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Vol. 8 • Issue 43 • July - September 2013
News letter
IES Wall of Fame: Dr. Dupont & Dr. Primova
Workshop on Civil Society and Legislative Oversight Defence
Alexander Mattelaer speaks at the ESDC & European Parliament
Luis Simon at Columbia University
USC Summer Programme
Europe’s rescue plan for honey-bee colonies
8 t h p a n - E u r o p e a n C o n f e r e n c e o n International Relations
New Project on ‘Agreement on Climate Transformation 2015
Richard Lewis at the Metropolis conference in Tampere
Report on the UACES Conference
New Policy Brief on the ICC and its deteriotating relationship with Africa: What shou ld the EU Position be?
Kick Off of the Ecoherence Project
Autumn Lecture Series - 8 October - 12 December: ‘EU Economic Law in a Time of Crisis’
Report of the first lecture: Setting the scene: EU in an Economic, Political and Legal Crisis?
Summer School 2013
EU IN CLOSE UP training
The revamped IES e-learning platform: the EU Modules
10th Anniversary of the Summer School on European Policy-making
New IES Publications
New IES Book on European Roma Intergation Efforts
Latest IES Policy Briefs
IES in the Media and the Social Media
3 4 5 6 8 9-10
European Foreign Policy Environment & Devt Migration & Justice Educational Development Economic Governance IES Publications
Over the Summer the IES was very proud to add two more Drs. to its wall of fame. Radostina Primova and Claire Dupont both successfully defended their PhDs, the reward for their years of hard work and dedication.
On the sunny day of 27 August, IES researcher Ra-dostina Primova defended her PhD entitled “Assessing political and social accountability in EU policy-making. A case study on the multi-level coordination of the EU internal energy market policy”. Under the auspices of
her promoter, Prof. Dr. Irina Tanasescu, Radostina had worked on her dissertation in the framework of a VUB-sponsored Concerted Research Action project (GOA) between the Politics Department of the Economics and Social Sciences Faculty and the IES (promoters Kris Deschouwer and Sebastian Oberthür).
In front of her promoter and jury (on photo: Jamal Shahin, Harri Kalimo, Irina Tanasescu, Sebastian Oberthür and Kris Deschouwer) she explained that her
PhD thesis is an empirical exploration and, at the same time, theoretically inspired assessment of co-ordination practices and accountability mechanisms in function of multi-level policy-making. The shift of competen-cies from the legislative to the executive branch in the process of European integration has raised concerns about how the exercise of power by unelected offi-cials is being controlled. At the same time, traditional accountability concepts and mechanisms, which are applicable in a national context, do not match the
2
evolving multi-level character of EU politics. Based on an analytical framework developed for the purposes of this research, the study assesses political and social accountability in EU policy-making at national (in three selected Member States) and supranational (EU) level, with a special focus on the EU internal energy market policy (i.e. third liberalisation package on energy).
The policy area is illustrative of the ideological frictions between the pro-liberal approach of the Commission
and a number of Member States such as the UK, the Netherlands and Denmark, which have been pioneers in the energy market liberalisation, and the resistance of other Member States that favour more protection-ist policies in this field. The EU internal energy market policy portrays also the divide between the suprana-tional regulatory approach of the Commission and the European Parliament, on the one hand, and the unwill-ingness of national parliaments and some Member State governments to cede sensitive national competencies to the EU-level, on the other hand.
The empirical findings endorse the concerns of some scholars such as R. Dahl and P.C. Schmitter about the lack of a trade-off between institutional efficiency and accountability in supranational decision-making. This balance has not been sufficiently reinforced in the current institutional framework.
Radostina concludes that the institution-alisation of internal checks and balances into the EU multi-level system of govern-ance has not been matched by sufficient responsiveness to national parliaments and civil society actors in the particular policy field.
She also points to the weak interaction between the national and EU-level of policy-making, which could
PhDs Claire & Radostina
be improved by a more coherent and structured insti-tutional framework for stakeholder involvement at the domestic level, increased media coverage and enhanced use of inter-parliamentary cooperation mechanisms for the purpose of EU law-making.
Radostina successfully answered the questions of her jury members, and did not have to wait long for their verdict: the proclamation of the 7th IES Doctor in Political Science (and the 12th successful PhD at the Institute). Promoter Irina Tanasescu praised Radostina for her successful path and shared some highlights of their collaboration with the audience. Academic Direc-tor Sebastian Oberthür congratulated her on behalf of the IES, and wished her a successful career. In her closing remarks, Radostina thanked her promoter, the readers of her committee, and her family, colleagues and friends, of which many came to witness this joyful event.
In the afternoon of 16 September 2013 the public defence of Claire Dupont’s PhD ‘Climate policy in-tegration into EU energy policy’ (Promoter: Prof. Dr. Sebastian Oberthür) took place at IES. Claire started her defence with a clear presentation and overview of her PhD project. Her PhD research is an analysis of the extent to which climate policy objectives are integrated in different EU energy policies. She became interested in this topic after the EU presented its 2009 integrated climate and energy package and its objective to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions (GHGE) by 80 to 95% by 2050 compared with 1990 levels.
Claire answered two research questions in her PhD: what is the extent of integration of climate policy objectives into EU energy policy? How can the extent of integra-tion be explained? She selected three cases within EU energy policy (and two legislative texts per case, one from the early 2000s and one from the late 2000s), namely renewable energy, the energy performance of buildings and natural gas pipelines. The level of climate policy integration (CPI) is insufficient in all three cases to meet the objective to reduce GHGE by 80 to 95% by 2050, Claire concluded. Also, the level of CPI barely evolved from the process to the output. To explain why this is the case, Claire made use of five explanatory variables inspired by the literature on environmental policy integration and European integration: the nature of the functional relations between climate and energy
policy, the political commitment to climate change, the political commitment to CPI, the institutional and policy context and the dynamics of the policy process.
