Regístrate
Regístrate

Nationalism, populism and identities:
contemporary challenges

Oxford Congress 2022

Fide presents its 2nd International Congress on Nationalism, populism, and identities: contemporary challenges

4th, 5th & 6th April 2022

Jesus College, University of Oxford

Content

Objetives

The objective of this Congress is to bring together a group of professionals with extensive experience in the subjects proposed for deliberation (see below) so that, from different perspectives, drawing on areas of knowledge and expertise from several countries, in-depth discussions and analyses of the issues can take place. Ultimately, the Working Groups will articulate a set of conclusions and recommendations to be published and disseminated among decision-makers, organizations, industry leaders, and experts with a view to their consideration by the competent authorities.

Congress Directors

Cristina Jiménez

President of the Fide Foundation

Christopher Muttukumaru CB

Barrister, Bencher of Gray´s Inn and Chair of the International Academic Council

The Congress is being guided by the strategic advice of Fide’s International Academic Council.

CONGRESS WORKING GROUPS AND PANELS

The overarching topic of the congress is Nationalism, populism, and identities: contemporary challenges. In the global context, the growth of nationalism and populism is one of the greatest challenges facing not only Europe but also North and South America and the Asia Pacific. This can be a destructive force if it means that states retreat into an isolationist mindset and away from effective multilateral solutions to perceived cross-border problems.

Nationalism is a form of identity politics and is not to be assumed to be always a negative force. However, the increasing tendency towards radical nationalism and in turn exclusionist populism, even when presented as nationalism, constitutes a major challenge to democracy and the rule of law. Populism can undermine trust in institutions and give rise to intolerance within society. Within the European context, and in addition to the broader international context, there are specific, disturbing populist trends in the EU and the EU’s focus has inevitably turned more strongly towards a number of internal challenges which might pose a serious challenge to the EU’s central aims and its adherence to fundamental rights.

A form of nationalism or identity politics is also discernible in the movement in Europe for more devolved powers or for secession and independence. A related question is whether opportunities for devolved administrations on the international stage might provide a dynamic alternative to independence, whether on their own or in conjunction with purely national or sub-regional measures.

Finally, the Covid-19 pandemic has resulted in the greatest economic and health crisis seen in 100 years. Within the EU and beyond it, emergency powers have been used to close borders unilaterally and to restrict people movement on the ground of protection of public health. The problems over the EU’s Covid-19 rescue packages evidenced at the Council meeting in July 2020 have exposed severe fault lines in EU solidarity, leading some commentators to question the future of the common European project.

The congress is organized under the following topics of discussion, for which working groups of relevant experts have been organized to draft the pertinent papers.

Scene Setter

Working Group

Constitutional, legal, or governance questions in the context of Nationalism

Focused on first, identifying the constitutional, legal, and governance features that are the target of populist critique, and secondly, analysing the challenges that populism poses to constitutional systems and the checks and balances that are required to mitigate those threats and, to the extent possible, mitigate populist constitutional crises

Terms of Reference

Working Group

Nationalism in the context of the Covid 19 pandemic

The development of effective policies in the field of health by the EU is not only a necessity derived from the pandemic we are experiencing. It is also a challenge that can greatly help the construction not only of a common space in health, but also to stop criticism from nationalist and populist movements against the EU project. The democratic crisis and the risks for the future EU project are directly related to its social agenda and health is, among them, one of the most relevant for citizens. It can be concluded that moving towards an EU with a common framework in health is moving towards an EU with “good health”.

Terms of Reference

Working Group

Nationalism, populism, and the economy

Understanding why liberalism has failed to secure its dominance is key to successfully wage the battles ahead. The liberal order based on the principles of individual freedom, inclusive governance, property rights and free exchange, globalization and multilateralism, has proven beneficial to many but not to all.

  1. Sub-group 1: Globalisation and Populism (See TORs)
  2. Sub-group 2: The Future of the EU Project (See TORs)
  3. Sub-group 3: Populism and Inequality (See TORs)
Terms of Reference

The Congress will cover aspects of the impact of nationalist/ populist policies on the funding of South American pension schemes where there have been unexpected calls on funds to deal with the effects of COVID-19

The Congress will also cover other cross-cutting issues, using free-standing panels on EU refugee externalisation policies, climate change issues (with specific reference to the outcome of the Conference of the Parties (COP) 26 in November 2021 in Glasgow), and misinformation and free speech in modern democratic societies.

