On behalf of the Sciences Po’s Centre for European Studies and Comparative Politics and  Laboratory for the Interdisciplinary Evaluation of Public Policies, convenors of the 9th Conference of SGEU-ECPR, we are delighted to welcome you to participate in this important scientific event. The conference theme is :

Contradictions – Whither the Political, Economic and Social Integration of Europe?

For some years, pundits have said that the European Union has been under stress and showing resilience, undergoing ‘crises’ requiring adaptation. Social scientists are trying to understand how current political tensions and policy contradictions affect the European project now that the ‘permissive consensus’ has come to an end, and the EU post-Lisbon ‘constitutional compromise’ looks fragile.

Scholars have been reflecting on the state of European integration with a diachronic perspective based on empirical work or theoretical endeavours. They shed light on the EU as a set of institutions and policies with elites and interest groups embedded in a wider international context. Analysis of the EU as a source of political cleavage are key to understanding populism, party realignment, territorial tensions in many member states, against the backdrop of inequalities within and across member states.

This conference will address the complex relationship between socioeconomic dynamics and EU developments, to understand the bases of political integration and its potential effects. Are the terms ‘European society’ or ‘European economy’ constructs reflecting an empirical reality and can they be linked to EU policies? In this era of ‘lost illusions’, our Paris meeting will also engage with debates in political, legal and social theory around key concepts including democracy, the rule of law, and legitimacy.

Friday, June 15th 2018, 02.15 pm - 04.15 pm
LIEPP roundatble open to the public Europe in Political Turmoil. Explaining Party Politics and Electoral Dynamics in European Welfare Democracies with the authors of the book Welfare Democracies & Party Politics (Oxford University Press). Registration

Other plenary and semi-plenary sessions open to the public after an online registration:

Wednesday, June 13th 2018, 6.00 pm - 8.00 pm
Roundtable on Whither European integration – Addressing EU internal and external challenges with Renaud Dehousse, Heather Grabbe, Enrico Letta.

Thursday , June 14th 2018, 6.15 pm - 8.00 pm
Keynote Lecture with Prof. Catherine de Vries on Euroscepticism and the Future of European Integration.

Friday, June 15th 2018, 2.15 pm - 4.15 pm
Roundtable on Brexit: Where are we, and where are we headed.

More information can be found on the conference website

 
The full programme (pdf)