David Brandon Smith is working on the role of the churches in Namibia’s struggle for independence as part of the “Decolonizing Postcolonialism” project at Goethe University Frankfurt. In his lecture, which in a sense followed up on the evening event with Henning Melber held a few weeks ago at the Academy, he gave the fellows…
In cooperation with the Paradiplomacy Scholars Forum, a webinar was held at the initiative of AIA Fellow Débora Figueiredo M. Prado (Federal University of Uberlândia / AIA NRW) focusing on historical developments, institutions, and specific case studies of Brazilian paradiplomacy. With its 210 million inhabitants, Brazil is the seventh most populous country in the world…
On 16 March, Dr Huanyu Zhao, a postdoctoral researcher at the Ghent Institute for International and European Studies (GIES) at Ghent University in Belgium, visited the Academy. Dr Zhao gave the fellows fascinating insights into her research project, ReConnect China, which is funded under Horizon Europe. The project brings together around 100 researchers from 15…
Suart MacDonald used the colloquium to take stock of his project on the topic of ‘Sub-national Soft Power: Policy, Strategy, and Measurement.’ His starting point was the question of whether the soft power analysis model (Assets–Infrastructure–Outcomes, AIO) he had developed in another context for the national level could also be applied to regions and cities.…
In cooperation with the Bonn Centre for Dependency and Slavery Studies (BCDSS), the Centre for Reconciliation Studies, and the Global Heritage Lab at the University of Bonn, a public evening event on German colonialism and the German-Namibian past took place on 11 March. Moderated by AIA Fellow Heloise Weber, German-Namibian political scientist Henning Melber, Julia…
In cooperation with the Bonn Centre for Dependency and Slavery Studies (BCDSS), the Centre for Reconciliation Studies, and the Global Heritage Lab at the University of Bonn, a workshop on postcolonial perspectives on current political challenges, with a special focus on the case studies of Germany and Namibia, was held on 11 March at the…
In cooperation with the North Rhine-Westphalia State Representation in Brussels, the AIA organized a workshop on the importance of European regions for the future of Europe’s soft power, initiated by AIA Fellow Stuart MacDonald. The regions are home to important players such as city networks, cultural institutions, universities, and innovation ecosystems, which have great appeal…
At the AIA Colloquium, Karolina Kluczweska and Katja Freistein presented a jointly authored paper that takes an analytical look at K-dramas to examine gender inequalities in Korean society. Based on the fact that women in South Korea earn up to 31.5% less than men and are socially disadvantaged in many ways, the fiction of television…
The workshop, organized by AIA Fellows Summar Iqbal Barbar and Ifedayo Grace Malachi, addresses an important dimension of the Academy’s chosen annual theme of translocalism and sub-national diplomacy. The aim of this workshop was to use concrete examples from the Global North and Global South to gain a clearer understanding of categories such as diaspora,…
On 13 February, AIA Fellow Stuart MacDonald joined an expert panel at the Munich Security Conference to discuss one of the most pressing questions in contemporary international affairs: how Western nations are faring in the global competition for trust, influence, and young people’s allegiances. Drawing on findings from his recent major comparative study of soft…
“Peace does not always begin with treaties; sometimes it begins with crossings.” In his colloquium AIA Fellow Summar Iqbal Babar examined the Kartarpur Corridor as a form of peace-building infrastructure between India and Pakistan. Established in 2019, the translocal corridor enables pilgrims and tourists to cross the border to visit Sikh shrines in an otherwise…
Initiated by AIA Fellow Stuart MacDonald, a webinar on ‘Soft Power in Transactional Times’ took place on 3 February. This brought together potential consortium partners to identify the most suitable proposal for an application for a Horizon Europe research project on the topic of soft power under the conditions of transactional foreign policy. Based on…
AIA Fellow Summar Iqbal Babar gave a public lecture on the Kartarpur Corridor at the Centre for Development Research (ZEF) at the University of Bonn. The Kartarpur Corridor is a visa-free pilgrimage route between India and Pakistan that connects two important Sikh shrines. It runs for just under 4–4.7 km from the Indian-Pakistani border crossing…
As part of the Global Policy Dialogues, we welcomed Prof. Dr. Eva Marlene Hausteiner from the University of Nuremberg/Erlangen on 20 January. In her lecture, she addressed the significance of empires as actors in international relations, focusing in particular on the question of how empires exercise power. She presented two methodological approaches to conceptualising empires…
Fellow Martin Weber’s colloquium on his research project at the Academy and the book he is writing in Bonn focused on how fundamental ecological and social issues can be considered together. This complex intertwining can be seen as one of the major challenges for meaningful political transformation that, for example, halts the harmful effects of…
At the AIA Fellow Colloquium, Heloise Weber, Associate Professor at the School of Political Science and International Studies at the University of Queensland, Australia, presented a current paper she is working on, which is part of a larger book project. She examines the United Nations Declaration on the Right to Development (UNDRD), which was adopted…
