Germany – FEPS Young Academic Network

Doctoral researcher in Comparative Politics and a lecturer at the University of Cologne

Interests : Democracy Foreign Affairs
Countries : Germany United Kingdom Turkey

Ece Özbey is a doctoral researcher in Comparative Politics and a lecturer at the University of Cologne, where she is pursuing her PhD on populist contagion and anti-populism in the United Kingdom. Her research spans Euroscepticism, political competition, radicalization, and democracy, with a primary focus on European democracies. She holds an MSc in European Studies and a BSc in International Relations. Ece is also the Co-Managing Editor of the Review of Democracy, the journal of the Central European University’s Democracy Institute, where she previously worked as a Global Forum for Democracy and Development Fellow. She is affiliated with the METU Jean Monnet Centre of Excellence and has published on European integration and EU–Turkey relations. She has also held visiting positions at academic institutions in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Chile and is actively involved in various international research networks, including OPUS Initiative and Team Populism

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Publications

Upholding core Union values. The European Parliament’s engagement with the Rule of Law Reports during the ninth legislative term

This policy study analyses how the European Parliament (EP) has engaged with the European Commission’s Rule of Law Reports (RoLRs) during the ninth legislative term (2019-2024). It also examines what this engagement reveals about the EP’s understanding of the rule of law and its capacity to strengthen EU-level democratic safeguards.

Drawing on a qualitative analysis of parliamentary resolutions, debates and voting patterns, the policy study examines whether the EP approaches the rule of law primarily as a procedural-legal standard or as a broader normative principle encompassing fundamental rights, equality and democratic inclusion.

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Academic Mentor: Felix Butzlaff, political scientist and postdoctoral fellow at the Central European University Vienna
Political Mentor: Juan Fernando López Aguilar, S&D Coordinator LIBE Committee

Members

Alessandro Marcia

Ph.D. Researcher and Lecturer of EU law at Maastricht University

Interests : Democracy Gender Equality
Countries : Belgium Italy

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Ebru Ece Özbey

Doctoral researcher in Comparative Politics and a lecturer at the University of Cologne

Interests : Democracy Foreign Affairs
Countries : Germany United Kingdom Turkey

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Unai Gómez-Hernández

Joint PhD at the University of Edinburgh and KU Leuven

Interests : Democracy Foreign Affairs Inequality
Countries : Belgium Spain United Kingdom

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Publications

17/03/2026

Upholding core Union values. The European Parliament's engagement with the Rule of Law Reports during the ninth legislative term

FEPS YAN papers 9th Cycle

Marvin Fendt

PhD student at Ludwig-Maximilians-University Munich

Interests : Democracy Disinformation
Countries : Germany

Marvin Fendt is a PhD student at Ludwig-Maximilians-University Munich within the Chair of Empirical Pedagogy and Educational Psychology. He is intrigued by the paradox that despite having more access to information than ever before, people often seemingly fail to make well-informed decisions. His research investigates the drivers of misinformation and individual-level interventions to combat it, with a focus on source credibility and scalable, educational solutions. He has international research experience at the University of Bristol and Cornell University. His studies were published in journals such as Computers in Human Behavior, Communications Psychology, and, most recently, a meta-analysis on source credibility interventions in Learning and Individual Differences. He serves as one of the coordinators for EARLI JURE SIG20 and as one of the speakers for the research subsection of PsyComm (science communication in psychology) interest group within the DGPs (German Psychological Society).

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Publications

Truth in transition. A toolkit for countering climate misinformation

The increasing spread of misinformation has become a significant challenge to the implementation and public reception of EU policies, particularly in climate-related areas. This policy study explores the intersection of misinformation and policy communication, focusing on the Common Agricultural Policy.

The study aims to investigate how misinformation shapes public perceptions and resistance to climate policies and to develop strategic recommendations for more effective policy communication. Utilising case study analysis, the research will provide actionable insights for EU policymakers.

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Political Mentor: Alex Agius Saliba, Member of the European Parliament and Vice President of S&D Group

Members

Christos Papagiannis

PhD researcher at Maastricht University. Secretary General of the Young European Federalists (JEF Europe).

