October 23

Júlia Garraio (CES), "Sexual violence and war: some reflections on the case of Libya".

Abstract: Media coverage of the Libyan war has drawn attention, from the beginning of the conflict, to the occurrence of sexual violence by government forces in an attempt to suppress the rebellion. This lecture will question the silences, the invisibilities and possible political instrumentalisations created by these speeches.

Bio note: Júlia Garraio is researcher at the Centre for Social Studies (Humanities, Migrations and Peace Studies). Most of her research, activities and publications are dedicated to the German literature and culture in the twentieth century. Violence, memory, identity, discourse and representation are key concepts in her research. In her PhD dissertation she examined the work of the German poet Günter Eich (1907-1972. Her post-doctoral research project focused the public memory of the rape of German women and girls in the context of WWII. She examined representations of sexual violence in German literature and cinema. Her interest in the processes of mediation and representation of sexual violence led her to broaden the scope of her research to other war scenarios (e.g. the war in Libya) and to other forms of sexual violence (e.g. the traffic of human beings for sexual exploitation). Currently, her research is guided by transdisciplinary epistemological objectives: she pursues a critical analysis of the discourses and patterns of mediating wartime rape and works towards a reconceptualization of the very topic of sexual violence.

October 30

José Milhazes, “Fundamental vectors of Russian foreign policy"

Abstract: "Aspects of Russian foreign policy": Georgia, Ukraine, Syria and Central Asia - areas of real and virtual conflicts. These are the new challenges that Russia faces after its President initiated a review, by means of force, of the borders created following the end of the USSR in 1991. What are the motivations of this policy and possible consequences.

Bio note: Journalist and historian, expert on thematics related to Russia. Correspondent for various national and international media. Holds a MA in Historical Sciences at the Moscow State University and a PhD from the University of Porto with a thesis on "The influence of Portuguese and Spanish liberal ideas in the Decembrist Movement in Russia". Has published several articles in the area.
 

November 13

Ana Paula Brandão (University of Minho), "International Security links and soft rebordering in the EU"

Abstract: The session focuses on the link between “internal and external aspects of security” declared by the EU in the post-Cold War by proposing to reflect on the rationale and the effects of the European narrative and practices in  reconfiguring the border logic. In short, the narrative of links replaces the realist paradigm’s border of the (paradigmatic, political and organic separation between in/out with reference to the political-geographical boundary), the reconfigured border in terms of stable centre/unsafe periphery (made nearby in the globalized world to “multidimensional”, “dynamic”, “transnational” threats) be it in societal and be it in identity terms.

Bio note: International Relations professor at the University of Minho, a specialist in security studies (security conceptualization, human security) and European Studies (political system of the EU, European foreign policy and actorness, cooperation in home affairs). She has coordinated several research projects in the area and published several articles and books on these subjects, both nationally and internationally.
 

December 4

Sílvia Roque (CES), “The study of violence in international relations: ethical and methodological challenges”

Abstract: The session aims to: 1) present the ways in which the concept and practices of violence have been studied and/or ignored in International Relations literature, 2) discuss the ontological and political consequences of these theoretical trends, 3) and finally, reflect on possibilities to overcome the limitations of the study of violence in IR by presenting a case study and ethical and the methodological challenges stemming from it.

Bio note: Sílvia Roque holds Masters Degree in African Studies at the Higher Institute of Business and Labour Sciences (Lisbon) and a degree in International Relations at the Faculty of Economics, University of Coimbra. Roque holds a PhD in International Relations - International Politics and Conflict Resolution at the Faculty of Economics, University of Coimbra - with the thesis "Das revoluções por cumprir às resistências (im)possíveis: Jovens e percursos de violências em El Salvador e na Guiné-Bissau"  [From unfulfilled revolutions to (im)possible resistances: Youth and paths of violence in El Salvador and Guinea-Bissau] She has participated in several projects and published several articles in national and international journals.
 

December 11

Roberta Maschietto (CES), "The emergence of the 'local' in the peacebuilding agenda: conceptual and methodological challenges".

Abstract:  The lecture discusses the emergence of 'local' level in the Peace Studies' agenda and the various concepts regarding this level of analysis as 'hybridity','local ownership','everyday','empowerment' and 'peace formation'. Beyond the concepts and their meanings, the lecture will discuss the ethical and methodological implications of this agenda, including the conduction of field work.

Bio note: Roberta Holanda Maschietto is a post-doctoral researcher at CES. Her research focuses on the study of local understandings of peacebuilding reforms. She has a PhD in Peace Studies from the University of Bradford. Her thesis, concluded in 2015, discussed the concept of 'empowerment' and included the analysis of peacebuilding in Mozambique, as well as a detailed examination of a national initiative to promote local empowerment through credit concession and the engagement of the local councils.

Roberta has a BA and a MA in International Relations, from the University of Brasília. Between 2005 and 2009 she was a lecturer in International Relations at the Institute for Superior Education in Brasília (IESB). She also took part in several research projects, in particular related to contemporary Sub-Saharan Africa. Her current research interests include peacebuilding processes, empowerment and local ownership in peacebuilding scenarios as well as the long term-effects of such processes at the level of the everyday.

December 16

Lassi Heininen (University of Lapland), "The Artic as a new metaphor for Exceptionalism- critical reading on IR?"

Abstract: In the early twenty-first century international attention and global interest in the northernmost regions of the globe are increasing, at the same time the geo-strategic importance of the Arctic is growing. Since the end of the Cold War international northern cooperation - both between the Arctic states and between them and non-state actors - has become more institutionalized and dynamic. On one hand there is multilateral international cooperation within the Arctic Council as well as cooperation with and between indigenous peoples’ organizations, other international organizations and forums, in addition to bilateral inter-state relations. On the other hand, cooperation is functional within certain fields, for example, between academic institutions on higher education, civilian organizations on environmental protection, and civil societies on regional development and culture. From a critical theoretical lenses, this session aims at mapping the evolution of the Artic as a new metaphor for exceptionalism in IR.

Bio note: Lassi Heininen is Professor at the Faculty of Social Sciences, University of Lapland, a specialist in Russian and Arctic studies, geopolitics of the Arctic and security studies. Heininen has published several articles and books on these subjects.