Sign up now for our one week course on EU external policies and asylum

For the first time, the Asser Institute and the Centre for the Law of EU External Relations (CLEER) are organising the CLEER winter academy from 17 to 21 February 2020. The winter academy is a one-week training course on EU external policies and instruments & asylum and migration issues. The CLEER winter academy is a great opportunity for students, civil servants, representatives of NGOs and diplomats who are involved in EU asylum- and migration policies or who will be involved in the nearby future and have basic knowledge of this policy area.  

 The 2016 EU Global Strategy sets out an ambitious agenda for EU foreign policy. According to the strategy, the EU “will promote a rules-based global order” guided by “principled pragmatism” with a view to delivering “prosperity, security and democracy” both at home and abroad. Three years on, the question arises whether the union has delivered on its promises. Can the EU be considered a credible actor at the global stage and if so, to what extent?

More recently, the European parliament’s hearings of the individual commissioners in the new Von der Leyen commission have dominated the news. One of the most contested new portfolio titles is the Commissioner “Protecting the European way of life’, a title many believe to be offensive as it assumes that migrants and refugees pose a threat to this particular way of life.

These recent developments at the EU level and many more will be addressed during the one week training course. Experts and experienced practitioners will tackle issues pertaining to EU foreign policy making as well as migration and asylum policies by offering interactive lectures, workshops, and simulation exercises.

About the Winter Academy
The programme combines training sessions focusing on developing both knowledge-domain knowledge and skills, thereby enabling participants to gain first-hand experience of how theory is transformed into practice.

More specifically, the programme offers:

• Extensive knowledge of the core instruments forming the foundations of the EU’s external action.
• Deep understanding of the legal and policy issues in the field of EU Asylum and Migration policies.
• Stimulating debates on current EU external policy challenges such as EU representation in external fora, EU enlargement policies, as well as challenges pertaining to the current EU asylum and migration policies.
• Strengthening of analytical, presentation and critical thinking skills through the analysis of case-studies and simulation activities.
• Networking opportunities with other participants as well as leading academic experts and practitioners.

 In addition to the various interactive sessions and workshops, the training course offers e-coaching and evaluation sessions after the end of the course. 

See the full programme here.

Part 1: EU external policies and instruments (17 and 18 February, 2020)
The Treaty of Lisbon provided the EU with new competencies and instruments for its foreign policy. For students, civil servants, diplomats and representatives of NGOs it is, therefore, necessary to keep abreast of these competencies and instruments and the way they have developed in practice. Besides this, the development of networking and stakeholder analysis are important skills in this policy area.

What will you learn?

•        The present and future challenges and developments in EU foreign policy making.
•        Get insight into the most important legal cases of the EU as a diplomatic player   and learn how external policies of the EU are organised internally.
•        Understand the role of the High Representative and the role of the EU towards other international organisations, like the UN, OESO and WTO.
•        Acquire the necessary tools and skills to be able to influence EU policy making at the earliest possible stage.

Part 2: Asylum and migration (19, 20, 21 February, 2020)
Asylum and migration policies are a shared competence of the EU and the Member States and these are among the most sensitive policy areas since they touch upon issues of national sovereignty, free movement of persons, border control and management and the capacity to absorb a massive influx of asylum seekers. After the disastrous year of 2015, when thousands of migrants lost their lives crossing the Mediterranean, it became clear that the existing policies, like the Dublin Regulation, were no longer sufficient to deal with the massive inflow of migrants. As a result, a controversial deal was concluded with Turkey to stop the influx through this route, an agreement was reached about the relocation of immigrants and most recently, the EU created an autonomous border control capacity of 1500 men. This training course offers insight and understanding of the present asylum- and migration policies of the EU, the Schengen area, border management, the role and competences of Frontex and new and future policy initiatives, instruments and challenges.

What will you learn?

•        Learn about the existing framework of EU asylum and migration law.
•        Get insight on the lessons learned and current challenges in the current EU asylum and migration policies.
•        Compare and analyse national implementations and best practices within different EU member states.
•        Understand the Common European Asylum System (Dublin Regulation, Qualification Directive, Reception conditions). 

For practical information and fees click here. To register click here.

About CLEER
Since 2008, the Centre for the Law of EU External Relations (CLEER) aims at providing the tools to understand the multi-faced and intra-disciplinary reality of the law and policy of EU external action. CLEER is a unique repository of legal expertise bridging practitioners with academia, and merging practice with theory. As a network, CLEER is an academic platform for research coordination and cooperation between its members in view of joint events, joint publications, and funding opportunities. It links world-leading EU external relations experts from distinguished universities and institutions in the Netherlands and in Europe. This project is led by Asser researcher Dr Eva Kassoti.

For more information about CLEER click here.