HIKMA SUMMIT
OF INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS
Conferences
"Countering Terrorism and Radicalization: The European Union strategies"
The primary objective of the conference is to examine the EU's response to terrorism, analyzing strategies and policies implemented by EU and single member states over the years through a historical, juridical and a sociological perspective. The speakers will give an overview of the EU as a supranational actor in counterterrorism, countering violent extremism and radicalization, focusing then on the phenomenon of radicalization in the EU member states, with a special attention on the Balkan region and the Joint Action Plan on Counter-Terrorism for the Western Balkans. The discussion will also include the recent digital dimension that terrorism has acquired, analyzing the role of the Internet and social media as platforms of cyberterrorism, for political, religious and ideological reasons.
Arije Antinori
Criminologist, Sociologist of Deviance, Geopolitical Analyst and OSINT, Coordinator of the "CRI.ME" LAB, Laboratory of Criminology, Crisis Communication and Media of the "Sapienza" University of Rome. PhD in Criminology applied to Investigations and Security. PhD student in Communication Sciences. Master's Degree in Theories and Methods in Criminal Investigation. Director of the Master in Criminal Intelligence Analysis at the Centre for Criminological Studies in Viterbo. Senior Expert for Organised Crime and Terrorism (EC) in several European projects. Former Director of Research at the Military Centre for Strategic Studies, Lecturer in Masters and Specialisation Courses, author and speaker at Italian and international level.
Ervjola Selenica
She is post-doc fellow and adjunct professor in Terrorism and Counterterrorism at the University of Bologna and associate research fellow at the University of Sussex. Previously, she was post-doc fellow at Scuola Normale Superiore (Firenze). She holds a PhD in International Studies (University of Trento), an MSc. In International Development Studies (University of Amsterdam), a BA in International Relations and Political Science (University of Bologna), and a PGDip on Peace and Conflict (Peace Research Institute Oslo). She has held teaching positions at University of Trento and Spring Hill College Bologna. Her research interests include education, international interventions, conflict, global changes.
"The Democratic Deficit in EU Institutions"
In view of the upcoming European elections, this conference aims to investigate the issue of the democratic deficit within EU institutions. We will begin by exploring the political and legal theories surrounding this phenomenon, examining the challenges of supranational governance, the balance between efficiency and legitimacy, and the evolution of the EU's institutional system. Additionally, we will focus on the practical implications of the democratic deficit, discussing concrete examples and proposals to strengthen the democratic process, starting with the use of the Spitzenkandidaten procedure.
Thomas Christiansen
Professor of Political Science and European Integration at Luiss University, Rome. He previously held positions at Maastricht University, at the European Institute of Public Administration, at Aberystwyth University of Wales and at Essex University. He is Executive Editor of the Journal of European Integration and co-editor of the ‘European Administration Governance’ book series at Palgrave Macmillan. He has published widely on different aspects of European Union politics. He co-edited, with Matilde Ceron and Dionyssis G. Dimitrakopoulos, the book “The Politicisation of the European Commission’s Presidency. Spitzenkandidaten and Beyond” (2024).
Federica Merenda
Researcher in political philosophy at the Sant'Anna School of Advanced Studies. She also holds the position of expert consultant in "Ethics and human rights in artificial intelligence" at the Presidency of the Italian Council - Department for Digital Transformation and is also the scientific manager of the "Easy to tech" project at the COTEC foundation.
Federico Ferri
Federico Ferri is a researcher in European Union Law at the University of Bologna’s Department of Legal Sciences. He holds a joint PhD in European Law from the University of Bologna and the University of Strasbourg. He teaches in various UNIBO poles and departments as well as at the University of Hamburg. He is the author of numerous publications and maintains multiple collaborations for scientific and third mission purposes. In 2023, his monograph entitled 'The Balancing of Fundamental Rights in the Digital Single Market' (Giappichelli, 2022) was awarded the 'Giuseppe Tesauro Prize' by the Italian Association of European Union Law Scholars (Associazione Italiana degli Studiosi di Diritto dell’Unione Europea, AISDUE)