ENGAGE Kick-off Conference

Global governance, multilateralism and the rules-based international order are under pressure. The European Union faces an international landscape in flux, dominated by global competition, technological changes, shifting norms and new security threats.

In this fractured environment, debates around qualified majority decision-making in European foreign policy, the “language of power” and joint European defence projects suggest the Union seeks an external action that is both more coherent and more effective. And yet, the EU’s global ambitions are often curtailed by structural weaknesses, legal and institutional limitations and diverging member states’ interests.

At this crucial juncture, where the EU must confront these internal and external challenges, the H2020 Project ENGAGE (Envisioning a New Governance Architecture for a Global Europe) kicks off its research programme by asking the big questions: What major global challenges does the European Union face? Where do European interests lie? Should the EU shape global governance? If so, how can it best overcome internal challenges and tackle global issues?

Join us for the virtual ENGAGE Kick-Off Conference on June 16, from 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. CEST, featuring Dr. Josep Borrell Fontelles, High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy and Vice-President of the European Commission, and Dr. Javier Solana, former High Representative for the Common Foreign and Security Policy, former Secretary General of NATO. In addition to two panel discussions, in which the ENGAGE research team will explore short- and long-term security challenges and discuss how to achieve a truly joint European security and defence, we are delighted to welcome Dr. Rosa Balfour, director of Carnegie Europe, who will give the keynote lecture. Prof. Dr. Angel Saz, director of the Esade Center for Global Economy and Geopolitics, and Prof. Dr. Jan Wouters, director of the Leuven Centre for Global Governance Studies will provide opening remarks.

For more information and a detailed schedule of the conference click here .

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The University of Groningen is one of the 13 international partners in the multidisciplinary ENGAGE project. The team in Groningen is led by prof. Ramses Wessel and its main task is to come up with a legal (European law) foundation for proposals to improve the foreign, security and defence policy of the European Union in the coming years. The EU's role on the world stage is often hampered by difficult decision-making procedures. With ENGAGE, the EU wants to explore options to achieve a more efficient foreign policy that fits within the framework of the European treaties.