Since May 2024, Lukas Grundsfeld has worked as a research associate at the Center of International Relations. He joined the DFG-funded project "The Withdrawal of States from Regional Organizations: A Comparative Analysis" in November 2022. In his doctoral project, he focuses on the suspension of member states by regional international organizations under conditions of regime complexity. 

Lukas Grundsfeld studied Political Science and History (BA) as well as Peace Research and International Politics (MA) at the University of Tübingen and the University of Groningen. In July 2022, he completed his studies with a master's thesis on the relationship between the international society of states and armed non-state actors. 

During his studies, Lukas Grundsfeld worked as a tutor and research assistant at the University of Tübingen's Department of Political Science, among others in a BMBF-funded research project on security discourses and European cohesion. 

Research interest 

• Global Governance 
• International and regional organizations 
• Multilateral sanctions and suspensions 
• Norms research 
• Global order, sovereignty and international society 
• Constructivist, sociological, and practice-theoretical perspectives 
• Ontological security studies 
• Armed non-state actors 

Monographies

• Diana Panke, Lukas Grundsfeld, and Pawel Tverskoi (2025): Exit Threats in Regional International Organizations, Bristol: Bristol University Press.

Articles (with peer review)

• Diana Panke, Lukas Grundsfeld, and Pawel Tverskoi (forthcoming): Discontent, Voice, and Loyalty: Why States Withdraw from Regional International Organizations. Journal of International Relations and Development.

• Diana Panke, Lukas Grundsfeld, and Pawel Tverskoi (forthcoming): After the Pink Tide Ended: How Increased Ideological Divergence Leads to Severe Contestations of Regional International Organizations in Latin America. Journal of Latin American Studies.

• Lukas Grundsfeld (2025): Between Compliance and Capitulation: Explaining the Termination of Member State Suspensions by International Organizations. The British Journal of Politics and International Relations, 1-24.

• Lukas Grundsfeld (2025): ’The Conduct of Inquiry’ in Ontological Security Studies: Scientific Methodologies and Their Implications. International Theory, 1-31.

• Diana Panke, Lukas Grundsfeld, and Pawel Tverskoi (2025): Exit from Regime Complexity? Regional International Organizations Under Scrutiny. Global Studies Quarterly, 5(1), 1-17.

• Diana Panke, Lukas Grundsfeld, and Pawel Tverskoi (2024): Between Crisis and Revival: Withdrawal Threats, State Exits, and Institutional Change of Regional International Organizations. German Political Science Quarterly, 66, 623-647.

Book chapters

• Lukas Grundsfeld and Diana Panke (2026): The (Continuing) Promise of Mainstream Theorizing. In: Amitav Acharya, Philippe De Lombaerde, Beatrix Futák-Campbell, Lynda Chinenye Iroulo, Juliana Peixoto Batista (eds.) Essays on Global Regionalism I: The Past, Present and Future of Regionalism Studies, Cham: Springer.

• Diana Panke, Lukas Grundsfeld, and Pawel Tverskoi (2025): Regional Organisations, Exit Threats, and Contestations of Community Norms. In: Flavia Lucenti, Cecilia Ducci, Carmen Wunderlich, Jeffrey S. Lantis (eds.) Contestation in Prism: The Evolution of Norms and Norm Clusters in Contemporary Global Politics. London: Springer, 45-63.

• Diana Panke, Lukas Grundsfeld (2024): Epilogue—Responses to Brexit: insights from small EU member states and lessons for exits from other regional organizations. In: Laura C. Ferreira-Pereira (eds.) Small States of the European Union and Brexit. Abingdon: Routledge, 107-111.

Conference Contributions 

• Lukas Grundsfeld (2025): Contesting the Social Purpose of Regional International Orders in Southern and Western Africa. Paper presented at the International Workshop ‘Social Purpose and International Order’, December 2025, Hamburg.

• Lukas Grundsfeld and Diana Panke (2025): Military Coups, State Exits, and the Regional Poliycrisis in ECOWAS. Paper presented at the Workshop ‘Shifting Political Order(s) in the Polycrisis: Complexity and Challenges in Global, Regional, and Domestic Governance’, December 2025, Heidelberg.

