Introduction
1. The EU as a Living Project
2. Habemus Prōiectum!
3. A Feel for the Project Game
4. Capital and Strategies in the Project Field
5. The Dramaturgy of Everyday Project Life
6. Project Representations and Performances
7. Lifting the Curtain on the Project World
Conclusion
Biography
Gregor Cerinšek is the Head of the Department for Applied Social Science Research at the Institute for Innovation and Development of the University of Ljubljana, Slovenia, and a Senior Impact Strategist at Halmstad University, Sweden. With a PhD in anthropology, his work explores the structural dynamics of European research and innovation infrastructures, particularly within EU-funded projects.
"This book is a must-read for anyone who is serious about being involved in funded research! Gregor Cerinšek, one of Europe's most experienced project coordinators, leaders and researchers, adeptly guides readers through a compelling journey back-stage into the messy, creative, intellectually exciting and sometimes fraught behind-the-scenes workings in EU projects. This book both answers all the questions we all wanted to ask about EU projects and offers a deep reflection on institutional circumstances of contemporary European academia. Cerinšek's analysis is critical but also deeply pragmatic as regards understanding how and why the project model is simultaneously intrinsically flawed and conditioned for successfully delivering excellent research and practical outcomes. Cerinšek himself delivers an exceptional example of the engaged anthropological scholarship our times call for."
Laureate Prof Dr Sarah Pink, Professor and Director of Emerging Technologies Research Lab and FUTURES Hub, Monash University, Melbourne, Australia
"EU projects finally made human. With sharp observations, real-life stories, and the clever idea of ‘Lingua EU’, this book reveals the rituals, rules, and humour behind the bureaucracy. Essential, practical, and surprisingly fun for scholars, policy-makers, developers and anyone who’s ever survived a general assembly."
Prof Dr Vaike Fors, Professor in Design Ethnography and leader of the REBEL research program at Halmstad University, Sweden.
"'All the world’s a stage,' William Shakespeare explained. Gregor Cerinšek nods in agreement and steps into the project backstage, where he subtly yet boldly reveals what lies behind the curtain. Without this book, you will not understand the script by which European projects are written and performed; it is therefore essential reading for the academic community and students alike, as well as for project managers and other professionals."
Prof Dr Dan Podjed, Senior Research Fellow at the Research Centre of the Slovenian Academy of Sciences and Arts and Professor at the Faculty of Arts of the University of Ljubljana, Slovenia