Dear colleagues, partners, fellows, and friends, as the year draws to a close, we would like to thank you sincerely for your engagement, cooperation, and participation in our activities throughout the year. Your contributions and interest have been greatly appreciated and have enriched our work in many ways. We value the trust and commitment you…
The core – or even heart – of a fellowship programme is a closely knit, productive and happy community of fellows, who share an interest in debates, exchange of knowledge and joint learning. Each cohort develops their own dynamics, and with every new group of fellows that comes to the Academy in Bonn, a sustainable…
Can cities save democracy? This admittedly deliberately provocative question was discussed during a panel discussion organised by the AIA at the Haus der Bilder in Bonn City Library. The event was part of our annual theme ‘Sub-national Diplomacy’. At this event, conceived by AIA Fellow Tamara Ehs in collaboration with the Academy, the panellists agreed…
Initiated by the Bonn based IDOS, the third meeting of the Science Dialogue Day took place at AIA this year. The networking and exchange event for invited representatives of leadership programmes in North-Rhine-Westphalia brings together professionals in research, training and fellowship institutions. Identifying shared interests and challenges is a main purpose of this meeting format,…
Many may have heard of the Crimean Tatar ethnic group, but the rich culture and history of the Crimean Tatars is little known. AIA Fellow Hüseyin Cicek was involved as an author in the publication of an anthology on the history and culture of the Crimean Tatars, which was recently published by Mieste Hotopp-Riecke and…
Values, Weapons, Reality. Germany’s Responsibility in Peace Processes On Thursday evening, November 20, an evening event was held at the Old Town Hall in Bonn to conclude this year’s Bonn Symposium. It was organized by the Development and Peace Foundation, with the Academy of International Affairs as this year’s cooperation partner. The event consisted of…
Lessons from the Korean Wave for Cultural Diplomacy In front of an audience of more than 60 interested listeners, the AIA NRW, in its proven cooperation with the Korean Embassy, Bonn branch, organised a public event on the topic of ‘More than the “Korean Wave”: Cultural Diplomacy as Part of Soft Power Strategies’ at the…
Policy, Strategy and Measurement The Fellow Workshop organized by AIA Fellow Stuart MacDonald focused on the term and concept of ‘soft power’, which was popularized by the recently deceased American political scientist Joseph Nye in his 1990 book ‘Bound to Lead: The Changing Nature of American Power’ and is familiar to anyone who has ever…
The Academy of International Affairs NRW hosted a workshop convened by AIA Fellow Summar Barbar to emphasize the emerging importance of subnational diplomacy as a tool to reinstate Pak-German relations with the involvement of youth, academic cooperation, and cultural exchange. This event took place at a historically authentic location, as the premises of the AIA…
From October 29 to November 1, 2025, the ninth International Security Forum Bonn (ISFB) took place, organized by the Center for Advanced Security, Strategic and Integration Studies (CASSIS) at the University of Bonn. The AIA NRW was once again a cooperation partner this year and participated with its team and fellows in the discussions on…
AIA Fellow Anna Shpakovskaya undertook a field research trip to China as part of her fellowship and reported on her fresh impressions and findings at the Fellow Colloquium. In her interviews with representatives from cities, universities, and research institutions in five major Chinese cities, Anna was able to ask about the significance of city clusters.…
John Horack, Vice President for Research and inaugural holder of the Neil Armstrong Chair in Aerospace Policy at Ohio State University, visited the Academy to discuss the future of transatlantic cooperation in space. In his keynote speech, he reviewed the history of space travel, focusing in particular on the contribution made by German engineers. He…
The Academy of International Affairs NRW was once again represented with a stand at the United Nations Day organized by the City of Bonn. It was once again a great pleasure for us to exchange ideas with our partner institutions and the many institutions of international Bonn: Arbeitsgemeinschaft der Entwicklungsdienste e.V., Auswärtiges Amt, BFIO –…
By Martin Wein, General-Anzeiger Bonn, 28 September 2025 In an interview with journalist Martin Wein, John Austin, Fellow at the Academy for Foreign Affairs in Bonn, argues that Germany must assume greater leadership in defending liberal democracy. The American political scientist contends that the United States has relinquished its traditional global role under Donald Trump’s…
As part of a hybrid event, AIA Fellow John Austin brought together innovation leaders and ecosystem builders from the US, Canada, the UK, and Europe to discuss the development of university-based innovation ecosystems in transatlantic cooperation. The discussion focused on why Europe, compared to the US, has long been unable to create the ideal conditions…
Tamara Ehs presented her project at the AIA Colloquium, which deals with the democratic theoretical potential of cities to strengthen liberal democracy. Based on the SDGs (Sustainable Development Goals) known from the UN context, she plans to develop “DDGs,” i.e., democratic development goals. Since the literature repeatedly refers to an autocratic playbook that can be…
