Past Events

	Title	Date	Type	Speakers
	Judges Under Pressure	Wed, 04.11.2020, 14:00	Seminars and Colloquia	Ivan Vejvoda Judy Dempsey	Judges Under Pressure Europe’s Unfinished Transformation Wed, 04.11.2020, 14:00 Speakers: Ivan Vejvoda Judy Dempsey Series: Seminars and Colloquia Two members of the European Union. Two members of NATO. They couldn't be more different. Poland and Romania are undergoing transformations that could have a profound effect on the rule of law, particularly on the role of independent judges. Romania has been consistently criticized by reformers, by human rights activists and by organizations trying to combat the rampant corruption for the weak rule of law and for the constant interference by the political elites in the judiciary. Since 1989, the country's transformation has been long, complicated and delayed by vested interests and indeed the old guard. Its history and culture do play a role in delaying the transformation. But the past cannot be used as an excuse to postpone a long overdue institutionalization of the rule of law and make the judiciary genuinely independent. As for Poland, it was supposed to be a kind of model for other countries making the transformation from communism to democracy. But since 2005, a year after Poland joined the European Union, Law and Justice, a nationalist, conservative party, has been doing everything possible to overturn the gains of the post-1989 period. Its first stint in power was too short-lived for the party to achieve its goal: adapting the law to implement its agenda. But since 2015, it has chiseled away at the fundamental aspects of the rule of law and the independence of the judiciary. There are a lot of "whys" with regard to what is happening in Poland and Romania. This will be the topic of my presentation on 4 November. Read more
Judges Under Pressure Europe’s Unfinished Transformation Wed, 04.11.2020, 14:00 Speakers: Ivan Vejvoda Judy Dempsey Series: Seminars and Colloquia Two members of the European Union. Two members of NATO. They couldn't be more different. Poland and Romania are undergoing transformations that could have a profound effect on the rule of law, particularly on the role of independent judges. Romania has been consistently criticized by reformers, by human rights activists and by organizations trying to combat the rampant corruption for the weak rule of law and for the constant interference by the political elites in the judiciary. Since 1989, the country's transformation has been long, complicated and delayed by vested interests and indeed the old guard. Its history and culture do play a role in delaying the transformation. But the past cannot be used as an excuse to postpone a long overdue institutionalization of the rule of law and make the judiciary genuinely independent. As for Poland, it was supposed to be a kind of model for other countries making the transformation from communism to democracy. But since 2005, a year after Poland joined the European Union, Law and Justice, a nationalist, conservative party, has been doing everything possible to overturn the gains of the post-1989 period. Its first stint in power was too short-lived for the party to achieve its goal: adapting the law to implement its agenda. But since 2015, it has chiseled away at the fundamental aspects of the rule of law and the independence of the judiciary. There are a lot of "whys" with regard to what is happening in Poland and Romania. This will be the topic of my presentation on 4 November. Read more
	Letters to Enver Hoxha	Mon, 02.11.2020, 16:00	Seminars and Colloquia	Nikolai Antoniadis Miloš Vec	Letters to Enver Hoxha A Journey into Everyday Life under Communist Rule Mon, 02.11.2020, 16:00 Speakers: Nikolai Antoniadis Miloš Vec Series: Seminars and Colloquia From after World War II until his death in 1985, thousands of Albanians wrote letters to Enver Hoxha, a mixture of trivial everyday concerns and exceptional episodes that are tragic, heart-warming and absurd in equal measure. These letters were meticulously archived by the authorities, discussed and acted upon. Put in context, they reveal an abysmal world in which the Party was in control of all aspects of life – a national trauma that has not been addressed to this day. Read more
Letters to Enver Hoxha A Journey into Everyday Life under Communist Rule Mon, 02.11.2020, 16:00 Speakers: Nikolai Antoniadis Miloš Vec Series: Seminars and Colloquia From after World War II until his death in 1985, thousands of Albanians wrote letters to Enver Hoxha, a mixture of trivial everyday concerns and exceptional episodes that are tragic, heart-warming and absurd in equal measure. These letters were meticulously archived by the authorities, discussed and acted upon. Put in context, they reveal an abysmal world in which the Party was in control of all aspects of life – a national trauma that has not been addressed to this day. Read more
