IPSA World Congress of Political Science

From 12-16 July 2009, the International Political Science Association (IPSA) held its 21st World Congress of Political Science in Santiago de Chile. Under the title "Global Discontent? Dilemmas of Change", more than 2000 participants discussed a variety of topics.

Sarah Seeger, Ludwig-Maximilians-University (LMU) Munich / Center for Applied Policy Research (C·A·P), participated at the Congress and contributed to the panel "The Politics of Ratification of the EU Treaties", convened by Dr. Carlos Closa, Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Cientificas (CSIC) in Madrid, and chaired by Prof. Dr. Antje Wiener, University of Hamburg.

The topic was analyzed from a variety of perspectives. Based on an analysis of the debate about ratification of EU treaties and referendums in the EU, Sarah Seeger explored how member states’ governments framed their decision on the ratification procedure of the Constitutional Treaty in comparison with the Treaty of Lisbon. Furthermore, she identified factors which influence the choice for the respective frames, such as legal requirements, the domestic political situation and public opinion.

Further contributions were made by Prof. Dr. Simon Hug (University of Geneva), Prof. Dr. Finn Laursen (Dalhousie University, Canada), Prof. Dr. Hans-Jörg Trenz (University of Oslo), Prof. Dr. Ulrike Liebert (University of Bremen) and Prof. Dr. Yvonne Galligan (Queen's University Belfast).