Congress Programme

Find below the full programme of the Congress.

On the first afternoon, the Congress will be opened. The initial focus will be on the analysis of the main challenges of climate change, including proposals to address those challenges. There will be a separate discussion on Impact of nationalist/ populist policies on the funding of South American pension schemes: the current status quo and proposals for reform. The day will conclude with a high-level keynote speech on the Sri Lankan experience in respect of the climate change issues. 

12.00-12:25pm: Congress Registration

12.30 – 2pm: Welcome Lunch (Dinning Hall)

2.30-3.00pm: Reception and Access to the congress sessions (The Bastion)

3.00-4.30 pm: Plenary session- Panel discussion 

Net-zero will need huge investment, new technology, support for developing countries, and to overcome the blocking tactics of populists. How optimistic should we be? 

Panel chaired by: Derrick Wyatt QC, Emeritus Professor of Law at the Faculty of Law, University of Oxford, Emeritus Fellow of St Edmund Hall, Oxford and formerly a member of Brick Court Chambers, London. Member of Fide’s International Academic Council. 

Panelists:

    • Gordon L Clark DSc FBA, Professorial Fellow at St Edmund Hall, Oxford and Director Emeritus Smith School of Enterprise and the Environment, Oxford University. He has held appointments at the Harvard Kennedy School of Government, Harvard Law School, the University of Chicago, Carnegie Mellon University, and Monash University and has been an Andrew Mellon Fellow at the US National Academy of Sciences. 
    • Dr Radhika Khosla, Associate Professor at the Smith School of Enterprise and Environment, and Research Director of the Oxford India Centre for Sustainable Development at the University of Oxford. She works on examining the productive tensions between urban transitions, energy services consumption and climate change with a focus on developing country cities. 
    • Dr Michael Urban, Deputy Head of Sustainability Research at Lombard Odier (LO), which is a Swiss Bank specialising in wealth and asset management. He joined LO’s Sustainable Investment Research, Strategy and Stewardship (SIRSS) team in 2020. He brings to the panel expertise in the challenges and opportunities of investing in the transition to net-zero.

.

4.30-5.00 pm: Tea / Coffee The Bastion  

5.00-6.00 pm: Plenary session- Panel discussion 

Impact of nationalist/ populist policies on the funding of South American pension schemes: the current status quo and proposals for reform  

Panel chaired and moderated by Ángel Martínez-Aldama, President of the Spanish Association of Investment and Pension Funds (INVERCO).

Opening and welcome by Juan Ramón Caridad, Member of the Board of Fide Foundation

Panelists:

    • Guillermo Arthur, President of the International Federation of Pension Fund Administrators (FIAP).
    • Santiago Montenegro, President of the Colombian Association of Pension and Fund Administrators (ASOFONDOS).
    • René Novellino, Executive Director of the Salvadorean Association of Pension Funds Administrators (ASAFONDOS).

.

6.00-6.45 pm: Keynote Session: Sri Lankan experience of climate change issues – Keynote Speaker: HE Saroja Sirisena, High Commissioner for Sri Lanka to the United Kingdom 

7.15-7.30 pm: Jesus College Hall 

7.30-9.15 pm: Welcome Dinner  

On the second day, the Congress will start with a keynote speaker Rt Hon Sir John Mummery, formerly a member of the Court of Appeal of England and Wales on the legal profession in England and Wales, followed by several panel discussions on nationalism and populism at the national level, nationalism, populism, and the economy, Constitutional, legal and governance questions in the context of nationalism, and finally a panel discussion on refugees, nationalism, and externalization policies. 

09.15-09.30 am: Tea / Coffee The Bastion 

 9.30-10.00: Keynote Session: The legal profession in England and Wales; how Gray’s Inn fits into the legal landscape; why and how Gray’s Inn values international collaboration – Keynote speaker- Rt Hon Sir John Mummery, formerly a member of the Court of Appeal of England and Wales. Bencher of Gray’s Inn (member of the governing council). 

