international research project maastricht

• Research Project Maastricht
• Research Possibilities
• Examples of Former Research
• Testimonials
• Board of Recommendations
• Board of Advisors
• Letters of Recommendation

Board of Recommendation

Associate Partner

McKinsey & Company

Drs. J.F.M.A de Beer

Vice President

DSM Netherlands B.V.

M. van Bijsterveld

Executive Director Rabo Investments

D. van den Brink

Chairman Executive Board and CEO

Heineken N.V.

W.N. van de Bunt

Fortino Capital

D rs. A.S. Castelein

Port of Rotterdam

Prof. Dr. R.J.M. Dassen RA

Executive Vice President & CFO

ASML Holding N.V.

B. Gerressen

Director KLM Netherlands, Senior Vice President Benelux, Dutch Caribbean and Suriname at Air-France-KLM

Air France-KLM

Prof. dr. P. Habiboviç

Rector Magnificus

Maastricht University

A.M.C. Heijl

Deputy director international affairs

VNO-NCW and MKB Nederland

Ir. J.J. de Jong

Supervisory Board Member, former President Philips Nederland

Philips Nederland

Mr. Drs. B.J. Koopman

E. Langenhuizen 

Senior Strategy/Manager

Hydrogen RWE

Senior Consultant

Kirkman Company

Drs. P. Nientker, MBA

Electude International B.V.

Drs. H.A.A. Rademaker, RBA

Chief Fiduciary Officer

APG Asset Management

G. van Rooy

Executive Director at Dutch Business Association

Vietnam DBAV

Drs. P.J.J.M. Swinkels

Royal Swinkels Family Brewers

Ir. A.R. Wessels, MSM, MBA

Centre for European Research in Maastricht

New podcast! The Southern Neighbourhood

Jean Monnet lecture with European Commissioner for Climate Action Wopke Hoekstra

New podcast online! The Eastern Neighbourhood

Save the date! 07th February: “The Crime of Solidarity”

Save the date 26 january | roundtable in honour of professors liesbet hooghe and gary marks.

The Centre for European Research in Maastricht (CERiM) provides a platform of collaboration, intellectual exchange and facilitation between the participating researchers. At the same time it bundles individual efforts to increase international outreach and to give a substantial input to the Maastricht University’s strategic research theme Europe and a Globalising World.

In practical terms, the Centre will engage in various kinds of activities:

Developing own research projects and lending support to individual members and participating institutes in developing (externally funded) research projects. The newly to be hired postdoc researchers and the existing funding advisors will play a key role in this.

• The Centre will facilitate the organisation of international workshops and conferences with high-profile experts in the field (academics and practitioners). It may contribute to the organisation of workshops through its own funds.
• Organising academic valorisation and outreach activities. The Centre will provide a platform through which the communication with stakeholders (press releases, press enquiries, policy briefs, etc.) will be organized in a professional manner.
• A platform for intellectual exchange in Maastricht Univer-City: The Centre will contribute to the discussion on EU-related topics in the University and in the city and province, for instance through a lecture series and other public events.

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Enabling highly motivated and capable students to focus more in depth on academic research.

Executing a challenging research based project.

A community of (former) MaRBLe students to start your network

A valuable addition to your education, a form of undergraduate research.

Teamwork in groups originating from various teaching programmes

Marble alumni about marble.

“Since the very beginning of my studies, I developed a deep passion for Quantitative Methods. It was not until my exchange semester at UC Berkeley, however, that I discovered how the sound use of statistical concepts can provide solutions for the most pressing challenges of our time. Back in Maastricht, I was delighted to join the MARBLE program which gave me the opportunity to conduct my own research. Thanks to the MARBLE program, some old statistics books and while standing on the shoulders of giants, I made it to the national Student Research Conference where I will present my findings to a panel of professors from all Dutch universities.”

Ufuk Altunbüken (SBE)

Isabelle de Coninck (FASoS)

“PBL teaches you to read better and think more critically, MaRBLe adds another dimension to that. You don’t just follow the research topic set by the course like you usually do in class, but actually get to design it all yourself from start to finish. MaRBLe also gave a chance to build a network of people with the same interests and motivations. I am much more inclined to add someone on platforms like LinkedIn that I met during MaRBLe than other people I studied with, the experience bonds you.”

