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BU academic organises ‘Greece Beyond the Crisis’ conference

3 October 2011

Dr Roman Gerodimos co-organising a conference looking at the Greek financial crisis.

The financial crisis in Greece has been a hot topic dominating global headlines, while political leaders and experts are trying to come up with a viable solution.

Bournemouth University academic Dr Roman Gerodimos is organising an international conference for the Greek Politics Specialist Group of the Political Studies Association on the theme of “The Politics of Extreme Austerity: Greece Beyond the Crisis”.

Dr Gerodimos founded the Greek Politics Specialist Group in 2004. Since then, the GPSG – which is based at Bournemouth University – has become one of the leading international networks of social scientists with an interest in Greece.

“This international conference is supported by the Political Studies Association and it will bring together scholars from different countries with the main emphasis on the crisis in Greece, although clearly there are implications and lessons for the European Union as a whole”.

As well as being a co-organiser of the conference, Dr Gerodimos will be presenting his latest paper on ‘The use of populist rhetoric by anarchists and extremists in Greece.’ Greece has witnessed a string of violent riots since 2008 and Dr Gerodimos’ research looks at the rhetorical tools used by anarchists and extremists to justify and legitimise such violent actions.

The conference seeks to discuss answers to questions such as the impact of the Greek crisis on jobs and living standards, prospects for growth and recovery, the socio-political implications, as well as the knock-on effects on the EU itself.

Dr Gerodimos acknowledges that the Greek financial crisis is:

“Not just a problem for Greece - it really affects the euro zone as a whole, so it has become a problem for the European Union. Whatever happens there is no easy solution. Greece has to take drastic action immediately in order to tackle the structural problems plaguing its public finances, public sector and governance structures. Time is running out and many fear that failure to deal with the crisis could lead to social unrest and political instability, as public support for further austerity measures is dwindling”.

Funding for the conference has already been secured from the Political Studies Association, while the event has also gained support from Glasgow’s City Council via their Ambassador programme.

The two day conference will take place on 8 & 9 December 2011 at the University of Strathclyde in Glasgow.

For more information, visit the website of the Greek Politics Specialist Group.