Newcastle University
Information From The Jean Monnet Center

Events

The Jean Monnet Centre for Excellence at Newcastle University was established in 2001 with set objectives including to serve as a think-tank for the region on European affairs and to promote an understanding of the EU in the region. One of the central means by which the Centre achieves these objectives is the organization of large and small events on important and topical EU affairs. Whether in the form of a organizing a conference, workshop, roundtable, seminar series or a guest lecture, Newcastle University staff play a significant role in the region in facilitating debate, dissemination of good practice and cross-disciplinary research on EU affairs. Forthcoming events furthering the purpose and objectives of the Jean Monnet Centre at Newcastle University are listed below, as are a selection of previous EU-related events.

Upcoming events on EU and related topics

School of Geography, Politics and Sociology

Politics and the Jean Monnet Centre are arranging a research seminar by Professor Simon Bulmer (University of Sheffield), an internationally known academic working on European integration. The date has yet to be confirmed; please stay posted for the date.

School of Modern Languages

The Instituto Camões Centre for Portuguese Language Research has an ongoing Seminar series which invites Portuguese scholars and artists to discuss a variety of Portugal and Lusophone-related topics. The Centre has scheduled a Portuguese architect in November 2009 and a speaker on the centenary of the Portuguese Republic in 2010. For further information please go to http://www.ncl.ac.uk/clpic/.

Selection of previous events

In the last decade, the Jean Monnet Centre has hosted a number of prominent events and workshops. These include speeches by the former Vice Chancellor of Newcastle University Chris Patten, Peter Mandelson, and EU Commissioner Viviane Reding. The Centre has hosted a number of cutting edge workshops, including a workshop on 'Counter-Terrorism: Law and Policy in the EU', held on 5 September 2005. The workshop included eminent speakers including Chief Inspector of Constabulary Sir Ronnie Flanagan.

In the 2008-2009, academic year a number of EU related events were held:

  • Politics and the Jean Monnet Centre continued its longstanding tradition of inviting practitioners, including Commission Official Jos Harrison. Mr Harrison has kindly allowed us to reproduce the slides from his seminar which give top tips about seeking employment in the European Union system. [Download PDF :89KB]
  • The Law School and Politics hosted a series of eminent speakers, including the European Court of Justice Judge Allan Rosas. The speakers addressed the theme of further European integration in the context of the current Lisbon Treaty climate. For the full speaker list access 2008/09 Lisbon Treaty Seminar Series [Download PDF :21KB]
  • Politics and the Jean Monnet Centre hosted several important scholars, including Dr Alison Harcourt (University of Exeter) on 'Soft governance in international fora' and Professor Matthew Flinders (University of Sheffield) on 'Bridging the gap: revitalising politics and the politics of public expectations'.
  • The Instituto Camoes Centre for Portuguese Language Research invited a number of speakers including Politics Ph.D. candidate Steven Robinson [Seminar topic: 'Portugal: small country at the edge of Europe'] and the noted political cartoonist Luis Afonso.