Upcoming Events
Effective 1 October 2019, the Institute for European Studies (IES) at the Vrije Universiteit Brussel (VUB) and Vesalius College (VeCo) have appointed Luc Soete as their new Dean. The appointment goes hand in hand with a change of statutes, which are now embedded in the VUB’s statutes thus enabling an alignment of management roles. Two other new appointees include Alexander Mattelaer who will take up the new function of Vice-Dean for Research of both institutions, while Sven Van Kerckhoven will take up the new role of Vice-Dean for Education. The IES-VeCo joint management team further consists of Executive Director Anthony Antoine and Assistant Executive Director Jacintha Liem.
Professor Richard Higgott of the IES produced a major report entitled “Civilisations, States and World Order: Where are We, Where are We Heading”. This new publication was commissioned by the Berlin based think tank Dialogue of Civilisation Research Institute in anticipation of the Rhodes Forum on 11-12 October 2019. The theme of the Forum is “ Global (Dis)Order: Towards Dialogue-Based World Views".
On 2 October 2019, the EU Commission’s Director General for Taxation and Customs has reappointed professor Marie Lamensch as effective member of the European Commission VAT Expert Group for the next three years. Marie Lamensch has been a member of this expert group since 2016. The task of the VAT Expert Group is (1) to advise the European Commission on the preparation of legislative acts and other policy initiatives in the field of VAT; and (2) to provide insight concerning the practical implementation of legislative acts and other EU policy initiatives in the field of VAT.
Three years into the Trump administration’s “America First” approach to foreign policy, the president’s repeated criticisms of alliances, muddled messaging, and policy confusion have placed the trans-Atlantic and trans-Pacific alliance systems under strain. On October 29, scholars from the Brookings Institution, Institute for European Studies at Vrije Universiteit Brussel, and the Asan Institute discussed the impact of these policies on America’s allies and examine the shifting geopolitical dynamics. 
On 24 October, Ilke Adam gave a keynote speech at the landmark European Conference ‘From Tampere 20 to Tampere 2.0. Towards a new programme (2020-24) for EU migration and asylum policies 20 years after the Tampere conclusions’. This conference brought together high-level policy makers, experts, academics and civil society leaders reflecting on the 20 years of European immigration policies and the way forward. 
The Jean Monnet network ‘Governing the EU’s Climate and Energy Transition in Turbulent Times’ (GOVTRAN), to which the IES-VUB serves as leading coordinator, held its second international workshop under the overarching theme ‘Climate and Energy Governance and the Future of Europe’ at the Istituto Affari Internazionali in Rome on 30 September – 1 October 2019. Seventeen researchers from across Europe presented twelve draft papers examining how various aspects of EU climate and energy policy interact with some of the underlying causes of the current crisis of European integration. Topics included, inter alia, the impact of rising populism, the role of Central and Eastern European Member States, the effectiveness of EU policies to promote renewable energy, the role of the European Parliament and of the Commission, and changes in EU international climate and energy governance. 
On 28 October and 1 November 2019, Prof. Luis Simon and Linde Desmaele presented their research on balance of power theory and regional prioritisation in US grand strategy at the Saltzman Institute for War and Peace Studies (Columbia University) and the Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs (Harvard University). The presentations were hosted by Prof. Robert Jervis (Columbia) and Prof. Steven Miller (Harvard) respectively.
On 16 October 2019 the VUB International Relations office organised its first Europe Day. The theme of the day was the 15th anniversary of the EU’s biggest enlargement, when 10 countries joined the European Union: Cyprus, Malta, Czech Republic, Hungary, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Slovakia and Slovenia. Part of the EU day programme was an academic panel debate, organised in cooperation with the Institute for European Studies at VUB (IES), the Jean Monnet Chair and International Relations Office.
In the context of a thematic 'research' week, the Spanish high school Institut Vall de Llémena has invited experts from different research areas to explain to the students how to conduct scientific research. Davesa disentangled the rationale behind social sciences research based on his own experience at the Institute for European Studies (IES) at the Vrije Universiteit Brussel (VUB).
Prof. Dr. Caterina Carta (Director of Master Studies at Vesalius College and former project researcher at the IES) together with Prof. Dr. Richard Higgott (Emeritus Professor at the University of Warwick and Research Professor at the IES), have published a new book that explores European cultural diplomacy, a topic of growing interest across the scholarly and applied public policy communities. 
On October 18, the EDGE Programme organised a full day of presentations, discussions and conversations on long-term challenges to democracy. The agenda included many activities to foster research creativity and intellectual exchange, from an academic speed-dating to the launch of the first ‘EDGE Book’, i.e. the edited volume on 
The network ‘Governing the EU’s Climate and Energy Transition in Turbulent Times’ (GOVTRAN), to which the IES-VUB serves as leading coordinator, is organizing a 2-day International workshop on Climate and Energy Governance and the Future of Europe. The event will take place at the Istituto Affari Internazionali in Rome on 30 September-1 October 2019. The workshop will explore recent advances in European Union (EU) climate and energy governance and policy in the context of broader contemporary aspects and challenges of European integration. A special issue in a high-profile, peer-reviewed academic journal is envisioned as a major outcome of the workshop. We look forward to Director General Mauro Petriccione of DG CLIMA of the European Commission delivering a keynote. More information about the GOVTRAN project is available 
Europe’s energy transition will require higher quantities of metals. Non-ferrous metals represent the building blocks of every conceivable climate technology including batteries, clean mobility, energy-efficient buildings, solarpanels, and wind turbines. In this respect, we are delighted to share a new publication “Metals for a Climate Neutral Europe: A 2050 Blueprint”, by IES Senior Researcher Tomas Wyns and IES Doctoral Researcher Gauri Khandekar. This comprehensive report looks at the non-ferrous metals industry’s unique profile (especially achievements in electrification and circularity), potential in the transition to climate-neutrality, and the challenges and constraints that will be faced along the way.