MaRBLe at your faculty

Want to know about the MaRBLe projects, time investment or selection criteria?

In the menu below, you will find further information regarding MaRBLe at the various faculties.

Your faculty coordinator will gladly inform you further about the MaRBLe programme components, such as the projects, time investment, duration of the programme and the selection criteria.

MaRBLe @FPN

Marble @sbe, marble @fhml, marble @law, marble @fasos, marble @dke, marble @ucm.

Maastricht University offers talented and motivated third-year Bachelor students the opportunity to conduct their own research within a Research-Based Learning (MaRBLe) project. The MaRBLe program offers students the opportunity to earn half of the credits for their elective courses (12 from 24 EC) by doing an independent research project and writing it all up in an empirical bachelor’s thesis. Students in the Marble program are required to devote a large part of their elective space in the third year to a research internship and the writing of an empirical bachelor’s thesis. During this period they are expected to work through the complete empirical cycle of academic research under the supervision of a senior scientist (someone with a PhD who is active in research).

Students who are in the top 20% of their cohort are invited, other students can apply in a dedicated motivational selection round. The annual selection takes place in May. Each year, between 40 and 60 students are selected. About a third of these students combines their MaRBLe project with study abroad.

Due to (administrative) reasons, there might be situations where you inadvertently did not receive an invitation, for instance: – You have submitted a catch-up assignment that has not been assessed. – You have an exemption for one or more courses If this is the case, you can send a correction request to [email protected].

The second round is open to all other second-year Bachelor students. A motivation letter and a recommendation letter from your research practicum supervisor are needed to take part in this round.

Coordinator: Arie van der Lugt

+31(0)43 3882347

Programme outline: The track is integrated into the regular curriculum. It consists of regular courses, the Marble research course, and the bachelor thesis. In addition, you have meetings with your supervisor and join the MaRBLe workshop.

Accomplishments of MaRBLe: Sample research  results and topics E-Journal  Marble series

Eligibility and admission: To apply for MaRBLe you must meet the following requirements:

• You have completed all courses up to Period 3 in Year 2
• Prospective Cum Laude student: GPA ≥7.5 based on all courses up to Period 3 or 4 of Year 2
• You have to submit a letter of motivation in English (max. 1 page A4, no formal requirements)

Students will be selected on the basis of their grades and letter of motivation. Honours students are automatically selected.

How to apply? Send an e-mail with your name, student number, and your letter of motivation to Christian Seel ( [email protected] )

Coordinator: Christian Seel

Introduction

Maastricht Research-Based Learning, MaRBLe for short, is a Maastricht University wide programme for talented and motivated 3rd-year bachelor students. Within the program multidisciplinary scientific research performed by bachelor students is broad together based on the concept of Research-Based Learning (RBL), MaRBLe aims to introduce Maastricht’s most talented and motivated students to further prepare their undergraduate thesis project to be presented at a scientific conference. The programme is now entering its 9th year with a larger than ever, number students ready to present their thesis project at the annual Dutch National Student Conference.

To be able to study and work in an academic setting and to allow evidence-based handling in your future profession it is essential to not only master certain topical knowledge and understanding, but to also develop a set of skills, referred to as academic skills. Communication is a primary example of an academic skill. Clear and concise written and oral communication is a prerequisite to communicate with peers in the academy. Students need to be able to orally present their research but also need to develop their critical thinking during class and in smaller group discussions and be able to communicate their thoughts and reasoning to peers and other stakeholders in the research field.

During this extra-curricular MaRBLe course, a series of learning activities and assignments are scheduled to further train your academic skills. These activities/assignments relate directly to the bachelor thesis project you are currently working on. Throughout the MaRBLe course students will follow series of lectures, assignments and workshops in which they learn to improve how to communicate their research through effective abstract writing, presenting the research topic to a mixed audience and discovery of personal competencies.

Overview of academic skills embedded in this course:

• Writing a scientific abstract
• Oral presentation of a research topic
• Providing feedback to your peers

Upon successful completion of the extra-curricular MaRBLe course you will receive an additional MaRBLe certification with your Bachelor degree (there are no separate ECTS credits for this course).

