In July 2024, FEJUST proudly represented Türkiye and Bahçeşehir University at the European Conference on Politics and Gender (ECPG) — the world’s most influential meeting for gender and politics scholarship, held this year at Ghent University.
Our Jean Monnet Chair, Prof. Dr. Rahime Süleymanoğlu-Kürüm, played a strategic leadership role as Co-Chair of the section, "Moving Towards an Anti-Racist Feminist Political Science in Europe", organised together with FEJUST researcher Assoc. Prof. Melis Cin (Lancaster University) and early-career scholars Dr. Miriam Mona Mukalazi (EUI) and Dr. Dounia Bourabain (Hasselt University). This section brought together prominent scholars such as Anya Topolski (Radboud University), Fatim Selina Diaby (Sciences Po), Ayisha Heuerding (Rutgers University), Stefanie Boulila (Lucerne), Neema Begum (Nottingham), Angela Kocze (CEU) and Oluwadunni O. Talabi (Bremen) — all committed to transforming knowledge practices in European political science.
FEJUST on Stage: Panels and Debates
Prof. Süleymanoğlu-Kürüm took the floor as Panel Discussant in the session:
Navigating Epistemic Injustice: Intersectionality, Power Dynamics & Feminist Voices where she introduced FEJUST’s key question:
Who gets to produce knowledge about Europe — and whose Europe becomes visible?
She also contributed to discussions on decolonial feminist methodologies, Safe(r) spaces for BIPoC researchers, Intersectional crisis politics in the EU. These conversations expanded what EU Studies can be — more democratic, more just, and more inclusive.
FEJUST Confronts Mainstream EU Studies
Beyond this section, FEJUST contributed to the European Politics theme through the celebrated roundtable "The Sound of Silence — Conversations with Mainstream EU Studies", Moderated by Roberta Guerrina (Bristol) & Koen Slootmaeckers (City), Joined by leading experts: Toni Haastrup (Manchester), Rosalind Cavaghan (Edinburgh), Muireann O’Dwyer (St Andrews)
Together, they asked "Why are feminist and equality perspectives still treated as “optional”" in EU Studies — and how do we change this? Prof. Süleymanoğlu-Kürüm spotlighted the knowledge production gap that sidelines the EU’s peripheries — and why feminist epistemic justice must lead the way forward.
Through FEJUST’s leadership at ECPG:
Feminist epistemic justice became a field-shaping agenda
Türkiye’s EU scholars were at the centre of global debate
Voices beyond Europe’s core gained visibility
Early-career and BIPoC researchers found space to speak
Collaboration networks across Europe grew stronger
FEJUST ensures that the story of Europe is written by all who make Europe — not only those at its centre. Further details about the event can be accessed here: https://ecpr.eu/Events/253
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