 10.00-10.55 am: Panel discussion: Working Group: Nationalism and populism at the national level 

  • Leader: Juan Martínez Calvo, Partner in Simmons & Simmons, Madrid office, whose practice is focused on the energy and infrastructure sectors, advising funds, developers, contractors, lenders, and public bodies. 
  • Constructive friend: Marie-Pierre Rey, Director of the Sorbonne research unit ‘Identities, international relations, and civilizations of Europe’, Professor of Modern History at the University Panthéon-Sorbonne, and specialist of Russian-European relations. 
  • Panelists: 
    • Stefania Baroncelli, Tenured full professor, Public and European Union Law, Free University of Bozen/Bolzano
    • Joaquín Echánove Orbea, Partner in the DLA Piper’s Corporate and M&A department at the Madrid office
    • Maria Garrote, Associate Professor of Constitutional Law at the Faculty of Law, Complutense University of Madrid
    • Professor Richard H. Pildes, Professor of Constitutional Law, New York University. Member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and the American Law Institute

.

11.00-11.30 am: Coffee break – The Bastion 

11.30-12.25 pm: Panel discussion: Working Group: Nationalism, populism, and the economy (1) 

  • Leader: Jorge Padilla, Senior Managing Director and Head of Compass Lexecon EMEA. 
  • Constructive friend: Frédéric Jenny, Emeritus Professor, Economics Department, ESSEC Business School. Co-Director of the European Center for Law and Economics 

.

Sub-group 1: Globalisation and Populism. 

  • Leader: Laurent Manderieux, Professor of Intellectual Property Law at L. Bocconi University of Milan, Italy. Member of Fide’s Academic Council 
  • Constructive friend: Jorge Padilla 
  • Panelists: 
    • Enrique Chamorro, Partner in the Department of M&A and Private Equity at DLA Piper
    • Elisabetta Marafioti, Professor of Management at University of Milano–Bicocca

.

12.30-1.30 pm: Lunchtime – Dining Hall 

1.40-2.45 pm: Panel discussion: Working Group: Nationalism, populism, and the economy. (2) 

  • Leader: Jorge Padilla, Senior Managing Director and Head of Compass Lexecon EMEA.   
  • Constructive friend: Frédéric Jenny, Emeritus Professor, Economics Department, ESSEC Business School. Co-Director of the European Center for Law and Economics 

.

Sub-group 2: The Future of the EU Project 

  • Leader: Juan Espinosa, Advisor to the Ministry of Finance and Civil Service of Spain 
  • Constructive friend: Frédéric Jenny 
  • Panelists:
    • Maria Pilar Canedo, Member of the Board of the Spanish National Commission of the Markets and of the Competition
    • Sonsoles Centeno Huerta, Partner of the European Union Law Department at Pérez-Llorca
    • Miguel de la Mano, Executive Vice President at Compass Lexecon based in Brussels
    • Martín Martínez Navarro, Référendaire (law clerk) at the General Court of the European Union since 2014

.

3.00-3.30 pm: Coffee Break – The Bastion 

3.30-4.25 pm: Panel discussion: Working Group: Nationalism, populism, and the economy. (3) 

 Subgroup 3: Populism and Inequality 

  • Leader: Joe Perkins, Senior Vice President and Head of Research at Compass Lexecon based in London. 
  • Constructive friend: Jorge Padilla 
  • Panelists: 
    • Cecilia García-Peñalosa, Professor of Economics at Aix-Marseille University and senior research fellow at the Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS).
    • Eva M. Gutiérrez, Lead Financial Economist in the Latin American and Caribbean Region of the World Bank
    • Francisco de la Torre, Tax inspector
    • Julio Veloso, Partner of Broseta since 2009, Head of the Private Equity, Funds and M&A area

.

4.30-5.45 pm: Panel discussion: Working Group: Constitutional, legal and governance questions in the context of nationalism 

  • Leader: Ramón Palacín, Managing Partner, EY Abogados. Specialist in tax law, especially in international taxation 
  • Constructive friend: Derrick Wyatt QC, Emeritus Professor of Law at the Faculty of Law, University of Oxford, Emeritus Fellow of St Edmund Hall, Oxford and formerly a member of Brick Court Chambers, London 
  • Panelists: 
    • Juan S. Mora-Sanguinetti, Senior Economist at the Bank of Spain-Eurosystem. Vice President of ENATIC. Member of Fide’s Academic Council

.

5.50-6.45 pm: Panel discussion: Challenges to the EU: refugee externalization policies: nationalism and humanitarianism. 

