UCL European Institute

Join us next week for a public conversation with Roxana Mînzatu on the opportunities emerging from strengthened EU-UK cooperation 🤝

The discussion will explore what closer collaboration could mean for young people, student engagement, and international exchange, followed by a moderated discussion and audience Q&A.

Roxana Mînzatu, Executive Vice-President for Social Rights and Skills, Quality Jobs and Preparedness, leads work on strengthening Europe’s human capital - from education and skills to youth policy, equality, and preparedness for future challenges.

This event is hosted by the , the , and the Westminster University European Affairs Institute, in partnership with the and the UCL European Institute.



Sign up here: https://www.ucl.ac.uk/european-institute/events/2026/mar/young-people-heart-strengthened-eu-uk-relations

YouthOpportunities

What does the global ‘rule of law recession’ look like in practice? 🌍

At last week’s event, we explored new data from the World Justice Project on global trends, the UK’s performance, and subnational perspectives across the EU.

We were delighted to welcome Dr Ana Maria Montoya (World Justice Project), Professor Jeff King (UCL Laws), and Dr Claudia Sternberg (UCL European Institute) for an engaging discussion.

A huge thank you to everyone who joined us last week.

Interested in how EU policy is shaped - and how research can inform it? 🇪🇺

The European Commission plays a central role in public health, supporting countries to address cross-border challenges such as antimicrobial resistance, health crises, innovation, and misinformation. With initiatives like the European Health Data Space now being implemented, engagement with EU policy is increasingly important.

This masterclass offers a practical introduction to EU policy-making, with a focus on public health, health data, and misinformation - relevant for researchers and professionals alike.

✨ Key takeaways:
• Understanding EU institutions and decision-making
• Identifying routes to influence policy
• Bringing research into policy processes
• Aligning work with EU priorities and funding

📍 Available for UCL staff and students

Sign up for free:
https://www.ucl.ac.uk/european-institute/events/2026/mar/understanding-eu-public-health-policy-levers-processes-and-influence

📍 Available for UCL staff and students



EUPolicy PublicHealth ResearchImpact HealthData PolicyMaking

Why does the debate on the new EU Migration Pact matter now?

The European Pact on Migration and Asylum enters into application in July 2026, marking one of the most significant reforms of the EU asylum system in years.

The Pact introduces substantial structural changes, including a new solidarity mechanism and expanded border procedures. At the same time, it allows member states, under certain circumstances, to derogate some fundamental rights.

While the reform is presented as a “fresh start”, its long-term legal, political and humanitarian implications remain disputed.

How will it reshape solidarity across EU member states?
What does it mean for people arriving at Europe’s borders?
And does it represent genuine reform – or repackage of existing norms and policies?

Join us on 24 March (6–8pm) at UCL for:
Fortress Europe? The New EU Migration Pact Under Scrutiny.

Three distinguished speakers with expertise spanning policy making, research and advocacy will unpack the Pact and explore its broader implications for European migration governance: Dr Marco Perolini, Sarian Jarosz, and Dr Ingrid Claudia Boccardi.

Reserve your spot here: https://www.ucl.ac.uk/european-institute/events/2026/mar/fortress-europe-20-new-eu-migration-pact-under-scrutiny

migrationgovernance displacement borders

Join us tomorrow for a timely conversation on the global rule of law recession.

Speaker: Dr Ana Maria Montoya (World Justice Project)
Commentator: Prof Jeff King (UCL Laws)
Chair: Dr Claudia Sternberg (UCL European Institute)

Drawing on the World Justice Project Rule of Law Index 2025, the session will explore why 68% of countries saw declines in rule of law last year, what the data reveals about pressures on accountability and fundamental rights, and what it means in practice.

We’ll also look at the UK’s ranking (14th of 143) and insights from WJP EUROVOICES, which tracks rule of law and judicial independence across EU Member States and regions.
The session will conclude with a look at upcoming WJP work on judicial independence and strengthening evidence-based policy and accountability.

Sign up for free: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/rule-of-law-in-a-fracturing-world-global-uk-and-european-perspectives-tickets-1981435301325?aff=oddtdtcreator&keep_tld=true

Casanova wandering London in the 18th century - theatres, taverns, the Exchange, and the curious manners of the English.