• Diana Panke and Lukas Grundsfeld (2025): Contestations of the Liberal Script in ECOWAS. Paper presented at the SCRIPTS Conference ‘Episodes of Contestations of the Liberal Script on the Regional Level and Their Consequences’, November 2025, Berlin.

• Diana Panke, Lukas Grundsfeld, Sören Stapel, and Pawel Tverskoi (2025): The Politics of Concessions: How International Organizations Respond to Member States’ Exit Threats. Paper presented at the Annual Convention of the German Political Science Association’s Thematic Group International Organizations (TGIO), November 2025, Heidelberg.

• Lukas Grundsfeld (2025): Between Compliance and Capitulation: Explaining the Termination of Member State Suspensions by International Organizations. Paper presented at the Joint Workshop ‘Contestations of Liberal Scripts’ of the Berlin Graduate School for Global and Transregional Studies and the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, October 2025, Berlin.

• Lukas Grundsfeld (2025): The Social Purpose of Regional Orders: Regional IOs and the Suspension of Member States. Paper presented at the international workshop 'Social Purpose and International Order’, June 2025, The Hague.

• Lukas Grundsfeld (2025): Capitulation, Acquiescence, Draws: Explaining the Ending of Member State Suspensions by Regional IOs. Paper presented at the EU-RENEW-conference 'Europe-Asia Connectivities in Geopolitical Times’, May 2025, Seoul.

• Lukas Grundsfeld (2025): Between Duplication and Divergence: International Organizations and Member State Suspensions under Regime Complexity. Paper presented at the 66th Annual Convention of the International Studies Association, March 2025, Chicago, IL.

• Diana Panke, Lukas Grundsfeld, and Pawel Tverskoi (2025): Exit from Regime Complexity? Regional International Organizations Under Scrutiny. Paper presented at the 66th Annual Convention of the International Studies Association, March 2025, Chicago, IL.

• Diana Panke, Lukas Grundsfeld, and Pawel Tverskoi (2025): What Doesn’t Kill You Makes You Stronger? Exit-Related Challenges and the Resilience of International Organizations. Paper presented at the 66th Annual Convention of the International Studies Association, March 2025, Chicago, IL.

• Diana Panke, Lukas Grundsfeld, and Pawel Tverskoi (2025): Escalating Contestations in Regional Organizations: Voicing Severe Dissatisfaction, Exit Threats and Exits. Paper presented at the workshop for the German Research Foundation-funded project 'Should I Stay or Should I Go? State Exits from Regional Organizations’, January 2025, Berlin.

• Lukas Grundsfeld (2024): Sender Capitulation, Target Acquiescence, and Draws: Explaining the Termination of Member State Suspensions by International Organizations. Paper presented at the Academic Convention of the German Political Science Association, September 2024, Göttingen.

• Diana Panke, Lukas Grundsfeld, and Pawel Tverskoi (2024): Exit-Related Contestations of International Organizations in the Face of Polycrisis. Paper presented at the Academic Convention of the German Political Science Association, September 2024, Göttingen.

• Lukas Grundsfeld (2024): Same, Same, But Different? Overlapping IOs and Suspensions of Shared Member States. Paper presented at the General Conference of the European Consortium for Political Research, August 2024, Dublin.

• Diana Panke, Lukas Grundsfeld, and Pawel Tverskoi (2024): International Organizations in Turbulent Times: Exit-Related Challenges from Within. Paper presented at the General Conference of the European Consortium for Political Research, August 2024, Dublin.

• Lukas Grundsfeld (2024): Conceptualizing Non-Violent Identities: Insights from Albert Camus’ Absurdism. Paper presented at the 11th European Workshops in International Studies of the European International Studies Association, July 2024, Istanbul.

• Lukas Grundsfeld (2024): Cooperation or Obstruction? International Organizations and Suspensions of Member States under Regime Complexity. Paper presented at the 65th Annual Convetion of the International Studies Association, April 2024, San Francisco, CA.

• Diana Panke, Lukas Grundsfeld, and Pawel Tverskoi (2024): Resilience or Decline? Contestation of Community Norms in Regional International Organizations. Paper presented at the 65th Annual Convetion of the International Studies Association, April 2024, San Francisco, CA.

• Lukas Grundsfeld (2024): It’s Complex(ity): Suspensions by Overlapping International Organizations. Paper presented at the Early Career Convention 'International Relations' of the German Political Science Association, March 2024, Tutzing, Germany.

