Panel on Democracy Promotion at German Political Science Association 2024

The 29th Scientific Congress of the German Political Science Association (DVPW), held at Georg-August University in Göttingen from 24 to 27 September 2024, featured a joint panel organized by the Horizon Europe sister projects EMBRACE, REDEMOS, and SHAPEDEM-EU, together with the newly initiated cousin project InvigoratEU (website will launch soon).

The panel "The Future the EU's Democracy Promotion – In Search for Innovative Tools and Appropriate Policies" tackled pressing issues surrounding the EU's role in promoting democracy amidst the rise of authoritarianism worldwide and in its neighbourhood. The panelists explored the EU's responses to challenges such as the war in Ukraine, the growing influence of autocratic regimes, and the implications for EU policies in its southern and eastern neighborhoods.

The discussions were based on findings of the participating research projects, offering a critical reflection on the EU's democracy promotion efforts and proposing strategies for adapting its foreign relations and support mechanisms to the current challenges.

In her contribution, EMBRACE Coordinator Sonja Grimm (second from the right) highlighted factors that explain authoritarian resilience. She also reflected on potential obstacles to more successful democracy promotion on the side of the European Union.