Author’s Workshop for the edited volume „Neighbourhood and Accession-Europeanization – A comparison in Practice”
On July 14–15, 2011, eight young experts met in Berlin to discuss the first drafts of their contribution to the edited volume on “Neighbourhood and Accession-Europeanization – A comparison in Practice”.
The workshop, which was organized jointly by the Institut für Europäische Politik (IEP) and the Kolleg-Forschergruppe “The Transformative Power of Europe”, took place both at the Freie Universität Berlin and at the IEP and was made possible through funding by the Otto Wolff Foundation and the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG). At the beginning of the workshop, Prof. Dr. Tanja Börzel and Dr. Katrin Böttger emphasized the fruitful combination of university and think tanks, which collaborate on this book project. The young researchers submitted drafts for papers based on primary research conducted in the framework of their academic careers, which focus on topics of enlargement and the European Neighbourhood Policy (ENP). The discussion was especially timely during a phase where new responses to the Neighbourhood are sought in reaction to the Arab Spring and where the negotiations of a new Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF) are ongoing. The policy papers deal with conditionality, assistance and political dialogue as tools of policy change, and cover a variety of instruments such as democracy promotion, diversification of target groups including civil society and regional and private economic actors, as well as policies (environment, economy, minority rights). They include recommendations focused on policy changeand target EU actors including the European Commission and Members of the European Parliament as well as NGOs that are active in the relevant policy fields.
During the workshop the paper presentations were complemented by experts who commented on the papers and how they could be made even more accessible for specific target groups, as well as whether the thematic priorities were well chosen. These commentators included Pirkaa Tapiola from the Strategic Planning Division of the External Action Service (EEAS), Jörn Griesse from the European Commission, Natasha Wunsch from the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Auswärtige Politik (DGAP) and Markus Meckel, former foreign minister, who enriched the workshop with their ideas and work experience. The participation of the commentators, proofed to be a productive addition to theoretical background of the authors. This dialogue helped to develop both policy recommendations and policy options, which are the main focus of the book.