CIVICA Research Hub: AI and social media – Scaling the European Polarisation Observatory (SEPO)

Scaling the European Polarisation Observatory (SEPO) is the flagship project of the European Polarisation Observatory (EPO), one of the first CIVICA Research Hubs. Running from January 2026 to June 2027, SEPO investigates how social media and AI shape political attitudes, social polarisation, and public debates across Europe.

Building on the infrastructure of the European Polarisation Observatory (EPO), SEPO provides a collaborative platform for researchers, students, and policymakers to share data, methods, and findings. As part of the CIVICA European University Alliance, the Hub fosters innovative, evidence-based approaches to studying digital social systems.

SEPO brings together researchers from six CIVICA universities, including Sciences Po, Bocconi University, the Hertie School, the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE), Școala Națională de Studii Politice și Administrative (SNSPA), and Central European University (CEU),. The interdisciplinary team combines expertise in political science, sociology, computational social science, and AI research. Together, they form a Europe-wide team that promotes collaboration, training, and innovation in social science research, supporting both emerging and established researchers in understanding the digital transformation of political life.

Read more about the new CIVICA Research Hub project scaling the European Polarisation Observatory here.

CIVICA Research Hub: TRANSCONNECT – Rethinking migration and integration governance in Europe

Migration is no longer a temporary challenge for Europe. It is a long-term force reshaping societies, labour markets, and democratic resilience across the continent. Since 2022, the arrival of millions of displaced Ukrainians has made this reality visible, exposing both the limits of existing integration models and the urgent need for new approaches to migration governance.

Researching Integration Pathways, Transconnectivity and Policy Innovation in Multilevel Migration Governance (TRANSCONNECT) is one of the new Research Hubs launched under the CIVICA call. As part of the CIVICA European University Alliance, the hub focuses on migration and integration governance in Europe, with a particular emphasis on Ukrainian forced migration since 2022.

Running from January 2026 to June 2027, the hub serves as a platform for interdisciplinary academic research and European research collaboration. TRANSCONNECT brings together researchers from seven CIVICA universities: SGH Warsaw School of Economics, the European University Institute (EUI), Stockholm School of Economics (SSE), Școala Națională de Studii Politice și Administrative (SNSPA), Central European University (CEU), IE University and the Hertie School. The hub also includes three Ukrainian CIVICA partners, as well as additional European universities. Together, the hub represents a major European research collaboration in the social sciences, involving scholars at different career stages and across disciplines.

As part of the CIVICA European University Alliance, TRANSCONNECT focuses on how migration and integration are governed at different levels – local, national, and European- and how universities can contribute social science expertise to real-world challenges through universities and civic engagement. Read more about the new CIVICA Research Hub examining migration governance, integration pathways and ‘transconnectivity’ through interdisciplinary social science research, here.