Vol. 8 • Issue 38 • April - June 2012
News letter
European Union in International Affairs Conference a Resounding Success
Continued on p. 2
Introducing the new cluster
EUPERFORM-DYNAMUS workshop: The EU and multilateral institutions
Risks and Opportunities for Civil Society in a Time of Crisis (ROCCS)
Multilevel governance of immigration
Illegal immigrants in Israel
The future of the ICC
European Social Science & History Conference
Keynote at InterACT
International conference in religious accommodation
Bridging the Gap: Improving EU Teaching
Decoding the EU online course
E-learning: new platform
Hendrix semester abroad
POLI research grants
BISA-ISA conference
IES successful in Jean Monnet Application: IES Autumn Lecture Series
Policy Forum: The EU and the Arctic: Breaking the Ice
Policy Forums: CSDP missions & role of EU special representatives
EP study on Sahel
Associates’ News
USC Brussels program
Successful Jean Monnet Chair application
Policy Briefs Launched
Academic Articles
New Book: International History and International Relations
3 4 6 8 10 11
Economic Governance Migration & Diversity Educational Development Foreign & Security Policy Environment & Devt. IES Publications
The Institute for European Studies (IES-VUB)
hosted the third European Union in International
Affairs (EUIA) conference from 3-5 May 2012 at
the Paleis der Academiën in Brussels. The biennial
conference was co-organised by the Institut d’Études
Européennes at the Université Libre de Bruxelles
(IEE-ULB), the United Nations University Comparative
Regional Integration Studies (UNU-CRIS) and Egmont
– the Royal Institute for International Relations.
Approximately 300 participants from over 130
different academic and policy-related institutes,
covering 40 countries attended the conference.
Senior as well as junior researchers delivered more
than 150 academic paper presentations. Highlights
of the conference included the three keynote
speeches and the four Policy Link Panels, which
brought together academics and policymakers to
debate some of the most important issues currently
facing the EU in international affairs.
The conference was officially opened by the keynote
speech of Herman Van Rompuy. The President of
the European Council focused on the impact of
the Lisbon Treaty on foreign policy with a specific
emphasis on the new permanent Presidency
of the European Council, the office of the High
Representative and the newly created diplomatic
service of the EU. Van Rompuy further elaborated
on the crucial role of the European Council in
identifying the strategic interests and objectives
of the European Union. He referred to the relations
of the EU with the US, Russia and China, and to the
role of the EU in solving the Libya crisis. There was
then time for a few rounds of questions, which was
highly appreciated by the audience.
On the first day, panels covered topics such
as EU-Africa relations, the EU’s role in climate
change negotiations, and the EU as a global
conflict manager. The first Policy Link Panel of
the conference, which brought together high-
level academics and policymakers in a roundtable
format, concerned the EU’s response to the Arab
Spring. The panel proved very popular, with over
80 participants, and the discussion was lively.
Richard Whitman (University of Kent) controversially
asserted that the Arab spring was a policy success
for the EU, whereas Antonio Missiroli (Bureau of
European Policy Advisers) argued that, instead
of the so-called renationalisation of EU foreign
policy, we have instead been experiencing a
Europeanisation of domestic politics.
The second day’s agenda included items as diverse
as EU trade policy, human rights, the EU’s credibility
in international security, and EU peacemaking.
2(continued from p. 1)
EUIA Conference Report
Moreover, we saw a further three Policy Link Panels
on the regulation of the financial industry, European
defence policy after the war in Libya, and the future
of the EU after the ‘crisis’. Renowned speakers
such as Olivier Guersent (Head of Cabinet Michel
Barnier), Mathias Dewatripont (Director National
Bank of Belgium) and Claude-France Arnould (Chief
Executive EDA) shed light on these issues.
The panel on ‘Europe in crisis’ painted a particularly
intriguing picture of the state of the EU, with the
presentation of many diverging views. While there
is currently a decline in public support for the EU,
it was also argued that European politics are closer
to European citizens than ever before. The tensions
were also explored of pleasing markets versus
pleasing the electorate, and the difficulties of trying
to change community rules in a crisis context. The
Policy Link Panel on European banking regulation
also revealed differing viewpoints, exemplifying
the challenges ahead. The panel highlighted that
remedial policy in response to the crisis is a matter
of urgency.
Ambassador Lars Faaborg-Andersen delivered
the second day’s keynote speech on behalf of
the Danish Presidency. As this took place at the
Stanhope hotel during the conference dinner, it
provided a welcome opportunity for all participants
to discuss their particular interests in an informal
context. All were eager to thank the conference
coordinators for a well-organised and diverse event
and for the opportunity to hear and interact with
such numerous and varied panels.
The third and final day once again covered
an impressive range of topics such as: cyber-
governance, EU-Africa relations, EU and the Western
Balkans, and EU energy policy, among many others.
The conference concluded with the final keynote
speech by Pierre Vimont, the Executive Secretary
General of the European External Action Service
(EEAS). His speech elaborated the identity and role
of the EEAS in a changing global environment. He
spoke of the application of the Lisbon Treaty and the
need to provide more continuity in European foreign
policy, making a plea for the creation of a deputy
to the High Representative together with more
coordination with the rotating European Presidency.
He asserted that the EEAS must become more
ambitious, imaginative and assertive to take on the
multiple challenges of the ongoing financial crisis,
the weakened credibility of the European model,
and the increased competition from BRIC countries.
It will undoubtedly take some time to establish a
new identity for EEAS. Nevertheless, Vimont cited
the speed at which a common position over Libya
had been reached as an example of this emerging
assertiveness. The speech was followed by a round
of questions from the audience who were keen to
learn more about the future of EEAS.
The EUIA III conference
was a r e sound ing
s u c c e s s w i t h
participants praising its
organisation, diversity
and the opportunities
it presented to examine
the implications of
theoretical insights in
practice and vice versa. Moreover, the conference
has built on previous editions and further deepened
the relations among the growing number of
academics and policy-makers working on the EU
in international relations, from legal, political
and economic perspectives. On the basis of the
overwhelmingly positive feedback, the conference
coordinators are already planning the next edition
– EUIA IV – which will take place in 2014.
A great deal of thanks
are due to the many
i n d i v i d u a l s w h o
have helped in the
organisation of the
conference, and also
to the various institutes
that have provided the
support to ensure that
this conference can take place. Visit the website for a
photo gallery and more information about the event:
www.ies.be/conference/euia2012
3Economic Governance
Introducing a New Cluster at the IES
IES research is organised in academic clusters. The clusters serve two purposes: they group academic
themes that are related in substance and they function as administrative units to manage the IES
academic personnel. The IES Strategic Plan 2011-2015 foresees changes in the cluster structure of the
Institute. One of the main elements is the creation of a new academic cluster on ‘European Economic
Governance’. This new cluster builds on and replaces two existing clusters, namely those on Information
Society and European Economics. The new cluster is planned to allow streamlining of internal structures
as well as to enhance the potential for substantive synergies and multidisciplinary research on issues
related to European economic law, economic policy and economics.
The new European Economic Governance cluster
is composed of the former members of the
Information Society cluster and the Economics
cluster, with Senior Research Fellow, Harri Kalimo,
as the cluster coordinator.
