Carolina Paulesu was an Italian 2023-2024 Fulbright Schuman Visiting Student Researcher in Law at Yale University. She is a PhD Researcher in Law at the European University Institute. She holds a Master’s Degree in Law from the University of Milan (J.D. equivalent), obtained summa cum laude, a Master of Laws from the London School of Economics and Political Science, and a Master of Laws from the European University Institute.
Q: “Can you briefly describe your grant project?”
I went to Yale Law School to work on my PhD thesis project. My research project concerns the justice implication of private law’s regulation of consumption: put differently, it looks at how the way in which the law regulates consumption of goods contributes to injustices such as the exploitation of workers and the environmental damages caused by waste. Considering the EU and the US is essential for a project like mine, which also reflects on the responsibilities that the Global North in particular has in this regard. At Yale Law School, I expanded on the parts of my thesis which dealt with private law theory and Law and Political Economy. To enrich the writing phase, I also attended classes on topics related to my research, reading groups, and workshops.
Q: “In what way is your specific field of research relevant to the transatlantic relationship?”
My research deals with the justice implications of consumption and how the Global North, and in particular the European Union, regulates it through private law. In my view, the US and the EU have a responsibility towards regulating consumption in a way that does not unjustly affect the rest of the world and they shall do so in collaboration.
Q: “Has the United States been what you expected? In what ways has life in the USA surprised you, either for its similarities to or differences from your own culture?”
Life in the US has been frankly surprising: although there were many personal similarities with US researchers, due to our similar profession, our lives until then had differed greatly. It was very interesting to hear how they moved across the country a lot for their studies, and how that impacted their relationship with their family and their feelings towards the future.
As for practical differences, although this may seem trivial, the relationship to food is what I found most surprising: I am not referring only to the type of food, but in particular to how hard it is for people without a car to get to a supermarket. In general, I found the car-reliance quite problematic, from a social point of view. It impacted a lot the way spaces are created and lived in.
Q: “What misconceptions do you think other Europeans have about the USA? What do you know now about the USA that you wish everyone knew?”
This might be a sensitive topic, but I believe at times we might not understand how big of a country the USA is and how costly it is for people to move around, especially outside of the country. Traveling and learning about other countries and cultures is a privilege not everyone might have had in their lives. If sometimes it seems that people in the US do not know anything about your country, don’t be offended but take that chance to chat about it. Many beautiful conversations start like this.
Q: “As a Fulbright Schuman grantee, you have been a cultural ambassador not just for your home country but for the entirety of the European Union. Has this experience changed what it means to be “European” for you?”
Being a Fulbright Schuman grantee has strengthened significantly my feeling of belonging to Europe and to the European Union. Partly, this feeling was born in opposition: I often perceived differences with the US (good and bad) which other Europeans were experiencing as well. Being European now also thus means feeling supported and understood by others who are not Italian. Most importantly, though, as Europeans we have collectively reflected on the way we were raised to think about the world: we had intense conversations with friends and colleagues who came from other continents on Eurocentrism. These conversations fostered essential self-reflection. Overall, during my Fulbright time, I have felt a very beautiful sense of belonging to a global community.
Articles are written by Fulbright grantees and do not reflect the opinions of the Fulbright Commission, the grantees’ host institutions, or the U.S. Department of State.