• Timeframe: April-June
• Number of students: 20-25 students
• Application: Students who are in the top 5% of their cohort will be invited to write a personal motivation letter to join the program.

Coordinator: Tim Snijders

Are you a third-year bachelor student looking for a new challenge? Are you interested in learning how to do research at an academic level? Are you able to approach issues both in a creative and critical manner? If so, then MaRBLe may be the thing for you!

Selected students are offered the opportunity to learn about conducting research and to acquire new substantive knowledge by doing research, as opposed to taking traditional classes. In other words, MaRBLe has a hands-on approach: while participating in a MaRBLe project, you will learn about the research process, research methodology and the dissemination of research results, as well as obtain in-depth substantive knowledge. MaRBLe is offered in the form of projects that focus on a theme or method that is not generally addressed in the regular curriculum, that is current and topical and/or multidisciplinary. By participating in a MaRBLe project, you are involved in a core task of the university:  research.

In each project, attention is given to research methodology as well as the specific theme under investigation. In general, the project starts with group meetings in which you explore the subject-matter and/or methodology under the guidance of the supervisor and/or guest speakers. As the project progresses, the focus turns more towards your own research as you develop the contours of your own research project. Throughout, you will be given the opportunity to share your experiences with the other students in your project group, to discuss the progress of your research and the challenges you encounter, as well as to provide and receive feedback on proposals, drafts, and presentations. The project culminates in a final paper, which may even be published in the Marble e-journal and presented during a public workshop or roundtable.

The projects are supervised by researchers in the faculty who will guide and support you while you explore the substantive topic and develop your own research project. The project groups usually have 5 -12 participants.

The MaRBLe programme runs twice a year.

MaRBLe projects in semester 1 will commence in period 1 and run through until period 3; second-semester projects will run from period 4 to period 6.

Please click  here for more information about the MaRBLe projects in semester 2. The projects for semester 1 will be published in May.

Who can participate?

Participation in MaRBLe is open for students in the third year of their bachelor studies who meet one of the following requirements:

• participate in the Maastricht University Law College (UMLC)
• belong to the top 25% of their cohort (in general, this means they must have a GPA of approximately 7,5) or
• who demonstrate exceptional drive and commitment to participate in research-based learning

To be admitted to the MaRBLe programme, you need to submit an application in accordance with the instructions below.

How can you apply?

You can apply to the MaRBLe programme by sending an email to  [email protected] . The application should include a short statement of one page explaining why you would like to participate in the MaRBLe programme in general and which MaRBLe project you are applying for. You should also include an overview of your grades from the Student Portal and a C.V. You should state which project is your first, and which project is your second choice. The projects might be over- or under registered. For some projects, you may be invited for an interview before a decision is taken on your application.

What is the study load and how many credits can be earned?

The study load for participation in a MaRBLe project is 18 ECTS (486 hours) spread over one semester. Upon successful completion, you earn 18 ECTS. Of these 18 ECTS, a maximum of 12 credits will be awarded within your regular bachelor programme, and six credits are awarded as extra-curricular credits, reflecting the excellence character of the MaRBLe programme.

The 12 credits within your bachelor programme may replace your bachelor essay or two electives. For UMLC students, the six extra-curricular credits will count towards your UMLC programme credits.

Successful participation in the Marble project will be mentioned in a special certificate you will receive with your diploma.

Coordinator: Sascha Hardt

Around May, FASoS students will receive an email about the projects, procedure and exact deadline. Students belonging to the top 25% of their bachelor programme will be invited to participate and can register their three preferences along with a brief motivation online. The project also offers exceptions to highly motivated students who can submit their preferences along with a motivation letter. If you are a student from a different Faculty and would like to participate, please contact the coordinator. All preferences ought to be submitted before June 3 rd .

• Timeframe: 2nd semester;
• Number of students involved: 60-80 students;
• Number of projects involved: 10 projects;
• 6-12 Students per team;

Coordinator: Johan Adriaensen

[email protected]

The Department of Data Science and Knowledge Engineering offers its most talented students the possibility to gain even more in-depth knowledge by completing their study programme with an additional honours programme.

