German government crisis
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…
Experts & Staff
Silvia Francescon
ECFR Alumni · Head, ECFR Rome Office
Areas of expertise
International relations, global governance, G8 and G20, environment and development
Languages
Italian and English
Biography
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.
Italy plays in the Penta League
Can the unlikely bedfellows of the Five Star Movement and the League really make government work?
Is Italy facing a new political crisis?
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…
Views from the capitals: Trump’s withdrawal from the Iran deal
We asked our national offices to outline how the E3, in cooperation with other EU partners, should respond to the JCPOA pull-out by the US
What to expect from the Italian election?
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…
Views from the capitals: European dreams for 2018
We asked our national offices to outline their governments’ greatest hope and greatest fear for foreign and European policy in 2018.
Views from the Capitals: Working with President Macron
Macron’s win was received with a sigh of relief across Europe, but what follows cannot be “politics as usual”. Can he garner support in the European Union?
European Reactions to Macron’s Victory
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…
Views from the Capitals on the French election
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…
Italy’s constitutional reform referendum: What you need to know
With Renzi declaring that he will resign if the electorate rejects his reforms, the referendum is now widely seen as a vote of confidence on the government itself
Publications
Reinventing Europe: Italy, a country in receivership
From our Reinvention of Europe series of National papers
Articles
Italy plays in the Penta League
Can the unlikely bedfellows of the Five Star Movement and the League really make government work?
Views from the capitals: Trump’s withdrawal from the Iran deal
We asked our national offices to outline how the E3, in cooperation with other EU partners, should respond to the JCPOA pull-out by the US
Views from the capitals: European dreams for 2018
We asked our national offices to outline their governments’ greatest hope and greatest fear for foreign and European policy in 2018.
Views from the Capitals: Working with President Macron
Macron’s win was received with a sigh of relief across Europe, but what follows cannot be “politics as usual”. Can he garner support in the European Union?
Italy’s constitutional reform referendum: What you need to know
With Renzi declaring that he will resign if the electorate rejects his reforms, the referendum is now widely seen as a vote of confidence on the government itself
Views from the Capitals: Europe reacts to President-elect Trump
What do EU countries think of Donald Trump’s victory?
View from Rome: Reflection before renewal
Italy sees the European Council as a forum for policy and political discussion, where measures should be debated instead of simply adopted.
View from Rome: Europe is alive but needs to kick
Bratislava is the perfect opportunity for Europe’s leaders to live up to their responsibilities in delivering concrete responses to Europe's challenges
View from Rome: A harsh wake-up call
All in all, the sentiment in Italy is that, at the end of the day, the UK has never truly been part of Europe
View from Rome: The possibility of a “European” Islam
Italy's government has called for the “europeanisation” of intelligence, but is exploring more cultural answers to the terrorism problem
Podcasts
German government crisis
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…
Is Italy facing a new political crisis?
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…
What to expect from the Italian election?
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…
European Reactions to Macron’s Victory
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…
Views from the Capitals on the French election
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…
ECFR’s World in 30 Minutes: Summer Readings
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…
Views from the Capitals – Renegotiation: Can Britain get the deal it needs?
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…
ECFR’s World in 30 Minutes: The results of the British elections and its consequences
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…
In the media
Silvia Francescon in the interview on the position of Italy in the EU after elections
Silvia Francescon on the new Italian government
Silvia Francescon comments the exit polls of Italian elections
Silvia Francescon on the mutual perception between Europe and the US
Silvia Francescon discusses Prince Charles' visit to Italy, and possible impacts on the Brexit negotiations