University Paris 8 Saint-Denis

The University Paris 8 Saint-Denis, founded in 1969 as the so-called “experimental university centre of Vincennes” issued from the historical University of Paris, is specialised in Social sciences and Humanities (SSH). One of the first universities in the world to integrate new disciplines among its departments – like Cinema, Dance, Contemporary literature, Music, Psychoanalysis, Geopolitics or Gender studies with 36 laboratories and research teams cover these field. The University counts with 22.000 students and around 700 regular scholars. University has become a major teaching and research centre for humanities in the Ile-de-France region and is internationally renowned for its original advanced studies in the humanities, arts and social sciences, led in a close link between research, international cooperation and learning.

University of Paris 8 has received several badges of excellence: the Labex Arts-H2H for research and the IDEFI CREATIC for training. It has obtained EUR (Ecole Universitaire de Recherche) in 2018, a new graduate school program of excellence for research and training: ArTeC specialised in digital arts & humanities. It is engaged in a partnership community with the University Paris-Nanterre and one of the co-founders of the “Campus Condorcet”, opened in 2019 in the neighborhood of Paris to host eleven French major institutions in SSH, amidst the EHESS, the CNRS and the Sorbonne.

The Paris Center for Sociological and Political Research (CRESPPA) is one of the main research centres for sociology and political science in Paris region. It is a joint institution between Paris 8 University, Nanterre University, the CNRS and other institutions. One of its 3 main research topics concerns citizenship.

Relevant previous projects and initiatives

2019-2020: “Reimagining democracy to address authoritarianism and violent extremism: the role of citizenship and human rights education”, UCL Cities partnerships Programme Funds 2019/20 (together with H. Starkey).
2016-2019: “(New) Political Representative Claims: A Global View (France, Germany, Brazil, China, India)”, Joint research program of the French National Research Agency (ANR) and the German Research Society (DFG). Leading partner together with Duisburg-Essen university.
2011-2013: “Dilemmas of Participatory Network Planning. Sustainability, Democracy and Planning in France, the Netherlands, Spain and Sweden”, program URBAN-NET, EU, PUCA, Paris 8 University, Leading partner: Uppsala University (Sweden).
2010-2012: “PUC- Participation in Urban Climate-Protection”, 6th PCRD program, Leading partner: Heinrich-Böll-Foundation Brandenburg.
2005-2006: “Local Agenda 21 and Participatory Budgeting”, UE, 6ème PCRD, program «Learning community»; leading partner: KATE (Stuttgart).