Nobel prize for banking and finance long overdue

The 2022 Nobel prize in economics went to three scholars – one of them a former Chairman of the Fed – who study banking crises and their real-economy repercussions. Professor Thorsten Beck, Director of the Florence School of Banking and Finance, explains why their insights remain critical for policymakers today.

AI in the courtroom and judicial independence: An EU perspective

The promised benefits of AI-assisted courts pose myriad challenges to the fundamental principle of judicial independence, explains CIVICA Visiting Scholar Giulia Gentile. Judicial data stored or processed by foreign providers, or liability regimes covering judges and technicians are just some of the devilish details.

John Mearsheimer’s lecture on Ukraine: Why he is wrong and what are the consequences

This response to John Mearsheimer’s recent lecture at the EUI delves into the validity of his central thesis, the quality of the evidence, the broader implications and the concept of academic social responsibility. It finds that Mearsheimer’s explanation of the war in Ukraine is unsatisfactory and rests on shaky empirical foundations.

The EU Treaty reform challenge: Is there a winning package?

The authors conducted a 16-country survey to identify what reforms matter most to EU citizens. They found support for existing policies on climate change, immigration and corporation tax, and some support for more institutional integration. Decision-making by unanimity is unpopular.

In praise of reality, not realism: An answer to Mearsheimer

There is no justification for the atrocities committed by Russia against the people of Ukraine. This does not stop scholars from trying to explain Putin’s decision to invade. John Mearsheimer’s recent lecture at the EUI was one such attempt – which fails on multiple counts, the authors argue.

How unified are Europeans’ views on the war in Ukraine?

Analysing a survey in five EU countries, Research Fellows Ioana-Elena Oana and Alexandru Moise find Hungarians and Poles to have the widest disagreement about EU membership for Ukraine and about ending energy dependence on Russia.

The EU Strategic Compass: Charting a course in stormy seas

The EU’s Strategic Compass for Security and Defence was approved in the midst of Russia’s military aggression against Ukraine. In this assessment of the Compass, Visiting Fellow Michael Sanfey underlines the challenges of internal coordination and external cooperation, and regrets the lack of clarity on the EU’s peaceful raison d’être.

How authoritorian governments are enlisting platforms for state censorship

Facebook and other platforms have been criticised for complying with governments that stifle dissent, under various legal guises. Policy Leader Fellow Gideon Sarpong argues that upping investments in field staff and in technology, particularly in the Global South, can do much to prevent harmful content while protecting freedom of speech and of the press.

Mobilising for euthanasia in Italy: Courts and the political agenda

Taking the example of civil-society mobilisation to legalise euthanasia, law researcher Mario Pagano shows how powerful courts can be in bringing sensitive issues to the political agenda, and how effective litigation can be when the time is ripe for political institutions to act.