First row discussant: Ricardo Rodrigues de Oliviera

The State of the Union has selected a group of EUI community members as first-row discussants during the panels on 4 May. They’ll be the ones to get the ball rolling for lively discussion following the panel presentations. Get to know who they are, and what they specialize in.

Ricardo Rodrigues de Oliviera

1. What is your connection with the EUI?

I am a 1st-year PhD in Law researcher. I have been at the EUI for less than one academic year;

2. How would you summarise your research, in just a few words?

My research focuses on the trade-off present in the 2016 PNR Directive of using private entities (air carriers and non-carrier economic operators) for law enforcement purposes and its implications for understanding security and secrecy in the EU, under the modern surveillance technologies and big data processing frameworks;

3. On which panel will you be a first-row discussant at SoU2017?

I will be a first-row discussant at the session entitled ‘Nothing to Hide: Privacy and Surveillance in Europe’, presided over by Professor Deirdre Curtin on the 4th May, 11h45 – 13h.

4. What can academics contribute to policy-discussions about the future of Europe?

Academics should be perceived as the expert analysis at the core of any policy discussion about the future of Europe. In academia, issues are thought over with care, time, and through intense dialogues and debates, either orally and in writing. Academics usually have a broader perspective that connects the past with the present to better shape the future. Without their insight, policy-making becomes hampered by lack of deep reflection as much as any European decision is devaluated without a technical engagement;

5. What are you most looking forward to about SoU?

I am most looking forward to meet different people with all sorts of backgrounds I can discuss the matters that appeal me the most with so that I can learn and improve my research and my vision of the reality around me.