Rule of Law – between institutional immobility and European citizens initiative(s)

The conference

Rule of Law – between institutional immobility and European citizens initiative(s)

Challenges and opportunities of participatory democracy instruments in the construction of a European public sphere

The speakers

Virginia FIUME – European Initiatives Project Coordinator
As coordinator of the European Initiatives promoted by Science for Democracy and of the pan-European citizens movement Eumans, Virginia Fiume coordinates European-level participatory democracy initiatives, combining advocacy, networking and citizens empowerment and community engagement activities.

She has a degree from Universitá degli Studi di Milano in Critic and Theory of Contemporary Literature, and an MA in Anthropology of Media at the School of Oriental and African Studies in London. Ms Fiume has over 15 years of experience in the field of journalism and communication and tech startup in North America, the Middle East and different European Countries.

Octavian LAZEA, Policy and Advocacy Officer – Eumans
Born Romanian but raised Italian, Octavian Lazea obtained his Bachelor’s Degree in Interpreting and Translation (EN, FR, CH) at the University of International Studies of Rome. After living one year on Erasmus in Paris, he is currently completing his Master program in International Relations (Major Globalization and Public Policy) at ULB University in Brussels, with a dissertation on EU identity and public sphere. Before becoming a transnational activist, Octavian has been coordinating community engagement at local level in Rome, to promote and raise awareness on civic participation. He is now Policy & Advocacy Officer at Eumans, where he monitors policy developments at EU level and supports the advocacy and political networking activities. 

The Jean Monnet Module

The Institute for European Studies of the Université libre de Bruxelles coordinates since September 2018 a Jean Monnet Module dealing with the rule of law and mutual trust in global and European governance. Professor Ramona Coman, President of the IEE-ULB  is the project’s coordinator.

In recent years the salience of these topics has considerably increased not only within the EU but also in other regions/regional organizations. The aim of this Module is to create a platform of academic and expert discussion that will shade light on current debates about the rule of law in general and the independence of the judiciary in EU member states and beyond. The Module seeks to bring together scholars and experts with academic backgrounds in different disciplines and plural views on the topic.

Practical information

Date: October 22, 2020  

Time: 10:15 to 11:45

To register, please fill in this form. Login information will be sent by e-mail close to the date of the conference