This DKE Honours Program consists of two different tracks: a research-oriented track (MaRBLe) and a practice-oriented track (also known as KE @ Work).

In the research track of our Honours Programme, students get the opportunity to work on a state-of-the-art research project. Work will be organized in a similar way as in professional research institutes where students work together as individual experts on a team project. Each student specializes in a task, will get assigned a team role and receives a self-contained research project. Together they will be working towards a common demonstration where individual research projects integrate towards a journal publication. For the individual subprojects, each student receives an individual supervisor from DKE.

MaRBLe @DKE

Coordinator: Mathias Staudigl

MaRBLe is a form of RBL, Research-Based Learning. In RBL, learning is based on research that students do themselves, rather than being dependent on research done before and by others.

Small groups of students will conduct research under the guidance of a senior researcher. They will act as a group but engage in individual work as well. MaRBLe offers a unique opportunity to develop one’s own research topic within the context of a pre-defined research program. In this way, student researchers will make an actual contribution to ongoing research and will experience first-hand what is involved in doing research. During the project, specific skills will be addressed at the appropriate time: e.g. problem analysis, writing a proposal, data selection, and analysis reporting and presenting.

Course objectives MaRBLe brings multidisciplinary scientific research to the bachelor phase. It is a semester-long 3000 level research program carrying 10 ECTS. Please beware that it is not possible to do multiple MaRBLe projects, unless you receive special permission by the Board of Examiners.

MaRBLe encompasses the two Skills and one Project offered during a semester. In most MaRBLe projects, the first-course period will be mainly dedicated to an introduction into the specific field and related methodologies, and a research plan or proposal will be written. During the second and third period, the students will engage in their own research, while staying in touch with the other members of their group to discuss progress and challenges. At the end of each semester, UCM will organize a symposium during which all participating students will present their research to their fellow researchers and the larger UCM community.

Prerequisites NB: Exchange students who are interested in doing the MaRBle project can only apply if they stay for a full year and then only in their second semester. More than anything else, the MaRBLe undergraduate research program is aimed at students with a great appetite for learning and research. Students should ideally have a progress rate of ≥0.9, and a grade average of ≥7.5. In addition, specific courses may be required for particular projects (these prerequisites will be mentioned in the announcement of offered projects). At least as important as these ‘technical’ requirements, we expect students who apply for MaRBLe to be motivated and to have a clear idea on how the project they apply for fits into their individual UCM curriculum. The deadline for MaRBLe applications is identical to the UCM course registration deadline. Students have to apply via a separate form (on the UCM intranet) and will also have to include a letter of motivation, and if eligible, can be invited for an interview.

All MaRBLe related questions and requests can be send to [email protected]

MaRBLe @UCM

Coordinator: Jenny Schell-Leugers

Marble series, marble series online.

In 2011 the steering board of the bachelor excellence programme MaRBLe started a journal to publish the best student research papers. Since then, 16 volumes have been issued on a broad variety of student research projects.

In close cooperation with the University Library, all editions have been published in an Online Journal.

Alumni achievements

We’re proud of our alumni that continue doing research even after MaRBLe. Take a look at their publications!

MaRBLe News

MaRBLe experience: a unique addition to the regular curriculum

During MaRBLe 2019-2020, six UM 3rd year bachelor students decided to take their MaRBLe experience to the next level. MaRBLe is a unique addition to the regular curriculum: while the […]

MaRBLe experience: dealing with unforeseen circumstances might lead to the best results

Shanice Janssens is a 26-year-old PhD candidate within the Brain Stimulation and Cognition (BSC) group at the Department of Cognitive Neuroscience (Maastricht University). Using a combination of neuroscientific methods (non-invasive […]

MaRBLe experience: Teamwork at its best

Corinna and Ana are third-year bachelor students at the faculty of Psychology and Neuroscience (FPN) who experienced the honours journey at Maastricht University at the bachelor level to the fullest. […]

Combining a semester abroad and research in MaRBLe

A journey in MaRBLe looks differently for every student. Imke Hrycyk, a 3rd-year bachelor’s student from the Faculty of Psychology and Neuroscience, considers herself lucky. When she first received an […]

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Privacy Overview

Research projects

PCE researchers are active academics. Below you can find an overview of several current research projects PCE researchers have received funding for. 

