Past conferences

The European Studies Program at UVic has hosted many conferences over the years, on topics ranging from EU policy-making to Holocaust memorilization. Many of these conferences were supported by other departments at the Universisty, and by EU grants held at UVic, including the European Union Centre for Excellence.

2nd Borders in globalization international conference, 2017

The Borders in Globalization project held their second annual international conference in Ottawa, from December 6th to 8th, 2017.

2019

EU-CETA Conference: Understanding the Comprehensive Economic Trade Agreement and the EU

On October 30th, 2019, this practical and interactive workshop provided participants with a comprehensive understanding of how the European Union works and of the opportunities afforded by the Canada-EU Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement. After the session, participants had a better understandhing of how most decisions are made in the EU; how to influence EU processes; how to seize opportunities afforded by the CETA; and how to recognise the importance of engagement with the EU.

Partial funding from the European Studies Program.

Graduate Student Workshop: Canadian Border Policies in Comparative Perspectives

UVic’s Jean Monnet Centre of Excellence and Borders in Globalization (BIG) research programs, in partnership with Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA), and with funding from the Erasmus+ Programme of the European Commission, hosted a one-day workshop to explore specific policy-relevant questions on Canadian borders.  The objective of the workshop was to have students present and discuss research papers (topics below) with experts, scholars and border officials.  This was an outstanding opportunity to (1) present targeted research to the policy-makers who will use the knowledge; and to network with professionals.

View program on our Borders in Globalization site.

2017

Narratives of Memory, Migration and Xenophobia in the EU and Canada

This unique summer field school had students and faculty travelling between sites in Hungary, Germany, France and Canada and experiencing verbal, written and musical narratives at each physical location.
After visiting the Keleti Station near Budapest, and Ravensbruck near Berlin, the group travelled to Camp des Milles near Aix en Provence. 
Meeting up again at the Canadian Museum of Human Rights in Winnipeg, Manitoba, the field school culminated with tours, classes, teachings from local First Nations elders, and a Public Symposium at UVic in August, 2017, held in conjunction with the SALT music festival 2017.

2016

"CETA: Opportunities and challenges for British Columbia"

The impending Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) between Canada and the European Union (EU) poses potential opportunities and challenges for Canadians in many areas, including – but not limited to – business prospects, legal constraints, and consumer behaviour. The purpose of this conference was to focus on some of the major public and private areas CETA is likely to affect in BC. The conference was hosted at UVic on February 18th, 2016. 

"Crisis and (re)Definition"

In 2008, a serious collapse of the global financial market set off a series of cascading fiscal crises across North America and Europe. The sorts of social and political action that emerged out of the crisis and continue to characterize post-crisis political discourse suggest that an epistemological rupture between political and social movements and their traditional ideological concerns is emerging. 

The aim of this conference, hosted by the EUCE at UVic and CFGS on May 25th, 2016, was to use a cross-disciplinary and comparative perspective to investigate the nature of these epistemic ruptures, and to explore the geographies of new, post-crisis politics, identities, and activism.

"State of the EU in Canada and the Pacific Asia"

UVic hosted the third, and final, State of the EU conference on May 25th to 27th, 2016. The conference presented an opportunity for Graduate Students in Canada, the United States, and the Asia Pacific to present their research on the European Union. Possible topics included the image of the EU in media, business, governance, free trade agreements, and arctic/maritime issues.

"Narrative Matters"

From June 20-23, 2016, UVic hosted this conference which showed that narrative is an important component of all aspects of everyday life. The conference offered participants an opportunity to learn about new narrative initiatives, innovations, and research; engage in dialogue about narrative practices; and learn about narrative studies in the Victoria region as well as more specifically across the University of Victoria campus by interacting with multi-faculty presenters.

"Borders in the North"

On June 21/22, 2016 the second of two summer conferences was held at Yukon College in Whitehorse, Canada. Sponsored by Borders in Globalization (BiG). an innovative and integrative network of academic partners from Canada, the US, Europe, Asia and the Middle East, this conference brought together BiG investigators from Canadian and International Universities along with Northern people, government officials, industry stakeholders and students to discuss the opportunities and challenges that international, national and evolving borders are creating for the economies and societies of the north.

2016 http://biglobalization.org/content/2016-borders-north-summer-institute

"The role of cooperative banks in promoting financial stability and sustainable economic development"

On August 26th and 27th, 2016, the EUCE co-hosted this conference with the Department of Economics and the Gustavson School of Business, which aims at providing a forum for academic researchers and policy makers to discuss issues related to the structure and design of financial systems and their impact on growth and financial stability. 

