The External
Episodes
How Human Rights Laws and Economic Competitiveness Can Co-Exist
09 Sep 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In an analysis of French companies in response to the French Duty of Vigilance Law, Dr. Bernhard Reinsberg and Dr. Christoph Valentin Steinert assess ...
How Deliberate Ambiguity Built One of the World’s Most Successful Worker Safety Initiatives
09 Sep 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In their article, ‘From Constructive Ambiguity to Escalating Commitment: The Evolution of the Bangladesh Accord as a Transnational Institution for ...
How the law is used to silence Human Rights Defenders
06 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Research from Dr Aikaterini-Christina Koula at Manchester Metropolitan University reveals how legal systems are increasingly being weaponized to silen...
The Geopolitics and Political Economy of the EU–Mercosur FTA Negotiations
04 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In Episode 23, we are joined by Dr. Nicolás Pose-Ferraro (University of the Republic of Uruguay) to discuss his 2025 article in the Journal of Co...
International Attention and the Protection of Human Rights Defenders
25 Apr 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In ‘International Attention and the Protection of Human Rights Defenders: Campaigning for Agents of Change’ (Routledge 2023), Dr. Janika Spannagel...
Political culture and Europeanization: How informal rules shape formal political processes
31 Jan 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In his new book Europeanization and Informal Networks in Southeastern Europe (2025, Routledge), Alexander Mesarovich (European University Instit...
An illiberal power? The European Union at its borders
31 Jan 2025
Contributed by Lukas
The EU has been widely criticized for its approach to migration. It has been accused of being cynical, negligent and even ‘illiberal’. But are the...
How Latin America’s Groundbreaking Treaty Intersects with European Economic Law
30 Jan 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Research by Claudia Ituarte-Lima and Radu Mares at Lund University examines how a pioneering environmental agreement in Latin America and the Caribbea...
How citizens’ identities shape their support for international organizations
30 Jan 2025
Contributed by Lukas
What effect does the institutional design of international organizations have on their domestic support? In their recent article, Bernd Schlipphak, C...
What is the contribution of Voluntary Sustainability Standards to Global Sustainability Governance?
04 Nov 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Episode 17 Voluntary Sustainability Standards have emerged as influential tools to promote sustainable practices in global value chains and are becomi...
How President von der Leyen Shaped the EU’s Response to Russia’s Invasion of Ukraine
02 Sep 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Can leadership within the European Commission shape the EU's response to global crises? In Episode 16, The External explores the decisive leade...
Marine Bardou | Quiet Early Bird or Loud Late Riser? Understanding the European Parliament’s Involvement in International Agreements
19 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
The European Parliament has the ability to play a key role in shaping the European Union's international agreements. But how exactly does it get i...
The Politics of Chinese Investments in Europe and the Liberal International Order
24 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Is Europe effectively leveraging Chinese investments to enhance its strategic interests within the liberal international order? In Episode 14, The ...
Trade Policy in the EU: Market Focus or Geopolitical Tool?
17 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Is EU trade policy primarily a market tool or a geopolitical instrument? In Episode 13, we delve into the complex interplay between market objectives ...
South to north investment linkages and decent work in Brazil
21 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Is there a ‘Brussels effect’ through international investment dynamics? In Episode 12, The External provides insights from a recent article in Lab...
Identity Politics, European Integration and the War in Ukraine
14 May 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Are identity politics preventing the upgrading of supranational institutions as part of the EU’s response to the War in Ukraine? In Episode 11, The...
Advocacy and Change in International Organizations
29 Mar 2024
Contributed by Lukas
International organizations change over time, expanding into new areas and abandoning original programmes of work. But are these changes always at the...
The Rise of Foreign Direct Investment Screening in the European Union
28 Feb 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In a changing geopolitical landscape, the EU and its member states have introduced novel mechanisms for screening foreign direct investment for nation...
The EU and the Governance of Contested Global Spaces
20 Feb 2024
Contributed by Lukas
The high seas, the polar regions, the atmosphere, outer space, and cyberspace... these areas beyond national jurisdiction have become increasingly con...
Macroeconomic Responses to Global Health Crises
29 Jan 2024
Contributed by Lukas
While the COVID-19 crisis had an economic impact worldwide, different states and regions responded with different macroeconomic policies and with very...
How Multinational Corporations Contribute to Regional Integration Across Africa
20 Dec 2023
Contributed by Lukas
What role do multinational corporations play in African regional political and economic intregration? In Episode 6, the External provides an overview ...
Factional politics behind the UK's evolving foreign policy
03 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Can changes to British foreign policy be understood as an outcome of factional politics that divided the Conservative Party during the Brexit negotiat...
How parliaments are shaping the EU-Mercosur Association Agreement
12 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
National and subnational parliaments are increasingly taking up a role in regional trade negotiations, which has implications for the final negotiatio...
Paradiplomacy toward the EU from US states
05 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Individual US states engage in their own diplomatic efforts towards the EU - Illinois even has an office in Brussels - but they do so in different way...