As part of the Bonn Symposium, organized by the Development & Peace Foundation, the AIA NRW hosted the first panel discussion on the topic of “Peace with or protection from Russia? Rethinking Europe’s security after Ukraine.” Moderated by AIA Associate Fellow Mariia Levchenko, we discussed with Dr. Christina Horváth-Stenner, Head of the Europe Department at…
Unpacking the Performative Nature of Meaningful Youth Participation AIA Fellow Chisomo Banda hosted an interactive workshop on youth participation and integration. The workshop focused in particular on the challenge of tokenism in politics. Roen von der Marve, co-founder of Impacting Youth, presented the study on “Youth perspectives and engagement on sustainability” developed at the Managing…
The magazine Arbeit & Wirtschaft published an interview with political scientist and AIA NRW Fellow Tamara Ehs, in which she analyzes the current crisis of democracy in Austria. According to Ehs, many people feel that they are not represented politically, and some even entertain the idea of a “friendly dictator.” Democracy must therefore deliver on…
Europe’s Strategic Role and the Future of Transatlantic Relations As part of a public evening event, the Academy, together with AmerikaHaus NRW, hosted a panel discussion with the former foreign policy advisor to the German Chancellor, former German Ambassador to the UN and MSC Director Christoph Heusgen. Drawing on his wealth of experience, he spoke…
European International Studies Association (EISA), Bologna, 25-29 August A delegation from AIA NRW attended the biggest annual European conference for international politics in Bologna to present their ongoing research and catch up with the latest debates in the field. Fellows Chiung-Chiu Huang and Anna Shpakovskaya as well as Katja Freistein from the Academy participated in…
On 15 August, Nathanael Liminski, Minister for Federal and European Affairs, International Affairs and Media, and Head of the State Chancellery of North Rhine-Westphalia, visited the Academy. He spoke with our Director Mayssoun Zein Al Din and the AIA team on the substantive contributions of our Fellows to the academic and intellectual landscape of North…
The European Forum Alpbach took place in August under the motto ‘Recharge Europe,’ with the US-American Heritage Foundation also participating. Fellow Tamara Ehs is a member of the forum’s scientific advisory board and spoke about the development of liberal democracies in Europe in an interview with the renowned newspaper “Der Standard”. Her research focuses on…
Migration remains one of the most defining and complex issues in international policy discourse today. Our fellow Chisomo Banda presented her research in the AIA colloquium. She focuses in particular on young people’s perspectives on migration. While global migration discourse is often dominated by concerns about border security, irregular migration, and economic contributions, the distinct…
Consul General Preeti V. Shah, U.S. Consulate General in Düsseldorf, welcomed our Fellows Chisomo Banda, Chiung-Chiu Huang, Chelsea Haramia, Inna Supac, and Anna Shpakovskaya, for an in-depth exchange focused on international research cooperation and the value of shared global standards. The meeting fostered a rich interdisciplinary dialogue on timely global issues, including the shifting dynamics…
Professor Chih-yu Shih from Tongji University in Shanghai visited the AIA and discussed new perspectives on international relations with the Fellows in a Global Policy Dialogue. For some time now, scholars from the Global South have been providing an impetus for a critical reflection on the canon of classical theories developed primarily by Western researchers.…
What role do cities play in regulating migration, and how can migrants counter-act discrimination? Researcher Philipp Lottholz from Marburg University presented case studies from Duisburg and Plovdiv (Bulgaria), where groups of disenfranchised migrants self-organise by demonstrating, establishing small-scale charity projects and drawing attention to unequal conditions. The talk addressed how precarious living and working conditions…
On July 3rd and 4th, Manuel Becker, Head of the Scientific Program at the AIA, took part in the “Trilateral Seminar Transatlantic Security Architecture: Developments and Perspectives” in Paris.
A group of Master’s and PhD students from the Bonn International Model United Nations (BIMUN) recently visited the North Rhine-Westphalian Academy of International Affairs. The visit provided a valuable opportunity for interdisciplinary exchange between future practitioners and current researchers engaged in international affairs. Following an introduction to the Academy’s mission and fellowship programme, the main…
AIA Fellow Karolina Kluczweskas research deals with the geopolitical reorientations taking place in post-Soviet Eurasia, particularly concerning the impact of massive shifts in Russia on Central Asia. It investigates actors and rationalities of the ongoing geopolitical reorientation, as well as formal and informal practices characterising this process. In her presentation at the AIA colloquium she…
At the panel discussion held in Dortmund, experts explored the parallels between two of the world’s most emblematic post-industrial regions: Germany’s Ruhr region and the U.S. Rust Belt. Despite geographic distance, both have faced similar challenges—declining industry, community disruption, and a widespread loss of future prospects. John Austin (AIA NRW Fellow), Emily Adams (Chancellor Fellow…
Chiung-Chiu Huang presented a research paper she is currently writing at the AIA Fellow Colloquium. She focused primarily on the theoretical framework of the paper and also gave insights into her case studies. At the center of her considerations is the “International United Front” strategy, which she believes is crucial to understanding China’s foreign policy…