Harri will be joined by postdoctoral Research Fellow
Jamal Shahin, doctoral researchers Trisha Meyer
and Marie Lamensch (from the former Information
Society cluster). Associate/visiting researchers Rami
Nissilä and Karim Hamza has also become active
members of the Information Society cluster during
their stay at the IES. In addition, the members of the
former Economics Cluster, Assistant Professor Selen
Guerin (ES faculty) and doctoral researcher Cem
Tintin, will further strengthen the cluster.
The strategy of the Information Society cluster was
focused on two general themes: the EU Digital Single
Market (e.g. copyrights, online content, e-commerce
and taxation) and e-governance (governance and
online democracy, participation and engagement).
The economics cluster on the other hand was mono-
disciplinary, focusing exclusively on economics, and
more specifically on trade.
Overall, the existing and planned research
themes in the Information Society and Economics
clusters merge well in the new European Economic
Governance cluster. The themes extend from
economics-related public sector topics to private
sector issues, and from on-line to off-line matters.
The new cluster has also many links to other IES
research clusters, just as the Europe 2020 strategy
links economic competitiveness with a participatory
and inclusive society and sustainable development.
The CORPUS and ROCCS are good examples of cross-
cutting projects.
In the quest to build commonalities within the
cluster, the first PhD call in the Economic Governance
Cluster built on the theme of ‘value balancing in EU
economic law’. It takes a cross-cutting approach
by combining research in three areas of economic
law, trade, competition and Intellectual Property
Rights. The research project of the starting PhD, Max
Jansson, plans to analyse economic value balancing
tests in selected parts of these areas of law through
the case study of energy law in the EU and the US.
This challenge of a coherent parallel management
of economic and non-economic values lies at the
very heart of modern social market economies, as
they strive to combine maximum wealth creation
of capitalist systems with all the social values of
an inclusive and sustainable society. The task of
balancing economic and non-economic values
usually falls on law as the central structure of
governing societies. The legal system is, however,
under increasing strain in meeting that task. This
due in particular to two trends that are transforming
the welfare state: globalisation, on the one hand,
and fragmentation into a polycentric society of
numerous functionally differentiated spheres, on
Risks and Opportunities for Civil Society in a Time of Crisis (ROCCS)
How have civil society organisations reacted to the EU’s financial crisis and what is the forecast in the
years to come, as governments respond to the fall out? Has the capacity of civil society organisations
to participate in decision-making processes changed? If so, what are the consequences of this change
for participation and democracy in the EU?
These three questions will form the basis of a study initiated by the President of the European Economic
and Social Committee. It will examine the interactions between organised civil society and national
(and EU) decision-making processes in light of the drastic political and economic consequences that
the crisis has implied for European society. This study will analyse the impact of the crisis on Civil
Society Organisations (CSOs) in the EU by first examining trends in terms of the evolving relationship
between CSOs and public institutions in light of recent austerity measures. The study will focus on
a few cases to highlight how different countries in the EU have reacted to these changes. Finally,
the study will focus on risks and opportunities for CSOs in this time of crisis and beyond.The study,
carried out by the IES, will be delivered in October 2012.
Contact: Prof. Dr Jamal Shahin
j a m a l . s h a h i n @ v u b . a c . b e t w i t t e r : @ j s h a h i n
www.ies.be/roccs
the other.
We wish Max all the best as he joins the IES and
we look forward to informing you about further
synergies within this new cluster in the coming
months.
EUPERFORM – DYNAMUS Workshop: ‘The
European Union and Multilateral
Institutions: Towards an Anthology on
the State of the Art’
On 7-8 June 2012, Jamal Shahin and Lisanne
Groen attended a two-day Joint Workshop
of EUPERFORM (an ESF research network)
and DYNAMUS (a research project funded
by the Spanish Ministry of Science and
Innovation), at the Institut Barcelona d’Estudis
Internacionals (IBEI). The workshop focused on
the EU and multilateral institutions. Jamal and
Lisanne are both members of the EUPERFORM
network. Jamal participated in the workshop as
a chair of two sessions on 8 June (‘Towards the
assessment of EU performance in international
institutions’ and ‘The limitations of a single voice
in EU foreign policy’) and Lisanne presented a
paper about the conceptual framework of her
PhD project in a session entitled: ‘Towards the
assessment of EU performance in international
institutions’. Lisanne’s PhD project focuses on
explaining the changing performance of the EU
over time in the UNFCCC and the CBD.
www.ies.be/euperform
4How public institutions deal with
ethnic and re l ig ious divers i ty ,
Wissenschaftszentrum Berlin
Senior researcher Ilke Adam participated in a
ground-breaking, exploratory workshop held on
24-26 May, 2012, at the Wissenschaftszentrum
Berlin. It brought together a group of
international scholars who focus on how
public institutions deal with ethnic and/or
religious diversities. Whereas existing research
consists mainly of single-case studies or cross-
national comparisons of one institution, or
internal comparisons of different organisations
representing one type of public institution, cross-
institutional comparisons are rare in academic
research. The workshop’s focus fills a critical
void in current scholarship, creating connections
between public institutions that existing studies
have failed to address and, in addition, laying
synergistic groundwork for future cooperation.
Ilke presented a paper on how Belgian schools
and hospitals deal with religious diversity. Ilke
is keen to stay involved in the future cooperative
efforts of this emerging research network.
Migration Diversity
Several IES researchers are involved in the current
academic debate on the multilevel governance
of immigration and immigrant integration.
Immigration and immigrant integration policies
have been high on political, public and academic
agendas in Europe for the last two decades.
Scholarly accounts of policy dynamics in this field
still tend to focus exclusively on the national level,
which echoes the still very dominant focus on so-
called ‘national models of integration.’ The recent
academic debates on the multilevel governance
of immigration and immigrant integration take as
their starting point the proposition that these policy
issues are shaped in interactions between policy
actors at the local, national, regional, European
and international level. Several IES researchers (Ilke
Adam, Mathijs van Dijk and Hannelore Goeman)
have participated in this debate though their recent
publications, participations in conferences or
projects on the interactions between the different
levels of immigration governance: the global;
European, national and regional levels. Ilke Adam
recently co-organised a session on this theme at the
Politicologen-etmaal, the conference of the Flemish
and Dutch political science associations. Mathijs Van
Dijk participated in this session by presenting his
PhD research design on the interactions between the
EU and International Organisations in the context of
the EU’s Global Approach to Migration and Mobility.
With the help of remote technology, Ilke Adam also
participated in a workshop at Edinburgh University
on 18-19 June, in the framework of a book project
on the multilevel politics of immigration which
will especially focus on key issues relating to the
governance and party politics of immigration in
multi-level states including Scotland-UK, Flanders-
Belgium, Catalonia-Spain and Quebec-Canada. Ilke
presented a draft chapter on multilevel governance
of immigration in Belgium. She focuses on the
interactions between the central state and the
regions in immigration policy-making, and how the
Europeanisation of these policies influences these
interactions.
Illegal Immigrants cause turmoil in Israel
– an Identity Crisis ?
Senior Research Fellow Richard Lewis made a
presentation on his research into race relations
and national identity in France at the Ruppin
Academic Center’s second international conference
held at their campus in Israel, May 20-22. The
topic was very opportune because, at the time
of the conference, there were demonstrations
and disturbances in south Tel Aviv which is the
main refuge of mostly illegal African immigrants
who cross the Sinai desert from South Sudan and
Eritrea to find work and refuge in Israel. There are
estimated to be some 60,000 such refugees in
Israel. Combined with over 300,000 legal migrants
who have been admitted to the country mostly to
do menial jobs, as well as the 1.5 million Arab
citizens, this has caused controversy on the nature
and identity of the Jewish state, itself created as
a refuge against persecution. Israelis are asking
themselves the question: what is the nature of our
country?; in much the same way as the French are
questioning immigration.