• ENSURED: Transforming and Defending Multilateralism

Prof. Dr. Hylke Dijkstra  (Project Coordinator) and Dr. Clara Weinhardt  (Deputy Coordinator) have received funding from the Horizon Europe funding scheme for the project ' ENSURED: Transforming and Defending Multilateralism: European Union Support for more Robust, Effective and Democratic Global Governance'. From UM, Mirko Heinzel , Dr. Soetkin Verhaegen  and Dr. Lilian Tsourdi are involved  in the project.

ENSURED, a project funded by Horizon Europe with 14 partners from the EU, US and the BRICS, studies how the EU and its members, in a contested world in transition, can transform and defend global governance to make it more robust, effective and democratic. Integrating different literatures on international institutions and EU foreign policy, ENSURED develops a conceptual framework on global governance transformation. Through case studies of five policy areas, a quantitative analysis and expert survey, ENSURED empirically assesses and compares the unexploited potential for global governance transformation. It thus highlights areas where global governance transformation is most likely. Based on this empirical analysis, ENSURED provides support for the EU and its members to lead the transformation and defence of multilateralism. ENSURED thus advances our knowledge about global governance transformation and provides the EU and its members with the tools to navigate a world in transition.

Project partners:

• KU Leuven, Belgium
• Centre for European Policy Studies, Belgium
• Charles University, Czech Republic
• University of Tartu, Estonia
• University of Potsdam, Germany
• Global Public Policy Institute, Germany
• European University Institute, Italy
• Istituto Affari Internazionali, Italy,
• CIVICUS World Alliance for Citizen Participation, South Africa
• Jawaharlal Nehru University, India
• Tufts University, United States
• University of International Business and Economics, China
• PUC Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

• ARM: The long arm of authoritarian states

Dr. Mariëlle Wijermars has, together with an international consortium lead by PI Lovise Aalen of the Chr. Michelsen Institute, received funding from the Horizon Europe funding scheme for the project ‘ARM: The long arm of authoritarian states’.

The project explores how authoritarian states suppress information and will deliver a practitioners’ toolkit for how to counter it. More specifically, the project will analyse how Russia, China, Ethiopia and Rwanda seek to suppress independent voices and information, with a special focus on how this information suppression affects EU states and diaspora communities that have settled in the EU.

• Chr. Michelsen Institute
• University of Helsinki
• Hertie School
• Panteion University of Social and Political Sciences
• University of Tartu
• Riga Stradins University
• University of Tromsø
• University of Bergen
• WZB Social Science Center
• Lund University

• REUNIR: Resilience, Enlargement, Union, Neighbourhood, International Relations

Together with 12 partners from across Europe, Dr. Gergana Noutcheva , Dr. Assem Dandashly and Prof. Dr. Hylke Dijkstra received  funding from the Horizon Europe funding scheme  for the project 'REUNIR – Resilience, Enlargement, Union, Neighbourhood, International Relations: Future-proofing EU security, Enlargement and Eastern neighbourhood policies for a new age of international relations'.

REUNIR examines how the EU can strengthen its foreign and security toolboxes to bolster the resilience and transformation of (potential) candidate countries in a new age of international relations. By granting candidate status to Ukraine and Moldova and a European perspective to Georgia, the EU has rejected a Russian sphere of influence and instead determined where its future borders should lie. But this decision has not yet led to policies tailored to effectively respond to a geopolitical context which also sees China and other state actors competing for influence. REUNIR empirically assesses foreign threats to the military, socio-economic and democratic resilience of 9 neighbouring countries, determines capability shortfalls, maps local perceptions of the EU’s support and political perspectives inside the EU on neighbourhood relations. Outlining scenarios up to 2035, REUNIR offers evidence-based policy recommendations to mitigate malign foreign interference and strengthen the EU’s external action.

