In a surprise move, French President Emmanuel Macron has called new parliamentary elections. Join us for a discussion with expert Dr. Calixte Bloquet about reasons, dynamics and possible consequences. Hosted by IPSA’s Research Committee of Legislative Specialist (RC08), moderated by Sven T. Siefken, June 28 (9 AM New York, 3 PM Paris). Here is a…
The Parliament of Austria organized the Day of Parliamentary Research that brought together academics with practitioners and journalists to discuss curret insights and perspectives on parliaments. Sven T. Siefken held a presentation on the early stages of bill drafting and led a panel on “democratic resilience”. More about the event can be found here. The…
The Advisory Council of the Department of Administrative Sciences at the Harz University of Applied Sciences brings together pracititioners from the state ministries and the municipal level with external academic experts. Sven T. Siefken has been appointed to the council and joined its meeting in Halberstadt. More information about the University is available here: https://www.hs-harz.de/en/
Deutschlandfunk, the German national public radio station, held its “agenda” show on life as a professional politician. MPs and researchers discussed the relationship between citizens and politicians, how it has changed and developed. The show is hosted by Michael Roehl, guests are MP Emily Vontz (SPD), MP Peter Ramsauer (CSU), author Robert Lorenz and Sven…
The academic journal „The Theory and Practice of Legislation“ has published a new special issue titled „How much legislating in a legislature? Democratisation, de-democratisation and beyond“. It compiles various case studies on recent development of democracy, among them Poland, Indonesia, India and Bolivia. They shine a light on how parliaments suffer from processes of de-democratization,…
Having conducted a thorough literature review, analyzed legal documents and interviewed numerous parliamentary practitioners, the interdisciplinary team held a first workshop on the „Cartography of the Legislative Process“. Held in Berlin, the workshop brought together practitioners from the German Bundestag and the Ministry of Justice with academics and designers. The goal of the project is…
How do you get things done in German politics? This is the topic of a practice-oriented class co-taught by Sven T. Siefken at the Hertie School in Berlin. It deals with work in political parties, candidate nomination, election campaigns and work in parliament and government. Graduate students in the Master of Public Policy, Master of…
A group of students of the Federal Police set out on a field trip to visit the coast guard unit at the Baltic Sea. Accompanied by Sven T. Siefken, they learned of the tasks and equipment of the coast guard. More on the unit can be found here
An ongoing cooperation of political scientists and designers is mapping the legislative process, from first ideas to the promulgation of laws. The special focus is on integrating both formal and informal components. Sven T. Siefken presented and discussed findings of this ongoing research project at the brown bag seminar of the University of Applied Administrative…
The editorial board of the textbook series „Elemente der Politik“, published by Springer VS, met in Bielefeld to discuss future books. You can find more about the series here https://www.springer.com/series/12234 and the editors always look forward to receive suggestions of topics for new editions.
The Federal Ministry of the Interior is organizing a training course on the resilience of democracy. It brings academics into exchange and discussion with staff of the German Federal administration. Sven T. Siefken discussed the topic of parliaments in crises. Building on definitions of crises and the role of parliaments in the political systems, Siefken…
The German Bundestag is welcoming the new group of participants in the International Parliamentary Stipend Program, 96 participants from 42 countries around the globe. Sven T. Siefken held the opening lecture and discussion on politics in the parliamentary democracy. More on the IPS here https://www.bundestag.de/ips
The State Parliament and the State Government of Schleswig-Holstein brought together 400 citizens and experts to review the experience of the Covid crisis. A symposium, held a the State Parliament in Kiel, investigated the various societal sectors that were affected. Sven T. Siefken served as moderator of the discussion on „State and Law“. A recording…
In its latest issue, Choices, the Cologne magazine of culture, focuses on current developments of democracy. In an interview, Sven T. Siefken discusses current developments and challenges – and emphasizes the need for everyone to get in touch and be active. The interview is available in the printed magazine and online
”Hallo Bundestag” is an initiative that organizes mini publics in MP districts around Germany. Sven T. Siefken has been supporting the project as a core member of the academic advisory council. More about “Hallo Bundestag” is available here
A group of students from Colorado College visited the Bundestag to discuss German politics with an MP and staffers working for MPs from different parties. Sven T. Siefken, guest professor at CC since 2019, organized the event, moderated the meetings and held an introductory lecture on parliamentary politics in Germany. More about Colorado College here…
The international collaboration on Parliaments in the Pandemic (PiP) convened for its fifth academic workshop in Prague. It was the first in-person meeting since PiP was established in 2020 in the middle of the Covid pandemic. Based on a unique country expert panel study, PiP is a comprehensive study of what happened to parliaments around…
Graphic descriptions of the legislative process usually focus on what is going on “in” parliament – while neglecting the preparliamentary phases of bill preparation. But there is a lot of coordination, negotiation and public engagement happening in this less formalized phase. Bringing together the special skills of designers (with an interest in politics) and political…
Coalition negotiations play a key role in government formation, but they have not been analyzed much in detail. In Germany, the past decades have seen an ongoing differentiation of their organization, leading to a complex multi-level negotiation structure with a policy-oriented division of labor. Studying the working group on health policy in the coalition negotiations…
