IPSA 2012 Panel: Transforming Political Cleavages, National Scripts and Identity: When the EU Hits Domestic Politics in Turkey

Panel Abstract:
Europeanization, as processes of construction, diffusion and institutionalization of formal and informal rules, procedures, policy paradigms, styles, ways of doing things and shared beliefs and norms, has become a commonly-used and fine-grained toolbox to analyze domestic change in member states, candidate states and more recently on third countries. Due to its supranational and transnational character, EU’s transformative role has been widely recognized in the international arena. However, in case of the candidate countries, this triggering effect is usually deemed as external to the states and is rarely labeled as a political and social conflict at the domestic level.

Since 1999, when Turkey was given candidacy at the Helsinki Summit, the country has undergone a drastic transformation whereby established notions of the regime, political cleavages, and national identity face the need to radically change and different actors (political, civil, sub-national) are empowered. The participants of the panel will approach to this domestic transformation process from different perspectives to develop a better understanding of the ‘domestic’ as a precondition for understanding EU-Turkey relations and a more comprehensive analysis for the background of the EU dimension. The panel in general seeks to shed light on how, under what conditions EU hits domestic politics in Turkey and discuss the challenging outcomes of the process.

Panel Chair:  Assoc Prof. Basak Alpan, METU

Panel Discussant: Dr. Beken Saatcioglu

Panelists

Digdem Soyaltin, FU Belrin

Gözde Yilmaz, FU Berlin

Can Büyükbay-University of Zurich

Ali Onur Özcelik, University of Sheffield

Berlin Summer School in Social Sciences – Linking Theory and Empirical Research Berlin, July 15-27, 2012

Berlin Summer School in Social Sciences – Linking Theory and Empirical
Research Berlin, July 15-27, 2012

The Berlin Summer School in Social Sciences – Linking Theory and Empirical
Research aims at promoting young researchers by strengthening their
methodological understanding in linking theory and empirical research.

In a first step, we tackle the key methodological challenges of
concept-building, causation and micro-macro-linkage that occur in all
research efforts and aim at a clarification of the epistemological
implications underlying methodological paradigms. In a second step, we
apply these methodological considerations by looking at how central
empirical fields of research in political science and sociology have dealt
with these challenges and – by referring to selected empirical studies –
what solutions have been found to overcome them. Furthermore, participants
are provided with hands-on research advice and have the opportunity to
present their own work and approaches to these issues.

The Berlin Summer School is a joint endeavor of two of Germany’s leading
social science institutions, the Berlin Graduate School of Social Sciences
(BGSS) at Humboldt-UniversitätzuBerlin and the Social Science Research
Center Berlin (WZB).

The two-week summer school both attracts internationally renowned scholars
and draws on Berlin-based faculty. Among the confirmed international
lecturers are Delia Baldassarri (Princeton University), Peter Bearman
(Columbia University), Mark Bevir (UC Berkeley), Craig Calhoun (NYU/LSE),
Donatella Della Porta (EUI), Ronald Inglehart (University of Michigan),
and Klaus von Beyme (Universität Heidelberg).

The international summer school is open to thirty PhD candidates. Due to
generous funding by the BGSS and the WZB, there will be no tuition fee. We
have applied for additional funding and thus might be able to cover travel
and accommodation costs for all participants. A decision is expected soon.
Five ECTS Credit Points can be granted upon successful completion.

The call for applications has opened. Applications can be submitted online
via the application form until March 31, 2012.

