Participants in the 2019 EU Ambassadors Undergraduate Conference
by Alison Spencer
On April 26, the European Union Center, housed at IES, was pleased to sponsor the EU Ambassadors Undergraduate Conference. The focus of this year's conference was the effects of climate change in the European Union. Undergraduate students Harini Boienipelly, Joaquin A. Moncada, and Sara Zaat each presented their research to the audience and the jury composed of members of the IES program.
IES Director Jeroen Dewulf with Senior Fellow Matt Beech
by Davit Gasparyan
On April 25, the IES in cooperation with the Anglo-American Studies Program and the Center for British Studies was honored to welcome Dr. Matt Beech for an engaging lecture entitled “So what are we to make of Brexit?” Matt Beech is an IES Senior Fellow and founding director of the Centre for British Politics at the University of Hull. His lecture concerning the topic of Brexit and the UK’s political future was attended by over 40 students, faculty, and community members.
IES Associate Director Akasemi Newsome with Senior Fellow Matt Beech in Sacramento
On April 24, 2019, IES was honored to welcome Matt Beech to the California Chamber of Commerce in Sacramento for an engaging lecture on Brexit. Beech is an IES Senior Fellow and founding director of the Centre for British Politics at the University of Hull in the UK.
Beech spoke to nearly 100 guests at the California Chamber International Luncheon Forum in Sacramento. In this lecture, funded by the European Commission's "Getting to Know Europe" grant (2017–2019), Beech analyzed the potential implications for the United States and, specifically, trade in California, resulting from Britain’s potential withdrawal from the EU.
Eric Falci, Director of the Irish Studies Program, and Renée Tosser
by Ella Smith and Alison Spencer
On April 24, the Irish Studies Program at IES welcomed Renée Tosser, Assistant Professor of Irish Civilization at Université de la Réunion in France, for a lecture on “Political Imagery and Bonfires in Northern Ireland.” Her talk to an audience of 25 was accompanied by photographs from her exhibition on bonfires entitled "King Billy’s Towers," shown in Ireland and North America in 2016.
GHI Tandem Fellows Florian Wagner (left) and Nick Underwood
On April 24, IES and GHI-West presented a dual lecture on the history of migration with tandem fellows Nick Underwood (PhD, University of Colorado, Boulder) and Florian Wagner (Assistant Professor of Contemporary History, University of Erfurt, Germany). Their research centers around Jewish return migration and repatriation tendencies in France and Ethiopia.
by Sophia Kownatzki
On Tuesday April 23, IES together with GHI West welcomed Eliah Bures, a former graduate student at Berkeley’s Department of History who currently is a postdoctoral teaching fellow at Berkeley, for a lecture entitled "Beachhead or Refugium? The Rise and Dilemma of Germany's Far-right Intellectual Counterculture." In his talk, he traced the development of the right-wing intellectual counterculture since World War II, particularly highlighting the influences of Ernst Junger and Carl Schmitt on radical conservatism.
IES Director Jeroen Dewulf and Visiting Professor Luis Miguel Carolino
by Melina Kompella
On Monday, April 22, the Institute of European Studies welcomed Luís Miguel Carolino, Professor at Lisbon University Institute, Portugal, and Visiting Professor in the Department of History at UC Berkeley. His research centers on the cultural and intellectual history of early modern Europe, with an emphasis on Portugal and the Portuguese overseas empire from the 15th to the 19th century. His presentation to an audience of 10 was entitled “Science, Poetry and Cultural Resistance in Early Modern Portugal.”
Panelists discuss Chinese sharp power at the David Brower Center in Berkeley
A group of leading experts on China and American foreign policy recently released “Chinese Influence and American Interests: Promoting Constructive Vigilance,” a report documenting Chinese efforts to influence American society. The report examines China's efforts to influence American institutions, including state and local governments, universities, think tanks, media, corporations, and the Chinese-American community, and differentiates between legitimate efforts--like public diplomacy--and improper interference, which demands greater awareness and a calibrated response. The report also includes perspectives from other countries, including those in Europe and the Asia-Pacific.
Niko Switek (University of Washington)
by Sophia Kownatzki
On Tuesday, April 16, Niko Switek (DAAD Visiting Assistant Professor of German Studies at the University of Washington) gave a talk to a group of 20 at IES on “Deceptive Stability? Germany in Chancellor Angela Merkel’s Last Term.” In his lecture, Switek discussed Chancellor Merkel’s tenure, from the perspective of her as a stabilizing force, to the view of her as a villain whose refugee policy has led to turbulence both in the public and within her conservative party.
Christian Gullette (Lecturer in the Department of Scandinavian, UC Berkeley) and Saskia Vogel
by Davit Gasparyan
On April 15, the IES Nordic Studies Program was honored to welcome translator and author Saskia Vogel for an insightful presentation entitled “Who Dreams of Us? Reading, Inclusivity, and Contemporary Swedish-Language Literature.” As a translator, Vogel introduces empowering literary works in Swedish to the English-speaking world. Her lecture focused on translation, on the the translator’s responsibility to represent certain groups, and on what it means to belong to the Swedish literary canon.
Institute of European Studies
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ies@berkeley.edu
