Conference
9-10 June 2025
Badia Fiesolana, Via dei Roccettini 9 - San Domenico di Fiesole (Fiesole, Florence)
Academic organisers:
Veronica Anghel | Robert Schuman Centre for Advanced Studies, European University Institute (EUI)
Hilary Appel | Keck Center for International and Strategic Studies, Claremont McKenna College (CMC)
Rachel Epstein | The Josef Korbel School of International Studies, University of Denver (DU)
Introduction
The liberal world order and the transatlantic partnership that underpins it stand today at a crossroads marked by profound tension, introspection, and uncertainty. Structural strains, domestic political divergences, and competing global ambitions have long suggested a deeper and potentially enduring erosion of the transatlantic bond. The Russia-Ukraine War only briefly galvanized transatlantic unity. The increasingly illiberal leadership of President Donald Trump has amplified pre-existing divisions, further diminishing the role of Western leadership in maintaining the liberal world order.
At the heart of this moment of great turbulence also lies the contested legacy of the liberal world order itself. For its advocates, this order—rooted in shared transatlantic values of democracy, open markets, multilateralism, and the rule of law—delivered unprecedented global gains: from the spread of electoral democracies to reductions in conflict and inequality, and historic improvements in prosperity, health, and education. Perhaps nowhere were its benefits clearer than in Europe, where the transatlantic alliance helped secure peace and foster integration after centuries of devastating conflict. For many, the liberal order’s achievements remain not only real but preferable to any known alternative. However imperfectly realized, its promises of accountable governance, human rights, and the aspiration of law over arbitrary power remain worth defending.
Yet this narrative has come under sustained critique from across the ideological spectrum. Detractors argue that the liberal order has too often served as a mask for domination, imposing its values—frequently by force—on populations for whom its principles felt alien, disenfranchising, or hypocritical. They point to the environmental toll of global capitalism, the failures of liberal democracies to prevent backsliding into authoritarianism, and the order’s complicity in perpetuating global hierarchies. Increasingly, even within liberal societies, voices question whether the system’s structural inequities and contradictions have fatally undermined its legitimacy.
The transatlantic relationship sits at the core of these debates. It faces the dual challenge of preserving what has been valuable in the liberal order while responding to an international environment where fewer actors, both within and beyond the West, see that order as either just or sustainable. Non-Western powers, in particular, express little nostalgia for Western-led systems and seek instead a more transactional, multipolar order grounded less in ideology than in practical concerns of security, prosperity, and sovereignty. Ironically, the very incoherence of the contemporary West creates fertile ground for these alternative visions.
Against this backdrop, the future of the liberal world order—and transatlanticism itself—cannot rest on nostalgia. To endure, they must be scrutinized and possibly reimagined. The question is not merely whether the liberal order “worked” or whether it is worth saving, but whether it can be adapted to center human welfare more genuinely and inclusively in a world that is less willing to defer to Western leadership. This requires hard reflection: Which elements of the liberal project are essential and universalizable? Which were historically contingent or self-serving? How might transatlantic cooperation evolve to promote stability and prosperity without reproducing the very inequalities and exclusions that have fueled disillusionment domestically and internationally?
The stakes are high. The weakening of the transatlantic alliance and the unraveling of even the imperfect liberal order risk opening space for a world of unchecked power politics, transactionalism, and violent conflict. Yet defensive postures alone are insufficient. The path forward lies in critically reassessing the promises and failures of liberalism and transatlanticism alike—resisting the urge either to romanticize the past or discard its gains, and instead forging new frameworks that can meet the demands of a more plural and contested global landscape.
This event is therefore not only an occasion to diagnose the liberal world order’s ailments but also to explore the possibilities of its renewal, transformation, or replacement. If the liberal order is to survive in any form, it must demonstrate that its core principles—democracy, accountability, freedom, and human dignity—are adaptable to the complexities of the present and the aspirations of those far beyond the shores of the Atlantic.
