iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Reposted by Catherine E. de Vries

IE Political Science Department @iepolisci.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

Just under one week left to apply for our three tenure track positions (Comparative Politics, International Relations, and Political Economy). Links to the calls are in the post below. Please help spread the word to candidates who may be interested!

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Reposted by Catherine E. de Vries

Jens van 't Klooster 💸💸💸 @jvtk.bsky.social · 28/09/2026

Finally out, with @shahinvallee.bsky.social our ambitious story for European Macro Policy Network (EMPN) on the future of the global euro empn.eu/publication/...

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EPSS @epssnet.bsky.social · 24/09/2026

Call for Proposals: EPSS Copenhagen 2027 Pre-Conference Workshops! We're seeking proposals for workshops on 23 June 2027, at the University of Copenhagen. Whether you are a senior scholar or an ECR, we want your expertise! ⏳Deadline: 13 Nov 2026 🔗Apply here: epssnet.org/2027-copenha... #EPSS2027

epssnet.org

Pre-Conference Workshops EPSS 2027

Submit your proposal for a pre-conference workshop at the EPSS 2027 Conference in Copenhagen to lead focused discussions and skill-building sessions for political science scholars.

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Catherine E. de Vries @catherinedevries.bsky.social · 23/09/2026

Looking forward to seeing you tomorrow! Thank you for coming!

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Catherine E. de Vries @catherinedevries.bsky.social · 21/09/2026

I’m thrilled to hear that and love your paper. Sending you both an email!

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Stefanie Walter @stefwalter.bsky.social · 21/09/2026

1/3 How can Europe thrive in a fragmenting world and reform despite political divisions between and within countries? In our @cepr.org Europe 2050 contribution, @jafrieden.bsky.social & I argue that political feasibility must be a central consideration in any reform design. cepr.org/publications...

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Florian Foos @florianfoos.bsky.social · 20/09/2026

Now more likely than not that the CDU will fail to cross the 5% threshold in Mecklenburg-West Pomerania. This is consistent with the ongoing count.

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Nicolai von Ondarza @nvondarza.bsky.social · 18/09/2026

Very interesting research. On this, I had a discussion this week whether polls for the AfD would have dropped if the Leipzig drone attack had been successful. My guess says no as many AfD voters are in a different information space and would have perceived even such a shock event very differently.

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Helene von Bismarck @helenebismarck.bsky.social · 18/09/2026

Instead of debating “should we do what Canada is doing” (which is, so far, unclear), the debate could be: “how has the world changed that the EU and Canada are considering this, and how do we want to deal with this situation?“ Just a suggestion.

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Catherine E. de Vries @catherinedevries.bsky.social · 18/09/2026

AfD voters see Russia as less threatening and have high hostility to CDU/AfD

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Catherine E. de Vries @catherinedevries.bsky.social · 18/09/2026

Thank you! We explore some mechanisms in the paper. 👇

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Ala Alrababah @aalrababah.bsky.social · 18/09/2026

Thread about new working paper with @catherinedevries.bsky.social and Rachel Myrick. Comments welcome!

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Catherine E. de Vries @catherinedevries.bsky.social · 18/09/2026

Here is the link to the study: osf.io/preprints/so...

osf.io

OSF

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David Herdson @davidherdson.bsky.social · 18/09/2026

Interesting and concerning thread, as Europe faces key elections next year. The serious times should, in traditional theory, bring voters to serious parties. However the study referenced below suggests most radicalised voters don't return when confronted with security threats.

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Catherine E. de Vries @catherinedevries.bsky.social · 18/09/2026

Do you want to read the study & find out more details, please check it out here: Also comments are welcome! /end

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Catherine E. de Vries @catherinedevries.bsky.social · 18/09/2026

In other words: A more security-conscious electorate isn’t necessarily an electorate that moves back towards incumbent/established parties. The security dividend exists. But its electoral reach may be more limited than we often assume. 6/

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Catherine E. de Vries @catherinedevries.bsky.social · 18/09/2026

That distinction matters for 2027. Security threats may benefit experienced governing parties, but primarily by moving voters within the political centre, rather than bringing voters on the radical-right flank back into it. 5/

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Catherine E. de Vries @catherinedevries.bsky.social · 18/09/2026

But here is the puzzle: Support for the CDU/CSU increased (as we would expect), but support for the AfD did NOT wane. CDU/CSU gained mainly from voters who had previously supported the SPD, FDP or Greens. AfD voters changed their views on security, but not their party preference. 4/

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Catherine E. de Vries @catherinedevries.bsky.social · 18/09/2026

In new experimental research with @aalrababah.bsky.social (Bocconi) & Rachel Myrick (Duke), we tested this in 🇩🇪 When confronted with a concrete international security threat, voters wanted higher defence spending, more European defence cooperation & politicians with greater security expertise. 3/

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Catherine E. de Vries @catherinedevries.bsky.social · 18/09/2026

Traditional theories of international relations suggest it should. As security threats rise, voters should value governing experience, foreign-policy expertise, giving incumbent parties a kind of “security dividend.” But does that actually happen? 2/