Government statements show their determination
to deal firmly with illegal migrants and there
are media reports that some have already been
expelled. Such expulsions are also controversial
given Israel’s humanitarian ‘vocation’ and history.
The future of the International Criminal Tribunal
In April and May, the two final Policy Forums were held in the series
entitled ‘The International Criminal Court’s Second Decade: Quo Vadis?’
On 27 April, the policy forum was dedicated to the ICC and the
prosecution of gender-based crimes. Dianne Luping from the Office of
the Prosecutor of the ICC discussed the track record of the prosecutions
of gender-based crimes in the seven situations currently referred to
the Court. She discussed the difficulties in prosecuting such crimes,
especially with regard to the collection of evidence.
On 26 May, the series was concluded with an interesting discussion
on the politics of the ICC. With presentations on both the EU, the US,
the China and the NGO-community perspective on the Court, a wide
variety of viewpoints were discussed by both the panelists and audience.
From the global to the local level : the IES migration team weigh in on the academic debate on the multilevel governance of immigration
5
‘The circulation of ideas and models: the
transformation of immigrant integration
policies’: two panels at the European
Social Science and History Conference,
Glasgow
Do EU member states seek inspiration in other
member states when reforming their immigrant
integration policies? How does the EU stimulate
this process of policy diffusion? These questions,
amongst others, were debated in two panels at
the European Social Science History Association
Conference in Glasgow (14-16 April ). The panels
were co-organised by Saskia Bonjour (Leiden
University) and IES’ Ilke Adam.
One of the panels investigated the transfer of
models and ideas between political entities,
whether national or local, to inquire if and
how policy transfer contributes to convergence
of migrant integration policies. Immigrant
integration policies reflect conceptions of
identity and belonging, of social cohesion, of
citizenship and statehood. Perhaps this is why
these policies have often been considered as
country-specific, even determined by ‘national
models’. However, migrant integration policies in
Europe present a certain degree of homogeneity
in institutional design and orientation, even
if they are introduced in countries with very
different migration histories and implemented
in very different contexts. IES senior researcher
Ilke Adam demonstrated how soft European
instruments on immigrant integration contribute
to reducing the differences between Belgian
regional immigrant integration policies.
Other contributors to the panel focused equally
on the role of European policy diffusion tools
starting with two historical papers showing that
policy diffusion with regard to migrants with
social rights in the 19th century, happened long
before the existence of EU policy diffusion.
Keynote lecture at InterACT – mainstreaming of cultural diversity in the arts and
cultural sector
In November 2004, the Justice and Home Affairs Council adopted the eleven Common Basic Principles
for Immigrant Integration Policy in the EU. The first of these principles states that “immigrant integration
is a two-way process of mutual accommodation”. It involves adaptation by immigrants as well as by the
receiving societies. The recent focus of the member states’ integration policies seems to lie on fostering
the immigrant adaptation process, through the organisation of compulsory immigrant adaptation
classes. In addition, over the last decade, mainstream organisations in receiving societies have started
to adapt to the increasing multicultural context. The initiatives promoting the mainstreaming of cultural
diversity or ‘inter-culturalisation’ are sometimes initiated bottom-up, and on other occasions stimulated
by public authorities.
In Brussels, the arts and cultural sector functions in an extremely multicultural environment and wants
to diversify its programming policy, its hiring policy and its audience. On 15 June, Ilke Adam was a
keynote speaker at a training workshop organised by BKO, RAB and Lasso on the mainstreaming of
cultural diversity in the Brussels arts and cultural sector. She introduced the participants to different
concepts of immigrant integration, thus helping participants to understand why organisations that want
to become more diverse follow different strategies to reach the same objectives.
IES co-organised international conference
‘Religious accommodation in Belgium and
Canada’, Brussels, 27-28 April
What happens when the faithful of a minority
religion ask to adapt general rules or practices, to
be able to follow their faith? How do employers,
school directors or service providers react to these
demands? What does the law require in these
situations and what are the normative arguments in
favour or against these types of requests?
In the USA or Canada, these questions have for a
long time been dealt with under the legal concept
of ‘reasonable accommodation’. In Belgium,
sociologists have been able to observe, over a
number of years, the development of the practice
of reasonable accommodation, without calling it
by that name. Today, due to the development of
the notion of ‘indirect discrimination’ in European
law, the question has been raised whether this legal
notion can be mobilised for religious practices in
Europe.
Together with several research centres from the
Université Libre de Bruxelles (IEE, GERME, MAM,
CDP, CENA) and the VUB (RHEA), the Migration
and Diversity cluster of the IES co-organised an
international conference on this topic of religious
accommodation in Belgium and Canada. The
conference united several experts from both sides
of the Atlantic, practising different disciplines
(philosophy, sociology and law). They engaged in
an interdisciplinary discussion on the philosophical
arguments, and the legal, sociological and political
contexts in which religious accommodation is
practised. More than 100 professionals and students
attended the conference.
6
Brussels Workshop, 14-15 May 2012
On May 14-15 the IES organised the first workshop
on teaching the EU for secondary teachers, in the
framework of the ‘Bridging the Gap: Improving EU
Teaching’ project. We had the pleasure to welcome
22 teachers from 11 countries within and beyond
the European Union (Germany, UK, Romania,
Bulgaria, Lithuania, Italy, Macedonia, Albania, Latvia,
Luxembourg and Czech Republic). Whereas the first
day focused on the essential information on the
latest developments in the institutional structure
and decision-making process of the EU, the second
day was dedicated to exploring various teaching
tools and environments, including interactive class
activities, simulation games and the use of online
sources. The teachers worked in groups to exchange
good practice and the group leaders presented the
results in plenary.
You can watch the presentations on our website.
www.ies .be/training/bridging-the-gap/
workshop-may
EDU Educational Development Unit
The workshop offered a great opportunity for
teachers across Europe to discuss their teaching
methods and share ideas on how to integrate EU
topics in their curriculum. The second workshop is
scheduled for 14-15 November.
Webinars
In the past three months the EDU has also organised
three of the six ‘Bridging the Gap’ webinars,
which are aimed at a
broader audience of
teachers , s tudents ,
a n d p o l i c y m a k e r s
interested in education,
and specifically in how
to integrate EU-related
topics in the secondary
school curricula across
Europe.
The webinars address specific teaching methods,
such as simulation games and the use of online
tools and platforms, as well as exploring various
opportunities for establishing partnerships among
schools in various countries. The webinars are free
of charge and open for everyone. You can visit our
website (www.ies.be/training/bridging-the-gap)
to register for the upcoming webinars in autumn-
winter 2012 and to watch the recordings of the first
three webinars.
Secondary schools seminars
In April the IES organised, together with the
Koninklijk Atheneum Brugge, part of their ‘Europe
week’ events, consisting mainly of a three-day
simulation game on EU foreign policy. This also
coincided with the first secondary school seminar
delivered in the framework of the ‘Bridging the Gap’
project. The game involved around 70 students
and proved to be a useful complementary activity
that enhanced the students’ understanding of the
complex EU decision-making process. Three more
such activities are planned for the second part of
the year, within Belgium and possibly also beyond.
