EMBRACE: From Research to EU Policy Circles

On 6 December, Prof. Dr. Sonja Grimm (representing EMBRACE) presented results of her Horizon Europe-funded project EMBRACE 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). She was accompanied by Prof. Tina Freyburg fom the University of St Gallen in Switzerland (representing the HE-project REDEMOS), and Dr. Magdalena Góra from the Jagiellonian University in Poland (representing the HE-project 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 study the European Union’s neighbourhood and enlargement policies and their impact on neighbouring and accession countries in order to explore new avenues for these policies in light of current conflicts and crises.

In panel 1 on “Democracy support“, the three panelists examined how the EU and candidate countries 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 democratization in this region, and she 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 Link: https://embrace-democracy.eu 
• REDEMOS, REconfiguring EU DEMOcracy Support? Towards a sustained demos in the EU's Eastern Neighbourhood Link: https://redemos.eu 
• SHAPEDEM-EU, Rethinking and Reshaping the EU’s democracy support in its Eastern and Southern Neighbourhood  Link: https://shapedem-eu.eu 
• InvigoratEU, Invigorating Enlargement and Neighbourhood Policy for a Resilient EuropeRE Link: invigorat.eu
• ENGAGE, Re-Engaging with Neighbours in a State of War and Geopolitical Tensions Link: https://re-engaging.eu 
• REUNIR - Resilience, Enlargement, Union, Neighbourhood, International Relations: Futureproofing EU security, Enlargement and Eastern neighbourhood policies for a new age of international relations Link: https://reunir-horizon.eu 
• GEO-POWEREU, Empowering the Geopolitical EU in the Eastern Neighbourhood and the Western Balkans Link: https://geo-power.eu