Sonja Grimm and Tina Freyburg presented research findings from HE projects to EU Commission officials & Horizon Europe sister and cousin projects. On 6 December, EDP network members Sonja Grimm (representing EMBRACE) and Tina Freyburg (representing REDEMOS) presented the results of their Horizon Europe funded projects in a half-day webinar to EU Commission officials, mainly from the Directorate General for Neighbourhood and Enlargement Negotiations (DG NEAR) and the Directorate General for International Partnerships (DG INTPA). They were joined by Magdalena Góra from the Jagiellonian University in Poland (representing Shapedem-EU). The audience also included participants from a total of seven sister and cousin projects funded by the Horizon Europe research framework. These research consortia are investigating the European Union’s neighbourhood and enlargement policies and their impact on neighbouring and accession countries with a view to exploring new ways forward for these policies in the light of current conflicts and crises.
The three panelists examined how the EU can strengthen democratic reforms, governance, and the rule of law in the accession countries of the Western Balkans and the countries participating in the EU’s Eastern Neighbourhood Policy. Sonja Grimm presented the main obstacles to democratisation in this region and discussed what limits the EU’s ability to promote democracy there. Tina Freyburg presented a recent study on the types of democracy the EU promotes in the Eastern Neighbourhood, the challenges it faces, and what it needs to do to be a credible democracy promoter. Magdalena Góra presented the main patterns of democracy support to national authorities in the Eastern Partnership and reflected on how the experiences of the 2004 and 2007 enlargements can inform the approach to democracy support in the Enlargement Strategy.
The webinar was a great opportunity to not only showcase the work of EDP network members and their insights, but also to get a better understanding of the important concerns and questions of key EU stakeholders.
The webinar featured the following projects:
EMBRACE, EMBRACing changE: Overcoming obstacles and advancing democracy in the European Neighbourhood
REDEMOS, REconfiguring EU DEMOcracy Support? Towards a sustained demos in the EU’s Eastern Neighbourhood
SHAPEDEM-EU, Rethinking and Reshaping the EU’s democracy support in its Eastern and Southern Neighbourhood
InvigoratEU, Invigorating Enlargement and Neighbourhood Policy for a Resilient EuropeRE
ENGAGE, Re-Engaging with Neighbours in a State of War and Geopolitical Tensions
GEO-POWEREU, Empowering the Geopolitical EU in the Eastern Neighbourhood and the Western Balkans