Studying Wider Europe - The CSWE

Welcome to the Centre for the Study of Wider Europe (CSWE) at NUI Maynooth. Founded in 2007, the Centre is an inter-disciplinary one rooted in the humanities and social sciences, and dedicated to producing and disseminating high quality research work on Central, Eastern, South-eastern Europe and Russia. The key contributing academic departments at NUI Maynooth are: anthropology, history, sociology, and geography and we also include political science as a disciplinary field. We aim to contribute to public debate on a wide range of issues and to broaden the focus of Europe-related research to include Central, Eastern and South-eastern Europe. We also aim to develop the Centre as a key site or umbrella structure for teaching and research in these areas on the island of Ireland, and in doing so, to bring together scholars from different disciplines and different universities. As such our work and activities provide a valuable conduit for the academic community, the diplomatic corps, government, civil society groups, and the policy-making community. We recently hosted  the Annual Conference of the Irish Association for Rusian, Central, and East European Studies (IACREES - http://www.iarcees.org/index.php ) and are currently developing links with a number of international partners. The Centre\'s work is supported by NUIM research, the departments of Anthropology, History and Sociology, and the Communicating Europe Programme of the Irish Department of Foreign Affairs ( http://www.dfa.ie/home/index.aspx?id=28459 ). We welcome applications for PhD research. Please consult our individual faculty pages to find the relevant academic specialisms. There is a long established engagement with European issues at the university and the Wider Europe Centre is now at the forefront of efforts to deepen the NUIM commitment to European structures and programmes.

The Centre has research links with established institutes at NUIM. The National Institute for Regional and Spatial Analysis (NIRSA) undertakes applied and comparative research on spatial processes and their social effects on social and economic development in Ireland (http://www.nuim.ie/nirsa/). An Foras Feasa, The National Institute for Research in Historical and Cultural Traditions, is an interdisciplinary humanities-based research institute devoted to the study of the historical and cultural traditions of this island, including our relationships with Europe and with the wider world (http://www.forasfeasa.ie/).

Gallery

Coming soon - our gallery for photos from the Centre

Photos on flickr tagged with the term 'Bosnia'. About these photos»»

Holdomor in Ukraine & Great Famine in Ireland

Histories Representations Memories

Conference 6-7 November

Full details, including the conference program and registration details can be found here »»

From the Wider Opinions Blog

The latest pieces posted to 'Wider Opinions', a blog on contemporary European politics, with opinion pieces written by CSWE staff.

• Iceland, enlargement and the Western Balkans

  One of the least remarked elements of the current European malaise is the impact the protracted economic crisis is having on the EU's enlargement poli...

• EUROVISION 2009 - the 'old order' is restored!

  After many years of domination by 'the east' the Eurovision Song Contest 2009 provided something of a shock this time around with the victory of Norwa...