The EUCACIS Programme Concluded

The PhD Support Programme EUCACIS 2016 - 2020 comes to an end in August 2020. The programme has covered three regular years and one extension year, which was an enriching time not only for the EUCACIS fellows, but also for its staff and all involved people.

We are proud of our fellows who worked hard and diligently throughout these years and have completed or reached the final stages of their PhD. By August 2020, six of the twelve EUCACIS fellows have submitted their theses and three of them have already defended and obtained their degrees. The rest are either in the process of finalising their thesis drafts or waiting for final defence after university protocols and publication criteria are fulfilled.

We are delighted to have seen our fellows grow from PhD students into junior academics and researchers over these years. The events organized within the EUCACIS programme have also assisted them in forming a strong community of their own but also extending their international academic and professional network. In addition to working on their theses and further developing their skills, the fellows also published extensively whether in local, regional or international academic journals.

Throughout the four years of EUCACIS, we have organized four international conferences, three PhD schools (plus one in the extension period) and one three-week research training stay for each fellow. We were in close touch with the fellows with continuous online coaching, individual mentoring and, not to forget, support and help in view of the challenges that the PhD students faced on their long journey of completing a doctoral thesis. Finally, our fellows and members of the EUCACIS network have contributed to our publishing series, EUCACIS in Brief and EUCACIS Online Paper in which overall 27 articles were published.

We wish our fellows success in their future professional and personal lives. We do not doubt that they will make valuable parts of any field they choose to join, whether in academia or practice. We are convinced that the bonds that the EUCACIS programme has created will sustain and contribute to future cooperation.

Last EUCACIS PhD School took place in Istanbul, Turkey, on 14-15 February 2020

On 14 and 15 February 2020 the EUCACIS fellows and team came together for the 4^th and last EUCACIS PhD School in Istanbul. As their doctorates reach their final stages, the school served the purpose of sharing useful tips and information that could aid them to embark on their career path or disseminate their research after completion.

On the first day, our guest speaker Neil Urquhart trained the fellows on presenting and sharing academic research. The fellows learned techniques for an effective presentation, for engaging and inspiring audiences whether by well-structured content, employing visual stimulus, by voice control or confident body gestures. The training was motivating for the fellows with regard to their teaching activities at university, but also gave them input for the upcoming doctoral defences and for oral presentations of any kind.

On the second PhD School day, Professor Thomas Christiansen from LUISS shared his suggestions with the fellows on academic publishing, including how to turn the dissertation into a book, how to approach journals or publishing houses, and gave insights of the publication process. Together with EUCACIS programme director Professor Mathias Jopp, he also coached on individual and collective grant proposal writing for academics, motivating the junior researchers to apply for visiting fellowships, post-doctoral projects or international research consortia.

Our fellows also discussed the final stages of their research with their mentors from CIFE and IEP, aiming at overcoming all remaining obstacles in order to submit the final drafts of the theses within the next weeks and months. Finally, fellows and team took the opportunity to discover Istanbul, a metropole at the crossroads of Europe and Asia which is symbolic for the programme that aimed at fostering academic exchange between continents. The 4^th PhD School was the last gathering of the EUCACIS PhD Support Programme that will conclude in August 2020.

Successful completion of the regular PhD Support Programme EUCACIS and further extension

CIFE and the Institut für Europäische Politik (IEP) are happy to announce that the third year of the PhD Support Programme “The EU, Central Asia and the Caucasus in the International System“ (EUCACIS) was successfully completed. Starting in October 2016, the regular programme duration ended in September this year with a good record.

The programme has achieved its main objectives by providing intensive PhD training for its fellows, continuous support in the process of their doctoral work and assisting them in establishing networks in their region and in Europe. In order to achieve these goals, the EUCACIS programme has organized four international conferences in Almaty, Berlin, Tbilisi and Bishkek; it has conducted three PhD schools in Berlin and Tbilisi; and it has offered a research training stay to each of its fellows in Berlin and continuous online coaching.  Besides writing their PhD theses, the EUCACIS fellows had to write and publish at least one research or policy paper and actively contribute to the project’s conferences and newsletters throughout the programme.

By the end of the third year, most of the fellows are in the course of submitting their doctoral theses, while four of the EUCACIS fellows have already submitted their PhD theses to their home universities, one of them already having successfully defended it. After defence and graduation, the EUCACIS fellows plan for their next career steps, sometimes achieving a promotion within the institutions where they are already employed, or heading for new academic or professional challenges.

In order to continue support for the fellows that were not able to submit their theses yet, the programme includes an extension period. Accordingly, several fellows were granted extended scholarships for finalizing their academic work. In order to give a last input to the PhD students and accompany the finalisation of their theses, a fourth and final PhD school is planned to take place in February/March 2020. The project will be concluded by August next year, when all twelve fellows will have completed their theses and the further academic work within the framework of the PhD Support Programme.

4th and Final International EUCACIS Conference on “The EU, Central Asia and the South Caucasus: New Approaches on Regional and International Cooperation” took place in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan

On 23-24 May 2019, the international conference “The EU, Central Asia and the South Caucasus: new approaches on regional and international cooperation” took place in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan. It was the fourth and final conference within the framework of the PhD Support Programme EUCACIS for postgraduates and doctoral researchers from Central Asia and the South Caucasus, which is implemented by the Centre international de formation européenne (CIFE) and the Institut für Europäische Politik (IEP) and funded by the Volkswagen Foundation and Erasmus+. The event was organised with the PhD fellows’ support regarding the conceptualization of the programme as well as in close cooperation with the OSCE Academy in Bishkek.

