IIEA Talks

Full presentation Title: Constitutional Change and the Rise of Fiscal Discipline in Europe: Ripple Effects on Fundamental Social Rights In March 2025, the ReArm Europe plan brought EU fiscal discipline and rules back into the spotlight of EU policymaking. In her address to the IIEA, Dr Kotsoni explores how, following the eurozone crisis, several EU Member States adopted constitutional fiscal rules – both formally and, as she will argue, informally. In her presentation, Dr Kotsoni examines how the constitutionalisation of fiscal rules has had lasting effects beyond the eurozone crisis and reflects upon its ongoing limiting impact on fundamental social rights in Europe. About the Speaker: Dr Maria Kotsoni is a Postdoctoral Researcher at Princeton University. Her research focuses on the protection of social rights at constitutional, European, and international levels. Maria obtained her PhD from the European University Institute and is a consultant to the Council of Europe’s Department of Social Rights.

Current tectonic changes in Europe’s security environment have opened the way for rethinking the EU enlargement process. Western Balkan countries are an immediate neighbour to the EU and their stability is of strategic importance. As their closest EU partner, Croatia strongly advocates for the European path of the Western Balkans countries and is committed to finding solutions to challenges in the accession processes. In this address as part of the IIEA's Future-Proofing Europe project, supported by the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, Minister Grlić Radman will tackle some of the focal challenges and questions on EU enlargement, as well as opportunities and possible ways forward. Speaker bio: Gordan Grlić Radman is the Minister of Foreign and European Affairs of the Republic of Croatia, a post he has held since July 2019. Additionally, Minister Radman is also the President of the Danube Commission. Prior to his current position, he was Ambassador of the Republic of Croatia to the Federal Republic of Germany from 2017 until 2019 and to Hungary from 2012 until 2017. He has also held a number of high-level roles within the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, including Head of the Central European Department and Secretary General. Minister Radman holds a PhD from the Faculty of Political Science of the University of Zagreb.

In her address to the IIEA, Constanze Stelzenmüller explores Europe’s strategic outlook as it faces mounting geopolitical challenges. As Russia’s war against Ukraine persists with ongoing support from China, the United States has entered a new political chapter following its recent presidential election. Meanwhile, authoritarian powers are asserting themselves on the global stage, challenging the rules-based international order. Against this backdrop, Europe must confront difficult questions about its security, prosperity, and strategic autonomy. Dr Stelzenmüller explores what role Europe can play in shaping the future global order, and what the implications are for Ireland and the wider European Union. About the speaker: Dr. Constanze Stelzenmüller is the Director of the Center on the United States and Europe and the inaugural holder of the Fritz Stern Chair on Germany and Trans-Atlantic Relations at the Brookings Institution in Washington, DC. A German citizen herself, she is an expert on German, European, and Trans-Atlantic foreign and security policy, as well as international law and human rights. From 2019-2020, Dr. Stelzenmüller held the Kissinger Chair on Foreign Policy and International Relations at the Library of Congress, and from 2014-2019 served as the inaugural Robert Bosch Senior Fellow at the Brookings Institution. Prior to joining Brookings, she directed the Berlin office of the German Marshall Fund of the United States and later served as Senior Transatlantic Fellow with the organisation, heading the Transatlantic Trends Programme. Dr. Stelzenmüller’s work in the think tank sphere follows a distinguished career in journalism, including the role of Defence and International Security Editor in the political section of DIE ZEIT from 1994-2005. She has contributed to a variety of publications, writes a monthly column for the Financial Times, and is a frequent commentator on American and European news outlets.

Ten years after the historic climate agreement reached at COP21 in Paris, considerable progress has been made in areas ranging from energy efficiency and renewables deployment to electric vehicles and heat pumps. However, this progress is well below that required to deliver on the goals in the 2015 Paris Climate Agreement, and investment in clean energy remains uneven. As political headwinds increase, Brian Motherway considers what the past decade has taught us in terms of global engagement on climate and clean energy, and what we have learned in terms of engaging citizens and societies in the vital project of clean energy transitions. This event is part of the IIEA’s REthink Energy series, organised in partnership with ESB, Ireland’s state-owned electricity company. Speaker bio: Brian Motherway is Head of the Office of Energy Efficiency and Inclusive Transitions at the International Energy Agency. He oversees analytical and outreach programmes supporting energy efficiency globally. He also leads IEA’s work with governments on people-centred policymaking, addressing issues such as skills, inclusion and fairness in clean energy policies. Prior to joining the IEA, Brian was Chief Executive of the Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland.

In this talk, Professor Stephen Millard discusses the outlook for the UK economy in light of the Chancellor’s Spring Statement and accompanying Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) forecast. He compares the current NIESR view as to the outlook for GDP, inflation and the labour market with the OBR’s forecast and the forecast from the Bank of England’s February Monetary Policy Report. In his remarks, Professor Millard also draws out the implications for monetary and fiscal policy moving forward. About the Speaker: Professor Stephen Millard is the Interim Director of the National Institute of Economic and Social Research (NIESR) in the UK and is currently part of the Irish Fiscal Advisory Council. Prior to joining NIESR, Stephen worked for 26 and a half years at the Bank of England. During this time, he worked in a variety of policy, research and managerial roles across the Bank's Monetary Analysis and Financial Infrastructure Directorates. He is also a Visiting Professor at the Durham University Business School and the University of Portsmouth. He holds a Ph.D. from Northwestern University.

