Institutional Design in Post-Conflict Societies

This research focuses on the Western Balkans, particularly Bosnia and Herzegovina, examining power-sharing models in divided societies, as well as forms of territorial and non-territorial autonomy for minority nations. The expected output is a monograph which examines the federal political system in Bosnia and Herzegovina. The federal system in Bosnia can be characterized as a new form of federalism and federation, because international actors played a key role in the implementation of a federal system and continue to play an important role in 'administrating' this federation. Additionally, this work examines the nature of EU Member-State-Building in the region and argues that the EU is not only actively involved in state-building in the successor states of the former Yugoslavia, but it is building a particular kind of state: namely a future EU Member State.

This work is completed in cooperation with a number of colleagues and in cooperation with a number of other research organisations. Dr Soeren Keil has published together with Prof. Florian Bieber, Director of the Centre for South Eastern Europe, University of Graz and is currently involved in research projects with Dr Zeynep Arkan, Bilkent University, Turkey and Dr Valery Perry, Public International Law and Policy Group, Bosnia and Herzegovina. Some of the results of this research have been published in cooperation with the Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung.

Dr Keil is collaborating on a new project as part of this wider field, assessing foreign policy change in post-Yugoslav states. This project, jointly organised with Prof. Bernhard Stahl, has received funding from Canterbury Christ Church University and the University of Passau, Germany. Dr Keil has also provided expert advice to the German Ministry for Economic Cooperation. Currently, he is working on a project together with the Center for Research and Policy Making to assess the changing dynamics in the power-sharing arrangements in Macedonia. Dr Keil is also the Associate Editor of the International Journal on Balkan Policy Research.

For Dr Soeren Keil's research publications, see: 
http://create.canterbury.ac.uk/view/creators/Keil=3AS=2E=3A=3A.html