Prominent Greek Academic Brings Brexit Debate to Vancouver, Canada

The Stavros Niarchos Foundation Centre for Hellenic Studies will be presenting Professor Loukas Tsoukalis, President of the Hellenic Foundation for European and Foreign Policy and leading expert on European integration, for this year’s Edward and Emily McWhinney Memorial Lecture, entitled: “Brexit and the European Union: Is There Life After the Divorce?”.

In light of the majority of the British people voting to leave the European Union on 23 June, 2016, there are many unanswered questions on people’s minds that need clarification. Being what some say was one of the most important political decisions taken in the United Kingdom since the end of World War II, was it an accident long waiting to happen or the result of the populist surge in an era of globalization and widening inequalities?

In addition to this, is it financially feasible for the U.K. to cut itself off from the rest of the European continent? Could it be that their membership of the rest of Europe will be replaced by a new type of relationship that has not yet been clarified?

Over the past ten years we have seen the European Union encounter a couple of major crises, first with the euro and the economy, and then with the refugee crisis. Now there is the issue of ‘Brexit’.

Can European integration overcome internal divisions in an adverse external environment? And if not, what would be the implications for Europe and the rest of the world?

These and more questions will be discussed by Professor Loukas Tsoukalis, who will explain why he believes the EU will survive the current crisis and what policies will help, in a three-hour lecture between 7 p.m. – 10 p.m., Wednesday March 21 at Simon Fraser University’s Seagal Building in downtown Vancouver, B.C.

This is a free event but registration is required.  For more information, contact Simon Fraser University Stavros Niarchos Foundation Centre for Hellenic Studies, Burnaby, BC.

Professor Loukas Tsoukalis

Dr Loukas Tsoukalis is currently Professor of European Integration at the University of Athens, President of the Hellenic Foundation for European and Foreign Policy (ELIAMEP), and Visiting Professor at King’s College London and the College of Europe in Bruges.

The author of many books and articles on European integration and international political economy, who has advised the former President of the European Commission and the former President of the European Council.

His most recent book, ‘In Defence of Europe: Can the European Project Be Saved?’, was published by Oxford University Press in 2016.

Edward and Emily McWhinney Memorial Lecture

The Edward and Emily McWhinney Memorial Lecture was established in 2017 to honour the memory of two long-time friends and supporters of Hellenic Studies at Simon Fraser University and is devoted to contemporary issues in international relations.

Both Edward and Emily were committed to academic excellence and public service and this now annual lecture is a lasting legacy for the couple at SFU. It is organized by the Stavros Niarchos Foundation Centre for Hellenic Studies to support public discussion of the topics that animated the McWhinneys’ professional and intellectual lives.

Professor Emeritus Edward McWhinney, QC passed away in 2015 on his ninety-first birthday, following a short illness. He was predeceased by his wife Emily McWhinney, who passed away in 2011.