About our new visiting researcher

Ester Galende Sánchez is a predoctoral researcher working at the Basque Centre for Climate Change (BC3) and enrolled in the doctoral programme in “Law, Governance and Public Policies” at the Universidad Autónoma de Madrid (UAM). She has a transdisciplinary background that combines an MSc in Sustainability and Social Innovation (2019, HEC Paris), a BSc in Environmental Engineering (2016, Universidad Politécnica de Madrid), and a BSc in Journalism (2022, Universidad Complutense de Madrid).

Her research interests lie at the intersection between climate policy and governance, public policy studies, and democratic theory. In her thesis, she analyses how different forms of citizen participation, including institutionalised (e.g. citizens’ assemblies) and non-institutionalised (e.g. social movements), can influence climate policies at the EU level and help deliver the transformations needed.

Her research at the IEE-ULB

At the IEE-ULB, Ester is under the supervision of François Foret and closely working with Alvaro Oleart, a postdoctoral researcher with extensive knowledge of citizen participation.

During her stay, Ester is analysing the Conference of the Future of Europe (CoFoE), one of the case studies of her thesis. She is developing the empirical phase, conducting interviews with the main actors connected to the CoFoE process, and looking forward to receiving feedback from the research community at the IEE-ULB.

Becoming a visiting researcher at the IEE-ULB

The IEE-ULB regularly welcomes visiting researchers whose work focuses on its main lines of research.

Interested candidates are invited to submit their applications which must contain: an up-to-date CV, a research project highlighting the link to one or several of the IEE’s four research themes, the proposed research period, and the name of the IEE-affiliated professor who has agreed to act as the researcher’s supervisor.

Applications should be send to Prof. François Foret, Dominique Dembour, and Dr. Marta Matrakova.

Decisions on visiting research applications are taken by the Council of the IEE, which gathers five times per year. For the 2023-2024 academic year, the dates are:

  • in 2023: 18 December 2023
  • in 2024: 11 March 2024, 13 May 2024 and 20 August 2024.

Contact

For any questions about a visiting research stay at the IEE, please contact the IEE’s Research Logistic Coordinator, Dr. Marta Matrakova.