• Centre for European Policy Studies (CEPS)
• Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU)
• College of Europe, Natolin (COEN)
• Sorbonne Nouvelle (SN)
• Global Public Policy Institute (GPPi)
• Maastricht University (UM)
• International Centre for Defence and Security (ICDS)
• University of Graz (UG)
• Belgrade Centre for Security Policy (BCSP)
• National University of ‘Kyiv-Mohyla’ academy (NaUKMA)
• Institute for European Policies and Reforms (IPRE)
• Georgian Institute of Politics (GIP)

• InvigoratEU

Dr. Giselle Bosse has, together with an international consortium, funding from the European Horizon funding scheme for the project ‘ InvigoratEU ’.

The project focuses on invigorating change of the EU‘s political perspective for the Eastern Neighbourhood and the Western Balkans, and on examining options for a resilient Europe. Giselle Bosse, together with Richard Youngs (Carnegie Europe), will lead the work package on ‘Innovative perspectives on democratising countries in the eastern neighbourhood and western Balkans in contexts of contested territory’.

• ACCESS4ALL: Equal access for all lobbyists

Dr. Iskander de Bruycker has received  funding from the NWO's Vidi scheme for the project 'ACCESS4ALL: Equal access for all lobbyists'. 

ACCESS4ALL examines whether policymakers are accessible to all lobbyists, regardless of their societal background. Ideally, policymakers exchange with lobbyists with different socio-demographic profiles. Yet, the ACCESS4ALL project expects that policymakers predominantly exchange with lobbyists who resemble them; lobbyists of the same age, gender and ethnic background. The ACCESS4ALL project group tests its expectations within the European policy context through desk research, focus groups, large-scale surveys and vignette experiments. Based on this research, it proposes strategies to make access to EU policymakers more open and inclusive.

• Banking on democracy. Evaluating the democratic justifiability of money creation by commercial banks

Dr. Janosch Prinz has received funding from the NWO Open Competition SSH XS for the project ‘Banking on democracy. Evaluating the democratic justifiability of money creation by commercial banks’.

The project reconstructs and evaluates the justifications for the money creation powers of commercial banks in the Eurozone, as offered by bankers, their public supervisors, and civil society organizations working on monetary reform. Commercial banks are responsible for ca. 95% of money creation today by providing credit. They decide about their extension of credit based on profit calculations. This means that commercial banks' profit calculations shape which kinds of projects go ahead. If the money creation powers of commercial banks stand in tension with the democratic collective in determining the direction of societal development, how could these powers be justified?

• NAVIGATOR: The EU Navigating Multilateral Cooperation

NAVIGATOR is a 4-year research project. From PCE,  Dr. Yf Reykers  is involved. NAVIGATOR  seeks to answer the following questions: how should the EU navigate the increasingly complex – and conflict-laden – institutional spaces of global governance to advance a rules-based international order? And what factors should be emphasized when considering which institutions to strengthen, which to reform, and which to by-pass when revitalising multilateralism?

NAVIGATOR’s main objective is to answer these questions and deliver a ready-to-use “search mechanism” and associated pathways of action that the EU and its member states can use as it seeks to strengthen a rules-based international order.

To achieve this, NAVIGATOR comprises a strong, global and inter-disciplinary team of researchers who explores institutional variation on six policy issues – climate change, digitalisation, finance/tax, health, migration and security – to identify what institutional mixes that enables the EU to have optimal impact in a given policy issue. This project receives funding from the European Union’s Horizon Europe research and innovation programme under the European Commission’s Horizon Europe Call. The project runs from January 2023 until December 2026.

Project leadership:

John Karlsrud, Norwegian Institute of International Affairs

• Norwegian Institute of International Affairs
• Copenhagen Business School
• Université Libre de Bruxelles
• Universiteit Maastricht
• University of Witwatersrand
• Universita Commerciale Luigi Bocconi
• Stichting VU, Operating Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam
• European Council on Foreign Relations
• The Hebrew University of Jerusalem
• Tallinna Tehnikaülikool
• University of Ottawa ( associated partner )
• Waseda University ( associated partner )

• EMBRACing changE - Overcoming Blockages and Advancing Democracy in the European Neighbourhood

The research project EMBRACing changE (Overcoming Blockages and Advancing Democracy in the European Neighbourhood) aims to respond to the counter-democracy trends after the coloured revolutions and the Arab Spring. It does so through an inter-disciplinary, multi-method and cross-regional assessment of both blockages to and drivers of democratisation in 12 case study countries across Eastern Europe, Southern Caucasus, Western Balkans, Northern Africa and the Middle East.

