2025 cycle "AI, Bias and the New Europe" has officially ended... Awardees announced on the Official page
Annual ESEO Commendations and Past Essays
The European Sociological Essay Olympiad (ESEO) proudly showcases a selection of exemplary essays from past competitions to inspire and inform current and future participants. While some of these works are available online for public reading, we emphasize that they are meant to serve as guides rather than templates—participants are encouraged to develop original analyses grounded in their own research and critical thinking. ESEO upholds strict privacy standards and respects the intellectual property of all contributors; only essays from participants who have consented to publication are shared. Awardees are recognized annually for their outstanding contributions, with distinctions including Gold (First Place), Silver (Second Place), Bronze Merits (Third Place), and Notable Mentions, reflecting the high academic standards and vibrant intellectual exchange that define the Olympiad.
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We encourage all participants to engage deeply with these essays as a source of inspiration while maintaining academic integrity and originality in their own work.
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2020-Risk, Solidarity, and Social Trust in Times of Uncertainty
“Crises reveal the moral infrastructure of societies. They expose whose lives are deemed grievable, whose suffering is visible, and whose survival matters to institutions and the public.”
— Didier Fassin, Humanitarian Reason: A Moral History of the Present, University of California Press, 2011, p. 220.
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2020 Official Essay Instructions
Participants were asked to investigate how social crises — including pandemics, economic shocks, or political unrest — reshape trust in public institutions and alter patterns of solidarity across different social groups in Europe. Essays could engage with theories of risk society, social capital, and moral economy.
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Awardees​
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Gold Merit (First Place): Pedro Silva Reis (Portugal)
Silver Merit: Simone Gandini (Italy)
Bronze Merit: Marit Muer (Belgium)🔗Read essay here
Notable Mention: Sofia Dimitrova (Bulgaria), Emilia Arud (Norway)
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2021 Theme:
Borders, Belonging, Exclusion
2022 — Nostalgia, Youth Subcultures, and Social Resistance
"Nostalgia is not merely a longing for the past; it is a political resource that can be mobilized by marginalized groups to contest precarious futures."
— Svetlana Boym, The Future of Nostalgia, Basic Books, 2001, p. xiv.
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2022 Official Essay Instructions
Participants were asked to explore how nostalgia operates as a cultural and political force within contemporary youth subcultures in Europe. Essays examined how retro aesthetics, subcultural styles, and collective memory shape identity, belonging, and social resistance in an era marked by economic instability and digital saturation.
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Awardees
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Gold Merit (First Place): Viljami Viinamäki (Finland)
Silver Merit: Luca Marinelli (Italy)
Bronze Merit: Mira Antonia Ivanova (Austria)
Notable Mention: Roan De Ryker (Belgium), Piotr Mateusz Krzanowski (Poland), Elena Cartier (France)
2019 — Digital Publics and Social Movements
“The internet is a tool for mobilization, but it is not a substitute for real-world organization.”
— Zeynep Tufekci, Twitter and Tear Gas: The Power and Fragility of Networked Protest, Yale University Press, 2017, p. 14.​
2019 Official Essay Instructions
Participants were asked to analyze how digital technologies are transforming public discourse and reshaping the nature of social movements. Essays were expected to explore the implications of digital publics on civic engagement, protest, and social hierarchy.
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Awardees
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Gold Merit (First Place): Maria Rossi (Italy) 🔗Read essay here
Silver Merit: Lukas Werner (Germany)
Bronze Merit: Clara Novak (United Kingdom)
Notable Mention: Olivier Kok (Netherlands)
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2020 Theme: Risk, Solidarity, and Social Trust in Times of Uncertainty
2021 — Borders, Belonging, and Exclusion
“Citizenship is not only a legal status but a terrain of struggle, a contested space in which meanings of inclusion and exclusion are constantly negotiated.”
— Engin F. Isin, Citizens Without Frontiers, Bloomsbury, 2012, p. 45.
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2021 Official Essay Instructions
Participants explored the sociological effects of bordering practices on migrant identities, national belonging, and social cohesion. Essays could address refugee policy, internal EU mobility, and racialized constructions of citizenship.
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Awardees​
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Gold Merit (First Place): Eirini Skandalaki (Greece),
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Silver Merit: Jonas Lindholm (Sweden), Eleni Papadimitriou (Greece)
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Bronze Merit: Matteo Di Stefano (Italy),
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Notable Mention: Elena Cartier(France)
2022 Theme: Nostalgia, Youth Subcultures, and Social Resistance
2023 — Media, Trust, and the Crisis of Public Information
"The erosion of trust in media institutions poses a profound threat to democratic societies, as citizens struggle to distinguish fact from manipulation in increasingly polarized information environments." — Claire Wardle, Information Disorder: Toward an Interdisciplinary Framework for Research and Policy, Council of Europe Report, 2018, p. 9.