Read the full entry here: https://www.europeanliterarylondon.org/feature/f4b303fb-4329-4e41-974e-b9c5c2b46e91/french

🌍”Fortress Europe? The New EU Pact on Migration Under Scrutiny”

📆 Join us for the policy debate on March 24 (6pm)

Register here: https://www.ucl.ac.uk/european-institute/events/2026/mar/fortress-europe-20-new-eu-migration-pact

In Celan’s Snow Part/Schneepart and Other Poems (1968-1969), language is reconstructed and reclaimed, in response to the tensions of 1968 in Eastern Europe, and in memory of Europe’s haunting past.

Celan’s parents both died in labor camps, along with all the other Jews in Bukovina; Celan’s choice, therefore, to write in a reinvented German, may have contributed to his own assertion that Schneepart was his ‘strongest and boldest’ book.

Suggested by: Dr. Andrea Capovilla, Director of

Discover on the map: https://www.europeanliterarylondon.org/feature/a7242376-8ad6-4567-9e14-7236ceadfb7e/german

🔔 Read the latest on the UCL Europe Blog - Gender Equality in the European Commission

David Coen, Alexander Katsaitis and Matia Vannoni turn the spotlight on gender equality within the European Commission itself. Using staffing data from the Directorate-General for Human Resources and Security, they trace patterns of gender representation across Directorates-General, hierarchical levels and nationalities. Their analysis asks a simple but pressing question: does its internal composition live up to its public commitments on equality?



Read the full piece: https://ucleuropeblog.com/2026/02/24/gender-equality-in-the-european-commission/

As the weather begins to turn and spring approaches, it’s the perfect time to rediscover the city 🏙️

Explore London across all the seasons through

📍 The pop-up exhibition is still on display at Düsseldorf Central Library until the end of this week!

Read the full entry by Stéphane Mallarmé - https://www.europeanliterarylondon.org/feature/fad186af-368b-4714-a4c4-2c07d2f36d02/french

Some highlights so far from our EU Politics & Policy in Practice trip to Brussels this week 🇧🇪

Students explored the role and political priorities of the European External Action Service, the EU’s response to Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine, and evolving EU–US relations.

Students also had a masterclass on the EU, climate and the green transition, including a hands-on exercise in drafting a rapid policy brief or press release, led by Dan Bradley, Head of Climate and Environment 🌱

With a huge thanks to Dan Bradley and 🇪🇺

Join us next week! 📚

This event features a panel discussion celebrating the launch of The History of European Union Law: Constitutional Practice, 1950 to 1993, edited by Bill Davies (American University, Washington DC) and Morten Rasmussen (University of Copenhagen), for Cambridge University Press.

The Panel
Morten Rasmussen, Associate Professor and Principal Investigator, Saxo Institute, University of Copenhagen
Megan Donaldson, Associate Professor, UCL Laws
Erin Delaney, Inaugural Director of the Global Centre for Democratic Constitutionalism and Leverhulme Professor of Comparative Constitutional Law, UCL Laws
Piet Eeckhout, Professor of EU Law, UCL Laws
Nicola Countouris, Professor of Labour Law and European Law, UCL Laws

About the Book
The History of European Union Law: Constitutional Practice, 1950 to 1993 (Cambridge University Press). Edited by Bill Davies, American University, Washington DC, Morten Rasmussen, University of Copenhagen

This formative period of EU law witnessed an intense struggle over the emergence of a constitutional practice. While the supranational institutions (including the European Commission, the European Court of Justice and the European Parliament) as well as EU law academics helped to develop and promote the constitutional practice, member state governments and judiciaries were generally reluctant to embrace it. The struggle resulted in an uneasy stalemate in which the constitutional practice was allowed to influence the doctrines, shape and functioning of the European legal order that now underpins the EU, but a majority of member state governments rejected European constitutionalism as the legitimating principle of the new EU formed the basis of the Treaty of Maastricht (1992). The struggle and eventual stalemate over the constitutional practice traced in this book accounts for the fragile and partial system of rule of law that exists in the EU today.

Tickets: https://www.ucl.ac.uk/european-institute/events/2026/feb/hybrid-book-launch-history-european-union-law