The Spirit of Europe
The Trust held a conference on The Spirit of Europe in association with with the Écoles des Hautes Études Internationales et Politiques (Paris), the European Institute of Personalism and the Revue Politique et Parlementaire at the University of Kent, Canterbury.
Below is the final conference programme and the list of speakers:
The Spirit of Europe:
Federalism, personalism and subsidiarity
7-8 December 2018
University of Kent, Canterbury, UK
Friday 7th December 2018: Darwin Conference Suite (Darwin College, University of Kent, Canterbury, CT2 7NY)
0830 – 0900 Coffee and registration
0900 –0915 Welcome and introduction: Adrian Pabst (Kent)
0915 – 1045 Session 1. Europe in question: identity, purpose and meaning
Moderator: Adrian Pabst (Kent)
Speakers: Robin Degron (Sorbonne); Régis Passerieux (Refondation); Arleen Westerhof (Economic Summit)
1045 – 1115 Coffee
1115 – 1315 Session 2. Personalism: the legacy of interwar and post-war Europe for today
Moderator: Philippe de Roux (Eau et Vie)
Speakers: Philip Boobyer (Kent); John Milbank (Nottingham); Emmanuel Morucci (Brest)
1315 – 1400 Lunch
1400 – 1530 Session 3. (Con-)Federalism and the European project
Moderator: Adrian Pabst (Kent)
Speakers: Lord Glasman (Common Good Foundation); Richard Sakwa (Kent); Arleen Westerhof (Economic Summit)
1530 – 1600 Tea
1600 – 1730 Session 4. Keynote Lecture by Sir Larry Siedentop (Oxford): “The Three Europes”
Moderator: James Noyes (UCL)
Panel discussion with John Milbank (Nottingham), Adrian Pabst (Kent) and Régis Passerieux (Refondation)
1730 – 1830 Drinks reception
1900 – 2200 Dinner (Darwin College)
Saturday 8 December 2018: Woolf Lecture Theatre (Woolf College, University of Kent, Canterbury, CT2 7NZ)
0900 – 1100 Session 5. Subsidiarity and the future of the EU and the wider Europe
Moderator: James Noyes (UCL)
Speakers: Emanuele Errichiello (Kent); Ron Ivey (Rembrandt Collective; Christophe Jadeau (Refondation); Dominique Mounier (Refondation); Neil Turnbull (Nottingham Trent)
1100 – 1130 Coffee
1130 – 1300 Session 6. Europe, Ecology and Religion
Moderator: Adrian Pabst (Kent)
Speakers: Pierre Dedenys (EIOP); Paul Piccarreta (Revue Limite); Philippe de Roux (Eau et Vie); Sara Silvestri (City, University of London, and Cambridge)
1300 – 1400 Lunch
1400 – 1600 Session 7. Roundtable discussion on Building a (new) European Movement
Panellists include: Paul Piccarreta (Revue Limite) and Manon des Portes (Refondation)
1600 – 1630 Tea and departure
List of speakers and invited participants
Bert, Orane, Paris
Boobyer, Philip, Reader in History, University of Kent
Cottalorda, Agnès, Member of the Board, Refondation
Degron, Robin, Professor of Public Finance, University of Paris 1 – Panthéon-Sorbonne; Conseiller référendaire de la Cour des comptes
Errichiello, Emanuele, Student, University of Kent
Glasman, Maurice, Life Peer (Labour Party); Director, Common Good Foundation; Visiting Fellow, School of Politics and International Relations, University of Kent
Grace, David, Honorary Secretary, Board of Trustees, The James Madison Charitable Trust
Ivey, Ron, Rembrandt Collective, Paris
Jadeau, Christophe, Member of the Board, Refondation
Jullien, Grégory, Adviser, European Parliament
Koegler, Michel, President, European Institut of Personalism
Milbank, John, Emeritus Professor of Religion, Ethics and Politics, University of Nottingham
Morucci, Emmanuel, Professor of Sociology, University of Brest; Member of the ‘Team Europe-France’ network
Mounier, Dominique, European Business Manager & Negotiation Consultant; Member of Refondation
Noyes, James, Fellow, University College London
Pabst, Adrian, Reader in Politics and Head of the School of Politics and International Relations; Director, Centre for Federal Studies, University of Kent; Trustee, The James Madison Charitable Trust
Passerieux, Régis, Visiting Professor, Écoles des Hautes Études Internationales et Politiques; Secretary General, Refondation; former mayor and secretary general for internationalisation in the French Socialist Party
Piccarreta, Paul, Editor, Revue Limite
Des Portes, Manon, Deputy Secretary General, Refondation
de Roux, Philippe, Director, Eau & Vie (NGO)
Sakwa, Richard, Professor of Russian and Eastern European Politics, School of Politics and International Relations, University of Kent; Associate Fellow, Chatham House
Siedentop, Larry, Professor of Political Thought and Tutorial Fellow in Politics, Keble College, University of Oxford; author of Democracy in Europe (2000) and Inventing the Individual (2014)
Silvestri, Sara, Senior Lecturer, City, University of London; Affiliated Lecturer, POLIS Department, University of Cambridge; Bye-Fellow, St Edmund’s College
Sladen, Angus, Honorary Treasurer, Board of Trustees, The James Madison Charitable Trust
Thebault, Nicholas, Paris
Turnbull, Neil, Principal Lecturer in Philosophy, Nottingham Trent University
Westerhof, Arleen, Founder and Executive Director, Economic Summit, The Netherlands
Joe Williams, Student, University of Kent
Conference context and theme
Brexit and recent elections in various EU member-states highlight deep divisions over the European project. While there is a rising tide of scepticism vis-à-vis the integration process and the Eurozone more specifically, certain parts of the population are also increasingly supportive of Europe, notably younger people. One common concern is that the EU institutions (including national governments as part of the European Council and the councils of ministers) are remote and insufficiently accountable to citizens. Beyond important institutional issues, this raises fundamental questions about the legitimacy and the identity of Europe in general and the EU in particular. What is its purpose? How might we think about the ‘spirit’ that animates the European project in an age of anger and alienation?
Historically, two traditions that shaped the post-war European process of reconciliation were federalism and personalism. The former emphasises the separation and distribution of power between different levels (local, regional, national and European), while the latter focuses on foundational values, such as the dignity of the person, human rights, democracy and the rule of law. One idea they share is the principle of subsidiarity: locating decision-making at the lowest possible level in accordance with personal dignity and agency. Arguably, there are powerful forces today that undermine federalism, personalism and subsidiarity – including globalisation, technocratic governance and individualism. The EU has mitigated some of these forces, but nevertheless power and wealth seem to flow upwards. In turn, this raises further fundamental questions: in what ways do federalism and personalism still shape Europe today? If their influence has declined, could and should their influence be renewed? If so, how? What might be the political, institutional and cultural conditions for such a renewal?
The proposed conference will explore these and related questions. Based on a keynote address and a number of papers by scholars and (former) politicians, the conference will also involve students in the discussions – on individual panels and in plenary debate.