Languages: Italian and English
Areas of Expertise: International relations, global governance, G8 and G20, environment and development
Silvia Francescon is the head of the Rome office of the European Council on Foreign Relations. Her topics of focus include global governance, the G8 and G20, and international development.
Before joining ECFR, Franceson was deputy head of the G8-G20 Sherpa office at the Italian Prime Minister’s Office. She was in charge of co-ordinating the Prime Minister and Sherpa’s G8 and G20 policy dossiers and bilaterals. She also served the United Nations as Co-ordinator of the Millennium Campaign in Italy and is a former negotiator of international and European agreements for the Italian Ministry for the Environment. Previously, Franceson worked at the OECD (Environment Directorate), the WTO (Legal Affairs Division), and the European Commission (DG Agriculture). She was also a research fellow in the International Law Departments of the Universities of Leiden (NL) and Ferrara (Italy). She holds a Masters in International Environmental Law from the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS, London) and graduated cum laude in International Law from the University of Ferrara, where she was awarded of the title of “cultore della materia” in International Law.
Mark Leonard speaks with Josef Janning, Silvia Francescon, Piotr Buras and Manuel Lafont Rapnouil about the major rift between German Chancellor Angela Merkel and her interior minister over migrant policy.
Bookshelf:
L'Ordre du jour by Eric Vuillard
The Miracle Of Mindfulness by Thich Nhat Hanh
Utopia for Realists: And How We Can Get There by Rutger Bregman
The Mask it Wears by Pankaj Mishra
Teresa Coratella & Silvia Francescon - 08 June 2018
Can the unlikely bedfellows of the Five Star Movement and the League really make government work?
Mark Leonard speaks with Silvia Francescon and Nathalie Tocci about the brewing political crisis in Italy and what impact this could have on Europe as a whole.
ECFR's director Mark Leonard discusses four possible outcomes in Italy’s election on the 4th of march 2018 with Silvia Francescon, head of ECFR Rome, and Alba Lamberti, Senior Director for Advocacy.
This podcast was recorded on 2 March 2018.
More on the Italy election:
Teresa Coratella: Italy votes: Europe in the Italian election
Josef Janning: Italy: Followig Britain towards the exit?
For our Italian listeners, check out the event on Italy’s foreign policy after the election on YouTube.
by Marco de Andreis, Silvia Francescon - 24th May, 2012
From our Reinvention of Europe series of National papers
PDF
Teresa Coratella & Silvia Francescon - 08 June 2018
Can the unlikely bedfellows of the Five Star Movement and the League really make government work?
Silvia Francescon - 14 October 2016
Italy sees the European Council as a forum for policy and political discussion, where measures should be debated instead of simply adopted.
Silvia Francescon - 15 September 2016
Bratislava is the perfect opportunity for Europe’s leaders to live up to their responsibilities in delivering concrete responses to Europe's challenges.
Silvia Francescon - 24 June 2016
All in all, the sentiment in Italy is that, at the end of the day, the UK has never truly been part of Europe.
Silvia Francescon - 05 April 2016
Italy's government has called for the "europeanisation" of intelligence, but is exploring more cultural answers to the terrorism problem
Silvia Francescon - 08 February 2016
Although differences persist, Italy will need little convincing on Tusk deal
Silvia Francescon - 19 January 2016
Nascent resentment is building in Italy over the lack of burden sharing
Silvia Francescon - 04 December 2015
Italy wants to look outward to tackle refugee crisis, but domestic criticism over Turkey’s role
Mark Leonard speaks with Josef Janning, Silvia Francescon, Piotr Buras and Manuel Lafont Rapnouil about the major rift between German Chancellor Angela Merkel and her interior minister over migrant policy.
Bookshelf:
L'Ordre du jour by Eric Vuillard
The Miracle Of Mindfulness by Thich Nhat Hanh
Utopia for Realists: And How We Can Get There by Rutger Bregman
The Mask it Wears by Pankaj Mishra
Mark Leonard speaks with Silvia Francescon and Nathalie Tocci about the brewing political crisis in Italy and what impact this could have on Europe as a whole.
ECFR's director Mark Leonard discusses four possible outcomes in Italy’s election on the 4th of march 2018 with Silvia Francescon, head of ECFR Rome, and Alba Lamberti, Senior Director for Advocacy.
This podcast was recorded on 2 March 2018.
More on the Italy election:
Teresa Coratella: Italy votes: Europe in the Italian election
Josef Janning: Italy: Followig Britain towards the exit?
For our Italian listeners, check out the event on Italy’s foreign policy after the election on YouTube.