She concluded that the recognition of the functional interrelations between climate and energy policy seems to be a crucial first order variable, and that a combina-tion of variables is necessary to explain the whole story.
As overarching conclusions of the study, Claire highlighted that the EU engages in “catch-up governance”: as the time frame for meeting its objectives shortens, the EU has to make up for policies that failed in the past.
Another important conclusion is that long-term policy visions do not seem to be systematically part of day-to-day EU policy-making on energy. Claire stressed that in future research she would like to further test and refine
her conceptual framework. Broader implications of her study for policymakers point to the need to better in-tegrate long-term visions in day-to-day policy-making and to explicitly consider the functional interrelations between climate and energy policy.
After the presentation Claire answered questions from the jury members (Prof. Dr. Andrea Lenschow (University of Osnabrück), Dr. Ingmar von Homeyer (Milieu), Prof. Dr. Irina Tanasescu (IES) and Prof. Dr. Harri Kalimo (IES)) and the audience. After a short deliberation by the jury, chaired by Prof. Dr. Kris Deschouwer (VUB), good news followed: Claire was awarded the title of Doctor in political science!
3European Foreign & Security Policy
Watchdogs? Strengthening civil society and legislative oversight of defence
On 18 September the Global Governance Institute and Transparency International, in cooperation with the IES, held a half-day workshop on ‘Strengthening Civil Society and Legislative Oversight of Defence’. The workshop drew on Transparency International’s latest Corruption Index Report: Watchdogs? The Quality of Legislative Oversight of Defence in 82 Countries and sought to devise forward-looking approaches to strengthening transparency, legislative oversight and stronger governance mechanisms for tackling corruption in the defence sector.
Brittle States Seminar
On 17 July the IES hosted an informal seminar on the theme of ‘Brittle States’. Robert C. Jones from the Center for Advanced Defense Studies, USA, gave a presentation on understanding and applying principles of natural stability to conflict situations. This gave rise to a philosophical discussion between academics and security practitioners on the functioning of modern states.
Alexander speaks at the ESDC and European Parliament
In September, Dr. Alexander Mattelaer gave a guest lecture a b o u t t h e E U ’ s c o m p r e h e n s i v e approach at the 9th High Level Course of the European Security
and Defence College (ESDC). Based on his forthcoming article “The Empty Promise of Comprehensive Planning”, Alexander argued that some level of foreign policy incoherence has been hardwired into the EU’s DNA. He also participated in a public hearing at the European Parliament’s Subcommittee on Security and Defence on “EU support to UN and AU peacekeeping operations”. This hearing featured presentations by IES Associate Prof. Dr. Joachim Koops and Ambassador Gary Quince, Head of the EU Delegation to the AU. Alexander presented the findings of his recent work on the EU’s
indirect approach to peacekeeping, conducted together with Esther Marijnen. In August, Flemish newspaper De Standaard interviewed Alexander about his new book The Politico-Military Dynamics of European Crisis Response Operations and the upcoming replacement of the Belgian F-16 fighter fleet. Alexander was again interviewed on the F-16 fighter fleet issue in September by the Flemish TV documentary programme Ter Zake.
Luis visits Columbia University
Dr. Luis Simón spent most of September as a visiting researcher at the Arnold A. Saltzman Institute of War and Peace Studies, Columbia University, to complete his research on the United States’ geostrategy after the ‘Asian Pivot’. Luis was also interviewed by the media and quoted in a number of articles. In August La Libre Belgique interviewed him on the recent Spain-United Kingdom diplomatic row and Gibraltar, and The Globe and Mail quoted one of Luis’ articles on France and European defence policy in September. Luis has also been busy publishing articles: in September he wrote on French defence policy for The RUSI Journal and on strategy in the Indo-Pacific region for Comparative Strategy.
Daniel presents and publishes on European defence
In September Daniel Fiott spoke on “European Approaches to Stronger Legislative Oversight, Transparency and Governance in the Defence Sector” as part of the aforementioned Strengthening Civil Society and Legislative Oversight of Defence event.
He also gave a presentation to military staff and diplomats on “Future Prospects for the EU’s Common Security and Defence Policy” at the ESDC, Brussels.He published articles on the European Commission’s 2013 Communication on defence with the Egmont Institute, realist thought with The International History Review and the proposed transatlantic free agreement and European defence with The International Spectator. Daniel also published a number of shorter articles with e-International Relations, Security and Defence Agenda and European Geostrategy.
Associate News
Dr. Dominik Tolksdorf started the post-summer period with a move to Paris, where he will be based with the French think-tank Institut français des relations internationales until February 2014.
Dr. Anna Rudakowska spent July and August conducting interviews for an article she is writing on sinological studies in Poland after World War II. Both Dominik and Anna participated at the European International Studies Association’s 8th Pan–European Conference on International Relations, University of Warsaw.
Dr. Hongyu Wang delivered a number of public lectures on global economic governance issues including an engagement at the Academy for International Business Officials, Chinese Ministry of Commerce.
University of Southern California Summer Programme on European Foreign Policy
The EFSP cluster had the great pleasure to host yet another successful Summer Programme with undergraduates from the University of Southern California (USC). Under the guidance of course-leader Dr. Luis Simón and support from Lynn Tytgat, USC students spent June-July at the IES studying “Contemporary Issues in European Foreign and Security Policy”. A number of IES researchers and external practitioners lectured on issues ranging from transatlantic relations to regional security dilemmas, and the students were set a number of essays and exams as part of their assessment. In parallel to the course the students interned at Brussels-based think-tanks and organisations and they also visited the European Parliament and European External Action Service.