	People of the Mountain	Wed, 28.10.2020, 14:00	Seminars and Colloquia	Ivan Vejvoda Kapka Kassabova	People of the Mountain Stories from a Balkan Ecosystem Wed, 28.10.2020, 14:00 Speakers: Ivan Vejvoda Kapka Kassabova Series: Seminars and Colloquia For millennia, the people of the Mesta Valley have lived in an intimate relationship with their environment. Kapka Kassabova's enquiry is into the nature of this relationship as it survives today, after a succession of mass traumas in the 20th century have made their mark. They include political persecution during Communism, economic upheaval in the wake of the collapse of the planned economy, environmental degradation during and after Communism, migration, endemic state corruption, climate change, and a generational shift from a traditional, agricultural way of life towards a globalised, digitalised, uprooted way of life. His focus is on the Pomak (indigenous Muslim) and mixed villages here. An interesting phenomenon can be observed: permanent emigration is rare. These communities are held together by invisible factors that cannot be accounted for by pure economics. The villages of the Mesta Valley are remarkable for several things: their exceptionally rich biosphere where some of Europe’s cleanest foods, animals, and medicinal herbs thrive; their rich tradition of cultural syncretism; their existential endurance in the face of trauma, and the fact that they export the greatest amount of cheap seasonal labour to Western Europe – the fruit pickers, planters, and builders on whom the wealthier European economies depend. Read more
People of the Mountain Stories from a Balkan Ecosystem Wed, 28.10.2020, 14:00 Speakers: Ivan Vejvoda Kapka Kassabova Series: Seminars and Colloquia For millennia, the people of the Mesta Valley have lived in an intimate relationship with their environment. Kapka Kassabova's enquiry is into the nature of this relationship as it survives today, after a succession of mass traumas in the 20th century have made their mark. They include political persecution during Communism, economic upheaval in the wake of the collapse of the planned economy, environmental degradation during and after Communism, migration, endemic state corruption, climate change, and a generational shift from a traditional, agricultural way of life towards a globalised, digitalised, uprooted way of life. His focus is on the Pomak (indigenous Muslim) and mixed villages here. An interesting phenomenon can be observed: permanent emigration is rare. These communities are held together by invisible factors that cannot be accounted for by pure economics. The villages of the Mesta Valley are remarkable for several things: their exceptionally rich biosphere where some of Europe’s cleanest foods, animals, and medicinal herbs thrive; their rich tradition of cultural syncretism; their existential endurance in the face of trauma, and the fact that they export the greatest amount of cheap seasonal labour to Western Europe – the fruit pickers, planters, and builders on whom the wealthier European economies depend. Read more
	Homo Itinerans	Tue, 27.10.2020, 18:00	Lecture	Alessandro Monsutti Ayşe Çağlar Shalini Randeria	Homo Itinerans Towards a Global Ethnography of Afghanistan Tue, 27.10.2020, 18:00 Speakers: Alessandro Monsutti Ayşe Çağlar Shalini Randeria Series: Lecture Afghan society has been indelibly marked in by war and the exodus of a large part of its population. But it also characterized by the presence of innumerable international and nongovernmental organizations, as well as armed forces from many countries. Adopting mobility as an analytical key, and mindful of the significance of analysing processes and phenomena across scales, Alessandro Monsutti presented a global though intimate ethnography of Afghanistan based on my new book that offers a decentered perspective on the contemporary world. Read more
Homo Itinerans Towards a Global Ethnography of Afghanistan Tue, 27.10.2020, 18:00 Speakers: Alessandro Monsutti Ayşe Çağlar Shalini Randeria Series: Lecture Afghan society has been indelibly marked in by war and the exodus of a large part of its population. But it also characterized by the presence of innumerable international and nongovernmental organizations, as well as armed forces from many countries. Adopting mobility as an analytical key, and mindful of the significance of analysing processes and phenomena across scales, Alessandro Monsutti presented a global though intimate ethnography of Afghanistan based on my new book that offers a decentered perspective on the contemporary world. Read more