Interests : Economy Democracy Digital
Countries : Belgium Greece

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Maria Chiara Franceschelli

PhD cum laude in Political Science and Sociology from Scuola Normale Superiore

Interests : Climate Democracy Disinformation
Countries : Italy

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Marvin Fendt

PhD student at Ludwig-Maximilians-University Munich

Interests : Democracy Disinformation
Countries : Germany

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Publications

20/07/2026

A toolkit for countering climate misinformation

FEPS YAN papers 9th cycle

Max Münßinger

Research associate and PhD candidate at FAU Erlangen-Nuremberg

Interests : Democracy Policy
Countries : Germany

Research associate and PhD candidate at FAU Erlangen-Nuremberg.
Max Münßinger (MA) is a political geographer and a research associate at the Institute of Geography at the Friedrich-Alexander University Erlangen-Nuremberg. He is a member of the editorial team of the academic online magazine grid, which explores the intersection of society, space, and digitality. Max doctoral research focuses on the geographical political economy of digital transformation, particularly in Germany and the European Union. In this context, he is interested in the level of digital infrastructures and related interactions between materiality and discourse.

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Publications

How (not) to fight the far right

This policy study investigates the strategies employed by European social democratic parties in response to the rise of far-right political parties since the 2010s. By building on well over 100 academic studies, we draw clear strategic implications for progressive actors facing far-right competition.

After looking at scientific research on how to fight the far right, a minimum of three strategic orientations emerge:
1)         Social democrats must systematically understand why far-right narratives resonate – examining social grievances, emotions and discursive strategies – without adopting far-right frames.
2)         They must reclaim agenda-setting power by foregrounding areas of long-standing credibility – notably, welfare, redistribution and economic justice – and by refusing debates imposed on far-right terms.
3)         Social democrats need a positive, forward-looking vision that combines an inclusive collective identity with a credible agenda for economic equality, reconnecting policy with collective emotions.

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Academic Mentor: Daphne Halikiopoulou, Professor of Comparative Politics at University of Reading
Political Mentor: Mathias Ecke, S&D MEP of the European Parliament

Members

Antonis Galanopoulos

PhD in Political Science from Aristotle University of Thessaloniki. Political researcher at Eteron

Interests : Democracy Policy
Countries : Greece

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Dilay Süslü

PhD Candidate University of Surrey

Interests : Democracy EU external relations
Countries : United Kingdom Turkey

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Jose Berna

PhD in Media, Communication and Culture at the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona

Interests : Democracy Policy
Countries : Spain

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Lorenzo Catalano

PhD candidate in Economics at KU Leuven

Interests : Economy Democracy
Countries : Belgium Italy

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Max Münßinger

Research associate and PhD candidate at FAU Erlangen-Nuremberg

Interests : Democracy Policy
Countries : Germany

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Simon Weiser

PhD candidate at Ludwig-Maximilians-University Munich

Interests : Democracy Foreign Affairs
Countries : Germany

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Simon Weiser

PhD candidate at Ludwig-Maximilians-University Munich

Interests : Democracy Foreign Affairs
Countries : Germany

PhD candidate at Ludwig-Maximilians-University Munich.
Simon Weiser is a researcher at the Department of Middle Eastern Studies at the Ludwig-Maximilians-University Munich. His PhD focuses on family and romantic relationships of young refugees from Syria. For his PhD he received a scholarship by the Hans-Boeckler-Foundation. In 2023 he was a visiting scholar at the Orient Institute Beirut. Previously he held a scholarship for young academics at the German Youth Institute (2021-22).

