Europe has a flag, an anthem and a currency, but no motto. Now students from each of the EU countries between the ages of 10 and 20 now are being asked to devise a motto that will symbolise the meaning of Europe.

It's part of a competition, sponsored in Ireland by The Irish Times, and by 40 other European newspapers across the EU. "We have no motto to symbolise the meaning of Europe," says Florence Heroult of the Centre for Peace at the War Memorial Museum in Caen in France, from where the competition is being organised. "This is a way to promote the idea of Europe in the classroom. "Teachers will have the opportunity to work on that theme with pedagogical sheets and the different links with other sites that we put on the website."

And, she explains, the competition is not for individual students, but for whole classes, in order to get all of the students in a year involved in the project. "Entries must be the result of classwork, guides for which can be found on the competition's website." The motto must not be longer than 12 words and should be accompanied by reasons for the choice, which should not exceed 300 words. Both are to be submitted in English and the language of the country in which the students live to the website by December 31st this year.

"Europe already has a flag and a currency and these were decided at the European level by politicians," Heroult says. "This is the first time that young people have the opportunity to put forward their own idea of Europe, in their own words."

The competition is the brainchild of Patrick La Prairie, education editor of the newspaper Ouest France, which, like The Irish Times, is published by a trust. Since the announcement of the competition just after Easter, a number of mottos have been received, though this month is the formal launch date. Entries so far have come from Finland, Spain, France, Greece, Italy and Britain, but no Irish entries have been submitted as yet. Ultimately, the organisers are expecting as many as 13,000 entries. A grand jury comprising 15 personalities, one from each EU country, will select a motto from a shortlist in April. Senator Mary Henry, Ireland's representative on the jury, will be looking for a motto that is "short and succinct and applicable to all Europeans". She believes Europe needs a motto that will become as recognisable as the European flag and anthem.

Henry says the competition will educate young people about what European institutions do and how they function. "There is quite a lack of knowledge about what our institutions in Europe stand for and there is no better stage to discuss them than at late primary and secondary level," she says.

Other members of the panel include the former European Commission president, Jacques Delors, the former Spanish prime minister, Felipe Gonzales, and Lord Jenkins (the former British cabinet minister Roy Jenkins). The winning motto will be selected in Brussels on May 9th, 2000, the 50th anniversary of the foundation of the European Parliament. The motto will be presented to the European Parliament, which, the organisers are confident, will adopt it as the motto for the European Union as we go into the new millennium.

Further information can be found on the competition's website, www.motto- europe.org and at The Irish Times on the Web - www.ireland.com/eurtimes.