  • Moderator: Fernando Irurzun Montoro, Partner in charge of Litigation and Dispute Resolution practice in Clifford Chance Spain 

Panelists

    • Ela Gökalp Aras, Senior Researcher, Swedish Research Institute in Istanbul (SRII)
    • Borja Lasheras, Senior Fellow at the Center for European Policy Analysis (CEPA).
    • Stavros Papageorgopoulos, Senior Legal Officer at the European Council on Refugees and Exiles in Brussels.

.

7.00-7.30 pm: Evening drinks – Dining hall  

7.30-9.15 pm: Dinner – Dining hall  

During the third day, the Congress will be focused on the analysis of nationalism in the context of the COVID 19 pandemic; Covid and the European Union, misinformation, and free speech in modern democratic societies; and presenting the preliminary conclusions from the working groups.  

07.15-08.00 am: If the weather permits, delegates may be invited to join a walk around central Oxford, leaving from the front entrance of the College on Turl Street.

09.00-09.15 am: Tea / Coffee The Bastion  

9.30-10.00 am: Keynote Session: EU, COVID, and nationalism –  Keynote speaker- Professor Ulla Neergaard, Professor in EU Law, University of Copenhagen. President of the Danish Association of European Law 

10.00-10.55 am: Panel discussion: Working Group: Nationalism in the context of the Covid 19 pandemic. 

  • Leader: Federico de Montalvo, President of the Spanish Bioethics Committee, IBC UNESCO. 
  • Constructive friend: Rosario Cospedal García, Director General of Genómica 
  • Panellists: 
    • Gabriel López Serrano, Director of Regulatory Affairs for Microsoft Ibérica. Member of Fide’s Academic Council
    • Concha Serrano, Director of Institutional Relations, Pfizer S.L.U.

.

11.00-11.30 am: Coffee Break – The Bastion 

11.30-12.30 pm: Panel on Misinformation and free speech in modern democratic societies 

    • Teresa Rodríguez de las Heras Ballell, Professor of Commercial Law at the Carlos III University of Madrid. Sir Roy Goode Scholar at UNIDROIT. Academic Advisor to Fide
    • Guillermo Serrano, Public Policy Manager, Spain & Portugal, Meta. 
    • Dr. Talita de Souza Dias, Shaw Foundation Junior Research Fellow in Law, Jesus College, Oxford.

.

From 12.30-1.30 pm: Lunch – Dining Hall 

1.30-2.15 pm: Parallel working groups on Nationalism, populism, and identities: contemporary challenges.  

  • Working Group: Constitutional, legal or governance questions in the context of Nationalism. (TORs)
  • Working Group: Nationalism in the context of the Covid 19 pandemic, and discussion on misinformation and Covid. (TORs)
  • Working Group: Nationalism, populism, and the economy: 
    • Sub-group 1: Globalisation and Populism. (TORs)
    • Sub-group 2: The Future of the EU Project. (TORs)
    • Sub-group 3: Populism and Inequality. (TORs)

.

2.15-2.30 pm: Closure of the Congress by the Directors of the Congress

2.30-3.00 pm: Coffee – The Bastion

Download the Oxford/22 Programme on PDF

CONGRESS MEMBERS

Find below all the participants of the Congress.

Among them, International Academic Council (IAC) members, Constructive Friends (IAC members who work closely and provide strategic advice to the WGs directly), Directors of the Congress’ Working Groups (WG), members of the WG, and the speakers of the free-standing panels.

Important note: All members of the Working Groups and panels participate in an individual, non-institutional capacity, although we reflect each participant with their current position in the different working documents to better identify them.

Congress Coordinators

Victoria Dal Lago

Academic Coordinator, Fide Foundation

Cristina Arribas

Co-Coordinator, Fide Foundation

General Information

  • Date and place: The congress will be held on 4th, 5th, and 6th April, at the Jesus College, Oxford.
  • Language: English.
  • Registration fee: 800€, including lunches, coffees, and dinners during the Congress, documentation, assistance, and support for the arrangements related to the accommodation and transport. Members of Fide may benefit from a 5% discount.
  • Travel and transfers to Oxford and accommodations are not included in this registration fee.
  • Registration: To register please see the contact form below

Contact

If you’d like to register for this congress of get in contact with the Congress’ Coordinators, please fill out the following questionaire.

Contacto

Rellene el formulario y alguien de nuestro equipo se pondrá en contacto con usted brevemente.

Facebook Twitter Youtube