Parliamentary Democracy in Europe (PADEMIA)

The motivation of PADEMIA is to establish a Europe-wide and sustainable network of 56 academic institutions from 31 countries to promote research and teaching in reaction to growing European demands to study parliamentary democracy in Europe.

PADEMIA seeks to enhance discussion among students, junior and senior researchers, also in exchange with stakeholders, on how to deal with the new challenges parliaments and citizens across Europe are facing today. The network responds to the “Future of Europe” report which identifies “(t)he on-going sovereign debt crisis and the ever accelerating process of globalization (as) an unprecedented dual challenge for Europe”; but also addresses the implications the Lisbon Treaty and further formal agreements (e.g., Fiscal Compact) have for parliamentary democracy in Europe whose complex, multi-level character furthermore requires thorough and comprehensive reflection.

Until September 2016, we will organize manifold different events, such as workshops, PhD Schools, and a Guest Lecture Series. Moreover, Online Lectures, the Website, our Online Paper Series, and Online Tutorials will allow for active digital interaction within the Network and beyond. Research, Teaching and Student awards will help to identify, reward and spread best practices and innovative research in the field.

Substantially, the WZB contributes to the empirical analysis of parliamentary debates and their involvement in international topics such as European integration, climate change or migration as well as the interplay between parliaments and mass media in public debates about such topics.

As network activity, the WZB contributes to the Work Package Teaching 2.0 under leadership of Dr. Ben Crum at the Free University in Amsterdam. This aims at exploiting innovative teaching methods that can reach a large number of graduate and PhD students across the network. By actively employing new media, we seek to grant PhD and graduate students direct access to the senior scholars of the network. The WP comprises the website which serves as a platform for active participation for members of PADEMIA; as well as for other members of the academic community who may be interested in its work.

The Erasmus Multilateral Network PADEMIA is funded by the European Commission’s Lifelong Learning program.