Hyperpolitics Hyperpolitics, or Political Engagement in the New Century Abstract What do the January 6th invasion of the Capitol and the anti-racist demonstrations of mid-2020 have in common? Both birthed some of the largest protest movements in American history, but also diminished rapidly after their initial, pre-revolutionary peak. This lecture reads the recent political sequence […]
The Brussels Institute for Advanced Studies is thrilled to invite you to the opening ceremony of the 2026 BrIAS season on Democratic Governance. The evening will feature a pre-ceremony book launch, welcome speeches and a keynote talk, a concert, and finally, a reception. Click here to register now Programme Agenda 12:00 – 14:00 Pre-Ceremony Book […]
Party-Based Illiberalism in Europe: Why Is Illiberalism Gaining Ground in European Party Systems? Abstract Illiberalism has entered its hype phase, increasingly invoked to describe diverse challenges to democracy. Yet the debate remains fragmented between those who treat it as an ideology—often as elusive as liberalism itself—and those who restrict it to the practices of governing […]
Register here Democracy and the More-Than-Human Carnivalesque Abstract From corporate zombies to mermaids to dead bees, political protests have frequently featured comic, ironic, grotesque, absurd and profane moments of the carnivalesque. Carnivalesque activities are said to open heterotopic spaces in which dominant values are subverted, conventions are transgressed, and civil disobedience is catalysed. The carnivalesque is interesting for […]
Young men's and women's gender equality attitudes - a Gen Z gender divide? Bio Gefjon Off is a postdoctoral researcher at Hamburg University. Previously, she was a postdoctoral researcher at Leuphana University of Lüneburg and a PhD student at Gothenburg University. Her research takes a comparative approach to the study of gender and political behavior. It is published in form of a Cambridge […]
Register here About the Event How do ideas about “proper” masculine behavior in politics shape who speaks, who leads, and whose interests count in European democracies? This public roundtable in gathers members of the International Advisory Board of the project Political Masculinities in Europe—with panelists from Poland, Italy, Sweden, and the US/UK and expertise in socialization, […]
Second Class: Public Opinion Perceptions of Naturalized Citizens' Rights and Duties Bio Bruno Castanho Silva is an Assistant Professor for Methods in Empirical Social Research at the Institute of Sociology and Otto-Suhr Institute of Political Science at the Free University of Berlin, Germany. He holds a PhD in Political Science from the Central European University (Budapest, […]
Stating the obvious? Far-right frames of climate change acceptance in the European Parliament Abstract In a rapidly warming world, climate obstruction has become a central challenge of global governance - exacerbated by the rising influence of far-right actors. Far-right ideology is understood as inherently incompatible with climate policy, particularly when interpreted through a populist lens. When considered a […]
Register here Building Democracy: Emotions and the Student Movement in Serbia 2024/25 My presentation focuses on the experiences and emotions of students involved in the student protests in Serbia 2024/25. The research looks at how emotions shaped both the mobilization of the movement and the students’ collective identity. What began as a student response […]
The Possibility of Global Governance An ethics of care for our contemporary coexistence. Abstract The Possibility of Global Governance is a reflective exercise in the applied philosophy of ethics, and to some extent also in the poetics of ethics. My aim is to present a normative ethics idea open for reflection and discussion, namely that […]
Register here Beyond Strongmen: Masculinities, Backlash, and the Future of Democracy Abstract Across Europe and beyond, new “strongman” politics mobilize resentment, revive sexist stereotypes, and turn certain masculinities into weapons against gender equality and democracy. What happens to democracy when dominance, aggression, and exclusion are sold as the only “real” masculinity? This lecture asks […]
Children as Climate Citizens – Presentism with Long-Term Interests Abstract: Based on her book, Kata Dozsa presents the concept of “children as climate citizens” across three key avenues of participation: climate governance, grassroots youth social movements, and climate litigation. Presentism is a defining feature of children’s climate citizenship: children living today are directly and disproportionately affected by climate change, with immediate […]