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Catherine E. de Vries @catherinedevries.bsky.social · 18/09/2026

Europe is heading into a super election year in 2027. Those elections will take place against a precarious security backdrop: war in Ukraine and Iran, a retreating US & Europeans increasingly worried about their own security. So shouldn’t this benefit the political centre? Not so fast. 🧵

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Gerard Rathenau @grathenau.bsky.social · 17/09/2026

Heel leerzaam stuk van @catherinedevries.bsky.social over dat politici niet alleen naar de kiezer moet luisteren maar vooral zelf moet afwegen wat hiermee te doen om beleid te maken en niet alleen opdrachten uit te voeren van de kiezer, interessante zienswijze! www.groene.nl/artikel/de-p...

groene.nl

Politici die hun eigen oordeel opofferen aan de ‘volkswil’, verzaken hun taak

Liberalen, christen-democraten en andere middenpolitici lijken bevangen door het idee dat als je maar goed luistert naar de volkswil, de populistische revolte als vanzelf gaat liggen. Al eeuwenlang we...

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Catherine E. de Vries @catherinedevries.bsky.social · 16/09/2026

Great observation, Jonathan. I very much agree.

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Joachim Mergeay @jmergeay.bsky.social · 16/09/2026

Read this thread on generating versus recognizing (good) ideas and then sharpening them. And at the same time, hone your skills in writing and recognizing ideas and opportunities.

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Catherine E. de Vries @catherinedevries.bsky.social · 16/09/2026

I haven’t, but that is a great idea. We could start an ideas treasure trove!

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Catherine E. de Vries @catherinedevries.bsky.social · 16/09/2026

Most ideas won’t survive. That’s the point! Creativity may not be the mysterious ability to constantly produce brilliant ideas. Perhaps it’s learning to recognise the few ideas that become more interesting the longer you play with them. 9/

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Catherine E. de Vries @catherinedevries.bsky.social · 16/09/2026

So I’ve started doing what I call an Idea Lab. Put your ideas on cards, move them around, combine them, and sharpen them. Follow Saunders’s needle. Only afterwards bring back your mean brain and ask: is this actually new, important and testable? 8/

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Catherine E. de Vries @catherinedevries.bsky.social · 16/09/2026

This is especially important in academia, because academics are very good at killing ideas early. You have an idea and Reviewer 2 immediately appears in your head: Someone must have done this. What’s the mechanism? How will you test it? Important questions. But perhaps they can wait. 7/

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Catherine E. de Vries @catherinedevries.bsky.social · 16/09/2026

I’ve started using Saunders’s needle before I write. I brainstorm ideas on little pieces of paper. Then, instead of asking immediately whether an idea is important, publishable or feasible, I tinker with it. Does the needle move toward P or N? 6/

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Catherine E. de Vries @catherinedevries.bsky.social · 16/09/2026

Writer George Saunders has a wonderful metaphor for this. Imagine a little meter in your forehead: P for Positive, N for Negative. Change a sentence. Read it again. Did the needle move toward P or N? Focus on the P, keep doing that, and gradually the writing gets better. 5/

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Catherine E. de Vries @catherinedevries.bsky.social · 16/09/2026

We often confuse two very different activities: Idea generation and idea recognition. We have lots of techniques for the first. Our toolkit for the second is surprisingly thin. But having lots of ideas isn't necessarily the same as lots of good ideas! 4/

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Catherine E. de Vries @catherinedevries.bsky.social · 16/09/2026

That made me think: perhaps the creative act isn’t always about producing something new. But it’s seeing something in an idea that others might not see yet. 3/

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Catherine E. de Vries @catherinedevries.bsky.social · 16/09/2026

Last week I heard Stephen Fry talk about Greek mythology. He used the story of Prometheus giving humans fire against Zeus’s wishes to illuminate today’s debate about AI. A 3,000-year-old myth suddenly became a way of thinking about technological change. 2/

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Catherine E. de Vries @catherinedevries.bsky.social · 16/09/2026

I used to think the most creative writers were unusually good at having good ideas. Now I think they may just be unusually good at spotting them. Because having ideas is easy. I have lots of them, but most are terrible. So the question is: how do you know when there’s something there? 🧵

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Nicolai von Ondarza @nvondarza.bsky.social · 16/09/2026

For the proposed Associate Membership of Canada remember that there is an EU-Canada summit scheduled for end of October. This gives Carney, vdL and EU member states about six weeks to define in broad terms how such a status could look like.

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Rob Francis @robfranciseu.bsky.social · 16/09/2026

The European Commission wants Canada to be the first associate member of the EU. But what does that mean in practice? And under what treaty article could this be arranged? My piece below with thanks to @nvondarza.bsky.social and @alanherve.bsky.social for their insights borderlex.net/2026/09/16/v...

borderlex.net

Von der Leyen dangles associate EU membership for Canada - Borderlex - European trade policy

European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen wants Canada to become the first country with associate status in the European Union. Legal scholars see a possible route through a specific treaty a...

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Catherine E. de Vries @catherinedevries.bsky.social · 16/09/2026

Thank you for reading Simon. I might borrow that line! 😉

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