The conference focused on possibilities of regional and international cooperation in different areas such as border management, migration, trade, energy, and security. Overall, it was agreed that regional cooperation should be enhanced since some challenges can only be tackled together; this especially includes climate as well as security issues. In the latter case, the role of Afghanistan was stressed which should not only be seen as a risk but as a partner.

On the international level, the role of the EU, Russia, China and the US in Central Asia was discussed. There were views of a declining role of Russia in favour of China and an uncertain future of the US engagement in the region, which currently seems to follow other priorities. Not least, the EU with its offer of a non-exclusive partnership seems to leave a certain room for manoeuvre for the Central Asian states. It was emphasised that a coordinated effort of all external actors involved would be profitable for all sides.

Some EUCACIS fellows acted as competent panel speakers during the conference and enriched the debates with their specific PhD research outputs, while others answered questions relating their dissertation projects in an international expert hearing on “democracy and social change in post-Soviet space”. The young researchers proved once more to be experts in their fields and appeared well prepared to enter the post-doc academic community.

The conference was also the occasion for the official EUCACIS Graduation Ceremony in the impressive setting of a Kyrgyz yurt. The fellows were honoured for their successful participation in the PhD Support Programme and got the chance to look back and recap the past three years together with the EUCACIS team and their supervisors.

The conference successfully allowed international researchers and leading practitioners to meet, exchange, and widen their network. It thus proved to be one of the many valuable opportunities for the PhD fellows during the programme to advance their scientific careers.

You can find the conference agenda here.

International Conference on “The EU, Central Asia and the South Caucasus: new approaches on regional and international cooperation” in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan, on 23 - 24 May 2019

On 23 - 24th May 2019, the 4th International EUCACIS Conference “The EU, Central Asia and the South Caucasus: new approaches on regional and international cooperation” will take place at ParkHotel in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan. Experts from the European Union, the South Caucasus and Central Asia will come together to discuss conflicts in the South Caucasus, take a close look at the latest events in Central Asia as well as explore possibilities for cooperation and dialogue between the European Union, the South Caucasus and Central Asia in three different panels.
The conference will be a great opportunity for international researchers and leading practitioners to meet, exchange, and strengthen the bonds between the three regions. The EUCACIS fellows are strongly involved in the conference organisation and will also present their scientific research to the international experts.

The international high-ranking conference is the fourth and last conference of the PhD Programme EUCACIS for Postgraduates and Doctoral Researchers in Central Asia and the South Caucasus, which the IEP and the Centre international de formation européenne (CIFE) organise in close cooperation with the OSCE Academy Bishkek.

The preliminary conference agenda is available here.

The conference takes place within the framework of the PhD Support Programme “The EU, Central Asia and the Caucasus in the International System” (EUCACIS) for Postgraduates and Doctoral Researchers in Central Asia and the Southern Caucasus, organised by the Institut für Europäische Politik (IEP) and CIFE. It is funded by the Volkswagen Stiftung as well as the ERASMUS+ programme. Postgraduates who are working on their doctoral thesis in political sciences contemporary history or economics, on a topic related to its thematic focus at a university or academy of sciences in the Southern Caucasus or Central Asia (including Afghanistan, the Kashmir region in India and the autonomous region Xinjiang in China) get a three-year scholarship and receive skill trainings and PhD schools.

Please register here as soon as possible or at the latest by 20 May 2019.

Retrospection: 3rd EUCACIS conference in Tbilisi, Georgia, 30 - 31 August 2018

On 30 - 31 August 2018 the international conference on „Central Asia and the South Caucasus in Transition: International Perspectives” took place in Tbilisi, Georgia. It was the 3rd conference organised by the EUCACIS PhD Support Programme of the Centre international de formation européenne (CIFE) and the Institut für Europäische Politik (IEP) which is funded by the Volkswagen Foundation and Erasmus+. The event was supported by and took place at the ILIA State University, the city‘s second biggest academic entity. You can find the conference agenda here.

During the 2-day conference, panel debates covered such topics as security and stability, transition processes, as well as the role of the socio-cultural dialogue between Central Asia, the South Caucasus and Europe. In a first panel, the nature of the conflicts in the South Caucasus region has been discussed controversially, and a critical assessment of the role of the EU, Russia, and further external actors in the solution of these conflicts and the development of the region has been made. A second panel debate focussed on opportunities of democratic transformation and interregional cooperation in Central Asia. It has been emphasized that, since Uzbekistan’s opening up under President Mirziyoyev and the launch of the Chinese ‘One Belt One Road’ initiative, regional rapprochement and development has become a priority issue for Central Asia, in particular with regards to tourism, connectivity and trade. Finally, a third panel offered a glance into the challenges of civil society engagement and the role of the ‘European model’ for the political cultures and democratization processes in the Caucasus and Central Asia.

The panel discussions have been continued and deepened in working groups. The debates made clear that, despite the many challenges for peace, stability and prosperity in both regions, great achievements have been made, and the European Union remains an important partner.  

During the conference, the twelve EUCACIS fellows were provided with the opportunity to present their research to a wider audience and profit from feedback and panel debates with European, Caucasian and Central Asian academics, decision-makers, and professionals. Following the conference, the fellows participated in the 3rd EUCACIS PhD School.