4been difficult to identify, mainly as a result of gaps in scientific knowledge.
Mr. Marco Contiero from Greenpeace outlined the main causes of bee decline and raised concerns about the weaknesses of the EU ban, such as its very limited timeframe, the non-consideration of neonicotinoids’ persistence in soil, their synergistic effects with other agro-chemicals (e.g. fungicides) and pesticide uptake by
non-crop natural vegetation. Some of Greenpeace’s major demands are: to fill remaining knowledge gaps, to make the existing ban permanent and to extend its scope to non-flowering crops, to ban a larger group of harmful pesticides, to encourage the use of non-chemical alternatives to pest management and to analyse the economic cost of the systematic use of PPPs. Mr.
Contiero proposed biological control and integrated pest management as alternative solutions.
The presentations were followed by a discussion with the audience, who raised questions about the conflict of interests with regard to the independence of scientific data on this issue, the mandate of EFSA, the importance of effective implementation of pesticide regulations at local level, and the anticipated external effect of the ban on third countries such as the US, Canada and Japan.
Europe’s rescue plan for honeybee colonies – from an EU-wide ban on pesticide use to a long-term strategy for bee health
On 27 September the Environmental Cluster organised a policy forum on ‘Europe’s rescue plan for honeybee colonies - from an EU-wide ban on pesticide use to a long-term strategy for bee health’. The meeting was chaired by IES researcher Dr. Radostina Primova and featured two speakers from relevant policy fields: Ms. Francesca Arena, Deputy Head of Unit E3 at DG SANCO (European Commission) and Mr. Marco Contiero, EU Po l i c y D i re c to r on Agriculture from Greenpeace’s European Unit.
Ms. Francesca Arena presented the Commission’s policies on bee health and the EU overarching regulatory framework that has evolved over time. The overall EU strategy to protect bees is managed by a wide inter-service coordination at the Commission, covering legislative and policy measures in a number of areas: pesticides, animal health, veterinary medicines, agriculture and research. Most of these measures have been based on scientific studies and data, in particular on the risks identified by the European Food and Safety Authority (EFSA). Although constant monitoring of regulatory measures takes place, risk management solutions have
Environment Sustainable Development
New Project on ‘Agreement on Climate Transformation 2015’
On 10 and 11 September 2013, the IES
hosted the kick-off workshop of a new
project on an ‘Agreement on Climate
Transformation 2015’ (ACT 2015). 10 key
think tanks and institutes from different
continents led by the World Resources
Institute (WRI, Washington, DC) are
cooperating in the project that is funded
by the European Commission under its
EuropeAid programme.
The overall objective of the project is
to draft a new climate agreement and
detailed explanatory memorandum
that has been informed by technical,
economic and political analysis and
road tested in key countries with key
constituencies.
The main focus of the kick-off meeting
was to define the story lines for three
propositions for a global climate
agreement that are to be further analysed
and discussed in key countries over the
coming year. The outcomes of the analysis
and the discussion process are then to
provide the basis for drafting a blueprint
for an international climate agreement as
an input to the international discussions
under the United Nations Framework
Convention on Climate Change, which
aim at reaching such an agreement by
the end of 2015. The workshop helped the
project to a good and productive start.
The contact point at the IES is Academic
Director Sebastian Oberthür.
From 18-21 September 2013 the 8th Pan-European Conference on International Relations, organised by the European International Studies Association (EISA), took place at the University of Warsaw. Two members of the Environment and Sustainable Development cluster, Academic Director Sebastian Oberthür and PhD researcher Lisanne Groen, attended the conference.
On Friday Sebastian took part in a roundtable on the EU’s external action. The other participants were Knud Erik Jørgensen, professor in International Relations from the University of Aarhus, and Virginie Mamadouh, geography professor at the University of Amsterdam. The roundtable was chaired by IES senior researcher Jamal Shahin. Sebastian outlined his approach to conceptualising and operationalising EU performance, in multilateral institutions. After the break, in a panel on EU performance theory, Lisanne presented a paper
that she co-authored with Sebastian, which reflects parts of her PhD research, on EU performance in multilateral institutions, including two case studies on the international conventions on climate change and biological diversity.
Jamal Shahin also participated in the panel with a paper on theorising the EU’s performance in multilateral institutions. Panelists received constructive comments from the discussant Dr. Robert Kissack, University of Barcelona. On Saturday Lisanne presented a draft book chapter on European foreign policy on the environment and climate change for the forthcoming SAGE Handbook of European Foreign Policy. In the chapter she presents an overview of literature on this topic and points to avenues for future research. After her presentation she again received constructive and positive feedback on her work.
5
be placed in a class with children two or
three years younger or the same age. This
depends greatly on the schooling history
and the child’s abilities. It’s very important
that…. the support is continuous. The
child’s ability to speak develops very fast
but development of abstract language skills
needed for studies takes many years.
Other countries can learn from this enlightened
approach to immigrant children and it’s not surprising,
judging from this visit, that Finnish education, with it’s
individualistic methodology receives the plaudits it does.
The visit was topped off by the same hot lunch that is
served to all the children paid for out of the school
budget thus at no direct expense to parents!
The ICC and its Deteriorating Relationship with Africa in Light of the Kenya Cases: What Should the EU Position be?
