The conference took place in the Fritz Thyssen Foundation in Cologne from 24 to 25 November 2011. This year’s THESEUS conference discussed present challenges and future perspectives of the EU two years after the Lisbon Treaty had come into force.
Therefore, pressing questions and core issues were discussed with a special focus on the German perspective. How can Europe’s economic future be shaped? Which role and obligation does the Franco-German couple assume? Does leadership mean active search for European compromises or simply crisis management in European affairs?
Moreover, the Lisbon Treaty introduced profound institutional innovations. The conference tried to assess the impact on the institutional landscape. Particularly with regard to EU external action the conference discussed if the innovations and substantive changes stand the test of time.
In the evening of 24 November 2011 THESEUS remitted the Awards for Outstanding and Promising Research on European Integration 2011. This year’s THESEUS Award for Outstanding Research was given to Prof. Dr. Beate Kohler Koch from the University Mannheim. She had been selected for her outstanding academic record in the field of European integration research. The first award winner, Prof. Dr. Helen Wallace (London School of Economics) also attended the conference.
Please click here to download the report of the conference.