Dagmar Soennecken
Department of Social Science
School of Public Policy and Administration
school-of-public-policy-and-administration
Associate Professor
Law and Society (LASO)
Office: 136 McLaughlin College
Phone: 416 736 2100 Ext: 33408
Email: dsoennec@yorku.ca
Prof. Dagmar Soennecken’s research focuses on comparative public policy in the EU and North America. She is particularly interested in questions concerning law and the courts as well as citizenship and migration, including refugees. In 2019, she became the editor-in-chief of Refuge: Canada's Journal on Refugees.
Prof. Dagmar Soennecken holds a BA (Hons.) in Political Science and Law (Highest Honours) from Carleton University, an MA in Political Science (with a concentration in Women’s Studies), and a Ph.D. (2009) from the University of Toronto. She has twice been a Visiting Scholar at the Centre for European and International Aliens and Asylum Law at the University of Konstanz, Germany. For the 2006/07 academic year, she was a Visiting Study Fellow at the University of Oxford’s Refugee Studies Centre (RSC). In the summer of 2013 and 2015, she held the Canadian Guest Professorship at the University of Kiel, Germany. She has also been a recurring visiting scholar at the Migration and Integration Studies Centre (IMIS) and the Jean Monnet Centre for Excellence (JMCE) in European Studies in Osnabrück, Germany. From 2016 to 2020, she was the director of the Master of Public Policy, Administration and Law (MPPAL). In the fall of 2021, she was awarded a visiting fellowship at the University of Victoria's Centre for Global Studies. In the spring of 2022, she was a visiting scholar at the Center for Comparative Immigration Studies at the University of California, San Diego.
Dagmar’s research focuses on comparative politics and public policy in the EU and North America. She is particularly interested in questions concerning law and the courts as well as citizenship and migration, including refugees.
Before entering the PhD program at the University of Toronto, Dagmar participated in the Ontario Legislature Internship Programme (OLIP) at Queen’s Park in Toronto. Prior to moving to Canada in 1992, she worked for a German public health insurance body (AOK Düsseldorf). In 2019, she became the editor-in-chief of Refuge: Canada's Journal on Refugees. Dagmar was nominated for 2 teaching awards by her students in the past: The Faculty of Graduate Studies Teaching Award and the Ian Greene Award for Teaching Excellence.
Degrees
PhD, University of TorontoMA Political Science (Concentration in Women's Studies), University of Toronto
BA (Hons) Law + Political Science, Carleton University
Professional Leadership
Ontario Legislature Internship Programme. Admissions Committee Member, 2009-10; 2013-14. 2016-17, 2017-18.
Research Interests
- SSHRC Doctoral Fellowship -
Current Research Projects
-
Summary:
This research study examines how protection seekers experience their ‘vulnerabilities’ and how these experiences are continuously shaped and produced in interaction with the legal and policy frameworks and implementation practices of the relevant decision-makers. We use the term ‘protection seekers’ to describe those migrants seeking legal protection status under national and international law.
The select countries are in Europe (Belgium, Germany, Italy, Norway), North America (Canada), the Middle East (Lebanon) and Africa (Uganda and South Africa).
https://sites.google.com/uottawa.ca/h2020-vulner-research-project
https://www.vulner.eu/
Description:Horizon 20/20 grant, co-funded by SSHRC
Start Date:
- Month: Feb Year: 2020
Collaborator: Delphine Nakache
Collaborator Institution: University of Ottawa
Collaborator Role: principal investigator
-
Summary:
LERRN aims to better understand and enhance the role of civil society in responding to the needs of refugees in the global south. Civil society plays a large role in developing innovative responses to refugee situations and has the power to be a driver of change within political communities.