The African Union (AU), a union consisting of 54 African
States, held an Extraordinary Summit on 11-12 October
2013, to discuss its relationship with the International
Criminal Court (ICC or the Court). The meeting took
The purpose of the preparatory teaching
is to provide the children with basic
skills in the Finnish language and to
familiarize him or her with the Finnish
school environment. The teaching takes
place in small groups with a maximum
of ten children. An educational plan is
made for each child. Our main subject is,
of course, the Finnish language. Religion
is not taught, but other subjects in basic
education are taught – maths, biology,
geography, history, physical education,
English, crafts, visual arts, chemistry
and so on. You must understand that
you cannot teach all of these, when some
children may have been many years in
school in his or her own country and some
children have no reading ability. Usually
preparatory teaching lasts for one year,
after which a child transfers to a school
near his or her own home. Often a child is
placed in a class where the other children
are one year younger but they can also
Senior Research Fellow Richard Lewis, as member
of the international steering committee, attended
the Metropolis conference in Tampere, Finland
from September 8-14. One of the highlights of
such conferences are the field visits and, given the
high reputation of the Finnish educational system,
Richard chose to participate in a visit to the Hervante
Comprehensive School which teaches nine grades
up to the age of 16 and receives 700 pupils, 25% of
whom are from immigrant families from 19 different
nationalities. The children’s mother tongues can be as
varied as Russian, Persian and Albanian.
Here is an edited extract from a presentation by one of
the preparatory class teachers, Ville Lehtilä:
Migration Diversity & Justice
New Policy Brief
UACES Conference
Claire Dupont, Ilke Adam and Katja Biedenkopf attended
the 43rd annual conference of UACES, the academic
association for Contemporary European Studies, held on
2-4 September in Leeds. Ilke’s paper was part of a panel
on Immigration and the challenge for Stateless Nationalist
and Regionalist Parties (SNRP’s) and sub-state nations.
Her paper focused on how Europeanisation has altered
Belgian’s political party positions on immigration, bridging
the traditional linguistic divide between Francophone and
Flemish parties. The panel members engaged in fruitful discussions on how to transform their panel
papers into a special issue for a relevant journal. Claire’s and Katja’s papers were part of the same
panel on the EU’s external environmental and energy governance. The EU’s energy relations with the
Caspian Sea region were at the centre of Claire’s paper. She explored some questions on the future
of these external energy relations in the context of the EU’s objective of decarbonising its energy
sector by 2050 and moving away from fossil fuels. The EU’s engagement with China on greenhouse
gas emissions trading built the focus of Katja’s paper, which was co-authored with Diarmuid Torney
of the Finnish Institute of International Affairs. The paper examined both the factors underpinning
the EU’s supply of policy lessons and the domestic context, which explains China’s demand for (EU)
policy solutions. It finds Chinese receptiveness for EU lessons but also identifies some structural
factors that will most likely lead to the adoption of a Chinese emissions trading programme, somewhat
different from the EU system.
”
place just weeks before the trial of Kenya’s President
Uhuru Kenyatta is scheduled to begin, and was clearly
intended to voice discontent and put on hold the
ongoing ICC proceedings against Kenyatta as well as his
deputy, Vice-President William Ruto. Before the Summit,
there were even widespread rumors that the Assembly
of the AU would call for a mass withdrawal of African
States Parties from the ICC Statute. Eventually, the
Assembly did not go that far and took two important,
but less controversial decisions. It called for the granting
of immunities to Heads of States from prosecutions by
international criminal tribunals and requested a deferral
of the ICC cases against Kenyatta and Ruto through a
resolution adopted by the UN Security Council (UNSC).
After providing a background to the Kenya cases, this
policy brief aims to evaluate what the position of the
EU and its Member
States as outspoken
supporters of the
ICC and the fight
against impunity
should be, especially
given the fact that
F rance and the
UK, as permanent
UNSC members ,
could block a UNSC
deferral at any time.
“
6
Alexandra at the ECPR General Conference in Bordeaux
In September Alexandra attended the Annual General Conference of the European Consortium for Political Science (ECPR) in Bordeaux. Alexandra attended five panels in the “Bridging Research and Teaching Responsibilities of Political Scientists” section, which addressed issues such as quality assurance in political science teaching, graduate education and teacher training and teaching research skills.
Alexandra presented her paper “Stepping into the virtual classroom-stepping out of your comfort zone. The roles of the teacher in the political science virtual classroom” as a part of the panel on IT in Teaching, Online Teaching and Online degrees. Alexandra’s paper, inspired by the workshop she organised this spring at the American Political Science Association Teaching & Learning Conference, analysed the roles of the teacher in online education: knowledge provider, facilitator, course designer and technical mediator.
Besides attending the various panels, Alexandra also took part in the ECPR Teaching & Learning Standing Group meeting, where she had the chance to network with colleagues doing research on teaching methods in political science and to establish potential contacts for future collaboration.
EDU Educational Development Unit
EU Refresher Course for Vesalius College students
In the last week of August, Alexandra and Magdalena gave a series of five lectures exploring the EU to Vesalius College exchange students. This intensive course, known as the EU Refresher Course, is designed to familiarise students with the concept of European integration, the milestones of the integration process, the EU institutional setup and decision-making procedures. Each lecture was followed by a lively discussion with the students who came mainly from the United States and showed a lot of interest in EU-related topics.
Summer School 2013
In July the IES, together with its long-standing partners the Diplomatic Academy in Vienna and the University of Vienna, organised the 10th edition of the Summer School on European policy-making. Fifteen students from ten countries, in and beyond the EU, gathered for an intensive two-week programme in Brussels in Vienna.
Coming from different academic backgrounds, the students had a keen interest in European affairs and the EDU team offered them a comprehensive line-up of lectures on the structure and the functioning of the EU institutions, as well as the EU decision-making process and various policy areas. In addition to the lectures, the students visited the main EU institutions and had a chance to discuss with practitioners about their day-to-day-work and the policy fields they are involved in. In Vienna, the lectures focused on the legal and economic aspects of European integration and the students visited the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE). True to the active learning principle, the Summer School also included two simulation games: a Council negotiation on a conflict in an African country, and an inter-institutional negotiation process for the 2014-2020 EU Multiannual Financial Framework.