Engaging the public in the work of parliament has been long practiced. To be in close exchange with the people is indeed a precondition for a successful parliament. In recent years, instruments and processes have been developed, tested and compared that institutionalize engagement. A special issues of the Journal of Legislative Studies looks at thoses…
During the latest field trip, a group of students and Sven T. Siefken visited different departments of the Federal Police and other security agencies to discuss current threats and challenges. More about the German Federal Police here: https://www.bundespolizei.de As Or
Simulation games are an innovative way for teaching the logic and dynamics of the political process. Sven T. Siefken and a group of students from different universities participated in the parliamentary simulation that is run by the German Bundestag, going through the parliamentary phases of how a bill becomes a law. More on the simulation…
McGill University in Montreal, Canada, has run an exciting program for new MPs and staff from around the globe. Sven T. Siefken spoke on current political challenges to the German Bundestag, discussing the tension between MPs’ policy specialization versus societal outreach? The presentation gave an overview about how the Bundestag, one of the strongest parliaments…
Are democratic institutions and bureaucracy losing their functionality? This were key topics of a conference held at the Akademie für politische Bildung in Tutzing. Sven T. Siefken gave a talk on informality in politics, analyzing coalition negotiations, expert advisory commissions and coalition management. More about the conference can be found here https://www.apb-tutzing.de/Tagungsprogramme/2023/39-4-23-programm.pdf
The German association for parliamentary affairs (DVParl) held an inspiring meeting and academic discussion in the Bundestag on the changes and challenges for parliamentary communication in times of digital media. More can be found here https://dvparl.de
Based on data compiled for the Global Parliamentary Report, Maya Kornberg and Sven T. Siefken study the role of committee hearings for public engagement by parliaments. They discuss how hearings have evolved and which mechanisms are in use and how new approaches change the practices, for example through digital hearings or field hearings. The article…
The Bundestag has been been running the international scholarship program for young professionals from various parts of the world. Sven T. Siefken delivered an opening presentation on „politics in a parliamentary democracy“ and led the discussion for the 2023 class of participants from various Arabic countries: Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, Oman, Tunisia, Bahrain, Algeria, Iraqi. More…
Parliaments fullfill a key function in political system of linking society and the political system. The new article by Cristina Leston-Bandeira and Sven T. Siefken explores changes and continuity in how parliaments fulfill engagement, which actors are doing it and what it entails. The article is available open access: Cristina Leston-Bandeira/ Sven T. Siefken (2023):…
The Research Committee of Legislative Specialists is meeting during the 2023 World Congress in Buenos Aires. Organizing various panels it brings together perspectives on Parliamentary Oversight, Second Chambers, Parliamentary Party Groups, Parliaments in the Pandemic, Parliamentary Development. Sven T. Siefken is serving as convenor, panel chair, discussant and paper presenter. More on the panels by…
The initiative “Es geht Los” held a public event at the Humboldt University to present the findings and results of the first six mini public that were organized across Germany in the MP districts. Sven T. Siefken serves on the advisory board of this initiative. More information about the event here and more about the…
The edited volume on Parliamentary Committees in the Policy Process, edited by Sven T. Siefken and Hilmar Rommetvedt, is now available in paperback. It brings together parliamentary experts from around the world to report on the state of knowledge about what is going on in committees and how relevant they really are. More here https://www.routledge.com/Parliamentary-Committees-in-the-Policy-Process/Siefken-Rommetvedt/p/book/9780367617950
Speaking truth to power? Or just symbolizing it? Sharing thoughts on the changing role of expertise in policy making – and how it relates to Parliament, Sven T. Siefken spoke at the International Commission of Jurists, held in the Bundestag. More here
The international collaboration on Parliaments in the Pandemic (PiP) started to gather information on how the Covid-19 pandemic influenced parliaments around the globe. On March 13, it is holding its fourth Academic Workshop, continuing to analyze the data – this time with a special focus on oversight, legislation and parliamentary performance. Sven T. Siefken is…
The Institute for Parliamentary Research (IParl), Berlin, and Sven T. Siefken brought together a large group of scholars for a workshop discussing current threats to parliamentary democracy. The meeting was held at the Reichstag building in an open format to debate the various developments in democracies around Europe and grapple with the question how to…
The American-German Institute (formerly AICGS) hosted a webinar on the ongoing reform of the electoral law in Germany. Boris Herrmann (Süddeutsche Zeitung) and Sven Siefken discussed the details, background and perspectives with Eric Langenbacher (AGI). More here …
During the traditional field trip week of the Federal University of Applied Administrative Sciences, Sven T. Siefken accompanied a class of students to the Hamburg Inspectorate of the Federal Police. More about the Federal Police of Germany here: https://www.bundespolizei.de
The initiative “Hallo Bundestag” is running mini publics in MP districts – an innovative approach to combine elements of deliberative and representative democracy. Sven T. Siefken is supporting and advising the initiative that is financed by the Robert Bosch foundation, the ZEIT foundation, the Open Society Foundations and the Bundeszentrale für politische Bildung. More about…
On March 17, the German Bundestag passed the electoral reform bill after heated debate. It will limit the size of parliament at 630 members and uphold the principles of personalized proportional representation. March 16 and 17, Sven T. Siefken participated in a workshop of the Friedrich Ebert Foundation, discussing the electoral reform and its consequences.
