Opening Ceremony and Workshop "European Human Rights Protection – Twenty Years from Now"
On the 16th of September 2022, the Academy for European Human Rights Protection at the University of Cologne was opened officially. This joyous occasion was marked with a colloquywhich brought together judges from the European Court of Human Rights, the European Court of Justice, the German Federal Constitutional Court and the British Supreme Court as well as researchers from different countries. The colloquy was preceded by a workshop for post-doctoral and doctoral researchers.
The focus of both events lied on the expected and unexpected turns that human rights protection in Europe might or should take in the next twenty years and what the role of judicial bodies will or ought to be in these expected evolutions. Although none of us claim to have a crystal ball, reflection on successes and setbacks from the past can inform us on how we should prepare ourselves for the challenges human rights will face in 2040s Europe. Which topics would make up the agenda for research into European human rights protection for the next decades?
Opening Ceremony and Colloquy
Academy for European Human Rights Protection Opens with High-Profile Colloquium
Academies are places of research, teaching and learning, but at the same time they are also meeting places that bring together people with a different experiences and backgrounds. The Academy for European Human Rights Protection, newly founded by the University of Cologne, also sees its task in being a forum for discussion and exchange. Thus, it was a very promising and good start that at the opening ceremony last Friday, September 16, 2022, numerous outstanding personalities of German and especially European legal practice and science came together for a colloquium and discussed the topic "European Human Rights Protection – Twenty Years From Now".
The event was kicked off by Robert Spano, President of the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg, and Koen Lenaerts, President of the Court of Justice of the European Union in Luxembourg. Both underlined the importance of dialogue both between the courts and with the judiciary in the Member States. Following these European perspectives, Lord Jonathan Mance, former Vice President of the UK Supreme Court, and Andreas Voßkuhle, former President of the German Federal Constitutional Court and Professor at the Albert Ludwig University in Freiburg, took a look at the future of national fundamental rights protection. Former Polish constitutional judge Miroslaw Wyrzykowski reflected on the threat to the European heritage posed by a crisis of the rule of law, as can currently be observed in Poland, and Professor Jestaedt on the possibility of effectively countering the high caseload in human rights courts. Finally, a panel moderated by Professor Nußberger was devoted to the role of human rights for peace in the world – former Ukrainian judge at the European Court of Human Rights Ganna Yudkivska deplored a failure of coexistence in the "European house" against the background of the Russian war of aggression.
Guests included former and active judges of the Strasbourg Court and other national supreme courts, as well as professors from German and European universities. Young academics had already had the opportunity to exchange their visions on the protection of human rights in twenty years' time during a workshop held two days earlier – which, like the colloquium, was generously funded by the Thyssen Foundation. "The close exchange between science and practice and between those who already have many years of experience and those who are still at the beginning is one of the core concerns of our Academy," says Angelika Nußberger, pleased with the successful start. "In uncertain times, the Academy should send out a signal of optimism. Human rights will continue to have a formative influence on the development of society in the future."
Professor Angelika Nußberger and her team hope that with the Academy, which is now located in new premises in the Küpperstift at Kerpener Straße 30, they will be able to contribute to the protection and further development of human rights in Europe in the future and in the long term.
You will find the program here.
Young Researchers’ Workshop
On the 14th and 15th of September, before the opening colloquium of the Academy of European Human Rights Protection, we welcomed twenty-five young legal researchers and six excellent discussants to the University of Cologne. Divided over seven thematic panels, they presented their current research on the future of European human rights protection at the building of the Fritz Thyssen Stiftung in Cologne. It was an interesting couple of days, with excellent contributions subjected to questions and criticism in a friendly atmosphere. During the breaks, the invited presenters were able to enjoy casual conversations and share both positive and challenging experiences in legal academia.
Program
