Kick-off Conference of the New Horizon 2020 Research Project FEUTURE: The Future of EU-Turkey Relations: Mapping Dynamics and Testing Scenarios, 26 May 2016 in Istanbul

The full conference report is available here.

The kick-off conference of the new Horizon 2020 research project FEUTURE: The Future of EU-Turkey Relations: Mapping Dynamics and Testing Scenarios, that is jointly organized with and hosted by Bilgi University was held on 26 May 2016 in ÇSM 404.

FEUTURE is the largest research project on EU-Turkey relations the European Commission has funded so far, the relevance of which has once again been highlighted by current affairs. Hence, the aim of FEUTURE’s research is to reveal the narratives and drivers of the EU-Turkey relationship, the likely scenario(s) for the future, and the implications these may have on the EU and Turkey, as well as the neighbourhood and the global scene. FEUTURE is coordinated by Dr. Nathalie Tocci, Deputy Director of Istituto Affari Internazionali and Special Adviser to EU HRVP Federica Mogherini and Prof. Dr. Wolfgang Wessels, Director of the Centre for Turkey and European Union Studies at the University of Cologne. The FEUTURE consortium consists of 13 renowned universities and think tanks from the EU, Turkey and the neighbourhood.

The conference aimed to debate FEUTURE’s research design as well as related current developments of EU-Turkey relations from different perspectives. Following the Welcome and Introduction, the FEUTURE scenarios and narratives together with renowned experts and members of the project’s Advisory Board were discussed. 

 

PROGRAM

15.00 – 15.30

Welcome and Introduction

Prof. Mehmet Durman, Rector of Istanbul Bilgi University,

Nathalie Tocci, Scientific Coordinator, Wolfgang Wessels, Project Coordinator

 

   

16.30 – 16.45

Coffee

 

16.45 – 18.00

FEUTURE Scenarios (open to the public)

Chair: Funda Tekin, Project Director (CETEUS, University of Cologen, CIFE)

Speaker: Nathalie Tocci, Scientific Coordinator and Co-Leader of Work Package 1, (IAI)

Comments from the FEUTURE Advisory Board:

Andrew Duff, Visiting Fellow, European Policy Centre; Liberal MEP 1999-2014

Nilgün Arisan Eralp, EU Director, Economic Policy Research Foundation of Turkey (TEPAV)

Prof. Dr. Ronald H. Linden, University of Pittsburgh (tbc)

 

18.00 – 18.15

Coffee

 

18.15 – 19.30

History of EU-Turkey relations / Narratives (open to the public)

Chair: Senem Aydin-Düzgit (Bilgi University) (tbc)

Speaker: Wolfgang Wessels, Project Coordinator and Co-Leader of Work Package 1(University of Colgone); Atila Eralp (METU)

Comments from the FEUTURE Advisory Board:

Ofra Bengio, Senior Research Fellow, Moshe Dayan Center for Middle Eastern and African Studies

Prof. Dr. Meltem Müftüler-Bac, Jean Monnet Chair at Sabanci University, Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences, European Studies, Istanbul (tbc)

Albert Rohan, Rapporteur of the Independent Commission on Turkey (tbc)