Bridging the Gap: Improving EU Teaching
The Educational Development Unit of the IES is organising a series of training workshops and seminars in 2012 with the aim of
improving teaching EU issues in secondary schools throughout Europe. The ‘Bridging the Gap: Improving EU Teaching’ project
is part of the EU Life-Long learning Programme, ‘Learning EU in Schools’ stream. Various activities and outputs are foreseen
in the framework of this project, such as two teacher workshops in Brussels, four seminars delivered in secondary schools,
including simulation games on EU issues, six webinars aiming to address various teaching methods and environments, as well
as the delivery of an online module and a handbook on teaching the EU.
7
POLI small research project grants for the EDU
This spring the EDU received two grants of €5000
each in the framework of the ‘POLI small research
projects’ scheme. This will be used in the context
of our EU-modules re-launch on the new platform.
A comprehensive survey of the various existing
online courses on offer on the topic of European
Studies will be carried and we hope that this
thorough market research will allow us to further
customize our modules to best match the needs
of the students and at the same time to place us
in a competitive position. Moreover, we will use
part of the grant to record short interviews with
practitioners from various EU institutions that we
will use to enrich the audiovisual aspect of the
EU-modules.
‘Decoding the EU’ online course
In May 2012, the EDU organised the first edition of the ‘Decoding the EU’ online course. The course
consisted of four consecutive webinars, held each Wednesday at lunch-time and addressed the role
and functioning of the main EU institutions (European Commission, Council of Ministers, European
Council and European Parliament, as well as the complex decision-making process, with a focus on the
Ordinary Legislative Procedure). The webinars could be followed as stand-alone events or in conjunction
with our EU-modules, as a one-year online course. Taking advantage of the Brussels location but also
of the flexibility of the medium, we put together a team of lecturers with a balanced mix of academic
knowledge and practical expertise. The feedback received from the participants was positive, so that
we will consider organising similar online courses in the future.
E-learning: the way to Chamillo
The transition process towards a new, open
source e-learning platform is underway. After
analysing the various choices available, Chamillo
was chosen due to its user-friendly interface and
interactive features and not least because of the
support provided by VUB technical staff. Chamillo
is an open source learning platform, allowing for
active and personalised teaching and learning.
It is currently being customised (thanks to Bram
Thielemans) to help us reach our pedagogical
goals and enrich the overall value of the EU-
modules. The customisation phase will end this
autumn and, following an intensive period of
testing, the new platform will officially become
the new home of our modules.
In parallel to this change, we took the opportunity
to do a complete overhaul of the current
modules. As of early next year, 5 modules will be
available, offering a total of 20 ECTS: EU History,
EU Institutions, EU Law and Decision-making,
EU Policies and EU Information Sources. Taken
together with our Summer School in Brussels
and Vienna it offers a Postgraduate Certificate
equivalent to 25 ECTS.
Alexandra at the BISA-ISA conference
On 20-22 June Alexandra Mihai took part in the
2012 International BISA-ISA Joint Conference
in Edinburgh. Co-organised by the British
International Studies Association (BISA) and
the International Studies Association (ISA), the
conference brought together around 1000
scholars from the field of International Relations,
from both sides of the Atlantic. The topics were
diverse, ranging from theories of International
Relations (IR), to political and legal aspects,
as well as the economic crisis, the challenges
ahead for the EU and last, but not least, teaching
International Relations.
Closely linked to the focus of her research,
Alexandra attended three panels and round
tables on teaching methods in politics and IR.
The first panel focused on the use of active
learning activities, such as simulation games
and the added value they bring to teaching
IR, especially in a cross-cultural context.
Examples from Europe, US and Canada showed
the benefits but also the challenges of using
such tools. The round table tackled the topic
of employability and skills in teaching IR. The
discussion focused around the need to address
students’ expectations and prepare them to
face the job market after graduation, with views
diverging as to whether it is the task of the
university professors to teach these skills. The
third panel addressed the ‘non-traditional’ forms
of learning, including Problem-Based Learning
(PBL), synchronous and asynchronous online
learning, as well as the intriguing issue of how
the classroom architecture and design influence
the way we teach.
Alexandra presented her paper on the use of
webinars for teaching European Studies and
the perception of lecturers on using this tool.
The results of the small scale survey show
that the synchronous e-learning platform is
seen as a flexible and convenient tool, but it
is best used in conjunction with face-to-face
and/or asynchronous e-learning, in a Blended
Learning approach, to allow teachers to reach
their pedagogical goals. The main conclusion of
the panel was that we, as teachers, should pay
equal attention to how we design or teaching
and learning spaces, be it physical or virtual, in
order to provide the students, and ourselves,
with a fruitful experience.
The conference was a great occasion to meet
colleagues interested in the topic of teaching
politics and IR and an opportunity to forge new
collaborations for future conference panels and
publications.
Hendrix Semester Abroad 2012
The annual Hendrix
Semester Abroad
programme has
been running for
four consecutive
years. Six American
students followed
courses a t the
IES and Vesalius
College for one
semester, focusing
on learning about the functioning of the EU and
EU’s role in the world. In parallel to their studies,
they had to do an internship, which allowed
them to familiarise themselves with the working
environment and at the same time get first hand
experience of some EU-related issues studied in
their courses. At the end of the semester they
defended their final paper and it was a pleasure
to witness, like each year, that the students had
absorbed and thoroughly processed the great
amount of information they received on the complex
EU structure. We look forward to welcoming the new
group of Hendrix students in January 2013.
8European Foreign & Security Policy
Policy Forums: The Impact of CSDP missions and the Role of EU Special Representatives
On 15 June 2012, Dominik Tolksdorf
organised a Policy Forum on ‘The
Role and Achievements of EU Special
Representativs in EU foreign policy’
which was attended by Philippe Lefort
(EU Special Representative for the South
Caucasus and the crisis in Georgia),
Pieter Feith (International Civilian
Representative in Kosovo and former EU
Special Representative in Kosovo), Marc
Otte (former EU Special Representative
in the Middle East peace process) and
several political advisors of the ten EUSRs that are currently involved in the EU’s conflict resolution
efforts. Issues discussed included the current setting of EUSRs within the EU’s foreign policy system
and the current status of international conflict resolution efforts in Central Asia, Kosovo, the South
Caucasus and Sudan.
On 22 June, the cluster hosted a book presentation for Senior Associate Susan Penksa, for her recently
published book (with Prof. Roy Ginsberg) The European Union in Global Security: The Politics of Impact.
The presentation and discussion focused on ways to assess the impact of the EU’s security policy, and
the way forward for CSDP.
Parliamentary Study on the Sahel
Prof. Dr Amelia
Hadfield, EDU
Di rec tor , and
EFSP postdoctoral
researchers Dr
Luis Simon and
Dr A lexander
M a t t e l a e r
r e c e n t l y
p u b l i s h e d
their report A
Coherent Strategy for the Sahel, undertaken at
the request of the Development Committee of
the European Parliament.
The report examines the main challenges
affecting the region and provides a critical
evaluation of the 2011 EU ‘Strategy for Security
and Development in the Sahel’, offering some
policy recommendations.
Luis, Alexander and Amelia presented the main
findings of the report before the Development
Committee on 18 June 2012, where they engaged
in a lively discussion with MEPs. They have also
been invited to speak about the security situation
in the Sahel before the Foreign Affairs Committee
of the Belgian Chamber of Representatives on 19
July. Last but not least, Alexander presented the
report to a broader audience on the talkshow
‘Trio’ of the Flemish public radio station Klara.