	Learning From the Prespa Agreement	Wed, 21.10.2020, 14:00	Seminars and Colloquia	Ioannis Armakolas Ivan Vejvoda	Learning From the Prespa Agreement Is There a ‘Southeast European Way’ of Settling Disputes or Should There Be One? Lessons for the European Union Wed, 21.10.2020, 14:00 Speakers: Ioannis Armakolas Ivan Vejvoda Series: Seminars and Colloquia The Macedonia name dispute, one of the very first disputes of the post-Cold War era in Southeast Europe, was finally settled in June 2018 with the signing of the Prespa Agreement. The deal between Greece and North Macedonia was hailed as historic and an important breakthrough for the entire region’s integration to Western institutions. However, because the name dispute was broadly seen internationally as an incomprehensible spat, without fully grasping the high emotional load and the significant political stakes in both countries, not enough attention has been paid to the complex process leading to the settling of the dispute and to the challenges of a demanding implementation process. Read more
Learning From the Prespa Agreement Is There a ‘Southeast European Way’ of Settling Disputes or Should There Be One? Lessons for the European Union Wed, 21.10.2020, 14:00 Speakers: Ioannis Armakolas Ivan Vejvoda Series: Seminars and Colloquia The Macedonia name dispute, one of the very first disputes of the post-Cold War era in Southeast Europe, was finally settled in June 2018 with the signing of the Prespa Agreement. The deal between Greece and North Macedonia was hailed as historic and an important breakthrough for the entire region’s integration to Western institutions. However, because the name dispute was broadly seen internationally as an incomprehensible spat, without fully grasping the high emotional load and the significant political stakes in both countries, not enough attention has been paid to the complex process leading to the settling of the dispute and to the challenges of a demanding implementation process. Read more
	US Elections 2020	Sun, 18.10.2020, 11:00	Panels and Discussions	Ivan Vejvoda	US Elections 2020 A Fateful Decision for the US, Europe and the World? Sun, 18.10.2020, 11:00 Speakers: Ivan Vejvoda Series: Panels and Discussions The election of Donald Trump as 45th president of the US four years ago was a sea change in many ways, but above all a sign of rising populism and a changing world order. His tenure has unsettled the transatlantic relationship, questioned the nature of multilateralism by insisting on transactional relations, doubted the need for NATO. In recent months, not only the fight against the coronavirus, but also the newly inflamed debate on structural racism have dominated the country’s domestic political discourse, which has generated global resonance far beyond the borders of the US. Read more
US Elections 2020 A Fateful Decision for the US, Europe and the World? Sun, 18.10.2020, 11:00 Speakers: Ivan Vejvoda Series: Panels and Discussions The election of Donald Trump as 45th president of the US four years ago was a sea change in many ways, but above all a sign of rising populism and a changing world order. His tenure has unsettled the transatlantic relationship, questioned the nature of multilateralism by insisting on transactional relations, doubted the need for NATO. In recent months, not only the fight against the coronavirus, but also the newly inflamed debate on structural racism have dominated the country’s domestic political discourse, which has generated global resonance far beyond the borders of the US. Read more
	US Elections 2020	Sun, 18.10.2020, 11:00	Panels and Discussions	Ivan VejvodaSteven Erlanger, Eva Nowotny, Raimund Löw	US Elections 2020 A Fateful Decision for the US, Europe and the World? Sun, 18.10.2020, 11:00 Speakers: Ivan VejvodaSteven Erlanger, Eva Nowotny, Raimund Löw Series: Panels and Discussions The election of Donald Trump as 45th president of the US four years ago was a sea change in many ways, but above all a sign of rising populism and a changing world order. His tenure has unsettled the transatlantic relationship, questioned the nature of multilateralism by insisting on transactional relations, doubted the need for NATO. In recent months, not only the fight against the coronavirus, but also the newly inflamed debate on structural racism have dominated the country’s domestic political discourse, which has generated global resonance far beyond the borders of the US. Read more
US Elections 2020 A Fateful Decision for the US, Europe and the World? Sun, 18.10.2020, 11:00 Speakers: Ivan VejvodaSteven Erlanger, Eva Nowotny, Raimund Löw Series: Panels and Discussions The election of Donald Trump as 45th president of the US four years ago was a sea change in many ways, but above all a sign of rising populism and a changing world order. His tenure has unsettled the transatlantic relationship, questioned the nature of multilateralism by insisting on transactional relations, doubted the need for NATO. In recent months, not only the fight against the coronavirus, but also the newly inflamed debate on structural racism have dominated the country’s domestic political discourse, which has generated global resonance far beyond the borders of the US. Read more