• Diana Panke, Lukas Grundsfeld, and Pawel Tverskoi (2023): After the Pink Tide Ended: How Right-Wing Governments Challenge Left-Leaning Regional International Organizations in Latin America. Paper presented at the kick-off workshop of the ERC-project ‘The Far Right and International Organizations’, November 2023, Frankfurt am Main, Germany.

• Lukas Grundsfeld (2023): Cooperation or Conflict? Explaining Divergent Suspension Behavior of Overlapping RIOs. Paper presented at the Annual Convention of the German Political Science Association’s Thematic Group International Organizations (TGIO), November 2023, Jena, Germany.

• Lukas Grundsfeld (2023): Reacting to Internal Contestation: Regional International Organizations and Suspensions of Member States. Paper presented at the 16th Pan-European Conference on International Relations of the European International Studies Association, September 2023, Potsdam.

• Diana Panke, Lukas Grundsfeld, and Pawel Tverskoi (2023): 'Tomorrow I’ll Be Gone': Exit Threats as Contestations of Regional Organizations. Paper presented at the 16th Pan-European Conference on International Relations of the European International Studies Association, September 2023, Potsdam, Germany.

• Diana Panke, Lukas Grundsfeld, and Pawel Tverskoi (2023): Beitrag zum Roundtable: Contestation in Prism: Patterns of Norm Evolution, Consolidation, and Decay. Paper presented at the 16th Pan-European Conference on International Relations of the European International Studies Association, September 2023, Potsdam, Germany.

• Lukas Grundsfeld (2023): Studying Ontological (In)Security in Europe: Insights from Analyticism and Comparative Regionalism. Paper presented at the 10th European Workshops in International Studies of the European International Studies Association, July 2023, Amsterdam.

• Lukas Grundsfeld (2023): And Out Goes You! Why Regional International Organizations Differ in Suspending Member States. Paper presenred at the Open Convention of the International Relations Section of the German Political Science Association, June 2023, Friedrichshafen.

• Diana Panke, Lukas Grundsfeld, and Pawel Tverskoi (2023): Time to Leave! Studying State Exits from Regional International Organizations. Paper presented at the Conference on International Relations of the German Political Science Association, June 2023, Friedrichshafen, Germany.

• Lukas Grundsfeld (2023): Regional Organizations and Suspensions: Responding to Member State Challenges. Paper presented at the Annual Convention of the Standing Group on European Studies and Comparative Regionalism of the German Political Science Association, May 2023, Saarbrücken, Germany.

• Diana Panke, Lukas Grundsfeld, and Pawel Tverskoi (2023): Between Crisis and Revival: The Effects of State Exits on Regional Organizations. Paper presented at the Annual Convention of the Standing Group on European Studies and Comparative Regionalism of the German Political Science Association, May 2023, Saarbrücken, Germany.

• Diana Panke, Lukas Grundsfeld, and Pawel Tverskoi (2023): Ending Cooperation: A Comparative Analysis of State Exits from Regional International Organizations. Paper presented at the 64th Annual Convention of the International Studies Association, March 2023, Montréal, Canada.

• Lukas Grundsfeld (2023): You Have Been Suspended! Studying Suspensions of Member States by Regional International Organizations. Paper presented at the Early Career Convention 'International Relations' of the German Political Science Association, February 2023, Tutzing, Germany.

• Lukas Grundsfeld (2022): International Society and Armed Non-State Actors: Understandings of a Relationship Between Anarchy, Trusteeship, and Society. Paper presented at the Early Career Convention 'International Relations' of the German Political Science Association, February 2023, Tutzing, Germany.

• Lukas Grundsfeld (2022): International Society, Armed Non-State Actors, and Struggles About Global Order: The Case of the Taliban’s 2021 Capture of Kabul. Paper presented at the 15th Pan-European Conference on International Relations of the European International Studies Association, September 2022, Athens.

• Lukas Grundsfeld (2021): Anarchy, Trusteeship, Society: Understanding the UN’s Relationship with Armed Non-State Actors. Paper presented at the 11th UN Research Colloquium 'Identity and Diversity' of the German Association for the United Nations, October 2021, Kleve, Germany.