In December 2009, the Kolleg-Forschergruppe organizes an international conference on “The Transformative Power of Europe: The European Union and the Diffusion of Ideas.” The conference will have four major themes around which the panels will be organized:

1.      Theorizing Diffusion: Processes and Mechanisms

2.      The Europeanization of Identities and Public Spheres

3.      Compliance, Conditionality, and Beyond

4.      Comparative Regionalism and the EU’s External Relations

For this academic conference, we invite papers from various disciplinary perspectives to each of these themes. Papers should explicitly address diffusion and transfer processes “from the outside in”, that is, the EU and its member states as recipients of policies and ideas, and/or “from the inside out,” that is, the EU and its member states as agents of diffusion. Please find more detailed information on the four major themes related to the KFG research clusters on our website: www.transformeurope.eu.

Please send your paper proposal with a one-page abstract by August 30, 2009, to transform-europe@fu-berlin.de. Invited paper givers will be notified in early September. The Kolleg-Forschergruppe will take care of their travel costs as well as accommodation in Berlin during the conference.