ENSURE (European security revisited) is a Max Planck Research Group headed by Dr Carolyn Moser and funded by the Max Planck Society (2022-27). It explores and critically assesses the – potentially significant – reshaping of law and governance triggered by the European Union's normative and policy adjustment to increasingly harsh geopolitical realities.
ENSURE has 10 team members, all of whom contribute to the success of the project. In addition, several affiliated researchers enrich the group with their expertise.
Dr Carolyn Moser, Research Group Leader
Dr Carolyn Moser leads the ENSURE group, in parallel to holding the Alfred Grosser Chair at Sciences Po Paris. She conducts research in the field of international and European law and governance, with a special focus on security and defence in Europe. Carolyn was trained in both law and political science at Sciences Po Paris and The Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy (Tufts University, USA), and holds a PhD from Utrecht University on EU civilian crisis management. She received several awards and distinctions for her research, notably the Otto-Hahn-Medal and the European Court of Auditors Award. Her interdisciplinary expertise is solicited also beyond academic circles, for instance by EU and international institutions (eg European Parliament; OSCE; World Bank) and in the media (eg AFP; Deutschlandfunk; Libération; NDR; ORF; SRF). A full list of her publications can be found here.
Rocío Bargon Sánchez, Administrative & Language Assistant
As an administrative and language assistant, Rocío Bargon Sánchez supports the ENSURE team with her linguistic skills, cultural competences, and organizational know-how. She holds a Double Master's Degree in specialised translation and multimedia translation from the Johannes Gutenberg University and the University of Burgundy. Before joining the group, Rocío taught German as a Foreign Language and worked as a freelance translator and subtitler. Within the framework of a Bluebook traineeship at the Directorate-General for translation of the EC, Rocío had the opportunity to become part of one of the biggest translation services in the world. Her working languages are German, Spanish, French, English, and occasionally Portuguese.
Laurids Hempel, Research Assistant
Laurids Hempel reinforces the group as a research assistant. He has been studying law at the University of Heidelberg since 2018, including two semesters abroad at the University of Montpellier, where he focused on studies in international public law and constitutional law. The latter is also his major in his law studies. Following his fascination for politics and public law, he has already worked for one year in the Schleswig-Holsteinischer Landtag (State Parliament of Schleswig-Holstein) before beginning his studies. With his legal knowledge and insights gained into political decision-making processes, he is eager to assist the research of the group at the interface of international public law, European law, and national public law.
Dr Kerttuli Lingenfelter, Senior Research Fellow
Dr Kerttuli Lingenfelter, a postdoctoral researcher joining ENSURE in January 2024, specializes in the international law of crime and critical approaches to international law. Her research will focus on European law and policy regarding extraterritorial criminal jurisdiction. Kerttuli studied at Tallinn University and the European University Institute, where she defended her PhD thesis on the legal and affective dimensions of international criminalization. She has held visiting researcher positions at Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, at the Eric Castrén Institute of the University of Helsinki, and editorial positions at the European Journal of International Law and the European Journal of Legal Studies.
Lukas Märtin, Doctoral Candidate
Lukas Märtin contributes to the group's research as a doctoral candidate. He studied law in Heidelberg and did a one-year study abroad period at Sciences Po Paris. Motivated by his strong interest in European and international law, he interned at the European Parliament, in the cabinet of Advocate General Juliane Kokott at the CJEU and, moreover, reached the final round of pleadings of the renowned European Law Moot Court Competition in his role as Advocate General. Hence, he joins the team with useful practice insights into the law and governance of EU institutions and processes.
Chiara Miśkowiec, Student Assistant
Chiara Miśkowiec joined the group as a student assistant. She has been studying law at the University of Heidelberg since November 2020 and spent the summer semester 2023 at the Jagiellonian University in Kraków. During her time abroad, she focused on the study of constitutional law and EU law. With the insights gained from her studies in Poland, she is now eager to continue her studies in Heidelberg with a focus on international law and to contribute to the ENSURE team with her language skills and her knowledge of Eastern European culture and history.
Finn Preiß, Research Assistant
Finn Preiss comes to the group as a research assistant, having studied law at the University of Heidelberg since 2019, with a focus on public international law. He deepened his knowledge of international and European law during an exchange year at the University of Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne. Following his interest in political decision-making, he completed an internship at the German Federal Ministry of the Environment. As security issues have aroused his interest, he is looking forward to supporting the group.
Effi Spiegel, Research Assistant
Effi Spiegel supports the group as a student assistant. She has been studying law at the University of Heidelberg since 2019. In 2021, she spent a year at the University of Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne, where she mainly followed courses on European law. Inspired by her academic experience in Paris, she interned at the German Ministry of Finance's Directorate-General for European Policies and at the Brussels office of a German law firm. Moreover, she is regularly involved in Model European Union projects, where she has been developing a particular interest in European security. She is therefore excited to build upon her so far established experience in an interdisciplinary context.
Dr Christian Schultheiss, Senior Research Fellow
Dr Christian Schultheiss is an ENSURE Senior Research Fellow. His research has specialized in ocean governance, conflict and maritime security with a focus on Asia. He conducts research on European security in the maritime domain. He was trained in International Relations and in International Law and holds a PhD in Political Science from the University of Cambridge. He has had several field research positions in China, Japan, the Philippines and Singapore. He has been a policy advisor for the European External Action Service and advised the EEAS on a range of EU policy initiatives in the area of maritime security. His publications appeared in International Relations and in International Law outlets.
Dr Sofia Vandenbosch, Senior Research Fellow
Dr Sofia Vandenbosch will join the Group in January 2024. She is a recognized expert in the field of constitutional comparison and human rights protection, and formerly worked for two years as a legal advisor at the Belgian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and as a lecturer at UCLouvain. Sofia studied law and European affairs in Belgium (Liège, Leuven, Ghent) as well as in Glasgow and defended her doctoral thesis on the Europeanisation of treaty-making power at UCLouvain.
Former team members and affiliates
Anne Marie Thévenot-Werner—affiliated researcher, Paris 2; previously visiting researcher (July 2023)
Dr Nina Boy—affiliated researcher; previously visiting senior researcher (2023)
Jule Sommer—intern (2023)
Felicitas Burst—research assistant (2022–23)
Dr Tarek Tutunji—affiliated researcher, former staff member (2019–21)
PUBLICATIONS
TALKS & PRESENTATIONS
MEDIA & OUTREACH