On November 9th, 2019, the world will celebrate the 30th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall and all eyes will be on the German capital. Around this historical event the city will host an international Summit from November 6th-10th, 2019. On the evening of November 9, world-renowned singers and bands will perform a peace concert, paying tribute to the past 30 years without the Wall. Former IES Academic Director Prof. Dr. Luk Van Langenhove has been invited to deliver a keynote Address to this Summit. He will speak about “The Psychology of Walls and the need for Windows of Dialogue”.
The ‘European Union in International Affairs’ (#EUIA20) conference invites paper abstracts and panel proposals. It will be the seventh edition of the EUIA conference, focusing on the theme ‘Assessing the EU’s Capacity to Act’. The EUIA biennial conference provides a major forum for discussion and exchange of ideas amongst academics and policy-makers who engage with these issues. We encourage the submission of paper abstracts and panel proposals that focus on the EU’s capacity to act internationally.
The first joint publication of the EDGE Programme is finally out! The book “The Edges of Political Representation. Mapping, Critiquing and Pushing the Boundaries”, edited by VUB researcher Mihnea Tanasescu and former IES researcher Claire Dupont, provides a nuanced overview of what political representation means today and how it can be approached from an academic perspective. In line with one of the main scopes of the EDGE programme, namely building bridges between the Department of Political Science and the Institute for European Studies, this books collects a series of essays and reflections on political theory, political philosophy, party politics, electoral politics, feminism, European politics, minority politics and online governance.
On 14 November at 17.00 IES professor Ilke Adam and IES PhD researcher Omar Cham will speak at the presentation of the UNDP Research Report ‘Scaling Fences. Voices of Irregular African Migrants to Europe’. Findings and recommendations will be presented by Ms. Ahuna Eziakonwa, Director UNDP Africa and Mr. Mohamed Yahya, Resident Representative, UNDP Nigeria. Findings will be discussed by Prof. Dr Ine Lietaert UNU-CRIS and UGent, Prof. Dr. Ilse Ruyssen, UGent, Mr. Omar Cham IES-VUB and Dr. Ortun Merkle, UNU-MERIT. The launch will be introduced by Prof. Dr. Ilke Adam. 
On Saturday 24 August, IES and University of Turku Joint-PhD candidate Max Jansson defended his doctoral thesis publicly on the legal aspects of PPMs in interstate trade at the University of Turku. In his work, Jansson examined specifically the environmental PPM-criteria on renewable energy implemented by the EU Member States and U.S. states from the perspective of rules on free trade. Jansson argued that under WTO law, EU free movement law and U.S. constitutional law, PPM-criteria can indeed be adopted both for in-state production and imported goods, as long as the criteria are carefully designed. Max’s findings and conclusions provide valuable insights to stakeholders that design and apply sustainability criteria and programs on essential products such as biofuels or electricity from renewable resources.
Marco Giuli spoke about the challenges and opportunities with the energy transition in Italy in light of the EU's climate objectives at the annual Vanvitelli Forum, organised in The Hague by the Clingendael Institute and the Istituto Affari Internazionali with the support of the Dutch and Italian Ministries of Foreign Affairs.
Among the objectives composing the 2018 UN Global Compact for Migration, Objective 21 deals with the return of migrants to their countries of origin. This objective includes a reference to sustainable reintegration occurring when returnees have access to psycho-social assistance, justice and occupational prospects. The policy objective of sustainable reintegration apparently enjoys broad support in the face of some countries increasingly opposing the global governance of migration. Such support can be explained by making reference to sustainable reintegration’s potential to accommodate diverse interests and the limited monitoring of the programmes it underpins. 
On Wednesday 28 August, Ms. Carla Mascia successfully defended her PhD on the implementation of (family) migration policies. It was a joint PhD between IES, Vrije Universiteit Brussel and GERME, Université Libre de Bruxelles, co-supervised by Prof. Ilke Adam (IES-VUB) and Prof. Andrea Rea (GERME, ULB). Further members of the jury were: Prof. Dirk Jacobs (ULB), Prof. Florian Trauner (VUB), Prof. Dirk Jacobs (ULB), Prof. Saskia Bonjour (University of Amsterdam) and Prof. Sylvie Saroléa (Université Catholique de Louvain).IES in the media...
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Tomas Wyns
Vlaanderen stoot 4 procent te veel uit, maar wat met de oplossingen van de regering? 3 experts lichten de plannen door
9 Nov 2019
In: VRT News
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Marco Giuli
Germany Is Undermining the Climate Change Fight
6 Nov 2019
In: Bloomberg
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Ramon Pacheco Pardo
Starbucks's Sino-struggle: US coffee chain's reputation tanks nearly 10 times faster than Apple's in China during the trade war, figures show
1 Nov 2019
In: Daily Mail Online
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Ramon Pacheco Pardo
Must prepare for the possibility of a complete breakdown in North Korean denuclearisation efforts (in Korean)
31 Oct 2019
In: Newstown
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2014 represents a strategic crossroads for NATO. To encourage debate in the policy and academic communities, the Institute for European Studies at the Vrije Universiteit Brussel, the Royal United Services Institute and NATO’s Public Diplomacy Division organised a workshop on 30 June in Brussels. In discussing present challenges and paving a way forward for NATO, the workshop saw high-level participants come together for a stimulating and in-depth strategic debate. The event showcased a special feature that was published with the RUSI Journal in advance of the Alliance's Summit in Wales, 4-5 September 2014, with contributions from IES Researchers Alexander Mattelaer and Luis Simón.
IES is a Jean Monnet Centre of Excellence at the 