EU IN CLOSE UP 26-28 March 2014
• A 3-day intensive programme designed for professionals seeking an advanced understanding of the EU institutions and decision-making
• Mix of face-to-face and online training
• In-depth analysis of each institution, with special focus on its functioning and role within the EU structure
• A detailed insight into the various types of decision-making methods, according to the field of EU action
• A hands-on guide to various types of EU information sources, complemented by a computer-based exercise aimed at retrieving information on the EU
• 6 months subscription to E-modules, the E-learning tool on European Studies developed by the IES: www.emodules.be/demo
www.ies.be/close-up
7
The e-learning EU-modules, offered by the IES over the past ten years, have been comprehensively overhauled.
Beside the transition to a new, open software platform, the entire content has been reviewed and updated to
incorporate the latest developments. The updated modules offer researchers, policy advisors, lawyers, marketers
and people involved in EU affairs the general knowledge and skills needed to fully understand European influence
in their field of action. The EU-modules were conceived as an innovative learning tool with the main aim of
transferring essential and constantly updated information about the EU, in a user-friendly manner that brings
together thorough academic knowledge and a clear and accessible language. The IES is currently offering five
modules on the History and Theories of European Integration (3 ECTS); EU Institutions (3 ECTS); the EU Law
and Decision-making Process (3 ECTS); EU Policies (6 ECTS) and European Information Sources (5 ECTS). The EU
modules are accredited by the VUB and offer up to 20 ECTS. More information on the modules can be found at:
www.ies.be/e-learning.
Revamped EU Modules
The Educational Development Unit (EDU) of the IES is delighted to unveil its lat-est project: its reworked and re-vamped comprehensive online learning series about the EU, known as the EU Modules. Building on its former e-learning platform, the IES teamed up with the VUB computer technol-ogy department to transform and modern-ise its E-learning modules on the basis of an open-source platform (Chamillo). At the same time, also the content was reworked completely and brought up-to-date by the full EDU team. The EU Modules are a comprehensive online learning platform about the EU, making learning about all things EU-related accessible to all. Knowl-edge about the EU, European institutions, decision-making and European Union law should not merely be confined to politicians and law scholars. An increasing amount of people are confronted with a more promi-nent Europe on a daily basis and should have a chance to understand the EU and what it does. The EU Modules contains five detailed individual modules that range from the history of European integration to the modern roles of the institutions.
www.eumodules.eu
Marking the 10th anniversary of the IES Inter-University Summer
School on European Policy Making, Executive Director Anthony
Antoine, Assistant Director Alexander Mattelaer and Summer
School coordinator Alexandra Mihai travelled to Vienna to meet
with the Summer School co-organisers, i.e. the Universität Wien
(UW) and the Diplomatic Academy of Vienna. Together with VUB
Vice-Rector for International Policy Jan Cornelis, the IES team had
meetings with University of Vienna’s Vice-Rector Heinz Faßmann
to discuss further collaboration that could go beyond the organi-
sation of the summer school. With both VUB and UW being active
members of UNICA, and with quite some common involvement
in research projects and international exchange, UW is high on
the list of becoming a preferred international partner of the VUB. The two vice-Rectors discussed possible paths
towards such a partnership. For the IES, it was important to reconfirm the willingness of UW to continue its
involvement in the summer school for the years to come, through a strengthened partnership via the installation
of an inter-university academic board. The VUB/IES team also met with Arthur Mettinger, former Vice-Rector for
international policy of the UW and currently Rector of the Fachhochschüle Wien, to see whether collaboration
between both institutions would be possible. Dr. Mettinger, welcomed the e-learning modules of the IES, and saw
in them a possibility of teaching European policy-making at one of his departments – a path that will be further
explored. Finally, the VUB delegation also had a dinner meeting with Ambassador Hans Winkler, Director of the
Diplomatic Academy, and his freshly appointed deputy director, Amb. Gerhard Sailler. On top of a recap of the
summer school activities and a guarantee for co-organising the summer school in the coming years, cooperation
with the VUB-based Brussels Diplomatic Academy that is to be created by the end of the year was discussed.
IES and VUB are looking forward to a continued collaboration with both UWien and the esteemed Diplomatic
Academy in the future. With a legacy of already more than 10 years of successful cooperation, this should not
be a problem.
10 Years Inter-University Summer School on EU Policy Making
5 ECTS
Inter-University Summer School
Study in Vienna and Brussels
EUROPEAN POLICY-MAKING
· For graduates in the social sciences and young professionals
The EU-modules
8Ecoherence Project Kicks Off
Ecoherence is a joint research project between the
IES and the University of Turku that will run for
three years. It is funded by the Academy of Finland.
The project will focus on different mechanisms of
reconciliatig economic and non-economic values
in trade law, competition law, investment law and
intellectual property law. The project also includes
a cross-cutting political science perspective. The
kick-off meeting of Ecoherence was held in Turku
in September. Present from the IES were Harri,
Trisha, Claire, Max as well as the IES associate Ben
van Rompuy. The Turku team consisted of Jukka
Mahonen, the administrative director of the project
and the dean of the law faculty, together with
professor Tuomas Mylly as well as other three
researchers. The objective of the meeting was to
identify links between research interests, to further
specify the institutional and substantive scope of
the project and to develop working methods that
encourage collaboration. The work will continue
in monthly Skype-meetings, where the first tasks
include the drafting of joint research papers on
various cases of value reconciliation. The project
is also planning to organize a focused research
symposium in Brussels in December and a bigger
conference in Finland in the beginning of 2014.