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Publications

How (not) to fight the far right

Academic Mentor: Daphne Halikiopoulou, Professor of Comparative Politics at University of Reading
Political Mentor: Mathias Ecke, S&D MEP of the European Parliament

Members

Antonis Galanopoulos

PhD in Political Science from Aristotle University of Thessaloniki. Political researcher at Eteron

Interests : Democracy Policy
Countries : Greece

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Dilay Süslü

PhD Candidate University of Surrey

Interests : Democracy EU external relations
Countries : United Kingdom Turkey

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Jose Berna

PhD in Media, Communication and Culture at the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona

Interests : Democracy Policy
Countries : Spain

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Lorenzo Catalano

PhD candidate in Economics at KU Leuven

Interests : Economy Democracy
Countries : Belgium Italy

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Max Münßinger

Research associate and PhD candidate at FAU Erlangen-Nuremberg

Interests : Democracy Policy
Countries : Germany

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Simon Weiser

PhD candidate at Ludwig-Maximilians-University Munich

Interests : Democracy Foreign Affairs
Countries : Germany

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Publications

22/07/2026

How (not) to fight the far right

FEPS YAN papers 9th cycle

Lena Siepker

Doctoral researcher in political science at the University of Münster

Interests : Climate Climate Change Democracy
Countries : Germany

Lena Siepker is a doctoral researcher in political science at the University of Münster. Having an interdisciplinary background, her current research focuses on investigating developments in the democratic system and their impact on sustainability policy. She is particularly interested in deliberative participation, especially concerning trends of increasing social and political inequality and critical perspectives of agonistic and radical democratic approaches.

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Publications

15/05/2024

Ecosocial food policies - proposal for a new social-democratic approach

FEPS YAN series

Dennis Gottschlich

Doctoral researcher in Economics at the Düsseldorf Institute for Competition Economics (DICE)

Interests : Inequality Democracy Social Europe
Countries : Germany

Dennis Gottschlich is a doctoral researcher in Economics at the Düsseldorf Institute for Competition Economics (DICE). His broad research interests include labor economics, future of work and unintended side-effects of competition on workers. He is an applied empirical microeconomist and focus on mental health, social mobility and social capital. Currently he studies economic determinants of mental illnesses, and more general, in psychological distress. He is on deepen the knowledge in this fields to improve policies and highlight the importance of this underresearcherd topic mental health. His current research focuses on the nexus between austerity measures and depressions.

Publications

Inequality and populism

In recent years, European citizens have witnessed a rise in inequality, especially socio-economic, alongside an increase in vote share for radical right populist parties. By examining case studies from Italy, Hungary, and Spain (with the comparative case of Germany), this policy study argues that the rise of populism is not only linked to economic trends but also to other constitutional changes and institutional settings characterising European countries with a focus on economic inequality as the explanatory variable for political participation.

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Political Mentor: Gaby Bischoff, MEP S&D
Academic Mentor: Eunice Goes, Professor of Politics at Richmond American University of London

Members

Unai Gómez-Hernández

Joint PhD at the University of Edinburgh and KU Leuven

Interests : Democracy Foreign Affairs Inequality
Countries : Belgium Spain United Kingdom

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Publications

15/05/2024

Inequality and populism

FEPS YAN Series

Niklas Kossow

Post doctoral researcher Hertie School

Interests : Democracy Digital
Countries : Germany

Niklas Kossow is a researcher, political activist and project manager from Berlin. He recently defended his PhD on the use of digital technologies in the context of anti-corruption movements at the Hertie School. During his PhD, Niklas also worked as a researcher and consultant for Transparency International, the GIZ, the UNDP and Freedom House. Currently, Niklas is working as a project manager at CityLAB Berlin where is working redeveloping Berlin’s Smart City strategy and citizen participation projects. He is a candidate of the German Social Democratic Party for the Berlin state parliamentary elections 2021.

Trade Unions and the multiple crisis of environment, society, economy and work

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Publications

Trade Unions

This policy study focuses on trade union approaches to the multiple crises in a sector critical for the sustainability transformation: aviation. Based on empirical research, the authors find that unions, under pressure to face contradictory and complex problems, take divergent positions on societal-environmental issues and their solutions - verging from social-ecological transformation-focused to defensive stances, also in their collaboration with social movements for change.

