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Call for Papers: 17th Serbian Political Science Association Annual International Conference

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EU Enlargement, Geopolitics, and the Russian-Ukraine War

Faculty of Political Science, Belgrade, October 21-22, 2023

We are pleased to invite applications to attend the conference on EU Enlargement Policy, Geopolitics, and the Russian-Ukraine War, which will take place on October 21-22, 2023 at the Belgrade Faculty of Political Science. The conference aims to bring together scholars, practitioners, and experts in the field of political science, international relations, economics, and public policy to discuss and exchange ideas on various topics related to EU enlargement policy and geopolitics within the context of the Russian-Ukraine war. 

Over the past ten years, the EU enlargement process has faced a number of challenges. Apart from slow pace of reforms, the rule of law and governance issues, the rise of populism and autocratic leaders, the geopolitical dynamics of the Western Balkans have been increasingly shaped by the presence of great powers such as Russia or China, as they seek to extend their influence in the region through various means, including geo-economic investments, trade agreements, and political and cultural ties. The 2022 Russian military attack on Ukraine, has emphasized the role of geopolitics and geoeconomics in the region by creating a larger challenge for the EU enlargement policy for the Western Balkans.

The aim of the conference is to establish how geopolitical and geo-economic events have changed the European perspective of the Western Balkan region. Specifically, the conference will explore the impact of the Russian-Ukraine war on the EU enlargement policy and its implications for the Western Balkan region. We will focus on the role of EU and other great forces (the US, Russia, China etc) in the region, democracy, civil society, media capture, populism, right-wing forces, good governance, infrastructure investment, stabilitocracy, Russia, and China in shaping the political and economic landscape of the region.

We welcome applications from graduate students, postdoctoral researchers, faculty and research institute staff, and practitioners from a variety of disciplines, including political science, law, international relations, public policy, and economics.

We propose several potential panels all of which will be formulated within the current geopolitical context:

  • Geopolitics and geo-economic in the Western Balkans,
  • The EU enlargement policy in the context of new geopolitical reality,
  • Geopolitics and changes in the political system,
  • The EU, authoritarianism, and democracy,
  • Local public policies as a response to geo-economic influence,
  • Media capture,
  • The strength of civil society as a barrier to geo-economic trends,
  • Energy Crisis and New Green Agenda in the Western Balkans.

Interested applicants are invited to submit a 250-word abstract and a brief CV to politicke.nauke.srbije@gmail.com by July 15, 2023. Selected applicants will be notified by July 31.

We look forward to your participation in this conference.

Belgrade, Mar 1, 2023

 

International Selection Committee

Rok Zupančić, FDV, Ljubljana, Slovenia

Borna Zgurić, FPZ, Zagreb, Croatia

Marjan Gjurovki, Ss. Cyril and Methodius University of Skopje, N. Macedonia

Nerzuk Ćurak, FPN, Sarajevo, Bosna i Hercegovina

Filip Ejdus, FPN, Beograd, Serbia

SPSA Annual International Conference 2022: Social Justice in Post-Communist Societies

16th  Serbian Political Science Association Annual International Conference
SOCIAL JUSTICE IN POST-COMMUNIST SOCIETIES

Venue - Faculty of Political Science, Belgrade, September 24-25, 2022

Conference Programme
Book of Abstracts

 

Over 30 years have passed since the fall of the Berlin Wall and the start of political and economic transformation of the communist world. Is it the right time to take stock of the phenomena? Granted, post-communist societies are different from communist ones. Are they also more just? We look into one particular aspect of the post-communist transformation – just society from a political, economic, and social point of view.

Dominant ideas of 1989 were derived from the success of the market in the US and the UK. Central and Eastern Europe was supposed to imitate the West and catch up with it by implementing their political and market institutions. The introduction of private property and the market would create not only an efficient economy and prosperity, but also a more just society. The idea of ​​a just society in the post-communist world was derived from the ideas of meritocracy, positive selection, and market justice. Market institutions will enable positive selection, which will produce a realistic evaluation of the market contribution of each individual. Once the market determines everyone’s worth, we will know how resources should be allocated. Did this bring about social justice? 

Although market reforms did bring about some progress, the “tide that should have lifted all boats” has unfortunately never appeared, and it seems that most post-communist economies today are less fair than 32 years ago. The market concept of transition did not only result in larger social and economic inequalities, deeper divisions between the well-off and the badly-off, but also in democratic decline, the rise of right-wing, populist, and anti-establishment parties.

Call for papers: The 16th Serbian Political Science Association Annual International Conference

SOCIAL JUSTICE IN POST-COMMUNIST SOCIETIES

Venue - Faculty of Political Science, Belgrade, September 24-25, 2022

Abstracts submission deadline - August 1, 2022

Apply at - politicke.nauke.srbije@gmail.com

 

Over 30 years have passed since the fall of the Berlin Wall and the start of political and economic transformation of the communist world. Is it the right time to take stock of the phenomena? Granted, post-communist societies are different from communist ones. Are they also more just? We look into one particular aspect of the post-communist transformation – just society from a political, economic, and social point of view.