For additional information, please visit our webpage at
www.berlinsummerschool.de or contact directly Andreas Schäfer at
summerschool.bgss@hu-berlin.de

“Many Europes” Workshop 17 February 2012 hosted by Centre for Global and Transnational Politics, Royal Holloway University of London

Workshop hosted by: Centre for Global and Transnational Politics

Venue: Room FW 101, Founder’s Building, Royal Holloway, University of London

Date: 17th February 2012

Convenors: Chris Rumford and Didem Buhari-Gulmez

Programme

11.00 – 11.30 Welcome and introduction to the ‘Many Europes’ workshop by Chris Rumford

11.30-13.00: Panel 1: Identity, borders & multiculturalism

S. Anne G. Bostancı (Surrey) – EUrope and other Europes

Joanna Cagney (Royal Holloway) – Models of ‘Multiculturalism’: Identifying Difference, Differentiating Identity

Valentina Kostadinova (Birmingham) – The European Commission and the Configuration of Internal EU Borders: Passive and Active Contributions

Chair: Chris Rumford

14.00 – 15.30:Panel 2: Civil society, public sphere & democracy

Cristian Nitoiu (Loughborough) – Fostering Union’s democratic identity through the European Public Sphere

Alistair Brisbourne (Royal Holloway) – Governing Civil Society in the Euro-Mediterranean – The Anna Lindh Foundation and EU Commission post-Arab Uprisings

Sezin Dereci (Bremen) – NGOs in the context of Turkey’s accession to EU: Explaining their divergent patterns of engagement to Turkey’s process of Europeanisation

Chair: Didem Buhari-Gulmez

16.00- 17.30: Panel 3: ‘Hard cases’ & cultural clashes

Tamás Scheibner (Budapest) – Globalization, National Paradigms, and the Unification of Eastern Europe: The Paradox of Postcolonialism as Applied to Post-Soviet Europe

Gozde Yilmaz (Berlin) – Multiplying ever differentiated Europe? The resistance of the EU against Turkish Accession

Didem Buhari-Gulmez (Royal Holloway) EU as a ‘heuristic device’: Three-dimensional Europeanization in Turkey

Chair: Chris Rumford

IPSA-NUS Methods Summer School 2012

The International Political Science Association and the Department of
Political Science at the National University of Singapore are proud to
announce the first IPSA-NUS Summer School for Research Methods in
Social and Political Science.

The first event of its kind in Asia, the Summer School will take place
from June 25 to July 6, 2012, at the National University of Singapore.
It offers intensive training in advanced social science research
methods. All courses are directed by outstanding international faculty
from the U.S. and Europe with experience of teaching at similar
events.

The Summer School is intended primarily for graduate students,
post-doctoral fellows, and junior faculty working in the social
sciences, but is suitable for anyone who wishes to improve their
quantitative or qualitative research skills.

For more information on Summer School courses, registration,
scholarships, and more, please visit www.sg-summerschool.ipsa.org. If
you have any questions, please contact Eugene Tan anytime at
ipsa@nus.edu.sg.

Please feel free to forward this e-mail to any colleagues, students,
or friends who might be interested in attending the Summer School.

Towards a European Society? Transgressing Disciplinary Boundaries in European Studies Research

The Centre for European and International Studies Research is holding its UACES-sponsored Flagship Conference at the University of Portsmouth beginning on 28 June 2012. This event is a three-day international conference which will bring together academics and practitioners from a broad range of disciplines including sociology, politics/IR, history, linguistics and gender studies.

Keynote speakers include:

• Professor Didier Georgakakis, University of Strasbourg
• Professor Kiran Klaus Patel, University of Maastricht
• Professor Thomas Risse, Free University of Berlin
• Professor Martin Schain, New York University
• Michael Shackelton, Head of the London European Parliament Office and Special Professor in European Institutions at the University of Maastricht
• Dr. Nikolai Vukov, Bulgarian Academy of Sciences

The conference programme includes plenary debates, keynote lectures and six parallel panels. For the full programme and registration information visit:http://www.port.ac.uk/research/ceisr/europeanstudiesconference/

Two Ph.D. Research Fellowships, “Diasporas and Contested Sovereignty”