Eva Gross draws lessons from the end of
the EU Police Mission (EUPM) in Bosnia and
Herzegovina
On 14 June, Eva Gross spoke at
a policy forum at the European
Policy Centre (EPC): ‘After the
EU Police Mission in Bosnia and
Herzegovina – Lessons learned for
the CSDP?’ Speakers - including
Stefan Feller, Head of the EUPM mission and
Hansjörg Haber, Director of the EU Civilian
Planning and Conduct Capability in the European
External Action Service (EEAS) – analysed the EU’s
engagement through the EUPM in Bosnia and
Herzegovina, the lessons learned for CSDP, and
the future development of the policy. Earlier in
the month, Eva also presented a paper entitled ‘EU
responses to the Arab spring: assessing the role and
impact of the European External Action Service’ on
1 June at a workshop on ‘Critical Perspectives on
European-MENA relations’ at the School of African
and Oriental Studies (SOAS), London.
Joachim Koops advises UN
J oach im Koops has been
appointed as Advisor to the
Head of the Partnership Unit of
the United Nations Department of
Peacekeeping Operations (DPKO).
From May - June he advised
the Head of the United Nations Liaison Office for
Peace and Security (UNLOPS) on the UN’s inter-
organisational relations with the EU and NATO. In
July - August 2012 he will work at UN HQ in New
York on the same issue.
Dominik Tolksdorf awarded Post-doctoral
Research Fellowship
Dominik Tolksdorf, IES
Senior Assoc iate , has
been selected as a fellow
at the American Institute
for Contemporary German
Studies (AICGS) at Johns
Hopkins Univers i ty in
Washington where he will
conduct research on the project ‘EU-US cooperation
in supporting constitutional reform in Bosnia and
Herzegovina’. Furthermore, Dominik was awarded
a Transatlantic Post-Doctoral Fellowship for
International Relations and Security (TAPIR). Thus,
from November 2012 to October 2014, Dominik
will conduct research on ‘EU-US cooperation in
assisting rule of law reform in Kosovo’ at Johns
Hopkins University, the Institut Français des
Relations Internationales (IFRI), and the EU Institute
for Security Studies (EUISS). A big congratulations
to Dominik!
Sigrid Winkler presents paper and book
project
Sigrid was in Hong Kong for
the conference ‘China, Cross-
Strait Relations and Regional
Security’ on 24-25 May where she
presented a paper on the impact
of improved cross-Strait relations
during the first term of Ma Ying-jeou’s presidency
in Taiwan on Taiwan’s participation in international
organisations.
On 22 June, Sigrid presented her book project on
EU-Taiwan relations in international organisations at
a Taiwan Fellowship Colloquium organised by the
Centre for Chinese Studies in Taipei.
Amelia Padurariu travels to Sarajevo
PhD researcher and IES associate, Amelia
Padurariu, conducted field research in Bosnia
and Herzegovina and, in this context, attended
the EUPM end of mission seminar in Sarajevo
on 8-9 June.
Associates’ News
9
USC Brussels programme - 5th edition
30 June marked the successful completion of the 5th
edition of the University of Southern California Summer
School. 11 students from the University arrived on 26
May to spend five weeks in Brussels - taking a course
on European Foreign and Security Policy at the IES
(convened by Luis Simon). They also carried out an
internship in a Brussels-based organisation dealing
with foreign and security policy issues. We were happy
to have two students, namely Rayven and Jordan, as
interns at the IES.
EU-Russia Relations
On 7 June, Amelia Hadfield took part in an interesting
1-day workshop entitled ‘The EU and the BRICS in
the Wake of the Eurozone Crisis’, which was held
at the Aston Centre for Europe. With contributions
from European and Asian colleagues, and with an
audience that mixed academics with civil society,
the workshop examined the EU’s wide-ranging
relationships with the BRICS, the volatile nature
of some of these relationships (like Russia), and
explored whether the concepts of ‘BRICS’ existed
in practical terms. Invited to speak on the role EU-
Russia trade, investment and energy relations within
the BRIC context, Amelia concluded that whilst core
interdependencies buoyed the relationship, grave
problems about perceptions and insecurities over
energy supplies continued to keep the EU-Russia
relationship challenging.
Commission Personality Disorder?
Between 20-22 June, Amelia took part in the
2012 International BISA-ISA Joint Conference in
Edinburgh. In addition to attending panels on EU
political and economic developments and progress
in blended learning, she joined fellow colleagues
for a panel surveying challenges to European
security. Entitled ‘Entrepreneur, Reformer or
Bully? The European Commission’s Adventures
in Energy Policy’, Amelia’s paper investigated the
seemingly separate ‘personalities’ displayed by the
Commission in developing European energy security,
from discourse entrepreneur to market reformer to
institutional intimidator, by tracing major and minor
policy developments, the responses of the Member
States, and the multi-layered policy nexus that now
typifies European energy security.
The IES is delighted to annouce that
Dr Amelia Hadfield’s bid under the
Jean Monnet Chair project has been
successful. Understanding the EU’s
widening diplomatic engagements is a
challenge for scholars, students, and
the interested public alike. Dr Amelia
Hadfield’s Jean Monnet Chair project Springboard Brussels 2015 focuses on teaching the modes
of EU foreign policy innovatively and excellently to a wide cross-section of students. Springboard
Brussels 2015 ensures first that students positively benefit from high quality teaching on EU
foreign policy and secondly that academics, students and civil society are beneficially influenced
via innovative blended learning format. The impact of its 6 activities will help propel teaching and
learning on EU foreign affairs more effectively into the VUB-IES‚ inter-institutional relations with
other universities and to more genuinely connect with civil society elements via blended learning:
• QUO VADIS EU: A compulsory 60-hour advanced class on EU foreign policy within the VUB-
IES EuroMaster. The module supports 4 webinars, teacher training sessions and an annual
public colloquium.
• EU REDUX Hendrix: A permanent module for US undergrads from Hendrix College providing
a comprehensive overview of EU institutions and decision-making methods, public and
foreign policy.
• EU REDUX VeCo: The centerpiece of an MSc in European Union Studies newly co-instituted by
the IES and Vesalius College, providing advanced grounding in EU institutions and decision-
making methods, public and foreign policy.
• EU Foreign Affairs Podcasts: The 5 IES online modules support Dr Hadfield‚s current blended
learning and will anchor the production of 8 x 15 minute podcasts on breaking EU fp issues.
• IES Online Diplomacy Depository: A practical series of public webpages listing ALL EU foreign
policy modular readings used by Dr Hadfield, and a number of key EU primary documents
and secondary analyses.
• IES Diplomacy in Action Webinar Series: Six 1 hour webinars convened by Dr Hadfield featuring
academics and practitioners from ENP states & Strategic Partners (Russia, US, China)
IES successful in application for Jean Monnet Chair project: ‘Springboard Brussels 2015’
10Environment Sustainable Development
IES successful in Jean Monnet application: IES Autumn Lecture Series
EU Energy Policy: on the Road to
Decarbonisation?
With a positive response for its application to the
Jean Monnet Life-Long Learning programme, the IES
environment and sustainable development cluster
is now busy organising the next Autumn Lecture
Series. The 2012 series focuses on the theme: EU
Energy Policy: On the Road to Decarbonisation?
