Injustice and the EU

In the last two decades the EU has faced an impressive series of challenges – from the euro crisis, to Brexit, the refugees crisis, the unfolding of the effects of climate change, the war in Ukraine – that have put to the test the stability of the Union and the effectiveness of its institutions in tackling the most pressing issues of today’s world. How is the EU faring in terms of bringing about justice and contributing to social change internally and globally? What are the gravest forms of injustice in the EU? Which concrete steps should be taken to remedy them? Which institutional reforms are needed and which policies should be implemented? Is the EU an agent of injustice at the global level? How should the EU relate to authoritarian and illiberal regimes? The conference will provide a forum for philosophers, social scientists, and EU practitioners to discuss theoretical frameworks and concrete policy proposals for addressing key social issues and sources of injustice in the EU.

Possible themes may include, but are not limited to: poverty, vulnerability, marginalization, discrimination in the EU; forms of injustice linked to the structure of the internal market and free movement; equality and social rights in the EU; the EU democratic deficit and institutional reforms; the emergence of extreme right and populist movements; authoritarianism and democratic backsliding; climate change and inter-generational justice; the regulation of AI; monetary reforms and justice in the Eurozone; EU citizenship as a source of social rights; the city/country-side divide in the EU as a source of injustice; the EU and global justice.