Festival of Ideas puts focus on the origins of war and the quest for peace

The events starting at 11am on 19 June in the Ron Cooke Hub, Campus East, University of York, will feature contributions from a range of speakers from Ukraine and across Europe. They include the Deputy Director-General of the Royal United Services Institute Professor Malcolm Chalmers; NATO diplomat Ambassador Stefano Pontecorvo; broadcaster and author Gavin Esler; academic, writer and former politician Michael Ignatieff; Ukrainian academic Oleysa Kromychuk; and, poignantly, the President of Student Union at Kharkiv National University, Vitalina Shevchenko, will join via Zoom.

The Festival Focus – War and Peace: Threats to Global Security – will feature a day of discussion and analysis organised by the Festival in partnership with the Morrell Centre for Legal and Political Philosophy. The day will feature panel discussions on the causes and consequences of the war in Ukraine, Europe’s role in defence and security on the world stage, and the continuing rise of the radical Right in post-Covid Europe.

The war has far-reaching implications for Europe and the UK who are grappling with the widening gap between rich and poor, the aftershocks of globalisation, austerity and Brexit, as well as an upsurge of the nationalist far Right across the continent.

The War and Peace: Threats to global security Festival Focus events are hybrid, meaning it is possible to either attend in person or join via Zoom.

The Director of the Morrell Centre for Legal and Political Philosophy, Professor Matt Matravers, said: “It is undeniable that since the turn of the century, a series of tumultuous political, economic and social upheavals have shaken the world order. The Centre’s collaboration with York Festival of Ideas has created a forum in which our high-calibre panels of experts will explore the evolution and implications of these seismic geopolitical, economic and social events and suggest ways in which the world can navigate a secure course through them.”

Festival Director, Joan Concannon, said: “York Festival of Ideas has built a proud reputation for its searching analysis of some of the most challenging issues facing the world. We are grateful to the Morrell Centre for Legal and Political Philosophy for helping us to assemble such a powerful and compelling group of speakers from both Ukraine and across Europe.

“Our incredible range of experts are drawn from a broad spectrum of organisations including academic institutions, influential think-tanks and government departments. Contributors such as Ukrainian student activist Vitalina Shevchenko, award-winning journalist Gavin Esler, and defence and security expert Professor Malcolm Chalmers will guide our audiences through the profound implications of these momentous developments.”

The Festival Focus will feature three panel discussions:

Ukraine: Causes, consequences and implications for Global Security

While the Russian invasion of Ukraine is the culmination of recent geopolitical events, there is a historical dimension both to President Vladimir Putin’s gamble and the international responses to it. No matter how the war ends, it will have lasting implications for global security.

A panel of experts including historian and writer Olesya Khromeychuck, diplomat and NATO representative Stefano Pontecorvo and journalist Gavin Esler will discuss the causes, consequences and implications of the invasion and war in Ukraine.

Europe’s Role in Defence and Security on a World Stage

The war in Ukraine is a chilling reminder of the Cold War, but since that era of USA/Soviet dominance, the European Union has become a powerful influence on the international stage.

An expert panel will explore the EU’s role in defence and security in the aftermath of the Russian invasion. The panel includes Brigid Laffan, Emeritus Professor at the European University Institute and former Director of the Robert Schuman Centre for Advanced Studies, and Russian history specialist Dr Shane O'Rourke of the University of York, who was an eyewitness to the Russian take-over in Luhansk and Donetsk in the spring of 2014. Gavin Esler will chair the session.

Europe and The Radical Right: Where next for democracy and authoritarianism?

Increasing inequality across the world is leaving many people frustrated and marginalised, prompting both a growth in support for the far-right’s promise of simple solutions and a shared identity in opposition to ‘the political establishment’. An expert panel will assess if, in the aftermath of the pandemic and the war in Ukraine, the world can seize the opportunity to build safer, fairer societies or if we are seeing a new and unstoppable wave of right wing populism and authoritarianism.

The keynote speaker will be Canadian academic, writer and former politician Michael Ignatieff who, as Provost of the Central European University, has direct experience of resisting the forces of authoritarianism. He will be joined by student leader at Ukraine’s Kharkiv National University, Vitalina Shevchenko (via Zoom); political analyst and essayist, Jaroslaw Kuisz, who is editor-in-chief of the Polish weekly Kultura Liberalna and a policy fellow at the University of Cambridge; and Dr Heli Tiirmaa-Klaar, the Director of the Digital Society Institute at the European School of Management and Technology in Berlin, and a former Ambassador for Cyber Diplomacy at the Estonian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

ENDS

Further Information:

York Festival of Ideas - https://yorkfestivalofideas.com/2022/

War and Peace: Threats to global security -  https://yorkfestivalofideas.com/2022/festival-focus/war-peace/

Morrell Centre for Legal and Political Philosophy - https://www.york.ac.uk/morrell-centre/