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Trade Unions and the multiple crisis of environment, society, economy and work

Political Mentor: EP Vice President and S&D MEP Evelyn Regner
Academic Mentor: David Bailey, Senior Lecturer, Department of Political Science and International Studies, School of Government, University of Birmingham

Members

Publications

21/12/2021

Trade Unions and the multiple crisis of environment, society, economy and work

FEPS YAN

Johannes G. v. Luckner

PhD candidate University of Erfurt

Interests : Economy Foreign Affairs
Countries : Germany

Johannes G. v. Luckner is a doctoral researcher in law at University of Erfurt in Germany. Born and raised in Germany, he studied law in Frankfurt (Main), Rome and Florence. His professional experience is spread out over various areas, ranging teaching in a high school during a voluntary service in Panama, over diplomacy in the German Foreign Office (Embassy to Italy, Rome) to European politics in the European Commission (DG Justice, Criminal Law).

In his PhD, he works on differentiation in European law, especially on the enhanced cooperation mechanism.

How to unlock the European Investment Bank’s potential: four reforms

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Publications

European Investment Bank

The European Investment Bank (EIB) is the EU’s multilateral development bank. In this FEPS YAN policy study, the authors suggest four reforms that would help progressive policymakers to utilize unlock the EIB’s potential to play a greater role in the EU economy and its transition to a more resilient, climate-neutral, and progressive economy.

First, the authors suggest the EIB adopts more comprehensive lending targets based on social and environmental criteria. Second, they highlight the need for a stronger focus on equity-like instruments rather than debt instruments, especially in the ongoing response to the Covid-19 crisis. Third, they propose to strengthen the EIB’s accountability towards the European Parliament to ensure a legitimate political direction and democratic control of its activities. Fourth, they propose to convert the EIB’s retained profits into paid-in capital, unlocking up to €110 billion of additional lending capacity. To simultaneously accomplish increased democratic accountability, the authors suggest converting the EIB’s retained profits into EU capital and thus making the EU an EIB shareholder.

Read the paper:
How to unlock the European Investment Bank’s potential: four reforms

Political Mentor: EP Vice President and S&D MEP Pedro Silva Pereira
Academic Mentor: Carlo d' Ippoliti, Associate professor of political economy at the Department of Statistical Sciences of Sapienza University of Rome.

Members

Publications

25/01/2022

How to unlock the European Investment Bank’s potential: four reforms

Marius S. Ostrowski

Max Weber Fellow at the European University Institute, Florence

Interests : Democracy
Countries : Germany United Kingdom

Marius S. Ostrowski is Max Weber Fellow at the European University Institute, Florence, and was previously Examination Fellow in Politics at All Souls College, University of Oxford. His interests lie in the theory and history of social democracy and European unification, and his publications include Left Unity: Manifesto for a Progressive Alliance (2020) and the edited series of the Collected Works by the socialist thinker Eduard Bernstein (2018-). He is Online and Social Media Editor of the Journal of Political Ideologies, and Founding Editor of its affiliated blog Ideology Theory Practice.

The European Basic Income

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Publications

European Basic Income

Across the political spectrum, there is widespread agreement that the European Union (EU) needs a palpable social dimension. In this FEPS YAN policy study, the authors provide a research-driven policy proposal on how this social dimension can be achieved in the light of the diversity of national welfare systems in the EU.

They argue that a Universal Basic Income (UBI) could be a conceptually appealing policy to be implemented at EU level, complementing national welfare states. Due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the policy is receiving unprecedented and ever-increasing attention, and enjoys widespread public popularity, but is viewed with scepticism by major political parties.

This paper is a unified source of information for progressive policymakers, advocates, consultants, and researchers who are interested in (a) how a European UBI could be concretely designed and (b) the reasoning and justifications behind its concrete design decisions. In order to formulate a policy proposal that could potentially foster cross- partisan compromises and move public policy preferences and political reality closer together, the authors conducted a comprehensive review of historical and contemporary UBI debates, gathered the key arguments presented in academic, popular, political, and organisational sources, and reflected on them from logical, normative, and empirical perspectives.

Based on the most plausible arguments for and against a UBI, they designed a concrete policy proposal for a UBI at the EU level that responds to broadly progressive ideals from different partisan backgrounds. The result is an ambitious yet feasible proposal that bridges political divides and, if implemented, would be the most substantial leap for Social Europe yet.

Read the paper:
The European Basic Income

Political Mentor: S&D MEP Agnes Jongerius
Academic Mentor: Lorena Lombardozzi, Senior Lecturer in Economics at the Open University.