Advising EU candidate countries on the scope and effects of informal practices

Professor Eric Gordy led research across nine countries to develop the first detailed picture of the scope and effects of informal practices in the Southeast Europe region.

Synopsis

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In the Balkans, informal practices emerge as a response to the failures of formal institutions (new laws, agencies and procedures created by top-down political reforms). These practices range from communally based modes of cooperation to corrupt practices, including clientelism and bribery. As PI for INFORM (an EUR2,300,000 ERC Horizon 2020 research programme) Gordy led research across 9 countries to develop the first detailed picture of the scope and effects of informal practices in the Southeast Europe region (SEE). INFORM research, synthesised in a published collection (ed. by Gordy), helped an EU institution (DG NEAR) develop approaches towards the promotion of rule of law which were based on ‘concrete knowledge of how informality functions’ [as confirmed by the fmr. Director of DG NEAR in A.].

 

Gordy’s research has impacted governments, policymakers, and publics. INFORM’s advice to governments in EU candidate countries helped them understand methods of bringing EU-inspired legislation into closer correspondence with local practices and needs; direct engagement with policymakers ‘set the standard for collaboration between the research community and the services of the EC working on policy’ [as confirmed by a Senior Expert, DG NEAR, in B.]; and, through media engagement in Southeast Europe (SEE), Gordy encouraged public participation in SEE political dialogues, expanding beyond the ‘closed circles’ identified in his earlier research [R1].

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