Two Ph.D. Research Fellowships, “Diasporas and Contested Sovereignty”
Two four-year Ph.D. Fellowships are available within the Project “Diasporas and Contested Sovereignty,” sponsored by the European Research Council, and to be conducted at the University of Amsterdam under the supervision of Dr. Maria Koinova. The University of Amsterdam has an internationally acclaimed research profile and is a member of the League of European Research Universities. Its Faculty of Social and Behavioral Sciences is the largest in the social sciences in the Netherlands.
A team of four researchers (PI, post-doc, two Ph.D. researchers) will investigate the transnational mobilization of conflict-generated diasporas in Europe and their impact on polities experiencing contested sovereignty in the Balkans, the Caucasus, and the Middle East. The team aspires to answer an overarching question: does the mobilization of conflict-generated diasporas in liberal states have a mitigating or exacerbating effect on political conflict in the original homelands? The overall project focuses on five levels of analysis: 1) the attitudes of elite and non-elite individuals, 2) characteristics of specific groups, 3) five nation-states with different migrant incorporation regimes (France, Germany, the Netherlands, Sweden, and the UK), 4) diaspora linkages to supranational EU and global institutions, and 5) diaspora mobilization patterns specific to each of the three conflict-prone regions. Complementing the results of the comparative studies, the project will also conduct a cross-country representative survey to capture attitudes of non-elite individuals in 25 country-groups.
Candidates with academic background in comparative politics, international relations, transnationalism, migration, foreign policy analysis, or other relevant post-graduate experience are encouraged to apply. Prior qualitative and/or quantitative methods training is highly desirable. One Ph.D. researcher will focus on the Bosnian diaspora mobilization in selected EU countries for the post-conflict reconstruction process in Bosnia-Herzegovina. The other Ph.D. researcher will focus on the Iraqi diaspora in Europe and Iraq. Linguistic skills are required: Bosnian/Serbian/Croatian – for Ph.D. researcher 1, and Arabic for Ph.D. researcher 2. Researchers will be expected to do multi-sited research both in Europe and Bosnia-Herzegovina/Iraq, assist with the organization of project-related events, attend courses within the Ph.D. program, write a dissertation and other publications, and teach in the field of political science.
Gross monthly salary will be €2.042 in the first year and will reach € 2.612 during the fourth year based on full-time employment, in accordance with regulations for Dutch universities. The project also offers field research subsidy, and opportunities to travel to academic conferences.
Interested candidates should submit:

1) a two page motivation letter covering why they will be a good fit, individual research experience, and team working skills;

2) detailed CV;

3) research proposal/essay;

4) single-authored academic paper (max. 20 pages double space) or existing publication;

5) two recommendation letters from academic faculty.
Applications should be sent to sollicitaties-fmg@uva.nl<mailto:sollicitaties-fmg@uva.nl> by March 15, 2012. Informal inquiries could be addressed to m.v.koinova@uva.nl<mailto:m.v.koinova@uva.nl>
The starting date is September 1, 2012.

ABTA Doctoral Researcher Awards 2012 Announcement

To promote and award academic and scientific excellence among young researchers pursuing doctoral degrees in the UK, Association of British Turkish Academics (ABTA) announces the ABTA Doctoral Researcher Awards.

The awards will be given in three categories:
- Engineering & Physical Sciences
- Management & Social Sciences
- Biological & Medical Sciences

Applications will be accepted from PhD candidates or recent graduates of UK universities.

The Judging Process

The applications will be assessed by prominent British and Turkish academics working at the UK universities.

Firstly, a sub-committee will shortlist up to eight applications for each category. A scientific committee in each category will then select three finalists from the shortlisted candidates. Finalists will be invited to give a short presentation of their research before a panel of judges on the day of the award ceremony. Based on the submitted research portfolios and the presentations, 1st, 2nd and 3rd places will be announced.

We encourage all recent PhD holders and PhD candidates to apply for this prestigious award.

 

Please submit a research portfolio and an application form to dra2012@abtanet.org.uk. Deadline for applications is 5 pm, Saturday, 31 March, 2012.
Your research portfolio must include the following:
- An up-to-date CV
- A research statement
- A representative publication
The award ceremony will take place at University College London on Saturday, 12 May, 2012.

