of getting there. For me personally, it also means tons of work, there is a lot to dig deep into. Tackling climate change via tackling energy and energy systems is what I can contribute to be most efficient in making us more prepared for the future,” Wiesner concludes.

You can find this new episode as well as the previous episodes on our Youtube channel – don’t forget to subscribe to be notified of all upcoming episodes in the series!

Stay tuned for more updates by following us on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.