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2023 Official Essay Instructions
Participants were invited to critically examine how shifting media landscapes — including social media platforms, alternative news sources, and state media — are reshaping public perceptions of truth, authority, and civic responsibility in contemporary Europe. Essays were encouraged to explore the sociological dynamics of misinformation, media fragmentation, populist narratives, and the social consequences of contested information spaces.
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Awardees
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Gold Merit (First Place): Selma Aksoy (Turkey)
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Silver Merit: Emily D’Aloja (Italy), Nikolas Giannopoulos (Greece),
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Bronze Merit: Anna Fischer (Germany), Paolo Dimitrov (Bulgaria)🔗Read essay here
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Notable Mention: Oliver Ivanic (Slovakia), Jeanne Roussel (Belgium), Anja Klein (Austria)
2023 Theme: Media, and the Crisis of Public Information
2024 — Climate Anxiety, Inequality, and Social Action
"The unequal distribution of environmental harm and the psychological burdens it creates mirror broader patterns of social inequality, turning climate anxiety into a profoundly political experience." — Kari Marie Norgaard, Living in Denial: Climate Change, Emotions, and Everyday Life, MIT Press, 2011, p. 28.
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2024 Official Essay Instructions
Participants were invited to investigate the sociological dimensions of climate anxiety in contemporary Europe, examining how eco-anxiety is experienced and mobilized differently across social classes, age groups, and national contexts. Essays considered how environmental precarity intersects with existing social inequalities and explored the role of youth movements, grassroots activism, and state responses.
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Awardees
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Gold Merit (First Place): Nikolas Giannopoulos (Greece)
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Silver Merit: Daria Kolesnik (Latvia) 🔗Read essay here
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Bronze Merit: Amir Khan (Netherlands), Anja Klein (Austria)
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Notable Mention: Valentina Lucia Nilles (Luxembourg), Paolo Dimitrov (Bulgaria)
2024 Theme: Climate Anxiety, Inequality and Society
2025— AI, Bias, and the New Europe
“Algorithms do not eliminate human bias; they encode it, replicate it, and can amplify it at scale. In doing so, they risk transforming social inequalities into automated, invisible structures of power.”— Virginia Eubanks, Automating Inequality: How High-Tech Tools Profile, Police, and Punish the Poor, St. Martin’s Press, 2018, p. 15.
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2025 Official Essay Instructions
Participants were encouraged to investigate how artificial intelligence is reshaping social life across Europe, from healthcare and education to policing and public administration. Essays consider ed how AI can deepen existing inequalities or open up new pathways toward fairness and inclusion, engaging with sociological theory, real-world examples, and ongoing debates about ethics and governance.
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Awardees
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Gold Merit (First Place): Camille Lefèvre (France)
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Silver Merit: Cornelia Smit (Netherlands)
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Bronze Merit: Marko Rossi (Italy), Henrik Larsen (Denmark)
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Notable Mention: Adriana Ionescu (Romania), Patrick O’Connell (Ireland)
2025 Theme: AI, Bias, and the New Europe
*Notice Regarding Sample Essays:
Please note that the sample essays provided on this website are intended solely as indicative examples of the expected depth of analysis, academic rigor, and thematic engagement for the ESEO competition. These essays may differ in formatting, structure, or citation style from the exact specifications required in the current competition guidelines. Additionally, some sample essays have been partially edited and reviewed during the assessment and archival process. They should not be treated as definitive templates for submission .All participants are strongly advised to consult their official national delegations or ESEO Academic Coordinators for any clarifications regarding formatting, submission requirements, or evaluation criteria. Delegation leaders are the primary point of contact for official instructions and procedural guidance.
*Notice on Publication and Intellectual Property
Publication of any essays submitted to the European Sociological Essay Olympiad (ESEO) occurs only with the express written approval of the participant. All essays, official instructions, sample essays, archival materials, and related content produced for or by the ESEO constitute the intellectual property of the European Sociological Essay Olympiad. These materials are intended for educational, archival, and illustrative purposes within the context of ESEO activities. Unauthorized reproduction, distribution, or commercial use of these materials, in whole or in part, is strictly prohibited. No part of any ESEO essay, sample, or official document may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means—electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise—without prior written permission from the ESEO Organizing Committee and, where applicable, the essay’s original author. Participants retain moral authorship rights over their approved-for-publication essays, while granting ESEO non-exclusive rights to publish, archive, and reference these works in official documentation, historical records, and public archives. Any queries regarding use, permissions, or intellectual property should be directed to the ESEO executive board.