IES Autumn Lecture Series: 8 October - 12 December
This year’s Autumn Lecture Series will focus on the crisis that has strongly influenced the European
economies over the past years. The lectures will analyse the interplay between law, economy
and politics in the European Union during this time of crisis. The IES 2013 Autumn Lecture Series
will tackle the questions surrounding the role of law in times of economic and political crisis
through a programme of nine panel sessions, each given by top experts in the respective fields.
Economic Governance
Autumn Lecture Series Under Way: ‘EU Economic Law in a Time of Crisis’
What seemingly started as a credit crunch and sovereign debt crises has grown into a political litmus test on the entire Union. While the European Union is an economic and political integration project at its core, it is also characterized by a strong adherence to the rule of law. Various types of economic law, in particular, have had a central role in deepening and broadening European integration. Is the current crisis testimony that the legal frameworks have now also reached their limits? Is European economic law still capable of providing further impetus, of assisting in solving the current crisis – or are its shortcomings rather to blame for the grave situation? These questions are at the core of the IES 2013 Autumn Lecture Series which got underway on 25 September.
The first session of the series, ‘The EU in an Economic, Political and Legal Crisis?’ set the scene for this debate. The speech of
the Head of Cabinet to Commissioner Karel de Gucht, Mr. Marc Vanheukelen, emphasized that Europe has become less attractive
for outside investors and is facing several challenges, both political and economic. The population of Europe is ageing - hence,
growth will be essential for the future of the well-fare state. However, under current circumstances very painful cuts are still
needed to pull Europe fully out of the crisis. The economic problems have also triggered political unrest. On a national level the
eurosceptics are arguing for less integration. Also the economic realities seem to cause a split: Europe is divided especially in
terms of the unemployment rate. The session continued with LSE Professor Damian Chalmers giving a speech on how the EU
could legally justify a wide range of measures to tackle the crisis. Chalmers stressed the importance of democratic legitimacy.
After reviewing the steps taken in the EU, he concluded that national parliaments do not get enough of a say. As regards the
problem of an ageing population, Chalmers noted that migration is often highlighted as one means to solve the problem. In
the discussion that followed, Marc Vanheukelen recalled that when EMU was created, it was evident that solidarity was needed.
Hence, in a monetary union sovereignty will need to be partly limited. Vanheukelen agreed with Chalmers that there is a lack of
political legitimacy in backing the EMU. While Chalmers viewed the need to strengthen the position of the national parliaments
important in order to gain legitimacy in the eyes of the people, Vanheukeln added that none of these will represent the common
European interest. Indeed, parliaments seem to be losing power to the executive on all levels of governance. Regardless of the
views emerging on the future of the EU, further integration in the form of a banking union seems inevitable.
The series will continue by analysing the same interplay between economics and law in seven areas of EU economic law: economic
and monetary law and policy, taxation, the internal market, trade, competition, IPRs and public procurement. In the final session
EUCJ Vice President Koen Lenaerts and former U.S FTC Chairman Bill Kovacic will debate whether there are any lessons for EU
economic law to learn from the crisis.
Thursday12 December12:30 - 14:30
Wednesday27 November18:00 - 20:00
Wednesday 13 November18:00 - 20:00
Tuesday19 November18:00 - 20:00
EU in a Global Market Place - A New Wave of Trade Protectionism
Monetary
CRISISCRISISCRISIS
POLICY
Taxes
IES Autumn Lecture Series 2013
Lectures open to all • Registration mandatory • Full programme, location and registration at: www.ies.be/ALS2013
EU
Mr. Joakim Reiter, Ambassador, Permanent Representative of Sweden to the WTO
Mr. Lothar Ehring, DG Trade, European Commission
Institute for European Studies, Conference Room Rome & Lisbon
Wednesday 6 November, 18:00 - 20:00
Pleinlaan 5, 1050 Brussels
Thursday21 November12:30 - 14:30
9IES Publications
Biedenkopf, Katja and Dupont, Claire. 2013. A Toolbox Approach to the EU’s External Climate Governance. In Boening, Astrid, Jan-Frederik Kremer and Aukje van Loon (eds.). Global Power Europe – Vol. 1. Theoretical and Institutional Approaches to the EU’s External Relations. Heidelberg. Springer: 181-199.
Meyer, T. 2013. “Kiss and make up? Issues and trends in the EU’s copyright enforcement policy”, paper presented at: EuroCPR 2013, A Digital Agenda in search of evidence: issues and trends, Brussels, 21-22 March 2013.
Rabitz, Florian. 2013. “Coalitions power and institutional change in global patent politics” IES Working Paper 2/2013. www.ies.be/working-paper/coalitions-power-and-institutional-change-global-patent-politics
Sattich, T., Maltby T., Mulle E. D., Wedekind G., Depoorter I. 2013. EU enlargement: lessons from, and prospects for. IES Working Paper 3/2013. http://www.ies.be/working-paper/eu-enlargement-lessons-and-prospects
Tintin, Cem. 2013. “Foreign Direct Investment Inflows and Economic Freedoms: Evidence From Central and Eastern European Countries”, Advances in Business-Related Scientific Research Journal, Vol. 4, No. 1, pp. 1-12. ISSN: 1855-931X.
Tolksdorf, Dominik. 2013 “Croatia on the Verge of Joining the European Union: Outlook After the Release of the latest EU Monitoring Report”. AICGS. http://www.aicgs.org/issue/croatia-on-the-verge-of-joining-the-european-union-outlook-after-the-release-of-the-latest-eu-monitoring-report/
Winkler, Sigrid. 2013. A question of sovereignty? Asia Europe Journal: Volume 11, Issue 1 (2013), pp. 1-20
The Racial Equality Directive - From law to practice
by Thien Uyen DO - Legal Policy Analyst at the Migration PolicyGroup, an independent non-profit European organisationbased in Brussels, dedicated to strategic thinking and acting on equality and mobility.