For more information please visit the competition website: www.abtanet.org.uk/2012-abta-awards

Yilmaz, G. 2012: Review: Polish Families and Migration Since EU Accession, White, Anne, Bristol: The Policy Press, In: Europe-Asia Studies.

THIS BOOK BY ANNE WHITE PROVIDES A FASCINATING DISCUSSION of the migration of

working-class Polish families, with children, to the UK since 2004. Since mass migration from

Poland to the UK and the EU is a new phenomenon, the book represents a timely intervention in

the migration literature…

WORKSHOP ON VOTING AND PARTY SYSTEM IN TURKEY’S JUNE 2011 ELECTIONS

WORKSHOP ON VOTING AND PARTY SYSTEM IN TURKEY’S JUNE 2011 ELECTIONS

Sponsored by YAŞAR UNIVERSITY, IZMIR Venue: Yaşar University, Selçuk Yaşar Campus, Senate Room, Bornova-Izmir, Turkey. Date: 9-10 February 2012 Program: 9 February 2012 13.00

Opening Remarks Welcome Speech by Aylin Güney, Head of Department of International Relations, Yaşar University Welcome Speech by Nuri Yıldırım, Dean of Faculty of Economics and Administrative Sciences, Yasar University (to be confirmed)

13.30 – 15.00 Panel A: Electoral Geography of the 2011 elections Chair: Dr. Eser Şekercioğlu, Sabancı University

Geographical Divergence in AKP’s Ethnic Mobilization Strategy Gül Arıkan Akdağ, Yeditepe University

Changed and Unchanged Voting Patterns in the Electoral Geography of Izmir: A Comparative Study of the General Elections of 2007 and 2011 Prof. Dr. Gülgün Tosun, Ege University Prof. Dr. Tanju Tosun, Ege University Betül Aydoğan, Ege University

How Does Turkey Vote: An Empirical Analysis of the Geographic and Socioeconomic Roots of Political Concentration and Polarization Assist. Prof. Dr. Kerem Ozan Kalkan, Middle East Technical University Assist. Prof. Dr. İlhan Can Özen, Middle East Technical University

15:00 – 15:30 Coffee Break

15.30 – 17.00 Panel B: Party System and Party Platforms: Changes and Continuities Chair: Assist. Prof. Dr. Özge Kemahlıoğlu, Sabanci University

2011 General Elections: The Transformation of the Ruling Elite? Assist. Prof. Dr. Hasret Dikici Bilgin, Okan University Assist. Prof. Dr. Özgehan Şenyuva, Middle East Technical University

Change and Continuity in Party System Indicators, 2007-2011 Dr. Eser Şekercioğlu, Sabancı University Assist. Prof. Dr. Gizem Arikan, Yaşar University

Party System Developments in Turkey in the 2000s: Patterns of Change and Continuity Assoc. Prof. Dr. Aylin Güney, Yaşar University Assoc. Prof. Dr. Filiz Başkan, Izmir University of Economics

19.30 – 22.00 Dinner (Kordonboyu Balık Pişiricisi)

10 February 2012 10.00 – 12.00 Panel C: Evaluating the Results of 2011 Elections I: Comparative Perspectives Chair: Assist. Prof. Dr. Cengiz Erişen, TOBB University of Economics and Technology

Bridging the Gender Gap in Turkish Politics: The Actors Promoting Female Representation Dr. Nazlı Çağın Bilgili, Istanbul Kultur University

Political Space and Ideological Constraints: Evidence from Egyptian and Turkish Elections Prof. Dr. Ali Çarkoğlu, Koç University Prof. Dr. Andre Krouwel, Vrije University

East vs. West: Mobilization and Political Participation in Europe Prof. Dr. Jeffrey Karp, University of Exeter Dr. Caitlin Milazzo, University of Exeter