This is a topic of high relevance in the European
Union today. As highlighted by the European
Commission, decisions made in energy policy
today will largely determine the structure of our
energy system into the future. While there is general
acceptance of the need to move to decarbonisation,
little awareness of the implications of this goal is
evident in wider society. These lectures will fill a
gap in the policy discussions and raise awareness
among an audience drawn from wider society.
The topics of the lectures speak to the current
debates on energy policy in the EU (e.g. on energy
infrastructure, on energy efficiency directive, on
upcoming reviews of the internal energy market,
etc.), and broader EU strategies (such as the EU
2020 strategies) by placing them in the context of
achieving decarbonisation goals. These lectures
can play a crucial role in enhancing understanding,
and stimulating debate, on policy options to 2050.
As a follow-up to the lecture series, 2013 will see
the release of an edited book volume discussing
the main theme in more depth. Those attending the
lectures can look forward to a high-level academic
analysis to accompany the informative discussions
of the lectures.
The lectures will take place from October to
December 2012 on Wednesday evenings from
18:00 to 20:00 at the IES premises. Each lecture
will feature 2-3 high quality speakers with various
viewpoints, and mixed experience (from civil
society, policymaking and academia). Each lecture
will allow for discussion, comments and questions
between the speakers and the audience.
The current schedule for the lectures can be found
on the back of this newsletter.
Please go to www.ies.be for updates and event
registration (available soon).
Policy Forum: ‘The EU and the Arctic: Breaking the Ice’
On 21 May 2012, the IES hosted a policy forum,
organised by the Environment and Sustainable
Development cluster, in cooperation with the
Vrije Universiteit Brussel faculty department
Internationaal en Europees Recht (IERE). The event
focused on the current and future interest and
involvement of the EU within the Arctic. Prof. Dr
Erik Franckx (VUB) was assigned as moderator.
Mr Ramon Van Barneveld, Policy Officer at DG
MARE opened the policy forum by giving a
comprehensive overview of the objectives and
efforts of the EU within the Arctic, both now and
for the future. He highlighted the importance of
current developments and provided some insight
as to what will be expected from the upcoming EU
Arctic Communication.
Ms Anastasiya Kozubovskaya-Pellé, legal project
manager for the Aurora Borealis – European
Icebreaker project, presented us with a thorough
overview of this interesting research project.
The Aurora Borealis icebreaker is conceived as
one of the most advanced research icebreakers
in the world and will act as a multi-disciplinary
all season research platform. Ms Kozubovskaya-
Pellé explained why this research vessel is a true
opportunity for both Europe and the Arctic.
Mr Steffen Weber, Secretary-General of the EU
Arctic Forum, was the third and final speaker of
the event. Mr Weber built upon the presentations
of the previous speakers and further highlighted
the potential of the EU in the Arctic. As Secretary-
General of the EU Arctic Forum he was able to
share his knowledge from both the institutional
and industry perspective.
In the discussion following the presentations, the
audience posed questions on whether climate
change in the Arctic is taken for granted and
therefore accepted to be exploited. The audience
also questioned how, if at all, concessioning will
be handled in the future and how the peoples
from the North will profit from the Aurora Borealis
project.
11IES Publications
Boone, Laura. 2012. ‘Book Review. Reducing Air Pollution from
Marine Vessels to Mitigate Arctic Warming: Is it Time to Target
Black Carbon’. Carbon and Climate Law Review, vol.1 pp. 13-20.
Devuyst, Youri. 2012. ‘The European Union’s Competence in
International Trade after the Treaty of Lisbon’. Georgia Journal
of International and Comparative Law.
Devuyst, Youri and Jing Men. 2012. ‘Political Dialogue as an
Instrument of EU Diplomacy: the Case of China’ College of
Europe Studies No 15.
Gouritin, Armelle. July 2012. ‘La question du droit à
l’alimentation.’ in Sentinelle.
Gouritin, Armelle and Bourel, Michel. July 2012. ‘Une réforme
institutionnelle a minima aux modalités de mise en œuvre
imprécises’. in Sentinelle.
Gouritin, Armelle. ‘Droits environnementaux, Convention
d’Aarhus, Droit de l’Union Européenne, accès à la justice’. in
Sentinelle.
Gouritin, Armelle. 2012. ‘Vers une normativité du droit à
l’alimentation devant les Cours régionales des Droits de
l’Homme ? Complémentarité, paradoxes et apports du « droit
à l’environnement ‘, in C. Cournil and C. Colard-Fabregoule
(Eds.) Changements environnementaux globaux et droits de
l’Homme, Bruylant, pp. 391-417.
Gross, Eva. 2012. ‘The end of the EU Police Mission in Bosnia
and Herzegovina : What lessons for the Common Security and
Defence Policy?’ European Policy Centre.
Koops, Joachim. 2012. ‘NATO’s Influence on the evolution
of the EU as a Security Actor’ in Oriol Costa and Knud Erik
Joergensen (eds.) The Influence of International Institutions
on the European Union: When Multilateralism Hits Brussels,
PalgraveMacMillan.
Koops, Joachim, Zuber, Robert and Fiott, Daniel. April 2012.
Operationalising the Responsibility to Protect: A Contribution
to the Third Pillar Approach. Madariaga College of Europe
Foundation, Global Action to Prevent War, the Global
Governance Institute and the International Coalition for the
Responsibility to Protect, Brussels.
Meyer, Trisha. ‘Graduated Response in France: The Clash of
Copyright and Internet.’ in Journal of Information Policy 2
(2012): 107-27.’
Simon, Luis. April 2012. ‘CSDP, Strategy and Crisis Management:
Out of Area or Out of Business’ in The International Spectator.
In May the IES was proud to
launch its new ‘Policy brief’
series. The first edition, ‘EU
2020 Renewab l e Ene rgy
Goals Insufficient’ written by
IES researcher Claire Dupont,
comments on renewable energy
policies to 2020.
It is clear that any action to
combat climate change must
involve extensive efforts in
reducing the greenhouse gas
(GHG) emissions from the
energy sector. In the EU, nearly
80% of total GHG emissions
come from the energy sector
(European Commission, 2011, p. 21). Any credible action within the EU
on combating climate change therefore requires deep shifts in the way
we produce and use our energy. Claire’s paper highlights that renewable
energy policies to 2020 are insufficient to meet the EU’s long-term
climate policy objectives of reducing GHG emissions by between 80
and 95% by 2050. These objectives aim to avoid an increase in global
temperatures of more than 2°C. Such an ambition would likely require
a very high share of renewable energy (in the range of 80 to 100%) in
the overall energy mix of the EU, given current uncertainties about the
feasibility of potential technological developments (e.g. carbon capture
and storage technology).
In June the second Policy Brief
was published: ‘The Role of
EU Special Representatives
in the Post-Lisbon Foreign
Policy System: A Renaissance?’
authored by Dominik Tolksdorf,
Senior Associate Researcher of
the IES.
EU Special Representatives have
been deployed since 1996 in
order to contribute to the EU’s
crisis management efforts
in various crisis regions. As
they are not part of the formal
hierarchy of the European
External Action Service and
thus a rather flexible foreign policy instrument at the disposal of the
Member States, new special representatives have been appointed in 2011
and 2012. This Policy Brief argues that the representatives’ autonomy
must not necessarily lead to ‘clashes of competence’ with the EU’s
diplomatic service.
