Programm

The ESERA Doctoral School will open Monday June 29th with an opening dinner and end with a closing ceremony scheduled for Friday July 3rd. Travel to and from the Doctoral School has to be scheduled on Monday (June 29th) and Saturday (July 4th) respectively and participants will attend four full days of the Doctoral School.  

The detailed program will be published in Spring 2026.

Fragmentation versus participation: The public sphere in digital age

Section 1

Addressing the paradox of digital platforms: they expand access but create echo chambers. The goal is to find strategies for balanced, informed public spheres that fosters diverse democratic participation.

Location: Maison du Savoir 4.500

Chair: Prof. Dr Robin Samuel

  • Robin Samuel

    Assoc. Prof Robin SAMUEL

    Associate professor in Youth Studies

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9.30 -10.15
Youth, Social Media, and Democracy: The Influence of Digital Platforms on the Building of Opinions and Values.
Presentation 1

University of Luxembourg

10.15-11.00
The Theatrical Public Sphere and Young Citizens in the Age of Climate Change and Health Crisis.
Presentation 2
  • Stephen Ogheneruro Okpadah

University of Warwick, UK

11.15 – 12.00
Silencing Falsehoods: Enhancing the EU’s Regulatory Approach to Online Gendered Disinformation.
Presentation 3
  • Valentina Golunova

Maastricht University, Netherlands

12.00-12.45
Access Creep: A Mixed Methods Approach Exploring Political Participation Among Adolescents in Luxembourg.
Presentation 4

University of Luxembourg

15.00-15.45
Distinct Young and Old Interests? Age Differences in the Policy Preferences of Candidates and the Public.
Presentation 5
  • Clemens Nollenberger

University of Konstanz, Germany

15.45-16.30
Empowering Youth through Digital Sovereignty: A Framework for Political Participation in the Age of AI.
Presentation 6
  • Dr Christian Filk

Europa-Universität Flensburg, Germany

Parliamentary democracy versus activism: Techniques of engagement

Section 2

Exploring the intersection of parliamentary democracy and digital activism, focusing on youth engagement and how formal processes and grassroots activism shape the political landscape.

Location: Maison du Savoir 4.510

Chair: Prof. Dr Stefan Braum

9.30 -10.15
Astroturfing and Legitimacy Illusion – Harming Democratic Dialogue.
Presentation 1
  • Sahajveer Baweja

University of Cambridge, UK

10.15-11.00
Practicing Democracy – What’s There to Learn? Following Young Activists’ Media Practices in Institutional Politics”
Presentation 2
  • Alice Bergholtz

Södertörn University, Sweden

11.15 – 12.00
A Laboratory for Democracy: the FreeSZFE Protest and Reimagining Youth Political
Participation
Presentation 3
  • Kyle Mares

Södertörn University, Sweden

12.00-12.45
Social Media Algorithms and Youth Political Participation: Analysing Segmentation, Polarization, and Engagement Strategies in the Digital Age.
Presentation 4
  • Ignacio Fornaris Valls

Royal University Institute for European Studies, CEU San Pablo University, Spain

15.00-15.45
Antisemitism in the protest communication of Fridays For Future.
Presentation 5
  • Prof. Dr Olaf Gätje
  • Dr Felix Böhm

University of Kassel, Germany

15.45 – 16.30
Empowering Youth Through Digital Active Citizenship Workshops: Bridging Democratic Participation and Digital Activism.
Presentation 6
  • Efe Kayra Soylu

Schwarzkopf-Stiftung Junges Europa, Berlin, Germany

16.30-17.15
The postdigital city as networked civics classroom: future imaginaries of a global climate strike.
Presentation 7
  • Saralie Sernhede

Maastricht University

Truth versus trust: Affective politics after the end of argument

Section 3

Focusing on the rise of emotional appeals over facts in politics, examining its impact on democratic dialogue and youth engagement.

Location: Maison du Savoir 4.520

Chair: Prof. Dr Anna-Lena Högenauer

  • Assoc. Prof Anna-Lena HÖGENAUER

    Assoc. Prof Anna-Lena HÖGENAUER

    Associate professor

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9.30 -10.15
Are the Public and the Political Elite Living in the Same Information Bubble? A Comparison of Uses from an Intergenerational Perspective in Luxembourg.
Presentation 1

University of Luxembourg

10.15-11.00
Trump Dancing. Mimesis, Music and Politics on Social Media.
Presentation 2

University of Luxembourg

11.15 – 12.00
Fact-Checking and Opinion Making: A Crisis of Deliberation?
Presentation 3

University of Luxembourg

12.00-12.45
Language use and democracy: : pedagogical implications.
Presentation 4

University of Luxembourg

15.00 – 15.45
The Mediality of Post-Truth: A Heterarchy of Realities in the Digital Age.
Presentation 5
  • Alexander Mellin

Freie Universität Berlin, Germany

15.45 – 16.30
New Generation, Lower Trust? Media Use and Political Trust of Dutch Adolescents.
Presentation 6
  • Prof. Dr Marc Verboord

Erasmus University Rotterdam, Netherlands

16.30-17.15
The New Apostolic Reformation: U.S. Religious Movements and Digital Democracy.
Presentation 7
  • Dr Andrew Mackey

Creighton University, USA

Memory versus history: Imagined identities and ethical claims

Section 4

Exploring how digital media shapes youth perceptions of identity and ethics, focusing on its role in balancing political discourse and diverse cultural memories.