In this webinar, Nina Jankowicz discusses the evolution of disinformation in democracies, ranging from Russian-linked disinformation campaigns in Eastern Europe to the new U.S. Government’s hostile stance towards disinformation research. She discusses how the new US administration’s relationship with technology companies may affect content moderation policies and practices. Ms Jankowicz also assesses the implications of readily accessible Artificial Intelligence (AI) applications for the generation of disinformation and explores how democracies can best respond to the evolving threat of disinformation.  About the speaker: Nina Jankowicz, is the co-founder and CEO of the American Sunlight Project, an advocacy group working to counter disinformation, and an internationally-recognised expert on disinformation and democratisation. She is the former Executive Director of the Disinformation Governance Board at the US Department of Homeland Security. Before this she was a Global Fellow at the Wilson Centre and she previously advised the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry on strategic communications under the auspices of a Fulbright-Clinton Public Policy Fellowship. Ms Jankowicz is one of TIME magazine’s 100 Most Influential People in AI and is the author of How to Lose the Information War: Russia, Fake News, and the Future of Conflict.

Whither Ireland-US relations? The second term of Donald Trump has been eventful. After just weeks in office, the US president has alienated some of the most pro-American governments in Europe with his interventions in the war in Ukraine and his moves towards an accommodation with the aggressor in the conflict, Russia. He has also promised tariffs on goods from the European Union and strongly criticised EU laws and regulations being applied to American companies operating in the bloc. The next edition of IIEA insights will look at how this upheaval in transatlantic relations is affecting Ireland’s traditionally close ties with the US and how those ties might change over the next four years with Larry Donnelly, Law lecturer and columnist with the Journal.ie; Brian Jensen, retired US diplomat and former Section Chief at the US embassy in Ireland; Niamh King, Director of the Aspen Security Forum; and Fergal O’Brien, Executive Director at Ibec.

Strengthening the full implementation of the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons necessitates a balanced implementation of all of its three pillars: nuclear disarmament, non-proliferation of nuclear weapons, and peaceful nuclear uses. However, the current geopolitical situation has exacerbated significant challenges in all of these three pillars. In his address to the IIEA Ambassador Klement discusses efforts to address those challenges, and reflects upon regional non-proliferation crises and his experience as a negotiator in the Iran nuclear negotiations. Speaker bio: Ambassador Stephan Klement is the EU Special Envoy for Disarmament and Non-Proliferation, a position he has held since February 2024. From 2019 to 2023, Ambassador Clement served as EU Head of Delegation to the International Organisations in Vienna. Since 2016, he has served as the Special Advisor for the Iranian nuclear issues in the European External Action Service (EEAS). Mr. Klement holds a Doctoral degree in International Law from the Institute of International Law and International Relations, University of Vienna. He holds a Doctoral degree in Physics from the Institute of Experimental Physics, University of Vienna, a Masters in Law and a Masters in Theoretical Physics both from the University of Vienna, Austria.

The Minister speaks about the environmental policies and programmes being implemented to protect and improve our environment ensuring we work together to tackle the interconnected challenges facing agriculture and the environment About the Speaker: Andrew Muir MLA is Minister of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs in Northern Ireland and Alliance Party MLA for North Down. He previously served as Alliance Party Chief Whip, Finance and Infrastructure Spokesperson and leading party efforts for Restoration and Reform of Assembly and Executive. Aged 47, prior to joining the Northern Ireland Assembly in late 2019 Andrew served for nearly a decade as Councillor including a term as Mayor of North Down 2013/14. Before becoming a MLA Andrew worked for Northern Ireland’s Public Transport provider Translink as a Senior Project Manager overseeing roll out of multi-million pound Future Ticketing System Project. Andrew graduated with a degree in Peace and Conflict Studies at Ulster University in 1999. A keen runner, Andrew has completed eleven Marathons with a Personal Best of 3:07. He founded both Bangor and Crawfordsburn free weekly 5k parkruns and is a member of North Down Athletic Club.

The Poverty, Prosperity, and Planet Report 2024 is the first global, post-pandemic assessment of the World Bank’s mission to end extreme poverty, boost shared prosperity in a liveable planet and take stock of its progress towards achieving these goals. It highlights the stark reality that these intertwined goals are out of reach under the current levels and patterns of economic growth.    About the speaker: Luis Felipe López-Calva is the Global Director for Poverty and Equity at the World Bank Group. He has over 30 years of professional experience working with international institutions and advising national governments. He rejoined the World Bank in 2022 from the United Nations Development Programme, where he served as UN Assistant Secretary General and Regional Director for Latin America and the Caribbean since 2018.  It is the inaugural lecture of the 2025 Development Matters series, which is kindly sponsored by Irish Aid.