Academic ArticlesIES Policy Briefs Launched
12
Sigrid Winkler: ‘Was getan werden muss, damit Frauen “alles haben können”: Eine Replik
auf Anne-Marie Slaughter im österreichischen Kontext’ in: Der Standard (Wed, 04-07-
2012)
Ilke Adam : ‘Flandre: l’identité au coeur’ in: Migrations Magazine (Sun, 01-07-2012)
Sigrid Winkler: ‘Taiwan’s UN Dilemma: To Be or Not To Be’ in: Brookings (Sat, 30-06-2012)
Eva Gross: ‘Mission EUPM en Bosnie : trois leçons pour la PSDC in: Bruxelles2 (Mon, 18-06-
2012)
Alexander Mattelaer: ‘De Sahel: eyes wide shut?’ on: Klara (Sat, 09-06-2012)
‘Teachers from Targu-Mures at the Institute for European Studies in Brussels’ (Mureseni la Institutul pentru Studii Europene din Bruxelles)
in: Zi de Zi (Wed, 23-05-2012)
‘EU’s Olli Rehn signals end of ‘Merkozy’ austerity drive’ (40 Years PILC) in: The Telegraph, (Sat, 05-05-2012)
‘EU to Show Flexibility on Budget-Deficit Rules, Rehn Says’ (40 Years PILC) in: Bloomberg (Sat 05-05-2012)
Joachim Koops: ‘NATO and Afghanistan: Implications of the 2014 Withdrawal’ on: Radio France Internationale, Thu, (19-04-2012)
Claire Dupont : ‘Leading or muddling through? The EU and Durban’ in: Ideas on Europe: European Council on Foreign Relations (Mon,
2012-04-16)
‘Summer schools in EU studies are becoming more popular with universities and students’ in: European Voice - Special Reports - Courses
for all seasons (Thu, 12-04-2012)
IES in the media
IES Publications
I N T E R N A T I O N A L H I S T O R Y A N D
INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS
by Andrew Williams, Amelia Hadfield,
J. Simon Rofe
In collaboration with fellow authors Andrew J.
Williams (St Andrews) and J. Simon Rofe (SOAS),
Amelia Hadfield has published a new book entitled
International History and International Relations,
with Routledge (June 2012).
Providing students of international relations with
an in-depth historical analysis of some of the key
‘IR touchtones’, the text stresses the need to
bridge the gap between international history and
international relations, and to grasp the complex
context that underwrites themes of sovereignty,
war, peace, empire, international organisation
and identity.
The book is organised thematically around
these key issues with each chapter providing an
overview of the main historical context, theories
and literature in each area and applies this to the
study of international relations.
Providing a fresh approach, this work will be
essential reading for all students of international
relations and international relations theory.
h t t p : / / w w w . r o u t l e d g e . c o m / b o o k s /
details/9780415481793/
13rights, social justice and Latin American literature.
Evgeny Postn ikov i s a
doctoral candidate in the
Graduate School of Public
and International Affairs at
the University of Pittsburgh.
Evgeny’s research interests
revolve around international
political economy, especially trade policy, and
EU external relations. His dissertation compares
domestic politics behind the inclusion of social
clauses dealing with labor and the environment in EU
and US bilateral trade agreements. Before moving to
the US he was educated in both Russia and Germany.
Evgeny is happy to be back in Europe and get a
first hand perspective on the issues he is studying.
Rayven Vinson is in her
second year at the University
of Southern California (UCS) in
the United States, and comes
from Baltimore, Maryland. At
USC, she’s pursuing a double-
major in International Relations
and Spanish. She’s here in Brussels with the USC
School of International Relations for a 5-week
summer programme. She will be interning at the IES
as well as taking a course in contemporary issues
in European foreign and security policy.
Irene Wieczorek is a PhD
researcher at the VUB under
the supervision of Paul De Hert
and she is part of the Research
Group on Fundamental Rights
and Constitutionalism (FRC).
Her field of analysis is European
substantive criminal law. She studied Italian law at
Trento University (2004-2010), French law at Paris13
(2006-2007), and European law both at Maastricht
University (2008-2009) and at the College of Europe
(2010-2011), where she also studied European
Politics and Policies and European Economics. After
her studies she was an intern for six months at
Eurojust (Sept 2011-March 2012), both within the
legal service and the Italian representation.
the University of Modern Science & Arts in Egypt,
and holds a Master of Business Administration
(MBA) from Edinburgh Business School (UK) and an
MPhil from the Maastricht School of Management
(Netherlands).
Marion Hascoët joins the IES
as a trainee in the Educational
D e v e l o p m e n t U n i t . S h e
graduated in European Project
Engineering from the University
of South Brittany (France) –
University of South Bohemia (Czech Republic)
and Universidad de Vigo (Spain.) Her thesis was
on ‘European Union policy on Corporate Social
Responsibility.’ She also holds a BA in International
Trade. Prior to joining the IES, she was training at
the European Agency for Development in Special
Needs Education
Jordan McKeen is a student
at the University of Southern
California (USC) in the United
States. Originally from Chicago,
Illinois, he’s entering his third
year at USC pursing a major
in International Relations with concentrations in
Foreign Policy analysis and European Studies. He’s
in Brussels for five weeks through a programme
offered by the USC School of International Relations
and he will be an intern at IES for four weeks, as
well as taking a class through IES-VUB covering
Contemporary Issues in European Foreign and
Security Policy.
Ewa Perfikowska recently
completed her traineeship at
the European External Action
Service where she worked on
EU-Latin America relations.
Before coming to Brussels she
studied International Relations of Europe at the
London School of Economics and wrote her MSc
thesis on the impact of China on EU development
policy in sub-Saharan Africa. Ewa also completed a
Master’s degree in Latin American Cultural Studies
at the University of Manchester where she devoted
her MA dissertation to the biofuel industry and its
implications for Latin America. Ewa has joined the
Environment and Sustainable Development cluster at
the IES to continue her research on biofuels and will
work with Harri Kalimo. Her interests include human
Ruxandra Cracea is currently
following the “Communications
Studies: New media and society
in Europe” Master Programme
at the VUB, and will join the IES
for a three month internship,
as part of her course. The
topic of her master thesis concerns the relation of
competition and cooperation between Facebook
and newspapers, a taboo subject among the parties
involved in the process of media consumption. Aside
rom her passion for the communication and social
media field she also enjoys going to film festivals,
traveling, volunteering, improving her French and
hopes to learn Flemish in the near future.
Astrid Edwards started in
April at IES as a ‘jobstudent’
and will be working with and in
the secretariat. She is currently
enrolled as a student at the
VUB in Communication Science,
with an emphasis on globalisation and Information
Society.
Brian Fraile is a visiting
researcher at IES. He is a Juris
Doctorate candidate at the
University of Pittsburgh School
of Law studying International
and Comparative Law with a
specific focus on Trade Law
and Policy. Prior to his legal studies, Brian obtained a
Bachelor’s of Science in Economics and a Bachelor’s
of Arts in Architectural Studies from the University
of Pittsburgh. While at IES, he plans to study the
economic impact of contract law and trade policy
on Eastern European nations. Outside of his studies,
Brian enjoys skiing, travelling, running, and sports.
