From Crisis to Compromise: Internationalisation at Home

Professor Amelia Hadfield – Department of Politics 

Many students are keenly watching the unfolding foreign policy and security crisis between Ukraine and Russia. The Level 6 POL 3087 module, entitled ‘European Security and Diplomacy’, has two weeks dedicated to exploring this issue. Mid-way through the semester, on 22 March, we will be welcoming Richard Wright, the former EU Ambassador to Russia, to give an in-person guest lecture on EU-Ukraine-Russia issues. This is a perfect opportunity to open our classroom to postgraduate students (PGT and PGRs) from our own Department of Politics, but to add an international component by welcoming undergraduate and postgraduate students, joining online from Canada.  

To that end, we’ll be welcoming students from both the Political Science Department, and the Centre for the Study of Security and Development from the University of Dalhousie, Canada. This is especially important, as both Dal’s and Surrey’s departments also host a Jean Monnet European Union Centre of Excellence; this lecture event brings together these two award-winning centres for the first time. Surrey and Dalhousie students will be able to attend the lecture from Ambassador Wright and to participate in the ensuing questions and answers. The two Jean Monnet Centres will then host a student-led ‘apres-lecture’ where they can interact with each other to discuss UK, European and Canadian approaches to the crisis. This will be of real benefit, not least because the Surrey students will be using the EU-Ukraine-Russia issue as the context for their final week simulation summit, which is the highlight of the module, and very much a hallmark of the Department of Politics’ blend of research-led/practitioner-based, approach to teaching.  

For more information contact: Amelia Hadfield, Head of Department of Politics, a.hadfield@surrey.ac.uk