The 2016 inaugural meeting of the IWFSAS was dedicated to discussing the role of Cooperative Financial Institutions (CFIs). CFIs appear to have weathered the 2008 global financial crisis better than commercial banks. Despite this, the role of cooperative banks, credit unions, and other types of financial institutions with alternative forms of ownership, seem to be missing from the current discussions and debates about financial stability and regulatory reforms.

The call for papers welcomed both theoretical and empirical contributions on the following: the role of CFIs in strengthening the financial system, competition and bank risk-taking, safety nets and moral hazards, the regulation of CFIs, and so on. For more information, please visit the IFWSAS 2016 website.  

This conference was organized by Dr. Paul Schure and and Dr. Basma Majerbi, and sponsored by The University of Victoria (Gustavson School of Business & the Department of Economics) in collaboration with the European Union Center of Excellence (EUCE) and the International Research Center on Cooperative Finance (IRCCF) at HEC Montreal. 

This activity was funded by the European Union Centre of Excellence.

June 2016: The future of Holocaust memoralization conference

2015

"State of the EU in Canada and the Pacific Asia"

The second of three State of the EU conferences was hosted at UVic on June 10th to 11th, providing an opportunity for graduate students from across Canada, Japan, and Taiwan to present their research on the state of the EU in their region, network with other scholars and gain experience as a panel discussant and presenter.

"Borders in the North"

On June 17/18, 2015 the first of two summer conferences was hosted by UVic and held at Yukon College in Whitehorse, Canada. Sponsored by Borders in Globalization (BiG). an innovative and integrative network of academic partners from Canada, the US, Europe, Asia and the Middle East, this summer conference brought together BiG investigators from Canadian and International Universities along with Northern people, government officials, industry stakeholders and students to discuss the opportunities and challenges that international, national and evolving borders are creating for the economies and societies of the north.

2015 http://biglobalization.org/content/borders-north-yukon-summer-conference

"Global Connections: Holocaust Education"

Sept 1-3, 2015, UVic hosted an interdisciplinary conference aimed at providing scholars, poets, writers, students, Holocaust survivors, and community leaders the opportunity to meet and learn from each other. The conference included expertise and research from the fields of Holocaust and genocide studies, education, gender studies, germanic and slavic studies, history, Indigenous studies, anthropology, sociology, and child and youth care. 

This conference focused on the intricate global networks necessary for a sophisticated approach to understanding and preventing hatred, racism, anti-Semitism, islamophobia, zenophobia, ethnic conflict, and genocide. In addition, the conference reflected on ways to encourage personal connections and relationships to the events of the Holocaust in the soon-to-be absence of living testimony.

The conference was organized by Dr. Helga Thorson, Dr. Charlotte Schallié, and Andrea van Noord, and received support from SSHRCC, the EUCE at UVic, the Centre for Global Studies, the Jewish Federation of Victoria and Vancouver Island, the UVic Faculty of Humanities, the UVic Department of History, the Austrian Embassy in Ottawa, Switzerland, Hillel BC, the Consulate General of the USA, The Consulate General of the Republic of Poland in Vancouver, the Centre for Isreal and Jewish Affairs, the German Academic Echange Service, Landscapes of Injustice, the Embassy of Hungary in Ottawa, the League of Canadian Poets, the Canada Council for the Arts, and Contemplating the Holocaust through Poetry. 

CETA Conference: Opportunities and Challenges for BC

Partially funded by the the European Union Centre for Excellence (EUCE).

2014

"European integration"

On January 17th, 2014, the European Studies program hosted the 2nd annual Jean Monnet Centre of Excellence Graduate conference. The conference was organized by Dr. Valerie D'Erman, of the Department of Political Science. 

"The future of holocaust memorilization" 

On June 10-11, 2014, was organized by CEU, the University of Victoria and the Tom Lantos Institute, and was sponsored by the embassies of the United States, Norway, and Sweden, the Israeli Cultural Institute, Friedrich Ebert Stiftung, and the iWitness Holocaust field school project. The event was part of CEU's continued public discussion of the Holocaust with the aim of preserving and honoring the historical truth. 

The opening panels dealt with current Holocaust discourses and how various institutions present Holocaust education. Subsequent panels explored numerous initiatives that are educating students, the public, and even civil servants. 

Helga Thorson and Charlotte Schallie, UVic professors, were instrumental in the organization of the conference. The EUCE at UVic offered support to those wishing to attend the conference.