The transposition of the Racial Equality Directive (2000/43/EC) has immensely enhanced legal protection against discrimination on the grounds of racial and ethnic origin throughout the EU. More than 10 years after its adoption, the main challenge identified in many Member States is the enforcement of anti-discrimination laws in practice, in particular with regard to access to justice. Ultimately it is up to the domestic courts to ensure effective implementation of anti-discrimination law. Polls regularly show that the discrepancy between the levels of discrimination experienced and discrimination re- ported by victims must be seriously addressed. Awareness is low not only among the public but also among the members of the legal professions, leading to under-reporting of discrimination cases. In addition, data that reflect the ethnic or racial composition of the population are scarce which makes it difficult to prove discrimination before the competent authorities. Moreover, certain procedural difficulties that affect access to justice and effective enforcement also stem from the short limitation periods foreseen in legislation, lengthy procedures, evidence, high costs and failures in the provision of legal aid, ineffective sanctions, as well as barriers in the form of language and issues relating to legal standing or legitimate interest. The law remains complex and remedies often inadequate.
Environmental Degradation, Climate Change and Migration: from Research to Policy-making
by Aurelie Sgro - Project Officer at the Brussels Mission of ICMPD; Julie Marchal - Associate Project Officer on the EU-ICMPD MIgration EUeXpertise programme; Chantal Lacroix - Deputy Head of Mission of ICMPD in Brussels
In recent months, the migratory impacts of environmental degradation and climate change have gained increased worldwide attention. In response to the publication of the EC Staff Working Document on Climate Change, Environmental Degradation and Migration, this policy brief critically outlines current themes and issues that surround this global phenomenon, specifically the findings of current international research which frame the discussions on terminology and current legal, political and institutional conceptual debates.
Latest IES Policy Briefs
European Roma Integration Efforts - A Snapshot
This book reflects critically upon integration efforts towards Europe’s Romani populations.
The last few years have seen a renewed focus on the integration of Europe’s Romani populations. This collection of essays offers a se- ries of snapshots, drawn up by scholars from different disciplines, and examines a variety of integration efforts, at different levels and involving a range of institutional actors. Taken together, these essays offer important insights into where we are now.
These papers are the product of a 2012 workshop hosted by the Fun- damental Rights and Constitutionalism Research Group (FRC) of the Vrije Universiteit Brussel. FRC is Belgian human rights rapporteur to the Fundamental Rights Agency and has so far authored several reports on the non-discrimination status of minorities and the Roma in particular.
10IES in the media
IES in the social media
In addition to the IES account, follow our researchers on Twitter to keep up with their current research, publications and collaborations. Here is a small selection:
Alexander Mattelaer : Wordt de F-35 de opvolger van onze F-16’s?, Thu, 19 Sept 2013 in: Ter Zake
Luis Simon : How France became Obama’s best friend in Europe on defence issues, Wed, 4 Sept 2013 in: The Globe
and Mail
Anna Stahl : the EU’s foreign policy response to the recent violence in Egypt (in Chinese), Fri, 23 Aug 2013 in:
People’s Daily
Daniel Fiott : The Common Security and Defence Policy and IR Theory
Tue, 20 Aug 2013 in: e-International Relations (e-IR)
Alexander Mattelaer : Politiek-militair dovemansgesprek, Sat, 17 Aug
2013 in: De Standaard
Alexander Mattelaer : Bondgenoten wachten op Belgische beslissing
over F-16 Sat, 17 Aug 2013 in: De Standaard
@ATJMattelaer @DanielFiott @Cladupont @EstherMarijnen @fdavesa
@IES_Brussels
11organisation of the annual Summer School at the IES.
From 2011 to mid November 2013 , she was responsible
for the communication at Axxon, the professional
organisation for physio-therapists .
“As it was the right moment for me to give my career a new direction, I did not hesitate to take on this new challenge. With the double mission: f inances* and human resources I hope that
the next few years will be instructive (under the motto ‘train your brain’) and enriching. I am convinced that my 22 years’ experience in communications can be an added value; let’s say it gives me that little bit more to cope with the human side part of my job. I hope I can count on all of you to make something out of it.”
*Anne will take over the tasks of Photis Schurmans , current
Financial Manager and leaving the IES by the end of 2013 for
a full time job at Vesalius College.
Farewell Berdien & Kristof
On Friday 27 September 2013 the IES said a warm
farewell to two members of staff.
Berdien De Kempeneer joined us
in March 2013 for an internship
which lasted until June. Following
this she stayed on at the IES part-
time until September. She was a
great help to the Secretariat and
we thank her for all her hard work at the Institute.
We also had to say goodbye to Kristof Rogge. Kristof
joined the IES part-time as a student back in October
2010. He later went on to become the full-time IES
Events Manager for 2 years from 2011. He had a very
heavy workload, notably being in charge of organising
all the logistics for the ‘EU in International Affairs
Conference’ in 2012. He certainly will be remembered
for his very friendly disposition and his eagerness to
help out. Kristof now enters the world of IT consultancy
and we wish him all the best in his future endeavours!
Staff NewsAstrid Edwards rejoined the IES as a
job student after an exchange pro-
ject in South-Korea. While finishing
her master thesis, she will work in
the IES Secretariat and be of help
for the support staff. Currently
she is assisting prof. Dr. Jamal Shahin in an ICT related
research project and will participate in the presentation
at the ICT 2013 Conference in Vilnius.
