---

• What is the Euro Challenge?
• The Competition Task
• Prizes
• Euro Challenge Goals
• Eligibility Requirements
• Partners
• Participating in the Euro Challenge
• Register to Participate

What is the Euro Challenge?

The Euro Challenge is an exciting educational opportunity for high school students to learn about the European Union (EU) and the euro. Student teams of three to five students are asked to make presentations answering specific questions about the European economy and the single currency, the euro. They are also asked to pick one member country of the "euro area" (the 16 EU member countries that have adopted the euro so far or Estonia, which is scheduled to join the eurozone in 2011), to examine an economic problem at the country level, and to identify policies for responding to that problem.

In 2010, its fifth year, the Euro Challenge will continue to expand nationally, with up to 100 teams from various regions in the United States competing for cash awards made possible by The Moody's Foundation.

The Euro Challenge is a program launched and supported by the Delegation of the European Union to the United States in Washington, D.C., with the technical support of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York. Other partner organizations include The Moody's Foundation, Credit Suisse, the University of North Carolina, the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Indiana University, the University of Wisconsin-Madison, Florida International University, the University of Michigan, the University of Pittsburgh, the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston, and the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago.

---

The Competition Task

The Euro Challenge competition for high school students tests their knowledge and understanding of the European economy and the euro, the currency shared by many of the 27 countries of the European Union (EU). For the 2010 Euro Challenge competition, which will take place in the spring of 2010, student teams are asked to make 15-minute presentations in which they must:

1. Describe the current economic situation in the euro area (the economic region consisting of the 16 EU member countries who have adopted the euro, plus Estonia).
2. Select one economic-related challenge confronting the euro area as a whole (see list below), and pick one of the 16 member countries of the euro area or Estonia to illustrate that challenge.
3. Recommend a policy or policies for addressing the challenge you identified in the country you selected. Be sure to include in your recommendation a discussion of how having a single currency may or may not affect the policy choices for addressing the challenge.

Teams can choose one of the following economic-related challenges:

• Slow growth
• High unemployment
• Inflation
• Adapting to technological change (raising productivity)
• Globalization (including immigration)
• Aging (including health care)
• Living with a single monetary policy
• Sustaining the social system (welfare state)
• Coping with a housing market slowdown
• High government deficits and debt

Presentations are followed by 10 minutes of questioning by a panel of judges who are educators or experts in European economic affairs.

Schools selected to participate in the Euro Challenge will be provided with professional development, information resources, and coaching to provide guidance and assistance.

---

Prizes

In 2010, the top five winning teams received cash prizes provided by The Moody's Foundation. The awards were $1,250 for each member of the first-place team, $1,000 each for second place, $750 each for third place, $500 each for fourth place, and $250 each for fifth place. We anticipate similar prize levels for 2011.

---

Euro Challenge Goals

• Increase students' knowledge and understanding of the European Union and the euro
• Promote an understanding of economic challenges facing European Union member states
• Support local learning standards related to global studies and economics
• Foster economic and financial literacy and understanding of economic policy issues
• Develop communication, critical thinking and cooperative skills.

---

Eligibility Requirements

• High schools located in regions coordinated by partner institutions (i.e., participating Federal Reserve banks or European Union Centers of Excellence at several US universities). Emphasis is put on the participation of public high schools.
• The participation of one team, consisting of three to five 9th and 10th grade students in global studies, economics, world history/geography or European studies classes.
• One faculty advisor for the school team. Advisors will be invited to attend a teacher orientation seminar, and are required to attend the Euro Challenge competition rounds with their student team.

(Eligibility requirements are subject to change.)

---

Partners

The Delegation of the European Union in Washington, D.C., is pleased to support the Euro Challenge, an innovative academic competition to encourage American students to learn more about the European Union and its single currency, the Euro (€).

The EU's origins are found in post-World War II efforts to prevent European conflict by binding the continent's economies closely together. The six-member European Coal and Steel Community of the 1950s has grown into today's 27-strong EU — with a population of over 450 million, an economy slightly larger than that of the United States, and, since 1999, a common currency for 16 of its member states, soon to be 17 with Estonia. Within the EU's "internal market," trade and workers flow freely, while the Schengen Agreement allows borderless travel within many EU countries.

The European Union and the United States are the most important of partners. We provide global leadership on issues ranging from trade, financial and regulatory matters to human rights, security, and defense. We are by far each other's most important trading partners and have the world's largest economic relationship. The EU and the U.S. share important values such as support for democratic institutions and human rights.

The Delegation of the European Union's website contains information about the European Union and its relationship with the United States. It also features resources for secondary teachers.

The Moody's Foundation is proud to support the Euro Challenge by providing scholarships to the winning teams. A primary goal of The Moody's Foundation is to support programs that address the improvement of education in mathematics for grades K through 12 and to increase the basic understanding of economics and the financial markets for students in secondary schools, colleges and universities. Since its inception in 2001, The Moody's Foundation has provided over $17 million in funding for educational programs including scholarships for the winning teams of the College Fed Challenge, co-sponsored with the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, and the Moody's Mega Math Challenge (M3 Challenge), an applied mathematics competition coordinated by the Society of Industrial and Applied Mathematics (SIAM).

The Moody's Foundation is a charitable foundation established by Moody's Corporation (NYSE: MCO), the parent company of Moody's Investors Service, which provides credit ratings and research covering debt instruments and securities and Moody's Analytics, encompassing the growing array of Moody's non-ratings businesses including Moody's KMV, a provider of quantitative credit analysis tools, Moody's Economy.com, which provides economic research and data services, and Moody's Wall Street Analytics, a provider of software for structured finance analytics. The corporation, which reported revenue of $2.3 billion in 2007, employs approximately 3,600 people worldwide and maintains a presence in 29 countries. Further information is available at www.philanthropy.moodys.com.

Credit Suisse lends its support to social, charitable and cultural projects and institutions around the world - focusing primarily on the areas in which it operates as a business. The bank's involvement goes beyond financial donations and material contributions; Credit Suisse also encourages its employees to volunteer their services to support philanthropic projects.

As one of the world's leading banks, Credit Suisse provides its clients with investment banking, private banking and asset management services worldwide. Credit Suisse offers advisory services, comprehensive solutions and innovative products to companies, institutional clients and high-net-worth private clients globally, as well as retail clients in Switzerland. Credit Suisse is active in over 50 countries and employs approximately 45,000 people. Credit Suisse's parent company, Credit Suisse Group, is a leading global financial services company headquartered in Zurich. Credit Suisse Group's registered shares (CSGN) are listed in Switzerland and, in the form of American Depositary Shares (CS), in New York.

---

Participating in Euro Challenge

High schools may register to participate if they are willing to travel to one of the regional hosts for the Euro Challenge competition events. The cities/regions with regional hosts include:

1. New York Metropolitan Region (New York, New Jersey and Connecticut) -- hosted by Credit Suisse and the Federal Reserve Bank of New York
2. Miami Region (Florida) -- hosted by the Florida International University
3. Boston Region (Massachusetts) -- hosted by the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston
4. Illinois/Indiana/Wisconsin Region -- hosted by the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago, Indiana University, the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, and the University of Wisconsin-Madison
5. Raleigh/Durham/Chapel Hill Region (North Carolina) -- hosted by the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
6. Pittsburgh Region (Pennsylvania) -- hosted by the University of Pittsburgh
7. Detroit/Ann Arbor Region (Michigan) -- hosted by the University of Michigan

---

Register to Participate

You can register online in the registration section. For questions about registration please contact Eric Katzman at 212-421-2700 or ekatzman@wise-ny.org.