The rector of an Italian university has described how his institution is tapping into its alumni links to fight ¡°misunderstandings¡± about the European Union and to bring academic rigour to the country¡¯s political debate.

Rome¡¯s LUISS Guido Carli University ¨C the acronym stands for Free International University for Social Studies ¨C is a private college with a long history of producing diplomats and politicians. Italy¡¯s current prime minister, Giuseppe Conte, was a professor of private law at LUISS.

Andrea Prencipe, LUISS¡¯ rector, said he used these ties and the concept of an ¡°engaged university¡± to help the institution ¡°inform policymaking, define better practices and eventually inspire a better society¡±.

The rise of populism and the threat to evidence-based policymaking seems especially concerning in Italy, which is led by a coalition government of the Five Star Movement ¨C which has been criticised for its anti-science views ¨C and the right-wing and anti-immigration party the League.

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Professor Prencipe said these trends needed to be carefully scrutinised. ¡°Nowadays problems are too complicated, they actually need the involvement of more experts¡­we are putting forward this idea very strongly,¡± he said.

Last year, the university organised a debate on the future of Europe that included the Italian minister of foreign affairs, Enzo Moavero Milanesi, another professor ¡°on loan¡± from LUISS. ¡°We offered them an interesting and original view on what¡¯s happening in Europe,¡± Professor Prencipe said. ¡°The situation is not just uncertain but very ambiguous: you¡¯ve got Brexit, you¡¯ve got the positive feedback for populist parties in many countries, and discussions about whether Italy should leave Europe too.¡±

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These kinds of events ¡°expose [policymakers] to the kinds of knowledge we produce in LUISS¡±, the rector explained. They also helped to ensure that academics did not live ¡°in a bubble, trapped in using certain jargon or in certain debates¡±.

Professor Prencipe¡¯s response to the problems facing the European Union was to recruit more scholars to study it. ¡°Unless we study it, we won¡¯t be able to shape the future of Europe,¡± he said.

¡°Its importance goes well beyond economics and financial issues. The EU offers a model for avoiding war, keeping the welfare state, creating a market and building a new form of polity that is both a union of nations but also a supranational polity.¡±

¡°Too much debate about the EU is based on very little understanding of how and why it has developed¡­the EU¡¯s future should be shaped by a realistic debate,¡± the rector continued. The public and policymakers should make up their minds about whether to support the EU in its current form, ¡°but we should provide analysis and evidence for an intelligent debate¡±.

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When it comes to populism, social scientists have to ensure that it is ¡°not just another vague term¡± and that ¡°scholars understand the conditions that make it thrive¡±, Professor Prencipe said.

¡°Populism can¡¯t be avoided, but we can make sure that the concept has some rigour,¡± he added.

anna.mckie@timeshighereducation.com