Europe on Test: Narratives of Union and Disunion

“Europe on Test: Narratives of Union and Disunion” is a series of conferences under the patronage of ALLEA and hosted by selected Academies of Sciences and Humanities in various European cities. It seeks to address recent political developments and other aspects of relevance that may pose a challenge for the future of Europe as a community.

Rationale

The process of European integration has arrived at a crossroads. On the one hand, an increasing sense of uncertainty towards the future, deriving from widespread fears of radical change and apprehensions of potential social and economic hardship, threaten to undermine the confidence and trust in a European identity and community. On the other hand, an ever-stronger cosmopolitan identity is evolving within Europe and being shared among citizens in the continent. Digital platforms as well as increased mobility have created a sense of belonging to a wider world and a unified Europe.

At the heart of this dialectic of ‘European Union and Disunion’ are deeply rooted narratives shaping the way we conceive Europe. In this conference series, renowned scholars discuss the significance of such narratives from a variety of different angles – public sector, policy-making, media, science and scholarship – and within national and international contexts.

This conference series developed after a conference held at the British Academy in November 2016 under the title ‘European Union and Disunion: What has held Europeans together and what is dividing them?’

All conferences in the series are open to the public; interested individuals are invited to engage in reflections on the future of Europe and the European Union.

Central questions addressed by the conference series:

  • What has held Europeans together and what is dividing them?
  • What kind of Europe do we want to create, what kind of Europeans do we want to be?

ALLEA Contact

Daniel Kaiser
Scientific Policy Officer
kaiser@allea.org

Conferences