Global Europe Lab
The Global Europe Lab brings together 10–12 young scholars and junior professionals from various disciplines and backgrounds to discuss and develop a vision for the European Union's (EU) future role on the global stage.
Multilateralism is in crisis, great power politics are making a comeback and the EU is struggling to find its place in this rapidly changing global landscape. The erosion of the transatlantic alliance — previously considered a fundamental and reliable partner in the EU's foreign policy — and violations of the prohibition of the use of force even by UN Security Council member states, such as US and Israeli attacks on Iran and Russia's invasion of Ukraine, force the EU to evolve and act. The EU must also address the urgent need for multilateralism reform, equitable and sustainable global development, and climate change.
In an attempt to spark an initiate for updating the EU’s foreign policy strategy and develop a conclusive agenda in response to these recent global developments, the Joachim Herz Doctoral School of Law and the Bundeskanzler-Helmut-Schmidt-Stiftung (link) are establishing the Global Europe Lab, where these issues will be discussed under the guidance of proven experts. The scientific debate (journal article), interested public (results report) and political debate (thought-provoking, future-driven policy paper) will be addressed and stimulated with appropriate contributions.
Four workshops will take place during the 2025/26 academic year (October 2025 to September 2026) as part of the Global Europe Lab. These workshops will give participants the chance to discuss, research and develop questions about the EU, its foreign policy agenda, and its future role on the world stage, alongside experts from academia and professional practice.
The lab will focus on three main topics:
trade and sustainable development
climate change and environmental protection and
security, peace and international order.
These topics will be linked to case studies and have a regional focus. A combination of expert-led workshops and open discussion sessions will provide participants with the necessary background knowledge while giving them sufficient time to discuss the topics among themselves and to develop strategy or policy recommendations that will result in the written formats mentioned at the end of the project. The expected outcome of the Global Europe Lab is a roadmap setting out a clear vision for the EU's future role vis-à-vis both the major powers and the nations of the “Global South”. It will also develop options for implementing the EU's foreign policy objectives and values in the three thematic areas identified. Once completed, the outcomes will be presented to think tanks, non-governmental organizations, politicians and government institutions.
Speaker:
- Prof. Dr. Markus Kotzur (Universität Hamburg)
- Prof. Dr. Miriam Prys-Hansen (GIGA Hamburg, Leuphana University Lüneburg)
- Julia Ganter (Körber Stiftung)
- Johannes Kummerow (GIZ)
Leonie Stamm
Deutsche Gesellschaft für Auswärtige Politik
Since 2021, Leonie Stamm has been a Research Fellow at the German Council on Foreign Relations (DGAP) in Berlin. Her work focuses on gender and feminist approaches in foreign and security policy, including the “Women, Peace and Security” agenda as well as feminist foreign and development policy. In addition, she coordinates the study groups “Strategic Issues,” “European Policy,” and “Global Future Issues.” These groups bring together members of the German Bundestag, ministry officials, and representatives of the foreign policy community for confidential discussions. Their aim is to foster debate on strategic questions of German and European positions and to develop concrete policy options.
Dorothee Falkenberg
Stiftung Wissenschaft und Politik, Fellow bei der Bundeskanzler-Helmut-Schmidt-Stiftung
Dorothée Falkenberg is Programme Manager at the Brussels office of the German Institute for International and Security Affairs/”Stiftung Wissenschaft und Politik” (SWP). Her research focuses on economic security within the thematic working group economic and technological transformations and her fellowship at the Bundeskanzler-Helmut-Schmidt Stiftung. She completed her M.A. in European Studies at KU Leuven and holds a B.A. in Political Science and Law from Leuphana University, with an Erasmus+ exchange at the University of Edinburgh. She worked previously at the European Parliamentary Research Service in the External Policies Unit and at the Bundeskanzler-Helmut-Schmidt-Stiftung in programs focused on global markets, social justice, and European and international politics.
Lea Holst
Bundeskanzler-Helmut-Schmidt-Stiftung
Hello, my name is Lea (Holst). I am originally from Hamburg, Germany, where I also currently live and work. I am part of the BKHS team working on the “Inclusive Geoeconomics” project, which aims to link discussions about the changing international economic order - and the role of the EU in it - with societal goals of social justice. I have an educational background in International Relations and Peace and Security Studies, so I am used to interdisciplinary approaches that aim to “break down silos”. In the past, I have worked in various roles in civil society, focusing on human rights and gender issues - areas in which I also volunteer.
Amon Elpídio
University of Minas Gerais
I am a legal researcher currently living and studying in Belo Horizonte, Brazil. I am pursuing a PhD at the Federal University of Minas Gerais (UFMG), where I am a Research Fellow at the Jean Monnet Center of Excellence. In the spring of 2026, I will begin a period as a visiting doctoral researcher at Université Paris Cité, France. My doctoral thesis focuses on sustainable investments in a just energy transition. I concentrate, in particular, on the European context, exploring the role and importance of energy communities. This research reflects my interest in how law can drive positive and equitable change in the global energy landscape. I completed my master's degree in European and International Law at the Universität des Saarlandes in Germany. I also hold a bachelor's degree in Public Policy and Management from the Federal University of Ceará in Brazil.
Julia Matthäus
Joachim-Herz-Promotionskolleg, Leuphana Universität Lüneburg
I was born in 1994 and grew up in Kassel. After completing my law studies and first state examination at Philipps University in Marburg, including a year abroad at the Université Paris Sud, I moved to Essen for my legal traineeship. Alongside the second state examination, I worked part-time at a university chair and in a law firm focusing on labor law. In 2023, I joined the Joachim Herz Doctoral School at Leuphana University. Encouraged by my doctoral supervisor, I ventured into constitutional and competition law, even though these were not my initial areas of expertise. In my dissertation, I examine the relationship between constitutional and competition law in the context of digitalization. More broadly, I am interested in the intersections of constitutional law, economic regulation, and societal change.
Aditi Mukund
German Chancellor Fellow, Global Public Policy Institute
Aditi Mukund is a German Chancellor Fellow with the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation, based at the Global Public Policy Institute (GPPi), Berlin. She is a researcher focusing on climate, security and foreign policy, gender, and inclusive global governance. Her regional focus includes India-Germany and India-EU relations, the Indian Ocean and the Indo-Pacific. She co-chairs Generation EU-India (GenEI), a youth network aimed at fostering people-to-people relations between young Europeans and Indians across policy areas.
Sarah Diehl
Auswärtiges Amt
Working at the point of intersection of politics, culture and law in an international environment has always been one of my core interests. This motivated me to pursue a career that encompasses all these different fields: after graduating in Public Law (LL.B.), I spend various years working at a cultural institution, the Munich City Library, while simultaneously pursuing a double-degree master in International Relations/Governance (MA). Living and working in Peru, Spain, Paraguay and Hungary allowed me to gain valuable experiences in different working contexts and also to deepen my language skills. To synthesize my interest for foreign languages, politics and culture, I joined the diplomatic corps in 2022. At our HQ in Berlin, I am responsible for coordinating Germany’s cultural and societal cooperation with Southeast Asia, the Pacific and China - a role that I find particularly intriguing given the cultural diversity of the region and its demographic, geopolitical and economic clout.
Julian Sadeghi
DIE ZEIT
Nicoletta Maier
Afrika-Verein der deutschen Wirtschaft e.V.
Rachel Nduati
Deutsche Welle