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As a social-anthropologist researching perceptions of remoteness in rural Romania, the object of my research concerns remote villages which have been described as places where people still live like a hundred years ago. They can certainly give that impression as I have also experienced in some of my early encounters. In the following, I want […]

I presented at the Latin American Studies Association congress in Paris in May on a panel titled “Mexico in Global Competition.” LASA is the largest scholarly association in the world for the study of Latin America, with over 13,000 members and an annual congress running to several hundred sessions across disciplines working on the region. […]

Introduction “One can say without exaggeration that Europe invented a ‘convergence machine’, taking in poor countries and helping them become high-income economies.” This was the famous assessment of Indermit Gill, Chief Economist for Europe and Central Asia at the World Bank, in 2012. Now, more than a decade later, this ‘convergence machine’ has delivered meaningful […]

Blog article adapted from University of Oxford MPhil thesis ‘Imagined Inclusion? Language, Identity, and the Limits of Inclusivity in the Pridnestrovian Nation’ and conference paper by the same name, presented at UACES Graduate Forum Research Conference at Babeș-Bolyai University, Cluj-Napoca on 4 June 2026. The thesis assesses how Ukrainian and Romanian are differentially included within […]

The development of green hydrogen production technologies has become increasingly significant within the context of global decarbonisation and the ongoing digital transformation of the economy. The use of renewable energy sources for hydrogen generation significantly reduces greenhouse gas emissions. It also enhances energy security by decreasing dependence on fossil fuels. Moreover, green hydrogen contributes to […]

I am very pleased to acknowledge the generous support provided by the University Association for Contemporary European Studies (UACES) through its “Microgrant Scheme”, which enabled me to undertake a research visit to Brussels in June 2026 in support of my forthcoming book, “The Making of a Strategy: The European Union and Maritime Security, 2000-2025”. The award […]

Context is a critical component of business and management research, shaping organisational behaviour and influencing outcomes. In management literature, it is widely acknowledged that “context counts” and “context matters”. Yet it is often present only implicitly, as a backdrop – an afterthought or a control variable – limiting the development of context-sensitive theories and marginalising […]

Investor-State dispute settlement (ISDS) used to be a niche corner of international economic law. It allowed foreign investors to bring claims directly against host States before arbitration tribunals, usually when they believed that government action had breached an investment treaty. The system was designed to depoliticize investment disputes and give investors a neutral forum outside […]

The rapid expansion of digital health has fundamentally challenged the traditional territorial boundaries of healthcare regulation within the European Union. While the promise of seamless cross-border medical care grows, the legal realities of managing patient safety, professional liability, and regulatory harmonisation remain complex. Supported by a UACES Microgrant, I recently spent three months as a […]

What does excellence in European Studies look like? For a long time, the answer has been shaped in relatively narrow ways. Publications, major research outputs and senior recognition have often taken centre stage. These contributions remain vital to the field, but they do not capture the full picture. European Studies is also built through teaching, […]