EU News Media Coverage During 2011 Election Prof. Dr. Canan Balkır, Dokuz Eylul University Lecturer Dr. Huriye Toker, Yasar University Prof. Dr. Susan Banducci, Exeter University Digdem Soyaltın, Ph.D candidate, Berlin Freie University

Lunch break (Cati Restaurant, Yasar University)

13.00 – 14.30 Panel D: Evaluating the Results of 2011 Elections II: Voting behavior Chair: Prof. Dr. Andre Krouwel, Vrije University

Voting Behavior in Turkish Elections: Learning from 2002, 2007 and 2011 Election Studies Prof. Dr. Ali Çarkoğlu, Koç University Reversing the Equation: Partisan Bias and Economic Voting Hypothesis in the Turkish Context Dr. Emre Erdoğan, Infakto RW – Bilgi University

Partisan Ties in 2011 Elections: Is there a Local Incumbency Advantage? Assist. Prof. Dr. Özge Kemahlıoğlu, Sabancı University

14:30 – 15:00 Coffee Break 15.00 – 17.00 Panel E: Evaluating the Results III Discussants: Prof. Dr. Ali Çarkoğlu, Koc University Assist. Prof. Dr. Cengiz Erişen, TOBB University of Economics and Technology Assist. Prof. Dr. Elif Erişen, Cal Poly State University / Bilkent University Prof. Dr. Andre Krouwel, Vrije University Prof. Dr. Jeffrey Karp, University of Exeter

Call for Doctoral Dissertation Competition on Turkey, LSE Contemporary Turkish Studies, Deadline: 31 March 2012

LSE Contemporary Turkish Studies organizes a competition for doctoral dissertations completed on contemporary Turkey during the calendar years 2010 and 2011. Dissertations must have been written in English and the candidate must have obtained the PhD degree from a social sciences or humanities department/programme of a university in the UK or any other European country during the calendar years 2010 and 2011. Dissertations submitted to a university in Turkey are not eligible.

The dissertation can deal with any aspect (politics, economy, society, international relations, culture, etc.) of contemporary Turkey defined as Turkey since the end of World War II.  Part of the dissertation can deal with the earlier period.

Comparative doctoral dissertations which include contemporary Turkey as part of a two or three- country study are also eligible.

A jury of three academic experts including Professor Sevket Pamuk will evaluate the dissertations.

To apply, please send by e-mail a PDF copy your doctoral dissertation and a scanned copy of the official university document indicating the receipt of the PhD degree between the dates 1 January 2010 and 31 December 2011 to Umit Sonmez at the e-mail address below. Submissions without this degree document cannot be considered.

The deadline for applications is 31 March, 2012.

Results will be announced at the LSE Turkish Chair website and e-mailed to all the applicants on or before 10 May, 2012.

The award winning dissertation(s) will be invited to LSE for a presentation and the ceremony in June 2012.

Please feel free to circulate this announcement and the attached advert to anyone who might be interested.

With many thanks,

Umit Sonmez
Research Officer: Turkey and European Union
Contemporary Turkish Studies
European Institute
London School of Economics and Political Science
Houghton Street WC2A 2AE
London, United Kingdom

E-mail: u.sonmez@lse.ac.uk

CfP: Towards a Common Past? Conflicting Memories in Contemporary Europe, Lund 14-16 May 2012

We have the pleasure to inform you about an interdisciplinary conference in Memory Studies that is organized by Nordic Network in Memory Studies and held at Lund University in Lund, Sweden 14-16 May 2012

Towards a Common Past? Conflicting Memories in Contemporary Europe

Since the 1980s Memory Studies have developed intensively as a creative, interdisciplinary and well-established field of research. Yet the field remains fragmented: national research environments tend to focus on representations of cultural memory within specific national contexts, and researchers coming from different disciplines are frequently holding on to their own theoretical and methodological approaches. We hope that the conference will generate discussions about the state of the art in Memory Studies as well as the future of the research in the field. How can we consolidate Memory Studies? What kind of new directions within the field we can identify today?

