Cecilia Emma Sottilotta

Cecilia Emma Sottilotta is a Researcher in Political Science at the University for Foreigners of Perugia, Department of International Human and Social Sciences. She is also a Visiting Professor at the College of Europe in Bruges and has held visiting positions at the Hertie School (Berlin), GIGA Hamburg, Universidad del Norte (Colombia), and the Salzburg Centre for European Union Studies. Previously, she served as Assistant Professor and Director of the Master's program in Peace Studies at the American University of Rome (2017–2022).

Her research focuses on political risk in foreign direct investment, European Union politics, Italian politics, Latin American politics, and risk analysis. She has published extensively on EU crisis management, pandemic policy responses, and democratic resilience after economic crises. Her work bridges comparative politics and international relations, with a strong emphasis on policy implications.

Her recent publications analyze EU crisis governance, pandemic narratives in Western Europe, and the state of democracy after the Great Recession. These works reflect a consistent focus on institutional effectiveness, political narratives, and democratic challenges in Europe. The research spans subfields such as governance failure, narrative framing, socioeconomic inequality, and policy coordination.

• Visiting Professor, College of Europe (Bruges), since 2020
• DAAD Visiting Research Fellow, GIGA Hamburg, 2019
• Visiting Research Fellow, Hertie School (Jacques Delors Centre), Berlin
• Visiting Professor, Universidad del Norte, Colombia, 2017
• Visiting Researcher, Salzburg Centre for European Union Studies, 2016

She has advised on policy issues related to migration, EU diplomacy, and far-right governance, contributing expert commentary to media outlets such as the Financial Times, Al Jazeera, and CBC News. Her teaching portfolio includes courses on International Relations, Comparative Politics, EU Institutions, and Political Risk Analysis across multiple degree programs.

She is active in academic discourse and public engagement, particularly on issues of democracy, migration, and European integration.