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Next-Geo Program

Supporting Europe’s Best Junior Researchers in Geoeconomics

The Next-Geo program, now in its second year, is a pan-European research and training program for junior researchers focusing on geoeconomics. Our aim is to support the next generation of geoeconomists.

The program is coordinated by the Kiel Institute in cooperation with CEPR, Bocconi University (IEP), and Oxford University Department of Economics, funded by Stiftung Mercator.

Every year, Next-Geo will bring together a cohort of around 10 junior scholars conducting research on geoeconomics. We invite advanced PhD students and early Postdocs from economics and related quantitative fields across Europe to apply.

The program has a one-year duration and is conceived as an add-on fellowship program for junior scholars. The program should complement the training and mentoring at their home university or institution, focusing specifically on geoeconomics. We will provide academic lectures, research training, project mentoring, policy advisory training, and many networking opportunities in geoeconomics. We also provide concrete research support by offering access to student research assistants and funding for data purchases and/or AI tokens.

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Purpose of the Program

What we offer

Program structure

Application

Contact

Call for Applications 2027

Apply now

Katerina Nikalexi
Katerina Nikalexi (London Business School)
Research project: Ports of Power: The Effect of Chinese Port Acquisitions on the European Trade Network
Ekin Ergin
Ekin Ergin (University of Oxford)
Research project: Exchanging Goods with Rules in Trade Agreements
Jing-Rong Zeng
Jing-Rong Zeng (Paris School of Economics)
Research project: Gold Refining, Downstream Trade Shocks, and Conflict: Evidence from the DRC
Carolin Formella
Carolin Formella (Munich Graduate School of Economics, LMU Munich, and Max Planck Institute for Innovation and Competition)
Research project: Restricting Access to Technology: Evidence from Export Controls on AI Chips
Julian Marcoux
Julian Marcoux (University of Lausanne)
Research project: Oil Shipping and Pirates
Balázs Markó
Balázs Markó (Bocconi University)
Research project: Industrial Capacity as a Military Deterrent
Gaston Nievas
Gaston Nievas (Paris School of Economics)
Research project: The Global Democratic Deficit: Institutional Asymmetries and the Provision of Global Public Goods
Marco Brolli
Marco Brolli (University of Oxford)
Research project: Mobility Frictions and the Geography of Innovation

Cohort 2026

Purpose of the program

The first research and training program in geoeconomics

The interplay between economics and geopolitics is becoming ever more important in a rapidly changing world order. The demand for excellent research and expertise in geoeconomics is high. However, there is still little systematic training on the topic. Next-Geo aims to change that.

Next-Geo is the first research and training program focusing exclusively on the growing field of geoeconomics. We aim to support Europe’s best PhD students and early Postdocs who focus on geoeconomics, broadly defined. Most students should be from economics but we may also include top candidates from closely related quantitative fields.

The research topics can include, among others, economic security, trade coercion and fragmentation, industrial policy, sanctions design and evasion, global financial flows, economic aid, climate and energy transition, and defense economics.

Connecting young geoeconomists across Europe

Young researchers working on geoeconomics are scattered across Europe, often isolated within their departments and academic communities. Few universities have specialized professors with the specific expertise to optimally supervise students on geoeconomic topics. We aim to overcome this fragmentation by building a strong network of early-career researchers in geoeconomics and connecting young economists working on the topic – both with one another and with leading senior scholars across institutions and countries.

What we offer

Next-Geo participants become part of a highly competitive, carefully selected cohort in geoeconomics and receive rigorous research training and mentoring from Kiel Institute researchers as well as external senior fellows who are leading international experts in the field of geoeconomics. We will combine online and in-person modules and provide funding for research support (RA access, data purchases and/or AI subscriptions), as well as for travel and accommodation.

What the program offers:

Coursework at the research frontier: 
Participants will attend lectures and receive training on the research frontier in geoeconomics - from internationally renowned external scholars and from researchers at the Kiel Institute who are experts in the field. 

Feedback and senior mentoring – improve your research projects: 
Participants will work on their own research or policy project - supported and mentored by leading seniors in the field. In 2026 external senior mentors for the Next-Geo fellows included Chenzi Xu (UC Berkeley), Adrien Matray (Atlanta Fed), Jaya Y. Wen (Harvard Business School), Mathieu Parenti (Paris School of Economics) and Isabelle Mejean (Sciences Po), among others.

Participate in the 2027 Oxford Summer School on Geoeconomics: 
The Next-Geo program will cover participation and travel costs.

Research support (RA access) for your project:
Next-Geo participants with promising research projects will be able to get support from a pool of four Next-Geo student research assistants. These RAs are explicitly hired at the Kiel Institute to support Next-Geo junior researchers in their projects, be it in person (Berlin office) and/or remotely. 