This activity was supported by the European Union Centre of Excellence.
"State of the EU in Canada and the Pacific Asia"
UVic hosted the first of three State and the EU conferences at UVic on July 17th to 18th, 2014, providing an opportunity for graduate students from across Canada, Japan, and Taiwan to present their research on the state of the EU in their region, network with other scholars and gain experience as a panel discussant and presenter. There was a broad range of topics covered, from the management of social issues such as immigration and ethnic diversity to political cooperation on energy and development issues to comparisons of governance and legal approaches to traditional hunting.
"CETA"

In October of 2013 the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) between Canada and the European Union was signed in principle, granting Canada access to the biggest economy of the world. This conference, held at UVic on May 6th, 2014, aimed to bridge the gap between the theory (the law, international trade theory, political economy, etc) and the practice of international trade. One central theme was to further our understanding of what led to this this particular agreement. Another was to build on the available extensive theoretical and practical wisdom and assess the practical implications for industry and other stakeholders.

"Managing diversity, immigration, and multiculturalism" 

UVic's European Studies program and JMCE hosted the third, and last, graduate conference on the 20th of November, 2014. The conference was an great opportunity for graduate students to present their work on diversity, immigration, multiculturalism, and European integration. 

The following students presented at the conference:

  • Grace Ballor (PhD, UCLA), The Paradox of Firm-Led European Integration: Pre-Crisis Builders Becoming a Post-Crisis Threat

  • Sangmi Cha (Undergraduate, University of Washington, European Studies), Divisive Residue of the Berlin Wall

  • Alex Gunn (PhD, UVic Political Science), Catalonia’s interculturalism model: At the intersection of immigration, national self-determination and European integration

  • Waged Jafer (PhD, Interdisciplinary Studies, UBC), Examination of a ‘victimized identity’ amongst Shiite Muslim Canadians and ‘misrecognition’ of the Shiite identity within Canada.

  • Marc Woons (FWO Doctoral Fellow, KU Leuven - Institute of Philosophy, Centre for Ethics, Social and Political Philosophy, UVic Visiting Scholar), Social Justice Beyond the Nation-State: Liberal Nationalism in Multinational Contexts

 

2013

"European integration"

On January 17th, 2014, the European Studies program hosted the 2nd annual Jean Monnet Centre of Excellence Graduate conference. The conference was organized by Dr. Valerie D'Erman, of the Department of Political Science. 

The call for papers asked applicants to focus on the European Union, and European integration. 

2012

"Security's Impact on Border Policies"

The EUCE at UVic held this conference on March 30th and 31st, 2012 on campus. The conference and workshop explored varied issues in the comparative study of border security policies in both the European Union and the North American Free Trade Agreement areas. See here for more information.

See the detailed program here.

There was also a high school symposium attached to this event that took place on March 29th. View the poster here.

"Beyond crisis: Ways forward for a renewed European Union"

In 2012, the European Studies program held its first Jean Monnet Centre of Excellence Graduate conference. The conference took place at the University of Victoria, on Decemeber 7th, 2012. 

The call for papers sought applications that addressed:

  • New governance instruments in the Eurozone
  • Asymmetrical integration and Eurozone 'ins' and 'outs'
  • The role of the Franco-German partnership
  • Euro adoption in new members; Future enlargement
  • What it means to be 'Europeanized'
  • Treaty change and future directions for European integration
  • The growth or retreat of the 'European identity'

The keynote speaker for the conference was Dr. Alison Johnston, from Oregon State University. 

 

Here are audio clips of the presentations at the 2012 JMCE Graduate conference:

2011

Symposium: "Imagining - Creating - Meaning"

As part of the Seventh Annual Faculty Research Symposium of the Department of History of Art, on November 18th, scholars examined the role of the senses and the imaginative/creative faculties in relation to communicating with audiences.

"Comparing Modes of Governance in Canada and the European Union: Social Policy Engagement Across Complex Multilevel Systems"

On October 14th and 15th, 2011, the EUCE and the Jean Monnet Chair Ad Personam at UVic held a conference that explored the complex multilevel governance systems of Canada and the European Union, and their effectiveness in policy making and implementation.

"Governing Migration and Integration in Europe's System of Multi-level Governance"

On October 28th and 29th, 2011, the EUCE held a conference to examine how immigration and integration policy, once the exclusive domain of national politics, are contending with new political and social actors and with competing levels of policy competence. See the detailed program here.

2010

"ECSA-C Biennial Conference"

The European Studies program hosted the biennial conference for the European Communirt Studies Association-Canada from April 29th to May 1st, 2010. The conference dealt with the past and the future of the European Union and explored questions about the economic, social and political forces shaping the EU.

"The Financial Crisis, EMU and the Stability of Currencies and the Financial System"

The EUCE at UVic, along with SSHRC, sponsored a conference from September 30th to October 2nd, 2010, to discuss what to make of the financial and economic crisis. The themes were:

  • the EMU and the financial crisis
  • Non-EMU members and the financial crisis
  • the effect of the financial crisis and governance in the EU
  • the future of national currencies

There was also a high school event on September 30th, with lessons and questions about the financial crisis.