Draft Programme
8 June
20:00 - 22:00 Dinner at Osteria delle Tre Panche (optional, covered by organisers)
9 June
09:00 - 09:15 Welcome coffee
09:15 - 09:30 Opening remarks
09:30 - 11:15 The Global Assault on the Liberal World Order
Is the decline of the liberal order an inevitable consequence of its own contradictions? What global cleavages structure world politics today? Does the survival of the liberal world order necessitate global ideological dominance? Are power structures shifting, and if so, how should scholars respond in order to defend or simply better grasp these changes?
Chair: Veronica Anghel | EUI
Panelists:
Tanja Börzel | FU Berlin
Daniele Caramani | EUI
George Thomas | CMC
Robbie Shilliam | JHU
11:15 - 11:45 Coffee break
11:45 - 13:15 The Assault on the Transatlantic Order
Has the transatlantic relationship been weakened more by external threats or by the internal loss
of liberal ideals? Can the transatlantic alliance still credibly promote democracy abroad or within
its own ranks? What is the role of the Russia-Ukraine War in shaping the transatlantic relationship
of the future?
Chair: Hilary Appel | CMC
Panelists:
Rachel Epstein | DU
Erik Jones | EUI
Ivan Gomza | KSE
13:15 - 14:15 Lunch break
14:15 - 15:45 The Power of Small States and Turbulence in the Liberal World Order
Can small liberal states remain liberal in a post-liberal world order? How can small states assert
their agency without becoming collateral in geopolitical struggles? How can multilateral institutions
be reshaped to amplify the voices of smaller states rather than just reinforcing the dominance of
larger powers?
Chair: Rachel Epstein | DU
Panelists:
Veronica Anghel | EUI
Elisabeth Leake | Fletcher, Tufts
Hilary Appel | CMC
15:45 - 19:30 Afternoon break
19:30 - 21:30 Conference dinner at Cantinetta Antinori (covered by organisers)
10 June
09:00 - 09:15 Welcome coffee
09:15 – 10:45 The Liberal World Order and Alternative Poles of Power
Can the liberal order accommodate alternative political and economic models, or does the presence of illiberal major powers necessarily undermine a liberal order? How do actors like the BRICS and regional coalitions challenge the West’s traditional mechanisms of global governance? Does the rise of alternative poles of power reflect a failure of the liberal order, or does it reveal a diversity of regime types that can coexist without challenging the existing order?
Chair: TBC
Panelists:
Minxin Pei | CMC
Sergey Radchenko | JHU SAIS
Aseema Sinha | CMC
10:45 - 11:15 Coffee break
11:15 – 12:45 What Drives this Dynamic? The Appeal of Illiberal Leaders and Parties
Is the rise of illiberal leaders primarily a reaction to the failures of liberal governance, or does it signal a deeper cultural shift away from liberal values? Do illiberal leaders succeed because they offer real solutions, or because they manipulate grievances more effectively than their liberal counterparts? Can liberal democracy regain its appeal without resorting to illiberal methods to counter its challengers?
Chair: Erik Jones | EUI
Panelists:
Liesbet Hooghe | EUI
Debak Das | DU
Anna Grzymala-Busse | Stanford
12:45 - 13:00 Closing remarks
13:00 - 14:00 Concluding lunch
20:00 - 22:00 Post-Conference dinner (optional, covered by participants)
Participants
Veronica Anghel European University Institute
Hilary Appel Claremont McKenna College
Tanja Börzel Freie University Berlin
Daniele Caramani European University Institute
Debak Das The Korbel School, University of Denver
Rachel Epstein The Korbel School, University of Denver
Ivan Gomza Kyiv School of Economics
Anna Grzymala-Busse Stanford University
Liesbet Hooghe European University Institute
Erik Jones European University Institute
Elisabeth Leake The Fletcher School, Tufts University
Minxin Pei Claremont McKenna College
Sergey Radchenko Johns Hopkins SAIS
Robbie Shilliam Johns Hopkins University
Aseema Sinha Claremont McKenna College
George Thomas Claremont McKenna College