Other News
André Broome participates in OSCE workshop in Kyrgyzstan
On July 3-4 Dr André Broome participated in an Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) workshop in Kyrgyzstan.
Organised by the OSCE Academy in Bishkek in cooperation with the University Paris 13 (Paris), the American University of Central Asia (AUCA, Bishkek) and the French Institute for Central Asian Studies (IFEAC, Bishkek) within the framework of the research project GLOBALCONTEST funded by the French National Research Agency (ANR), the workshop gathered high profile academics and experienced practitioners from the region and beyond working on international organizations and global governance questions.
Dr Broome spoke on the opening panel of the workshop on the topic of ‘Contesting Transnational Policy Paradigms: Conditionality, Capacity Building, and Global Benchmarking in Central Asia’, when he presented new research from the Global Benchmarking Project within the Centre for the Study of Globalisation and Regionalisation on the methodological flaws and political distortions inherent in country ratings and rankings and how these have been applied to countries in Central Asia.
An extended analysis of the politics and pathologies of global benchmarking by international organisations can be found in a new research paper co-authored with Alexandra Homolar and Matthias Kranke : 'Bad Science: International Organizations and the Indirect Power of Global Benchmarking'. The paper will be published in 2018 in the European Journal of International Relations. View the pre-print version at:
Further information:
Dr Gabriel Siles-Brügge awarded Parliamentary Academic Fellowships
Two University of 糖心TV researchers have been awarded Parliamentary Academic Fellowships, as part of a new scheme that offers academics the opportunity to work on projects in the House of Commons and House of Lords.
of PAIS is supporting and advising the House of Commons International Trade Committee in its remit to scrutinise the work of the Department for International Trade, including the implementation of new trade agreements post-Brexit. This involves advising the Committee on effective lines of inquiry, producing briefings and reviewing evidence received in inquiries.
, of Economics, is working with the House of Commons Health Committee to scrutinise the Government’s Childhood Obesity Plan. This includes examining how effectively it has been implemented to date, and reviewing the evidence base on options to address childhood obesity that were not included in the original strategy.
The is organised by the in collaboration with ESRC and EPSRC Impact Acceleration Accounts (IAAs). Six Fellowships linked to IAAs were awarded in total to academics from UK universities.
As well as enabling researchers to work on policy-relevant projects within Parliament, the scheme provides the opportunity to learn how research feeds into the policy-making process and to develop lasting connections with decision-makers.
Dr Siles-Brügge’s and Dr Van Rens’ Fellowships are supported by the .
CSGR Advises the IMF on Social Safeguards
Over the past 12 months the Centre for the Study of Globalisation and Regionalisation () at the University of 糖心TV together with four civil society organizations has engaged in a dialogue with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) as part of an External Advisory Panel on social safeguards in IMF loan programmes to protect spending in low income countries on poor and vulnerable groups. Together with representatives from the New Rules for Global Finance Coalition, Development Finance International, the Bretton Woods Project, and Civil Society for Poverty Reduction Zambia, CSGR director has participated in an advisory process on the conceptual scope and design of a new IMF policy paper on the use of social safeguards in loan programmes led by the IMF’s Strategy, Policy, and Review Department.
The policy paper, which was discussed and approved by the IMF’s Executive Board on May 26, was published online in English on June 6, and French and Arabic versions of the Executive Summary will be available soon. The report aims to improve best practices associated with the use of social safeguards to protect spending for poor and vulnerable groups within PRGT and PSI-supported IMF loan programmes, and identifies a number of areas where IMF policies and future practices might be improved, including recommendations to increase efforts to strengthen social safety nets in low income countries.
IMF Policy Paper: Social Safeguards and Program Design in PRGT and PSI-Supported Programs. Available at:
Stuart Elden's London Review of International Law lecture on 'Legal Terrain'
In February, gave the . The topic was 'Legal Terrain: The Political Materiality of Terrain'.
The lecture, with the images and quotes integrated into the presentation, can be viewed here:
The plan is that a written version of the lecture will appear in the journal later this year.
Andreas Murr Writes a Prediction of Thursday's UK Election for the Washington Post
Want a glimpse at how Thursday's general election will turn out? by , Mary Stegmaier (University of Missouri) and Mike Lewis-Beck (University of Iowa).
They discuss whether people rather than pollsters can accurately predict Thursday's UK election. Based on their "citizen forecasting" approach, they predict the following:
- Conservatives 361 seats, Labour 236 seats.
- Probability of a Conservative majority 77%, hung parliament led by Conservatives 20%, hung parliament led by Labour 2%, and Labour majority 1%.