Celebrating 150 Years of Johns Hopkins University - Enlargement: Europe's Next Chapter? A Conversation with Romano Prodi
hosted by Professor
Renaud Dehousse
Romano Prodi
Former President of the European Commission and Former Prime Minister of Italy
Sergey Radchenko
Discussant: Wilson E. Schmidt Distinguished Professor, SAIS Europe
Nathalie Tocci
Discussant: Professor of the Practice, SAIS Europe
Justin O. Frosini
Chair: Robert Abernethy Adjunct Professor, SAIS Europe and Director of the Center for Constitutional Studies and Democratic Development; Associate Professor of Comparative Public Law, Bocconi University
Reception to follow
The event will open with remarks by Rector Renaud Dehousse and will be followed by a reception celebrating these important anniversaries. This year's gathering carries particular significance. February marks the 71st anniversary of SAIS Europe in Italy and coincides with the 150th anniversary of Johns Hopkins University. Together, these milestones invite us to reflect on a shared tradition shaped by academic rigor, policy relevance, and global impact.
ROMANO PRODI
Romano Prodi is the Former President of the European Commission 1999-2005 and Former Prime Minister of Italy 1996-1998 and 2006-2008.
He is currently President of the Foundation for Worldwide Cooperation and Adjunct Professor of International and Public Affairs at Brown University. Previously he was Chairman of the United Nations-African Union High-level Panel for Peacekeeping in Africa (2008-2014) and professor at CEIBS (China Europe International Business School) in Shanghai, where he is currently a Member of the Board.
Prodi first entered politics in 1978, when he was appointed the Italian Minister of Industry, and in 1995 founded the "Olive Tree" center-left coalition. The coalition won the 1996 election, and Prodi was appointed Prime Minister, remaining in office until October 1998. The measures introduced by his Cabinet enabled Italy to meet the Maastricht criteria for joining the Eurozone.
From 1999 to 2005, Prodi served as President of the European Commission. During his presidency, the euro was successfully introduced; 10 new countries from central, eastern and southern Europe joined the Union; and the Treaty establishing a Constitution for Europe was signed.
In the 2006 parliamentary elections in Italy, Prodi again led the center-left coalition to victory, and again became Prime Minister, serving until May 8, 2008.
From October 2012 to January 2014 he served as the Special Envoy of the Secretary General for the Sahel.
Prodi received his law degree at the Catholic University of Milan and completed postgraduate work at the London School of Economics. He has held research and teaching positions at the University of Bologna, the Lombard Institute of Economic and Social Studies, Stanford Research Institute, the Free University of Trento, Johns Hopkins University SAIS Europe, Harvard University and Brown University.