Karim Hamza is a visiting
researcher at the IES, joining
the Eu ropean Economic
Governance to complete his
PhD in Political Science under
the supervision of Dr Jamal
Shahin. His research focuses
on the impact of network governance and social
media on states’ stability. Karim has a background
in project management and information systems,
both at a professional and an academic level. He
teaches at the American University in Cairo and
New faces @ the IES
1440 Years PILC/LLM Celebration
Master Programmes
This year marks 40 years of excellence of PILC (Programme on International Legal
Cooperation, now the LLM International & European Law). With over 1200 alumni, we
definitely have a reason to commemorate this special year.
To celebrate PILC’s 40th anniversary in style, IES organised a Gala Dinner and party at the
impressive Château Sainte-Anne in Brussels on Saturday 5 May 2012.
Our guest speaker, Olli Rehn, the Vice-President of the European Commission, gave a timely
and important speech that has been widely covered in the international press.
The event was a great success with over 130 alumni and members of staff present.
Congratulations to all staff involved in making this a big success! For a photo gallery of the
event go to www.ies.be/pilc40
15Pan-European forum on media pluralism and new media
by Mark Verheyden
The European Par l iament
Hemicycle in Brussels is not only
the beating heart of democracy
at European level, for one day it
was also a place of Civil Society
discussion. The organisers of the Pan-European
Forum on Media Pluralism and New Media succeeded
in creating a debate on new trends in media between
media professionals, politicians, and European
citizens.
The line-up of speakers was impressive. Of all
the top-notch participants that took part in the
event, three left the most memorable impression.
Both the Flemish Minister of Media, Ingrid Lieten,
and the Vice-President of the Commission, Neelie
Kroes, stressed that government regulation of the
media sector should only be used as a last resort
in guaranteeing media pluralism. The government
should however take an active role when it comes
to monitoring the media landscape. Media pluralism
also emerged as a key theme in the speech of
Hugh Grant. According to him, avoiding media
concentration is key in guaranteeing an informed
citizenship. Therefore, it should not come as a
surprise that a heated discussion broke out between
Mr. Grant and a board member of the Italian
company ‘Mediaset’. It was striking that media
industry representatives in general believed that a
certain degree of concentration actually safeguards
media pluralism.
Another point of discussion during the debate
was related to the question of whether New Media
are able to contribute to the empowerment of the
citizenry. The EU itself is said to be dealing with a
democratic deficit. Proof of an empowered citizenry
could therefore contribute to the legitimacy of
European politics with regard to media. Neelie
Kroes argued that Members of the European
Parliament (MEPs) will soon be legislating in the
field of the Internet. Whether this prediction
will become reality can be met with scepticism.
MEPs are only able to legislate when the ordinary
legislative procedure (called co-decision pre-Lisbon)
is applied. This is not yet the case in the field of
media and it seems unlikely that it ever will, due
to the subsidiarity principle. Furthermore (and I
quote from the European Parliament website), “the
EP has emphasized that the EU should stimulate
the growth and competitiveness of the audiovisual
sector whilst at the same time recognizing its wider
significance in safeguarding cultural diversity.”
(Nogueira, 2011, p. 4) This underlines that media
products still occupy a somewhat peculiar position
in the European Single Market.
IES student wins Franz Stein Memorial Award Competition
Congratulations to Viktoriya Petrikova, former IES-VUB student, who
has won the Franz Stein Memorial Award Competition for her article
“The New Common Commercial Policy: Who has the power to conclude
investment protection treaties post-Lisbon? – The EU and/or its member
states”, which formed part of her LLM thesis. The Franz Stein Memorial
Award Competition was sponsored in 2011 by Law Publishers Europe.
During the Conference, two key elements were
identified as future potential threats to the European
Media Industry. First, consensus emerged among
the panelists that nation states have to be cautious
not to be lured into the temptation of wanting to
control the media. This threat seems to become
reality in Hungary, where policy makers adapted
legislation that is in violation with Art. 7 of the
Charter of Fundamental Rights. Possibly even more
worrisome is a state controlled by the Media, as is
to a large extent the case in Italy where the tentacles
of the Berlusconi media empire reach (if not control)
the upper layers of the political system. A second
threat that should be countered is the dominance
of (mostly US) companies in the Internet sphere.
European industry has been able to secure a strong
position in a fair amount of media domains, but
seems to be losing the Internet race against mega-
corporations like Facebook and Google.
To conclude, the Pan-European forum on media
pluralism and new media can be called a success.
The debate is possibly only the start of a broader
movement towards closer cooperation across
borders in the field of media and communication
technology. The forum also proved that Civil Society
can be mobilized where vital societal interests
are concerned. The future of European media
industries is closely intertwined with the survival of
the European project as a whole. Both seem to be
clearly building on a key strength of Europeans, to
be ‘United in Diversity’.
This trimester IES-VUB EuroMaster student and
VUB PhD student, Mark Verheyden, writes on his
experience of the Pan-European forum on media
pluralism and new media.
16Contributions to this Newsletter:
I l k e Adam - C l a i r e Dupon t - L i sanne
Groen - Eva Gross - Amelia Hadfield - Harri
Ka l imo - Joach im Koops - R ichard Lewis -
Alexander Mattelaer -Trisha Meyer - Alexandra Mihai
- Dominik Tolksdorf - Marie Tuley - Mark Verheyden -
Sigrid Winkler
Edited by:
Marie Tuley
Pictures courtesy of IES
Newsletter of theInstitute for European Studies
Published by
Anthony Antoine
Institute for European StudiesVrije Universiteit Brussel
Pleinlaan 2 (IES)B-1050 Brussels (Belgium)
Events Calendar
Date Event
Fri 28/09 10 Years IES
Official opening of the Academic Year - LLM & EuroMaster
Wed 03/10 Autumn Lecture Series: Introduction to the EU’s energy acquis
Wec 10/10 Autumn Lecture Series: Introduction to the EU’s climate acquis: policy gaps?
Wed 17/10Autumn Lecture Series: Decarbonisation by 2050: roadmaps and scenarios
compared
Wed 24/10 Autumn Lecture Series: Decarbonising the power sector: opportunities and
challenges
Wed 31/10 Autumn Lecture Series: EU gas pipelines and electricity grids in 2050
Wed 07/11 Autumn Lecture Series: Decarbonising transport and industry
Wed 14/11 Autumn Lecture Series: The role of energy efficiency improvements to
decarbonisation
Wed 21/11 Autumn Lecture Series: Evolving external energy interdependencies: past
partners
Wed 28/11 Autumn Lecture Series: Evolving external energy interdependencies: new and
emerging partners
Wed 05/12 Autumn Lecture Series: EU decarbonisation in 2050: views from abroad
12:00P o l i c y F o r u m
Policy Forum and book launch ‘Economic Efficiency: The Sole Concern of Modern Antitrust Policy?’ with Dr. Ioannis Lianos, University College London, and Dr. Ben Van Rompuy, IES Asso-ciate Researcher
Location: IES conference room
15:00E x p o R e c e p t i o n
17:00I n a u g u r a l L e c t u r e
Mr. Allan Rosas, Judge at the European Court of Justice will deliver a guest lecture on ‘The EU Constitutional Order: some particularities’. Opening of LLM & EuroMaster academic year.
Location: VUB room D.002 (building D)
An afternoon reception and desert buffet to celebrate our 10th anniversary.Speaker: VUB Vice-Rector for Internationalisation Jan Cornelis.
Location: IES Event Space
1010 Years IESFriday 28 September 2012
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