Location: Maison du Savoir 4.200

Chair: Prof. Dr Andrea Binsfeld

  • Assoc. Prof Andrea BINSFELD

    Assoc. Prof Andrea BINSFELD

    Associate professor

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9.30 -10.15
I Am Fed Up with the Conflict in Ukraine: The Interplay of Young Europeans’ Crisis Memory, Social Media Use, and Their Democratic Disposition.
Presentation 1
  • Dr Eva Tamara Asboth
  • Dr Andreas Schulz-Tomančok

Austrian Academy of Sciences & University of Vienna

10.15-11.00
Digital Nostalgia: PASOK’s Governmental Past as a Consumerism Utopia during the Greek Economic Crisis.
Presentation 2
  • Dr Nikolaos Gkionis

Min. of Digital Governance, Greece Advisor at Hellenic Parliament

11.15 – 12.00
Inequalities in Youth Development: Social Origin, Developmental Tasks, and Socio-Political Attitudes in Switzerland.
Presentation 3
  • Prof. Dr Andreas Hadjar
  • Prof. Dr Dirk Baier

University of Fribourg, Switzerland & Zurich University of Applied Sciences

12.00-12.45
Public Online Space and Gift Economy.
Presentation 4
  • Prof. em. Mag. Dr phil. Marc Ries

University of Luxembourg

15.00 – 15.45
Transforming Education Through Technology: How Blockchain and Tokenization of Identity Capital Can Shift the Paradigm of Learning for Youth.
Presentation 5
  • Dr Igor Dunayev

V. N. Karazin Kharkiv National University, Ukraine

15.45 – 16.30
Digitization of World War II and Holocaust Remembrance in the Context of the Russo-Ukrainian War.
Presentation 6
  • Prof. Dr Hedwig Wagner

Europa-Universität Flensburg, Germany

16.30-17.15
Democracy as an imposition: a re-reading of Lefort and Gauchet
Presentation 7

University of Luxembourg

Gaming versus explaining? The future of political education

Section 5

Focusing on how interactive games can enhance civic education, comparing gaming with traditional methods to boost youth engagement and critical thinking.

Location: Maison du Savoir 4.190

Chair: Prof. Dr Pedro Cardoso Leite

  • Assoc. Prof Pedro CARDOSO LEITE

    Assoc. Prof Pedro CARDOSO LEITE

    Associate professor in Cognitive Science and Assessment

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9.30 -10.15
Gamifying Civic Education: Engaging Youth in Political Learning Through Interactive Games.
Presentation 1
  • Matteo Bartolini

Scuola Superiore Sant’Anna, Italy

10.15-11.00
Empowering Play: Bridging Technology and Democratic Engagement.
Presentation 2
  • Irene Medina Sanchez Vilar

Fundacíon Cibervoluntarios, Spain

11.15 – 12.00
Gamifying Political Education: Bridging the Digital Divide.
Presentation 3
  • Prof. Dr Andreas Hadjar
  • Dr Juliette Torabian

University of Fribourg, Switzerland

12.00-12.45
Holographic Historical Personalities as Democracy Teachers: Virtual Reality and Augmented Reality as Catalysts for Civic Education.
Presentation 4
  • Dr Cringuta Pelea

Titu Maiorescu University, University of Bucharest, Romania

15.00 – 15.45
Civic Participation in the Era of Gamification and New Technologies.
Presentation 5
  • Chenet Marie Joseph Vérane

University of Luxembourg

15.45 – 16.30
School Mock Elections in the Early Digital Age: Teaching Parliamentary Democracy in 1980s-90s Britain.
Presentation 6
  • Dr Helen Sunderland

University of Oxford, UK

16.30-17.15
Learning history through serious games – The example of „The Migrants’ Chronicles: 1892“
Presentation 7
  • Dr Johannes Pause
  • Marie-Paule Jungblut

University of Luxembourg

Cultures of democracy: Political narratives and forms of representation

Section 6

Focusing on how populist narratives influence discourse and the need for democracies to promote and transmit their unique cultural identities.

Location: Maison du Savoir 4.530

Chair: Matjaz Gruden

9.30 -10.15
Digital Democracy and Cultural Narratives: Navigating Nationalism and Representation in the Digital Age.
Presentation 1
  • Pedro Abrantes Martins

Paraná State Court of Appeals, Brazil

10.15-11.00
Web Literary Criticism and Digital Literacy: On the Fundaments of Political Ethics in the Digital Society.
Presentation 2
  • Prof. Dr Thomas Ernst

University of Antwerp, Belgium

11.15 – 12.00
Education for Democracy: From Communitarian Participation to Public Discourse Participation.
Presentation 3
  • Dr Jean-Marie Weber (Uni.lu)
  • Christiane Meyers (Uni.lu)
  • Andreas Vuori (SNJ)
12.00-12.45
The Crisis of Liberal Democracies
Presentation 4
  • Dr Harry Lehmann

University of Luxembourg

15.00 – 15.45
Digital Diplomacy in Wartime: Narrative Framing of Sexual Violence in the War in Ukraine.
Presentation 5
  • Valeria Găvoază
  • Prof. Dr Miruna Butnaru Troncotă

SNSPA Bucharest, Romania

15.45 – 16.30
Welche Rolle Spielen AI und Desinformation in den Arbeitspraxis von BEE SECURE.
Presentation 6
  • Dr rer. nat. Debora Plein

BEE SECURE /SNJ (Luxembourg)

16.30-17.15
‘I Believe That Democracy Is Connected to Citizenship’. Young Danes and Informed, Democratic Citizenship.
Presentation 7
  • Associate Prof. Dr Gitte Bang Stald

University of Copenhagen, Denmark

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