	Who is Telling Us What? Why? And How?	Wed, 14.10.2020, 14:00	Seminars and Colloquia	Alison Smale Ivan Vejvoda	Who is Telling Us What? Why? And How? The Media in Central and Eastern Europe in 2020 Wed, 14.10.2020, 14:00 Speakers: Alison Smale Ivan Vejvoda Series: Seminars and Colloquia With technological change so rapid, and global concerns rivaling the traditionally local focus of most human beings, media assume an ever more important role in our societies. That is particularly true in central and eastern Europe, where journalists and their audience mostly have had a mere three decades to establish and mold independent media that suit or reflect their societies. Just in the weeks since Alison Smale was writing to Ivan on her chosen subject, developments in the former Soviet space – in this case, Belarus, and its Baltic and Polish neighbors, and Russia and Germany over Alexei Navalny – have shown their power to surprise most outside observers, and thus to influence the world. Who is telling this tale, and how? Read more
Who is Telling Us What? Why? And How? The Media in Central and Eastern Europe in 2020 Wed, 14.10.2020, 14:00 Speakers: Alison Smale Ivan Vejvoda Series: Seminars and Colloquia With technological change so rapid, and global concerns rivaling the traditionally local focus of most human beings, media assume an ever more important role in our societies. That is particularly true in central and eastern Europe, where journalists and their audience mostly have had a mere three decades to establish and mold independent media that suit or reflect their societies. Just in the weeks since Alison Smale was writing to Ivan on her chosen subject, developments in the former Soviet space – in this case, Belarus, and its Baltic and Polish neighbors, and Russia and Germany over Alexei Navalny – have shown their power to surprise most outside observers, and thus to influence the world. Who is telling this tale, and how? Read more
	Beach Encounters	Tue, 13.10.2020, 16:00	Lecture	Amade M'charek Mieke Verloo Shalini Randeria	Beach Encounters Migrant Death, Colonial Currents and the Art of Paying Attention Tue, 13.10.2020, 16:00 Speakers: Amade M'charek Mieke Verloo Shalini Randeria Series: Lecture Her talk told a story about forensics as an art of paying attention. It offered some of the ingredients of the book that Mohsen Lihidheb and Amade M'Charek are currently working on in the context of the Emma Goldman Award. Read more
Beach Encounters Migrant Death, Colonial Currents and the Art of Paying Attention Tue, 13.10.2020, 16:00 Speakers: Amade M'charek Mieke Verloo Shalini Randeria Series: Lecture Her talk told a story about forensics as an art of paying attention. It offered some of the ingredients of the book that Mohsen Lihidheb and Amade M'Charek are currently working on in the context of the Emma Goldman Award. Read more
	Hagia Sophia as Symbol and Hostage of Actual Politics	Mon, 12.10.2020, 16:00	Seminars and Colloquia	Clemena Antonova Ayşe ÇağlarAlexey Lidov	Hagia Sophia as Symbol and Hostage of Actual Politics Mon, 12.10.2020, 16:00 Speakers: Clemena Antonova Ayşe ÇağlarAlexey Lidov Series: Seminars and Colloquia On 10 July 2020, by a decree of the Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, the basilica of Hagia Sophia – the central monument of the Byzantine Empire and the entire Orthodox world – was turned from a museum into a mosque. The conversion attracted worldwide attention and the leaders of the US, the EU and Russia, as well as most international institutions, appealed to Erdoğan not to go ahead with the plan. However, all the warnings were ignored and the first festive Muslim service was held on 24 July, with the country’s leadership in attendance. In this talk, various aspects of the conversion of Hagia Sophia, including political, religious, cultural and art-historical issues of this most significant event, were discussed. Read more
Hagia Sophia as Symbol and Hostage of Actual Politics Mon, 12.10.2020, 16:00 Speakers: Clemena Antonova Ayşe ÇağlarAlexey Lidov Series: Seminars and Colloquia On 10 July 2020, by a decree of the Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, the basilica of Hagia Sophia – the central monument of the Byzantine Empire and the entire Orthodox world – was turned from a museum into a mosque. The conversion attracted worldwide attention and the leaders of the US, the EU and Russia, as well as most international institutions, appealed to Erdoğan not to go ahead with the plan. However, all the warnings were ignored and the first festive Muslim service was held on 24 July, with the country’s leadership in attendance. In this talk, various aspects of the conversion of Hagia Sophia, including political, religious, cultural and art-historical issues of this most significant event, were discussed. Read more