Description of the work carried out during the grant:
I visited the University American College Skopje between 19 September and 30 September 2022 where I conducted research into the political system of North Macedonia and gathered further details about Macedonian politics and history concerning the country’s minority rights protection model and consociational (non-territorial autonomy). I conducted a number of interviews and discussions with academic colleagues from UACS and other academic and state institutions in Skopje, including the president of the country. I also used of the library facilities at the university and made good use of the research networking opportunities provided at the AICEI 2022 conference which was held in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on 22 September.
Description of the main results obtained:
This STSM has been of greatly benefitted my research into the contemporary history and politics of the Republic of North Macedonia and especially with regard to the country’s minority rights protection model. This work will provide a major contribution to a forthcoming book with Palgrave/Macmillan entitled Macedonia’s Long Transition, which includes, among other things, an important overview of the country’s history of accommodating minority rights and challenges to the current political set-up which includes consociational (non-territorial elements) which make this model of ethnic diversity management rather unique. It is anticipated that the book will be published by the end of the year.