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Policy Dialogues in 2020

A core feature of the Schuman Centre’s mission is to engage with the world of practice though high level policy dialogue and executive training. The model that has been developed over the years brings together academics and practitioners in mutually beneficial engagement in different formats - workshops, seminars, and restricted roundtables. The distinctive role that the European University Institute plays is to provide a European-level forum that is not regarded as belonging to any one member state.

 

Global Governance

In November 2020 the Robert Schuman Centre held a Schuman Conversation on 'The Biden Presidency: Resetting Transatlantic Relations', with David O'Sullivan (former EU Ambassador to the US) and Anthony Gardner (former US Ambassador to the EU, with Stephanie Hofmann (Professor at the Graduate Institute of Geneva) as discussant. They examined how a Joe Biden administration will impact EU-US, and whether it can sufficiently address current global challenges.

In September, the Global Governance Programme (GGP) organised the annual  'World Trade Forum' with the Global Trade Institute on the topic of 'The Future of Trade Policy and External Cooperation: is Soft Power Passé?. In June, it also hosted Phil Hogan, EU Commissioner for Trade, to discuss the details of the Review of European Trade Policy process and how citizens and stakeholders can make their voices to help the Commission formulate the direction of EU trade policy going forward.

Earlier in March, the GGP launched a joint project with the University of St. Gallen’s Global Trade Alert initiative and the World Bank to monitor trade policy measures used by governments around the world. On 5 June, the GGP held the 'Pandemic-Era Trade Policies in Food and Medical Products and International Cooperation webinar presenting the findings from this projects reports about trade policy dynamics.

 

Regulation and Competition

In June, the European Commission launched a public consultation on the Digital Services Act (DSA), and is expected to publish a legislative proposal that merges the DSA and New Competition Tools into a single legislative framework, the Digital Markets Act (DMA). On 16 November 2020, the Florence Competition Programme and EU Competition Law and Policy Workshop organised a joint-venture conference online where speakers debated the pros and cons of the DMA before its official publication. 

 

 

Energy Policy and Regulation

Bringing together the world of academia and practice, the Florence School of Regulation (FSR Energy & Climate) actively fosters collaboration between stakeholders in Europe, Asia, Latin America and Africa advance policy and regulation in Europe and worldwide. With more than a decade of experience in delivering residential and online events for energy specialists, the school is an internationally recognised platform for policy dialogue.

European Politics

In December, as part of the EUI-funded project 'Democracy in Lockdown’ the European Governance and Politics Programme '(EGPP) organised the online webinar 'What Role for the European Parliament in the COVID-19 Crisis?'. Featured speakers MEP Jan Olbrycht, EP Secretary General Klaus Welle, Professor Adrienne Héritier (EUI) and Professor Olivier Rozenberg (Science Po), openly discussed how the pandemic might impact the EP in the long-term

In November, the Centre for Media Pluralism and Media Freedom hosted its annual School for Journalists and Media Practitioners. Taking place online over the span of five weeks, the course provided journalists with a unique opportunity to update their skills for an industry in a constant state of flux, and ended with a special event featuring Věra Jourová, European Commission Vice President for Values and Transparency. Jourová spoke of the importance of the Media Pluralism Monitor, which was an important source in the Commission’s recent Rule of Law Report.

  

Banking and Finance

In June, the Florence School of Banking and Finance also hosted an online debate with Jörg Kukies, State Secretary, German Ministry of Finance, and Odile Renaud-Basso Director General of the French Treasury. The two introduced and discussed the unprecedented French-German proposal of a grants-based European Union Recovery Plan.

In November, the Florence School of Banking and Finance organised an interdisciplinary academic event on ‘Bank Resolution in Times of COVID-19’.The event brought together leading scholars and policy-makers to discuss economic, financial, legal, and public policy topics related to financial stability and bank resolutions in the context of the outbreak.

 

 

Migration

On 24 September, the Migration Policy Centre launched an two-day executive training seminar focusing on 'Migration Communication Strategies: Effective Approaches to Depolarize the Debate'. The seminar taught participants how to effectively understand and discuss the causes and effects of immigration policies, and develop strategies to help foster social cohesion.

 

In November, the Migration Policy Centre held its "Migrants and Systemic Resilience: A Global COVID19 Research and Policy Hub (Mig-Res-Hub" online conference. The event facilitated research and policy debates on how migrant labour shapes the resilience of essential goods and services to the current Covid-19 pandemic and to similar shocks in the future. 

 

 

Page last updated on 12 January 2021