Daniel Opoku Acquah (MSc,
LLM) is a visiting resarcher as
IES. He is currently a doctoral
student at the University of Turku
Graduate School of Law. The topic
of his dissertation is: Intellectual
Property, Developing Countries
and the Law and Policy of the EU: Towards Postcolonial
Control of Development. His research focuses on the role
of the EU on the international scene and at the regional
level in intellectual property rule making, and how that
impacts third (developing) countries.
Mateusz Dziatkiewicz is a VUB
Philosophy student who joined
the IES team in September. He will
mostly be working in the evenings
at the Secretariat -1 (LLM &
Euromaster) and is also responsible
for setting up the rooms for events
and technical assistance. He is following the ‘Master of
Philosophy and ethics’. Originally from Poland, he came
to Belgium 15 years ago.
Thibault Callebaut arrived at
the IES in October as a part-time
employee during the academic
year. He will primarily assist
Jacintha with the organisation of
events. Last year Thibault obtained
a degree in Communication
Science at the VUB. He is currently studying history and
working on a paper concerning the internationalization
of the restaurant business in the 50’s and 60’s, under
the guidance of professor Peter Scholliers, lecturer at
the IES.
3 New PhD Researchers starting in October
S e re n a D ’A g o s t i n o j o i n s
us from October onwards as
a Doctoral Researcher at IES
and the Department of Political
Science. She is part of the joint
research programme “Evaluating
Democratic Governance in Europe”
(EDGE) and the IES cluster “Migration, Diversity and
Justice”. In July 2013 she obtained a post-graduate
diploma in EU Law on Immigration and Asylum by the
Odysseus Academic Network at the Université Libre
de Bruxelles (ULB). She holds a MA in International
Politics and Relations from the University of Pisa (Italy)
and a BA in International Communications from the
University for Foreigners of Perugia (Italy). From 2009 to
2012 Serena worked in the International Development
Co-operation sector in the Western Balkans and
coordinated Humanitarian Aid interventions in Eastern
Africa.
Carlos Soria Rodríguez joined
the IES as a junior researcher in
the Environment and Sustainable
Development cluster. He will
work on a PhD project about
the use/deployment of maritime
renewable energies in the EU
promoted by Prof. Kalimo and Prof. Oberthür. Carlos
studied Law and a Master in integral industrial security
and occupational hazard prevention both at Universidad
de Sevilla (Spain) and a LLM in Environmental Law at
Vermont Law School (USA)”
Ferran Davesa’s doctoral thesis
focuses on the analysis of political
participation under the impact of
Information and Communication
Technologies (ICTs) and the digital
media. At present, his research
activities also include the analysis of the European
Union as an international actor, and broader issues
related to European governance. . As a member of the
Comparative Agendas Project (CAP) and the Spanish
Policy Agendas Project (SPAP) he has contributed in
the development of comprehensive databases on the
Spanish political system, the media and public opinion.
Davesa holds an MA in International Relations from the
Institut Barcelona d’Estudis Internacionals (IBEI), and a
BA in Political Science from Pompeu Fabra University
Follow him on Twitter: @fdavesa
New Human Resources and Finance Manager
We are happy to announce that Anne Sterckx will
join the IES from November onwards as HR and
Finance Manager. With a master degree in economics/
marketing, Anne started her professional career in 1992
in a marketing research bureau called Survey & Action.
She worked for many years as Internal Communication
Officer for multinationals such as Siemens and Alcatel
Microelectronics and at the Roularta Group as an
editor in chief for a lifestyle magazine for doctors
and pharmacists. In 2009 she made a first stop off
at the VUB in the context of the internationalization
of the university. In 2010 she was responsible for the From the IES Archives: Kristof Rogge and Peter Menke at the EU in International Affairs III, May 2012
12Events Calendar
Contributions to this Newsletter:
Ilke Adam - Anthony Antoine - Daniel Fiott - Lisanne
Groen - Harri Kalimo - Dariusz Kloza - Richard Lewis -
Alexander Mattelaer - Alexandra Mihai - Sebastian
Oberthür - Radostina Primova - Magdalena Sapala -
Jamal Shahin
Editing & layout by:
Anamaria Bacsin and 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)
Date Event
Wed 6 Nov 2013
12:00-13:30
Wednesday Webinars: The Dilemmas of Defining the EU
Wed 6 Nov 2013
18:00-20:00
Lecture Series: EU on a Global Market Place – A New Wave of Trade
Protectionism?
Wed 13 Nov 2013
18:00-20:00
Lecture Series: Public Procurement in Times of Crisis – Exploiting a Window of
Opportunity?
Tue 19 Nov 2013
18:00-20:00
Lecture Series: Competition law – Does the Crisis Justify Different Rules?
Thu 21 Nov 2013
18:00-20:00
Lecture Series: NEW DATE!! Getting Tough on Taxes – The Upside of Public
Finances
Wed 27 Nov 2013
18:00-20:00
Lecture Series: IPR’s – Promoting Competitiveness or Protecting Vested
Interests?
Thu 28 Nov 2013
12:00-14:00
Policy Forum: The EU Budget for 2014-2020: Major Reform or Status Quo?
Thu 12 Dec 2013
12:30-14:30
Lecture Series: Never Waste a Good Crisis - Lessons for the Future of EU
Economic Law
Wed 18 Dec 2013
12:00-13:30
Wednesday Webinars: EU Foreign Policy Actors
The IES has prepared the following project for the European Commission and will participate at the ICT fair in November 2013. The project entitled ‘Shaping the ‘multiple disciplinary approach’ in the Digital Agenda for Europe-relevant sections of H2020’ has been authored by Katja Biedenkopf, Trisha Meyer and Jamal Shahin. The ICT event is organised by the European Commission in partnership with the Lithuanian Presidency of the Council of the EU and the official sponsor of the Presidency. More details at http://ec.europa.eu/digital-agenda/en/ict-2013.
