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Prof. Dr. Daniela Braun

Prof. Dr. Daniela Braun

Scientific lead of ActEU and co-lead of WP1
Dr. Ann-Kathrin Reinl

Dr. Ann-Kathrin Reinl

Research fellow at European University Institute and co-lead of WP1
Dr. Alex Hartland

Dr. Alex Hartland

Team Member
Dr. Rosa Navarrete

Dr. Rosa Navarrete

Team Member
Dr. Giuseppe Carteny

Dr. Giuseppe Carteny

Team Member

The Team of University of Saarland has been/continues to work very much on the issues related to ActEU. The following are examples for projects related to ActEU at USAAR:

New publication: „A matter of time, not generations: rising emotional attachment to the European Union 1991–2023. An age period cohort analysis“ in the Journal of European Public Policy

Martin Schröder, Daniela Braun, Katrin Luisa Grimm, Martin Ulrich and Georg Wenzelburger have jointly published an article in the Journal of European Public Policy in which they analyse the assumption that younger generations have a stronger bond with the EU in times of increasing European integration. Using Eurobarometer data from 1991 to 2023, the authors show that not only younger generations, but all generations have developed a stronger bond with the EU over time. This suggests that there are no fixed „generations of Europeans“, but that attachment to the EU is increasing for all generations. Link to the publication

Talk, Open Day at USAAR: „How motivated are parties and voters to get involved?“

On 9 June 2024, citizens will elect the European Parliament for the 10th time. The lecture will provide insights into political science research on European elections: Are European elections European? What are the reasons for the low voter turnout? What expectations can be formulated for the 2024 elections?

Prof Daniela Braun will address these questions during Saarland University’s Open Day on 8 June in her talk entitled: „How motivated are parties and voters to get involved?“ More information

Talk, Open Day at USAAR: „European elections in danger?“, Date: 8 June

Can AI and fake news jeopardise elections? How does political opinion-forming work in times of social media and AI-generated content? How can their influence be measured? Political science professor and European policy expert Daniela Braun will get to the bottom of these questions together with Humboldt Professor of Artificial Intelligence Ingmar Weber. They discuss the opportunities and risks of digital technologies for European democracies.

Talk: „Gender in Political Science: Europe – Climate – Security“

On 29 May 2024, the talk „Gender in Political Science: Europe – Climate – Security“ by Prof Daniela Braun and Djamila Jabra, M.A. took place. The lecture shed light on the role of gender research in political science and will focus in particular on the importance of feminist approaches to the study of European policy issues, climate conflicts and security measures.

The lecture is part of the Gender Lecture Series „Facets of Diversity: Gender Research and its Significance for Society“. Further information: https://www.uni-saarland.de/en/chair/braun/news/facets-of-diversity-gender-research-and-its-significance-for-society.html#c449916

Talk and debate: „Germany before the European elections“, 03 June 2024

Against the backdrop of the upcoming European elections, Stiftung Demokratie Saarland is organising an introductory event on the topic of European elections. In their joint lecture ‘Germany before the European elections’, Prof Daniela Braun and Prof Markus Tausendpfund will provide an introduction to and an overview of the topic of EU elections. In terms of content, they will look at various modalities and aspects accompanying the European elections. They will look at the EU election programmes and identify their theses: are they predominantly national or European in nature? At the end, the audience will be invited to discuss the question: ‘Are European elections actually European elections?’. Further information – YouTube livestream

SWR2 Interview with Prof. Daniela Braun: Why We Often Find EU Politics Boring

Prof. Daniela Braun was interviewed on May 3, 2024, by SWR Aktuell host Pascal Fournier. The topic of discussion, as part of the “Aktuell” format, was the upcoming European elections in June. According to an Infratest dimap survey, only about half of the German population is interested in them. Why is that the case? What significance do they have for our everyday lives? Who is particularly interested in European issues, and what can be changed? These were the topics they discussed: To the SWR2 interview. The interview was broadcast on May 3, 2024, at 12:00 PM on SWR2.

Talk by Prof Daniela Braun in Heidelberg: „The 2024 European elections – a Franco-German analysis in the run-up“

On 3 May, Prof. Daniela Braun will give a talk at the Europe Weeks organised by the Franco-German Cultural Circle in her former place of study, Heidelberg. The talk is entitled „The 2024 European elections – a Franco-German analysis in the run-up“ and will take place in the Friedrich-Ebert-Haus from 18:00. It will be followed by a drink in the bakery. In her talk , Prof Daniela Braun will compare the German and French perspectives on the European elections: What are the differences in the process, what expectations are associated with the elections in the two countries and are European elections European? Further Information

„Who cares about Europe?“ – Dossier of the bpb

What is the state of public support for the EU? How do international crises influence political trust? And how are the EU institutions perceived? These questions are addressed in a dossier by Prof Daniela Braun, published by the Federal Agency for Civic Education (bpb) under the title „Who cares about Europe: Public opinion on the European Union and its elections“. To the dossier

Podcast episode of the State Agency for Civic Education of Baden-Württemberg with Prof Daniela Braun: For the „Politisch bildet“ podcast, the State Agency for Civic Education of Baden-Württemberg has invited Prof Daniela Braun as a discussion partner.

The episode entitled „European elections 2024: Are the European elections European enough?“ focuses on the relevance of the European elections for the population, the effects of the lowered voting age in the upcoming European elections this year and, of course, the question of how European the European elections are. Towards the end, Prof Braun will give tips to first-time voters on how to make the decision to vote easier. Prof Braun wrote an analysis on the topic for the state agency’s magazine „Deutschland & Europa“ last year. To the podcast episode

UACES panel discussion with Prof Daniela Braun

The University Association for Contemporary European Studies (UACES) is hosting a panel discussion on 27 March 2024 entitled „Beyond the Ballot Box: Domestic Politics & the Future of the European Union, in which Prof Daniela Braun will participate. The webinar will focus on the upcoming European elections and how the challenges of the last five years will affect the election and what influence domestic events and elections of the individual EU member states will have. Further information 

Talk by Prof Braun at the practical day of the Master of Public Policy programme at the University of Duisburg-Essen

At the practical day of the Master of Public Policy at the University of Duisburg-Essen on 6 March 2024, Prof. Daniela Braun will give a talk entitled „Elections in the EU: European Institutions, Parties and Policies“. This will be followed by a discussion with the audience. The practical day with the topic „Super election year 2024: Elections in Germany, the EU and worldwide“ will take place at the NRW School of Governance. Full programme of the practical day

New publication on „How European are the European elections?“

In their article published in the Zeitschrift für Gemeinschaftskunde, Geschichte und Wirtschaft, Prof Dr Daniela Braun and Prof Dr Markus Tausendpfund explore the question of how European the European elections are. „From 6 to 9 June 2024, the citizens of the European Union (EU) will be asked to elect the European Parliament (EP) for the tenth time. MEPs have been directly elected since 1979. The aim of these elections was to strengthen the role of the Parliament in the EU’s institutional system and to address the much-cited democratic deficit in the EU. Nevertheless, since their introduction, the European elections have been known for their secondary election character“ Full article