Tales of Backlash are everywhere: the Economist writes of ‘greenlash’ against climate policy, scholars and civil society warn against democratic backsliding or ‘authoritarian backlash’, while the UN finds that nearly one in four countries experienced a backlash against women's rights in 2024. But are these separate processes or different aspects of the same process? And what do we really mean when we speak of ‘backlash’? These are among the questions that will be addressed in this round-table discussion.
In a context of overlapping crises, this analysis aims to contribute to mapping the current situation by critically examining the phenomenon of backlash, taking into account the historical and structural conditions that drive it, as well as the ideological and power dynamics behind these processes.
The event also seeks to question the framing of ‘backlash’: do we use it simply because we are losing ground, or perhaps because we lack new visions for the future?
The last section of the panel discussion seeks to reflect on our responsibility in this moment: what forms of resistance are possible and how can we respond to these challenges in ways that not only defend but shape the future?
The format is designed as a conversation rather than a series of stand-alone lectures, and will take place from 17:00 to 18:30 in the Elinor Ostrom room on 23 March, after a biscuits and coffee break in the Hannah Arendt Room and the Leonardo Da Vinci Room from 16:30. The aim is to encourage collective reflection on how these 'backlash' narratives emerge, and how they might be connected to, and/or amplify, one another, informed by different academic perspectives.
About the speakers:
Dr Ermela Gianna | University of Salzburg
Dr Ermela Gianna is a Postdoctoral Research Fellow at the Chair of Politics & Gender, Diversity & Equality, Department of Political Science, University of Salzburg. Her research focuses on democracy, political participation, and representation in the European Union, with particular attention to EU institutions, economic governance, and parliamentary politics. During her postdoctoral research, she contributed to the Horizon Europe projects PushBackLash and ActEU, examining backlash politics, democratic representation, and gender equality in Europe.
Dr. Chiara Milan | Scuola Normale Superiore’s COSMOS (Centre for Social Movement Studies)
Chiara Milan is Assistant Professor of Political Sociology in the Faculty of Political and Social Sciences at the Scuola Normale Superiore, where she coordinates the Jean Monnet Network 'Transnational Political Contention in Europe' (TraPoCo). She has been a Marie Skłodowska-Curie Fellow in the Centre for Southeast European Studies at the University of Graz, Austria, and holds a PhD in Political and Social Sciences from the European University Institute. Professor Milan is the author of Social mobilisation beyond ethnicity: Grassroots movements and civic activism in Bosnia and Herzegovina (Routledge, 2020). She has also published several articles in international journals and chapters in edited volumes on social movements and contentious politics in divided societies, exploring their broader significance for political participation and citizenship.
Dr Milan also worked on 'right to the city' movements, with a specific focus on Southeastern Europe. She is currently working on the mobilisation of youth of migrant descent and collective solidarity actions in support of refugees.
Virginia Fiume | La Sapienza Università di Roma, STG Alumna
Virginia Fiume, a former Policy Leader Fellow at the EUI School of Transnational Governance, is currently a PhD student in Peace Studies at La Sapienza University of Rome, where she is conducting the qualitative research project ‘Tracing Nonviolence in the Mediterranean’. With experiences in Brussels, the UK, North America, and the Occupied Palestinian Territories, Fiume has broad experience analysing and navigating the transnational dimensions of democratic participation and popular resistance. She is currently under trial for civil disobedience for the legalisation of euthanasia; her insights into these experience will be featured in the forthcoming book ‘Dissensus over Liberal Democracy: Key Conversations with Leading Voices’ (Coman et al., 2026).
In her capacity as former co-founder and co-president of the pan-European movement for popular initiative EUMANS, she has also organised the 2022 ‘Open Congress of Citizens for Sustainable Peace, Freedom, and Democracy’ in Poland, addressing the intersection between civil rights, rule of law and democratic backsliding.
Jakob Blasel | Fridays for Future Germany
Jakob Blasel is a leading voice in the German climate movement with unique insight into the intersection of grassroots activism and institutional politics. He co-founded Fridays for Future Germany in 2018, mobilising mass support for climate action. In 2024/25, he served as the national chairman of the Green Youth. In this role, he navigated the rising progressive backlash in Europe, working to firmly anchor social justice and rigorous climate policies against mounting populist opposition.