Data access and AI subscriptions for your project:
Promising research projects of the participants can also receive funding to purchase data needed for their projects and/or subscriptions for frontier LLMs, e.g. Claude or OpenAI.

Generous travel support:
Travel and accommodation expenses for in-person modules are covered by the program (on-site attendance is expected).

Immerse yourself in the Kiel Institute:
Participants will get to know the Kiel Institute, one of the leading institutions on the topic worldwide. Our activities and initiatives include the annual flagship Kiel-CEPR Conference on Geoeconomics, the LSE-Kiel-CEPR Conference on Defence Economics, the Kiel Institute-led CEPR Research Policy Network (RPN) on Geoeconomics and Security, the Ukraine Support Tracker, and a new Kiel Research Center on Geoeconomics.

Tangible output: 
By the end of the program, participants should have completed a high-quality research or policy project in the field of geoeconomics. The best projects may be published as working papers or policy briefs by the Kiel Institute or CEPR and presented at conferences and workshops. Participants will receive a certificate of program participation.

Engage with policymakers, think tanks, and practitioners through events and workshops at the Kiel-CEPR Research Hub in Berlin and partner institutions.

Program structure

Next-Geo is a one-year, add-on fellowship program that participants complete together as a cohort. It combines online and in-person modules spread across the academic year, starting with an online kick-off in winter and followed by workshops, e.g. in Kiel, Berlin, Oxford, before ending with the Kiel-CEPR Conference on Geoeconomics in autumn. Within the program cycle, participants develop a research or policy project on their own or in collaboration with their peers and senior researchers. The program kicks off with participants presenting their project ideas in winter, followed by lectures and workshops, and concludes in autumn with the Kiel-CEPR Conference on Geoeconomics, where selected projects will be presented.

1. Winter

Online Kick-Off

Participants meet virtually to present their research or policy project ideas and receive an introductory lecture on the foundations of geoeconomics. This stage lays the groundwork for collaborative learning and project development.

2. Spring

Lecture & Research Training (Berlin/Oxford)

“Best of Geoeconomics @ Kiel Institute” (Berlin)

A multi-day in-person module featuring

  • advanced academic lectures by leading scholars,

  • training on producing high-quality, policy-relevant research, and

  • structured feedback sessions on each participant’s project progress.

This phase deepens academic subject knowledge and helps refine research design and methodology.

 

Oxford Summer School on Geoeconomics (Oxford)

Participation in the Summer School on Geoeconomics of the University of Oxford’s Department of Economics. 

  • advanced academic lectures by leading international researchers; 

  • rigorous economic frameworks and empirical tools for analysing geoeconomic developments; 

  • application of analytical approaches to the strategic pressures shaping today’s global economy. 

By combining theoretical foundations with empirical approaches, participants develop a structured understanding of current geoeconomic challenges.

3. Summer 

Research & Policy Workshop (Berlin and/or other European location)

A hands-on multi-day workshop focused on research and policy. Activities include

  • presentation of ongoing research projects,

  • exchanges with policymakers, think tanks, and practitioners.

Participants gain essential skills for excellent writing, for policy engagement, and for public outreach.

 

4. Autumn

Outreach & Networking at the Geoeconomics Conference (Berlin)

The program concludes at the flagship Kiel-CEPR Conference on Geoeconomics, where participants

  • attend the leading academic conference in the field,

  • may potentially present their research projects to an international expert audience,

  • compete for the best research paper or best policy brief with their peers,

  • engage in networking with scholars and political decision-makers.

Who should apply?

Advanced PhD candidates and early Postdocs in economics from/in Europe:

  • excellent CV and track record
  • in economics,  exceptionally also in closely related quantitative research fields
  • working on geoeconomic research 
  • enrolled or employed at a European university or research institution as a PhD student or early Postdoc (program start up to 2.5 years post-PhD). European nationals at overseas institutions may also be eligible in selected cases.
  • excellent English skills 

The program is an add-on program for those conducting their PhD or PostDoc at a European institution. As such, it does not provide an employment contract, stipend, living expense allowance, or formal degree. We only fund travel and accommodation for on-site modules, and research support. Participants remain fully enrolled or employed at their home institution and will have no claim of employment or enrollment at the Kiel Institute.

We particularly encourage applications from female researchers. All nationalities are eligible if employed or enrolled in Europe.

How to apply

Applications should include:

  • CV
  • Cover letter
  • 1-page research project sketch 
  • Writing sample, e.g. third-year paper, job market paper
  • Names of two potential references (contact information in your CV suffices)

Successful candidates will have to provide a proof of enrolment or employment and, if employed, a written permission by the employer to participate in the program. 

Apply now!

  • Call for Applications for the Next-Geo Program 2027 - research and training program in geoeconomics

    Join our 1-year pan-european research and training program Next-Geo. Designed to support europe’s best PhD candidates and early postdocs in…

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