📅 Date: Thursday, 27 March 2025
📍 Location: Central European University, Democracy Institute.

This event has passed. Click here to read the event report for a summary of the findings and discussion.

This inaugural PROSPER Network Event seeks to foster dialogue among experts from academia, policy communities, and civil society on adapting EU economic governance structures to current challenges while safeguarding fundamental European values. View the full event programme.

Programme:

13:00 – 13:30
Welcome and Introduction

• Laszlo Bruszt (Director, CEU Democracy Institute)
• Federico Fabbrini (Dublin City University, Principal Investigator of PROSPER)
• Adam Bodnar, Minister of Justice of Poland
• Svitlana Tereshchenko, Deputy Minister of Justice of Ukraine

13:30 – 15:30
Panel 1: Between Rule of Law Conditionality and Economic Governance of a Changing Union
Chair: Niels Kirst (Dublin City University)

• Lina Papadopoulou (Aristotle University of Thessaloniki): “Fundamental European Values – Current Prospects and Challenges”
• Paulina Lenik (Jagiellonian University, Krakow): “Economic Populism in East Central Europe: The State of Play”
• Thomas Christiansen & Dora Hegedus (LUISS Guido Carli, Rome): “The European Commission and Dissensus over Liberal Democracy”
• Inna Melnykovska (CEU Vienna – CEU Democracy Institute): “How to Build a Ukrainian Development Bank”
• Commentator: Piero Tortola (University of Groningen)

15:30 – 16:00
Coffee Break

16:00 – 18:00
Panel 2: Trends, Threats, Risks Impacting EU Economic Governance
Moderator: Renata Uitz (CEU Democracy Institute – Royal Holloway, University of London)

• Wojciech Przybylski (Res Publica / Visegrad Insight, Warsaw): “Perspectives from Strategic Foresight Midway through the Polish Presidency of the Council of the European Union”
• Bulcsu Hunyadi (Political Capital, Budapest): “The European Disinformation Landscape after the 2024 European Parliament Elections and the 2024 Hungarian Presidency of the Council of the European Union”
• Hennadiy Maksak (Ukrainian Prism, Brussels and Kyiv): “The Future of Ukraine and European Security after the Zeitenwende and during the Second Trump Presidency”
• Maja Bobic (European Movement International): “Civic Support for European Democracy, Freedom and Security – Is it Time for a New Social Contract in (and for) Europe?”
• Commentator: Višnja Vukov (University of Vienna – CEU Democracy Institute)

On behalf of the PROSPER network and the CEU Democracy Institute, thank you to all speakers and participants who joined us in person or online for the inaugural PROSPER networking event in Budapest.