This project has received funding from Horizon Europe.

PCE project team:

• Giselle Bosse
• Wicke van den Broek
• Berghof Foundation Operations gGmbH, Berlin, Germany  (Coordinator)
• Konstanz University (Germany) (Co-Coordinator)
• University of Lleida (Spain)
• Stockholm University (Sweden)
• University of Gent (Belgium)
• Elliniko Idryma Evropaikis kai Exoterikis Politikis (ELIAMEP) (Greece)
• Arab Reform Initiative (ARI) (France, Tunisia, Lebanon)
• Ukrainian Association of European Studies (Ukraine)
• Ilia State University (Georgia)
• University of Belgrade (Serbia)
• PalThink for Strategic Studies (Palestine)
• Concentris research management GmbH (Germany)
• University of Manchester (United Kingdom) – associated partner bringing their own funding

• REMIT: Reigniting Multilateralism Through Technology

REMIT is a 4-year research project. From PCE, Prof. Sophie Vanhoonacker and Dr. Mariëlle Wijermars are involved. REMIT explores how, in a world where multilateralism and transnational democracy are increasingly under threat, multilateral governance can be reconceptualised through pivotal areas of technology such as digital technology, health biotechnology, security and defence technology, financial technology. 

REMIT’s main objective is to contribute to defining the EU’s role in leading the defence and renewal and of multilateralism starting with the global governance of technology and to design policy recommendations that will reignite multilateralism via technology.

To achieve this, REMIT comprises an inter-disciplinary team of researchers of international universities and thinktanks with expertise in the EU, the US an China as well as in the earlier mentioned pivotal areas of technology.

This project receives funding from the European Union’s Horizon Europe research and innovation programme under the European Commission’s Horizon Europe Call. The project runs from March 2023 until February 2027.

• Maastricht University, The Netherlands
• European Cyber Conflict Research Initiative, UK
• Universitatea Babes Bolyai, Romania
• Universitaet Bremen, Germany
• Katholieke Universiteit Leuven, Belgium
• LUISS Libera Universita Internazionale degli Studi, Italy
• Erasmus Universiteit, The Netherlands
• Tartu Ulikool, Estonia
• Finnish Institute of International Affairs, Finland

• A coalition of hawks and doves? Explaining military receptiveness to civil society calls for transparency around the use of force

The Hawks and Doves project examines military receptiveness to NGO calls for transparency in Western European countries. It aims to understand the conditions under which military officials are willing to cooperate with civil society to improve transparency around the use of military force and its consequences.

The project is funded by the Gerda Henkel Foundation’s special programme on Security, Society and the State.

Project team:

• Francesca Colli
• Daphné Charotte

• Faces of Trade Diplomacy: Human perceptions, memories and hopes around trade multilateralism

Faces of Trade Diplomacy:  Human perceptions, memories and hopes around trade multilateralism is an online gallery that builds on research findings from Dr. Clara Weinhardt's DFG research project on global power shifts and WTO politics.

“Faces of Trade Diplomacy” centres on making global trade diplomacy more relatable. While trade is perceived as highly technical, the exhibition wishes to reveal the more human elements of trade negotiations. By bringing personal stories, memories and hopes of trade diplomats to an audience, it seeks to build a connection between those that negotiate global trading rules and the more general public. Building on the DFG research project, the exhibition seeks to contextualise and go beyond the narrative of the crisis of trade multilateralism in a multipolar era.

Pictures by: Chantelle Gomez

• NestIOr: The Decline and Death of International Organizations

NestIOr is a five-year research project entitled "Who gets to live forever? Toward an Institutional Theory on the Decline and Death of International Organisations" (2019-2023) led by Prof. Hylke Dijkstra . Dr. Marie Debre is the postdoctoral researcher in this project. NestIOr has received funding from the European Research Council (ERC) under the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme (grant agreement No 802568). The project focusses on three areas: energy and environment, security, and finance.