We would also like to involve you in the discussion on the idea of ‘European Memory’, what it is and how it relates to the memories of nations, regions, migrant communities and the world outside Europe. Drawing on recent theoretical insights pointing to the importance of memory migration and mediation, the influence of new media, changing cultural contexts, and memory as a source of transcultural ethics, the conference will explore how memory works as a transcultural and transnational force, mainly but not solely in Europe.

We welcome papers that aim to explore the tension between attempts by European cultural and political elites to create some form of common European memory or at least a unitary memory ethos on one hand and numerous ‘memory conflicts’, caused by divided and contested memories of oppression and violence on the other. Understanding the conflictprovoking potential of this memory legacy and exploring how it may be managed in a reconciliatory fashion constitute an acute challenge to interdisciplinary Memory Studies.

We are convinced that the future of Memory Studies lies in interdisciplinary and multidisciplinary cooperation, however difficult such an endeavor might be. Hence we warmly welcome to our conference scholars from different disciplines – the humanities, political and social sciences (including psychology and communication studies), history, etc.

Confirmed keynote speakers for this three-day conference are:

Claus Leggewie – professor of political sciences, director of the Institute for Advanced Study in the Humanities Essen (KWI), Germany.
Daniel Levy, professor of sociology, Stony Brooks University, New York
Leyla Neyzi, professer of social anthropology, Sabanci University in Istanbul
Jeffrey Olick, professor of sociology and history at the University of Virginia
Louisa Passerini, professor of history at the University of Turin, Italy
Michael Rothberg, professor of English and Conrad Humanities Scholar at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Director of the Holocaust, Genocide, and Memory Studies Initiative
James E. Young, professor of English and Judaic Studies at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst

FUNDING
The conference is able to offer funds covering flight ticket and accommodation for a very limited number of participants (only PhD students and post-docs). We will select grantees on the basis of the relevance and quality of the abstracts. Please indicate in your abstract if you would like to take part in the competition for this grant, and send it to conference coordinatorniklas.bernsand@slav.lu.se, as well as the workshop leaders (see below).

WORKSHOPS
The papers at the conference will be presented and discussed in thematic workshops. If you are interested in participating in one or more of the following workshops please contact the chair of the workshop directly (see the contact details below) with a copy to the coordinator niklas.bernsand@slav.lu.se. If you are not sure which workshop is most suitable for your paper please send a short abstract to the coordinator niklas.bernsand@slav.lu.se for suggestions. The deadline for submitting your abstract to a Workshop Chair (with a copy to the conference coordinator) is March 1, 2012. A selection of the papers presented at the conference will be subsequently published.

1) Remembering forced migrations and ethnic cleansings in Europe (Chair:Barbara.Tornquist-Plewa@slav.lu.se)
2) Memory and Place in European Cities (Chair: Bo.Larsson@cfe.lu.se)
3) Memory, Emotions and Politics (Chair: Tea.Sindbaek@cfe.lu.se)
4) Asymmetric memories in Europe (chair: Conny.Mithander@kau.se)
5) Transnational cultural memory (chair: John.Sundholm@kau.se)
6) Remediating memory (chair: Maria.Holmgren.Troy@kau.se)
7) Memory and Literary Representation (Chair: Alexandre.dessingue@uis.no)
8) Nordic realms of memory (Chair: Peter.Stadius@helsinki.fi)
9) Memory in News Media (Chair: Niklas.Bernsand@slav.lu.se)

We look forward to seeing you in Lund in 2012. Please note that no conference fee is required.
Conference Chair: Barbara Törnquist-Plewa (e-mail: Barbara.Tornquist-Plewa@slav.lu.se)
Conference Coordinator: Niklas Bernsand (e-mail : Niklas.Bernsand@slav.lu.se)