In March 2023, the Institute for Parliamentary Research held the first IParl Academy for graduate students. As part of the program, Sven T. Siefken discussed with participants what roles parliaments had in crises and how crises are dealt with in parliaments. You can find more about the IParl Academy here https://www.iparl.de/de/forschung/iparl-akademie.html
For the Master’s Program of American Government at Georgetown University in Washington, DC, Sven T. Siefken is co-teaching a Comparative Politics class. Students learn about the entire process: From becoming active in politics, to party work, candidate nomination, election and governing. Going broad comparatively and going deep in the formalities and informalities of the German…
„Parliaments in Crises – Crises in Parliaments“ was the title of an international workshop held in Taipei, Taiwan in February 2023. Sven T. Siefken jointly organized the academic program and presented a paper on how parliaments and crises are related.
Sven Siefken discussed the consequences of the recent corruption scandal in the European Parliament for its members and their ways of information gathering. You can hear parts of the interview here at Deutschlandfunk „Europa heute“ (8:30)
The first reading of the reform bill for the electoral law of Germany has been debated in the Bundestag today. Sven T. Siefken discussed with “Die WELT” daily newspaper, if this new law may lead to deserted districts in the future. The complete article is here. In a separate interview, Siefken spoke about topic with…
In its 2023 workshop, the leadership of the parliamentary administration of the Houses of the Oireachtas discussed with Sven T. Siefken what can be learned from the pandemic situation for their own work in future crises – and in „normal“ situations, too
The Research Committees 08 (Legislative Specialists) and 13 (Democratization in Comparative Perspective) of the International Political Science Association jointly set up a conference within the Southern Political Science Association‘s Annual Conference, held January 11 to 14, 2023 at St Pete Beach in Florida. Conference organizers Irina Khmelko (University of Tennessee, Chattanooga, USA), Adam Szymański (University…
Providing redress for maladministration is a key requirement of any legitimate system of public service delivery. During the 6th. International Conference on Public Policy, held in Toronto, Canada, 27-29 June 2023, Eckart Schroeter and Sven T. Siefken organize a panel that explores different ways of holding public authorities and agents of public service delivery accountable….
The European Parliament has been active in supporting and strengthening parliaments around the globe. Looking back at 10 years of activities, the EP Democracy Support and Election Coordination Group organized a high-level-conference in Brussels to discuss experiences and the way forward, November 29 to 30, 2022. Sven T. Siefken participated as an academic commentator. More…
Visiting the Assemblée nationale on the occasion of the price awarded to colleague Calixte Bloquet for their dissertation “On the outskirts of the French Parliament: The Delegation for Women’s Rights”. A grand ceremony, talks with policy makers and parliamentary administrators and the opportunity to watch question time in parliament. More about the prize here.
Sven T. Siefken presented the international research collaboration “Parliaments in the Pandemic” during the workshop “Parliaments, Crisis and Foresight” of the Inter Pares Steering Committee. It was held in Dublin, Ireland. Inter Pares is a project of the European Commission that is implemented by International IDEA. It brings together parliaments from the EU members states and…
Work in the office of a member of parliament is very dynamic and has particular challenges. Teams are small, hierachies flat, changes frequent – and the work is very fast-paced. At the same time, there are important connections to the district office. In a workshop with the entire team of an MP from both offices…