Dominant ideas of 1989 were derived from the success of the market in the US and the UK. Central and Eastern Europe was supposed to imitate the West and catch up with it by implementing their political and market institutions. The introduction of private property and the market would create not only an efficient economy and prosperity, but also a more just society. The idea of ​​a just society in the post-communist world was derived from the ideas of meritocracy, positive selection, and market justice. Market institutions will enable positive selection, which will produce a realistic evaluation of the market contribution of each individual. Once the market determines everyone’s worth, we will know how resources should be allocated. Did this bring about social justice? 

Although market reforms did bring about some progress, the “tide that should have lifted all boats” has unfortunately never appeared, and it seems that most post-communist economies today are less fair than 32 years ago. The market concept of transition did not only result in larger social and economic inequalities, deeper divisions between the well-off and the badly-off, but also in democratic decline, the rise of right-wing, populist, and anti-establishment parties.

We propose to look into the problem of just transformation in several areas:

  • Theories of social justice and the post-communist transformation
  • Political representation and social justice 
  • Public policies, institutional behavior and just redistribution
  • Media and the discourse of justice
  • Social welfare in postcommunist societies  
  • Inequalities in post-communist societies
  • Marxism, communist inheritance, and the post-comunist justice
  • The rise of populist, right-wing and iliberal political parties during the post-communist transformation as a response to economic policy
  • Culture, nations and border politics in the post-communist context  
  • Green transformation and just society
  • Challenges of digital transformation and work rights to just society
  • Transformations of civic activism 
  • Emotional upheavals as response to (in)justice in the post-communist societies

A special by-invitation panel about the war in the Ukraine will be organized. The panelists will discuss the current conflict from a perspective of transitional justice and geopolitical aftermath of the breakdown of the communist system.  

To apply, please email us your application that contains: the name and the affiliation, the title of your presentation, the panel you are applying to, abstract (up to 250 words) and 3-5 keywords. 

Email to politicke.nauke.srbije@gmail.com; deadline: August 1, 2022

 

International Organizational Committee

Prof. Toni Rodon, Universitat Pompeu Fabra, Spain

Prof. Sonja Grimm, Konstanz University, Germany 

prof. Ana Matan, University of Zagreb, Croatia

prof. Vesna Leskošek, University of Ljubljana, Slovenia

prof. Đorđe Pavićević, University of Belgrade, Serbia

prof. Bojan Vranić, University of Belgrade, Serbia

Call for papers: Citizens in the Age of Disinformation

15th  Serbian Political Science Association Annual International Conference

CITIZENS IN THE AGE OF DISINFORMATION

Venue - Faculty of Political Science, Belgrade, September 25-26, 2021

Abstracts submission deadline - August 1, 2021

Apply at - politicke.nauke.srbije@gmail.com

The Fifteenth Serbian Political Science Association Annual International Conference responds to the growing need to explain political, economic, and social processes dominated by disinformation, misinformation and fake news. Fake news has become one of the main methods of governing and the instrument for creating and maintaining political influence. It is necessary to explain where this growing influence comes from, which institutions protect true information, and what are the warning mechanisms that check and combat disinformation. 

The academic and professional communities have a significant role in analyzing such phenomena. They are called upon to contribute to defining policies and strategies to deal with  fake news and disinformation not only in the field of journalism and media, but in the society as a whole. Academic community also has the responsibility to communicate the facts and reliable data obtained by rigorous research more transparently to the public. 

We therefore invite scientists, researchers, media analysts, journalists, and civic activists to join us in trying to explain:

  • Which institutions need to be strengthened or built to combat fake news and disinformation?
  • How do political and social agents—political parties, political and civic movements, and citizens—react to fake news?
  • What is the future of informative chaos we live in?

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The SPSA Annual International Conference 2018: Constitutionalism and constitutional design in democratic recession

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Constitutions were seen as a crucial component of democratization and conflict regulation in the last few decades. As a result, related studies in normative political theory, constitutional law, comparative politics and democratisation studies grew substantially. And yet, global democratic recession, which have confronted old and new democracies in the last few years, raises important questions about the role of constitutionalism and constitutional design in the new context.

The Serbian Political Science Association (SPSA) Annual International Conference focuses on this theme and authors with research interests in constitutionalism, constitutional design, democracy and democratization, and related areas are invited to explore its various aspects. Over 60 authors – from Serbia, several Balkan states, Western and Eastern Europe, Russia and other world regions will present their work from various theoretical and methodological perspectives in political and social science.

The SPSA conference will be held on 22-23 September in the Faculty of Political Sciences in Belgrade. Admission is free.

The SPSA 2018 Conference Programme
The Book of Abstracts

The Serbian Political Science Association supports the Central European University

The Serbian Political Science Association (SPSA) supports the CEU in its struggle for academic freedom, democracy and pluralism in Hungary. As an association whose many members have extensive links with the CEU as former postgraduate students, researchers, colleagues and friends, the SPSA considers the CEU not only as an important academic institution in Hungary, but also as an invaluable centre for research and higher education in Europe in general and in post-communist countries in particular.

 

 

Balkan Political Science Association