ECMI Conversations with Experts

The guest of the first episode is Matt Qvortrup, Professor of Political Science and International Relations at Coventry University. Within political science, Prof. Qvortrup is known for his work on referendums – not only as a tool for direct democracy, but also as a political phenomenon, such as most recently a co-authored study on why and how autocratic rulers use referendums to prop up their regimes. He is interviewed by the ECMI Director Prof. Vello Pettai.

The guest of the second episode is Iulius Rostas, Visiting Professor at the National School of Political and Administrative Studies in Bucharest, Romania, and member of the Pakiv Board of the The European Roma Institute for Arts and Culture in Berlin, Germany. He was previously the Chair of Romani Studies/Assistant Professor at Central European University in Budapest and published extensively on Roma participation, Romani identity, Roma school desegregation, Romani movement and civil society. He is interviewed by the ECMI Senior Researcher Dr. Andreea Cârstocea.

The guest of the third episode is Dr. Patrick Simon, Senior Researcher at the French Institute for Demographic Studies or INED. Dr. Simon is also the Head of the department INTEGER (integration and discrimination) at the Institute for Migration and and expert on ethno-racial statistics. He is interviewed by the ECMI Senior Researcher Dr. Ljubica Djordjević.

The guest of the fourth episode is James Ker-Lindsay, visiting professor at the European Institute, London School of Economics and a research associate at the Centre for International Studies, Oxford University. His research focuses on conflict, peace and security in South East Europe and on secession and recognition in international politics. As well as his academic works, he also has considerable practical experience working on peace processes. More recently, he was part of the British delegation at the UN-led Conference on Cyprus, in 2017. He’s also served as an advisor or consultant to a number of governments and international organisations, including the United Nations and Council of Europe. A strong believer in the importance of public engagement by the academic community, and the need to make knowledge accessible to wider audiences, he has his own YouTube channel exploring International Relations and Conflict Analysis. He is interviewed by the ECMI Senior Researcher Dr. Marika Djolai.

In this episode, ECMI Senior Researcher Dr. Sergiusz Bober interviews Dr. Rejhan Bosnjak. They discuss Bosnjak's latest book on the self-perception of the Danish minority in Germany. The book (in Danish) 'Danskhed under forandring: Det danske mindretals selvopfattelse' was published recently by University Press of Southern Denmark. Rejhan Bosnjak was born in 1986 in Bosnia-Herzegovina. He came to Denmark as a refugee in 1992 with his parents and brother. He got his MA in History and the Study of Religions from the University of Southern Denmark in 2015. He was a PhD candidate at the University of Southern Denmark/Dansk Centralbibliotek focusing on the self-perception of the Danish Minority as seen from a contemporary perspective (the book is a modified version of the dissertation).

In this episode, ECMI Director Prof. Vello Pettai interviews Dr. Jennie Schulze. They discuss the broad contribution of Jennie Schulze to the field of minority studies. The first talk about the so-called “Conditionality Gap” in Estonia and Latvia, i.e. or the influence of the European Union’s conditionality policies in relation to ethnic minority inclusion during these countries accession process. Thereafter, they focus on a cross-national project called Towards the Integration of the European Second Generation. And lastly, they turn their attention to refugee integration, which is admittedly less linked to national minorities, but is clearly part of overall diversity management in our societies today.

In this episode, ECMI Senior Researcher Dr. Sergiusz Bober interviews Dr. Garbi Schmidt. They discuss Schmidt's latest book "Den første ghetto" (The first ghetto) in which she maps how Denmark has dealt with increasing diversity ever since the beginning of the 20th century. Garbi Schmidt is a professor of Cultural Encounters at Roskilde University. In her research, she has focused on a range of minority-related themes, from Muslim minorities in Western countries to the immigration to and minority history of Denmark. She is also a member of the ECMI Executive Board.

In this episode of the ECMI Conversations with Experts, ECMI Researcher Viktoria Aygül asks Dr. Giulia Isetti about the identity formation of the Russian community in South Tyrol, the tools they used to safeguard their identity online,  and the role of the Orthodox religion and the digital media for the community. Giulia Isetti grew up in Genoa, Italy. She studied Classical Philology at several universities in Italy, Germany and England and received her PhD in Ancient Greek in 2013. After further studies in business administration and some professional experience abroad (Germany and Belgium), she has lived in Bolzano since 2017, where she works as a senior researcher at Eurac Research.

In this episode of the ECMI Conversations with Experts, Dr. Ljubica Djordjević talks to Dr. Igor Lakić about various puzzling situations related to different official language policies. They specifically talk about the case of the Serbo-Croatian language and the languages emerging from it after the breakup of Yugoslavia. Dr Igor Lakić is a Full Professor and Dean at the Faculty of Philology of the University of Montenegro. He was a member of the Council for General Education of Montenegro and a member of the Council for Codification of the Montenegrin Language. He is also a member of the Committee of Experts for Regional or Minority Languages in the Council of Europe in Strasbourg.

In this episode of the ECMI Conversations with Experts, Aziz Berdiqulov discusses with Dr. Rashid Gabdulhakov the role of thematic groups on Russian social media “Odnoklassniki” in creating narratives about the war in Ukraine and their exposure to the Russian speaking community in Germany. Particularly the discussion touches upon how the narratives are intended to dehumanise Ukrainians, discredit President Zelenskyy, and question the credibility of the German leadership because of its support to Ukraine. Dr. Rashid Gabdulhakov is an assistant professor at the Centre for Media and Journalism Studies at the University of Groningen in the Netherlands. He obtained his PhD (Cum Laude) from Erasmus University Rotterdam in the Netherlands where he researched the phenomenon of digital vigilantism.

The 11th episode features ECMI's Senior Researcher Dr. Felix Schulte talking to Dr. Dawn Walsh about territorial autonomy as a solution to violent ethnic conflicts. Specifically, they look into the role of guarantee mechanisms and independent commissions in such arrangements. Dr. Dawn Walsh is an Assistant Professor in the School of Politics and International Relations, and Director of the Institute for British-Irish Studies at University College Dublin. She is also currently the holder of an Irish Research Council Laureate Award for her project 'Power-sharing and independent commissions in post-conflict societies'.

Why would minorities bring their case before an international or European court? What is strategic litigation and how can it be used to improve minority rights? These are some of the questions which ECMI Senior Researcher Dr. habil. Kyriaki Topidi discusses with Prof. Konstantinos Tsitselikis in the 12th episode of ECMI Conversations with Experts. Prof. Konstantinos Tsitselikis is a professor at the Department of Balkan, Slavic and Oriental Studies, and Dean of the School of Economics and Regional Studies, University of Macedonia (Thessaloniki, Greece). He lectures on human and minority rights, migration and refugee law. He has worked for the Council of Europe, the OSCE, the UN, the EU in human rights and democratisation field missions.

In the latest episode of ECMI Conversations with Experts, host Kyriaki Topidi engages in a captivating dialogue with renowned scholar Giulia Evolvi to dissect the vital topic of "Digital Religion." This episode explores the fusion of faith and technology, addressing key questions like: What is digital religion? How does it blur the lines between online and offline realms? What role does it play for minority and minoritized communities? And what insights does digital religion offer into social inequalities? Dr. Giulia Evolvi, a leading authority in the field, brings her extensive expertise to the discussion. With a profound understanding of how digital technologies are reshaping religious experiences, Dr. Evolvi's insights shed light on this evolving landscape.