VIII Europe in the World Annual Meeting: Europe of the Center and the Peripheries

VIII Europe in the World Annual Meeting: Europe of the Center and the Peripheries

Thu, 16 Apr 2020 - Fri, 17 Apr 2020

Lisbon, Portugal

Plus d'information


Contact: europa@fcsh.unl.pt

The NOVA FCSH will be hosting, on 16-17 April 2020, the VIII Europe in the World Annual Meeting, dedicated to Europe of the Center and the Peripheries.

Associated with a perception of development and underdevelopment of countries in the global market, the concepts of center and periphery in the European Union (EU) remain both present and abstract. By evoking the «center-periphery» model, Member States such as Germany, France or Italy would be part of the «center», while others – particularly those in Southern and Eastern Europe – would be included in the «periphery», being subject to the decisions taken by the center.

This view, embedded in the realist doctrine of International Relations, as opposed to a model of Europe based on solidarity and cooperation between states and peoples, is important for a general understanding of the European Union, and in particular of regional development. Indeed, at the heart of the EU itself is the objective of promoting the economic integration of its Member States, as well as the aim of economic convergence between states and regions.

The consecutive rounds of enlargements, which have widened the disparity in development between the Member States and, more recently, the sovereign debt crisis, have renewed the “center-periphery” paradigm. Although the concept and debate about a «two-speed Europe» isnʼt new, nor peaceful, among Member States, in reality there are a number of different «Europes» (Schengen, Euro) coexisting in the EU, and a central directory of states, which takes the major decisions on deepening European integration.

The international conference «Europe of the Center and the Peripheries» accepts proposals from several disciplinary areas, whose contributions – theoretical, empirical and/or comparative – include, among others:

  •     the concepts of center and periphery applied to European integration;
  •     cooperation and/or conflict of interest between center and periphery;
  •     a center vs. a variety of economic and social peripheries;
  •     the enlargement rounds and the creation of new peripheries;
  •     the role of regions and European multilevel governance;
  •     EU regional policy and the outermost regions;
  •     the European Regional Development Fund and the Cohesion Fundʼs role in the reduction of regional disparities;
  •     Europe at two or more speeds in the future of the EU.

Proposals should include the title, a summary (up to 300 words), three keywords and a biographical note (including institutional affiliation, academic degree and up to five most relevant publications), and be sent, in a single Word document, to europa@fcsh.unl.pt

Working languages: Portuguese and English

In principle, selected papers will be published after a blind peer-review process. No registration fee.

Important Dates

  • Submissions deadline: 20 September 2019
  • Notification of submission decision: 30 September 2019
  • Paper submission deadline: 28 February 2020