• DeLab: Deliberation Laboratory

Deliberation Laboratory (DeLab): Artificial Intelligence and the Society of the Future is a four-year research project funded by the Volkswagen Foundation. It seeks to develop a moderator using artificial intelligence (AI) that can recognise escalating conflict in social media and intervene to de-escalate the situation.

The multi-disciplinary project team comprises specialists in computerised linguisitcs, philosophy, and AI, in Germany, Poland, Scotland, and the Netherlands. The UM team, led by Prof. John Parkinson , is developing and applying cultural script theory to detect the linguistic 'scripts' of conflict, before testing different AI responses in the laboratory and in the wild.

• ADHOCISM: Ad hoc crisis response and international organisations

International organisations (IOs) are created with the aim of solving collective action problems when a crisis arises. Yet, member states have repeatedly established ad hoc crisis responses in situations where IOs might be expected to play a central role.

ADHOCISM asks what is the impact of ad hoc crisis responses on international organisations? In this way, ADHOCISM wants to contribute to filling this knowledge gap through a systematic study of ad hoc crisis responses in two policy domains: security and health. With this paired comparison, ADHOCISM wants to tap into a broader empirical governance phenomenon. Ad hoc crisis responses are here understood as loose groups of actors that agree to solve a particular crisis at a given time and location outside of an existing international organisation in the same policy domain. Ad hoc crisis reponses can, in the short-term, lead to more rapid and effective crisis responses among like-minded states, but if international organisations are no longer seen as the principal instruments to confront global challenges, the risk is also that the relevance of these international organisations will diminish, and similar trends may unfold in other domains.

Dr. Yf Reykers  is the co-Principal Investigator of ADHOCISM. The project is funded by the Research Council of Norway (FRIHUMSAM). The project runs from September 2021 until August 2025.

• John Karlsrud, Norwegian Institute of International Affairs (PI)
• Yf Reykers, Maastricht University (co-PI)
• European University Institute

• Need for speed: improving the institutional structure of international governmental organisations for rapid crisis responses

International governmental organisations (IGOs), such as the European Union (EU), United Nations and World Health Organization, are commonly seen as key actors in providing coordinated responses to crises with global dimensions. However, many IGOs have also been criticised for being too slow in their crisis responses. This is problematic, as speed matters for avoiding that crises escalate or cost lives. By studying the EU institutional architecture in the fields of health and security, this pilot project seeks to generate a set of hypotheses about how the institutional structure of IGOs can determine their crisis response time.

Dr. Yf Reykers  is the Principal Investigator of this project, which  is funded by a one-year grant from the NWO Open Competition Domain Social Sciences and Humanities – XS. It runs from August 2023 until May 2024.

• VISTA: ReVitalise the study of EU Single Market Integration in a turbulent age

The Jean Monnet Network project ‘ReVitalise the study of EU Single Market Integration in a turbulent age’ ( VISTA ) seeks to promote new research and teaching on contemporary developments in the single market in the areas of defence, the digital market, finance, and energy. It does so through the creation of new teaching materials at the involved universities, joint publications in academic journals, and policy papers.

• Dr. Aneta Spendzharova
• Dr. Anna Herranz-Surrallés
• Dr. Johan Adriaensen
• Prof. Sophie Vanhoonacker
• University of Bristol
• Goethe University – Frankfurt
• National University of Kyiv-Mohyla Academy (NaUKMA)
• Tallinn University of Technology
• CEPS-Brussels

• The forgotten occupation: Everyday life and social interactions in the Luxembourgish occupation zone in Germany (1945-1955)

Felix Streicher 's PhD project 'The forgotten occupation: Everyday life and social interactions in the Luxembourgish occupation zone in Germany (1945-1955)' explores a case of foreign rule hitherto completely neglected in academic historical research: the Luxembourgish occupation in post-war Germany. The main focus of the project will be a detailed analysis of German-Luxembourgish social interactions inside the occupation zone through the lens of a history of everyday life, space and gender. 

This PhD research project is funded by a grant from the Luxembourg National Research Fund (FNR).

Photo: Musée National d’Histoire Militaire (Lux.), Fonds Aloyse Jacoby, K336_189.