This week, rather than putting out our ordinary podcast, we're leaving the floor to Manuel Lafont Rapnouil, head of ECFR Paris, who's hosting a discussion with the heads of most of ECFR's offices from around Europe to look at France and Macron's rise from the outside in.
Nouveau podcast de notre série sur l'élection présidentielle de 2017 ayant pour objectif de traiter les thèmes d'actualité et de contribuer au débat dans la perspective des élections françaises.
Cet épisode des Views from the Capitals de l'ECFR examine les attitudes des gouvernements et opinions publiques dans les capitales européennes au sujet de l'élection présidentielle française et de la victoire d'Emmanuel Macron, en particulier concernant les enjeux de politique étrangère.
La discussion a eu lieu entre Manuel Lafont Rapnouil, directeur du bureau de Paris, Josef Janning, directeur du bureau de Berlin, Vessela Tcherneva, directrice du bureau de Sofia, Silvia Francescon, directrice du bureau de Rome, Piotr Buras, directeur du bureau de Varsovie, Susi Dennison, directrice du programme European Power et représentant l'opinion britannique, et Borja Lasheras, directeur du bureau de Madrid.
ECFR’s director Mark Leonard speaks with ECFR experts Vessela Tcherneva, Silvia Francescon, Ulrike Franke, Borja Lasheras, and board member Ivan Krastev, about summer readings. The list includes foreign policy books, wider readings to understand the world we live in, and finally what to read to get away from it all. The podcast was recorded on 28 July 2016.
Books discussed:
The force of reason by Oriana Fallaci
Senza la Guerra by Massimo Cacciari, Lucio Caracciolo, Ernesto Galli della Lggia and Elisabetta Rasy
La febbre di Trump: Un fenomeno Americano by Mattia Ferraresi
Liberta a migrare: Perche ci spostiamo da sempre ed e bene cosi by Valerio Calzano and Telmo Pievani
En immersion a Molenbeek by Hind Fraihi
Reichtum ohne Gier by Sahra Wagenknecht
Wunschdenken: Europa, Währung, Bildung, Einwanderung – warum Politik so häufig scheitert by Thilo Sarrazin
1913: The year before the storm by Florian Illies
La France pour la vie by Nikolas Sarkozy
Expert political judgement: How good is it? How can we know? by Philip E. Tetlock
Global inequality: A new approch for the age of globalisation by Branko Milanovic
El retorno de los chamanes by Victor Lapuente
Siria, el país de las almas rotas by Javier Espinosa and Monica G. Prieto
Esodo: Storia del nuovo millennio by Domenico Quirico
The search for Europe: Contrasting approaches, published by BBVA
1917: Razgadka “russkoj” revolyutsii by Nikolaj Starikov
The Silk Road: A new history of the world by Peter Frankopan
Political epistemics: The secret police, the opposition, and the end of east German socialism by Andreas Glaeser
Thinking in time: The uses of history for decision makers by Richard E. Neustadt and Ernest R. May
Diplomat i gradinar by Ivan D. Stanchov
Ill fares the land by Tony Judt
When facts change by Tony Judt
Bloodlands: Europe between Hitler and Stalin by Timothy Snyder
The responsible company: What we’ve learned from Patagonia’s first 40 years by Yvon Chouinard and Vincent Stanley
Drone warfare by John Kaag and Sarah Kreps
Swarm troopers: How small drones will conquer the world by David Hambling
Sternstunden der Menschheit by Stefan Zweig
The Star Rover by Jack London
The Climb by Anatoli Boukreev and G. Weston De Walt
Death at La Fenice by Donna Leon
American Pastoral by Philip Roth
ECFR experts discuss findings of ECFR’s Britain in Europe renegotiation scorecard, a regular assessment of how the British asks are perceived in other member states.
ECFR's director Mark Leonard speaks to Silvia Francescon, head of ECFR's Rome office, Josef Janning, senior policy fellow from ECFR's Berlin office, and Piotr Buras, head of ECFR's Warsaw office, about what the results will mean for Britain's membership of the EU and the development of the EU going forward.
Bookshelf:
Hard Choices by Hilary Clinton
Asaltar los Cielos by Jose Ignacio Torreblanca
How to save EU free movement by Open Europe
ECFR publications on the topic:
The British problem and what it means for Europe by Mark Leonard
Silvia Francescon in the interview on the position of Italy in the EU after elections.
Silvia Francescon discusses Prince Charles' visit to Italy, and possible impacts on the Brexit negotiations.
Silvia Francescon on the consequences of the Italian referendum for Italy and Europe
Silvia Francescon quoted on the anti-establishement mood in Italy before the reform referendum.
Silvia Francescon quoted on Italian initiative concerning a Defense Schengen.
Email: silvia.francescon@ecfr.eu