The Partnership’s goal is to enhance the understandings of the global refugee regime and empower society to directly contribute to the improved function of the regime, thereby ensuring more predictable protection and solutions for refugees and enhancing their lived experience. The project officially launched in October 2018 and will run until December 2025.
https://research.info.yorku.ca/2018/07/york-researchers-partner-in-3-5-million-refugee-study/
https://carleton.ca/lerrn/
SSHRC partnership grant
Collaborator: James Milner
Collaborator Institution: Carleton University
Collaborator Role: principal investigator
- Month: Jan Year: 2013
End Date:
- Month: Dec Year: 2013
Funders:
York SSHRC Small Grants
-
Summary:
On April 28 and 29, 2011, EUCE York, in cooperation with York’s Centre for Public Policy & Law (YCPPL), Office of the Principal, Glendon College, the Office of the Dean, Faculty of Liberal Arts & Professional Studies, the Office of the Vice-President Academic and Provost and the Law and Society Program in the Department of Social Science, are pleased to present “Adversarial legalism à l’Européen”, a two-day conference which will bring together younger and more established scholars from the EU, the United States and Canada who are working on law and politics in a comparative context.
Start Date:
- Month: Apr Year: 2011
End Date:
- Month: Apr Year: 2011
Funders:
York, EU Centre of Excellence
York, Centre for Public Policy & Law
York, LAPS, Office of the Dean
York, Office of the Vice-President Academic and Provost
York, LAPS, Department of Social Science (Law & Society Program)
York, Glendon, Office of the Principal
-
Summary:
How have states balanced the goal of collective security with that of upholding individual rights? What factors have shaped the different policy choices in North America vs. Europe? What role have courts and international human rights norms played in these insecure times? Securitization, argue many scholars, has also adversely affected the way in which advanced industrialized states make immigration and asylum policy, in particular with respect to deportation and detentions. At the same time that humanitarian protection and liberal immigration policies are under threat, human smuggling and trafficking is on the rise, reflecting a contradiction between the tough restrictionist rhetoric and the reality on the ground. This Workshop will focus on matters related to law and security in the EU, and will necessarily intersect with criminal law enforcement and human rights constraints.
Start Date:
- Month: Dec Year: 2011
End Date:
- Month: Dec Year: 2011
Funders:
York, EU Centre of Excellence
DAAD
York, Nathanson Centre
-
Summary:
The European Union Centre of Excellence (EUCE) was established at York University in the Fall of 2009 with the receipt of a grant from the European Commission in Brussels.
Description:The European Union Centre of Excellence (EUCE) was established at York University in the Fall of 2009 with the receipt of a grant from the European Commission in Brussels. Housed at York’s Canadian Centre for German and European Studies, the EUCE at York has as its twin aims the integration of York University’s existing research, teaching, outreach, and networking activities on Europe and the EU and the introduction and facilitation of new activities, at York and in the wider region, promoting knowledge and understanding of the EU and the importance of the EU-Canada relationship. During the grant period of 2009-2012, the EUCE at York will coordinate a variety of activities focused on aspects of EU policy and EU-Canada relations. Among the planned activities are a number of academic research conferences, workshops and seminars related to issues salient to EU-Canada matters in the areas of law and business as well as outreach activities intended to engage the broader public (including high school students).
Funders:
European Commission
-
Description:
Conference, funded by the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD). To be held in 2010 and 2011, funding jointly held with Prof. Willem Maas.
Collaborator Institution: York University
Funders:
DAAD + CCGES
-
Summary:
This research project, housed at the Social Science Research Centre (WZB) in Berlin, compares immigration policies across all OECD countries from 1980 to 2010. It is funded by the German Science Foundation (DFG) from 2011 to 2015 and headed by Dr. Marc Helbling.
Collaborator: Dr. Marc Helbling
Collaborator Institution: Social Science Research Centre (WZB), Berlin
Collaborator Role: principal investigator
Funders:
WZB
Current Courses
| Term | Course Number | Section | Title | Type |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Winter 2025 | AP/PPAS3000 3.0 | M | Politics Policy & Law of Minority Rights | LECT |
| Fall/Winter 2024 | GS/PPAL6100 3.0 | A | Canadian Constitutional Law | SEMR |
| Fall/Winter 2024 | GS/PPAL6100 3.0 | B | Canadian Constitutional Law | SEMR |
| Fall/Winter 2024 | AP/SOSC4363 6.0 | A | Law, Citizenship and Migration | SEMR |
Prof. Dagmar Soennecken’s research focuses on comparative public policy in the EU and North America. She is particularly interested in questions concerning law and the courts as well as citizenship and migration, including refugees. In 2019, she became the editor-in-chief of Refuge: Canada's Journal on Refugees.
Prof. Dagmar Soennecken holds a BA (Hons.) in Political Science and Law (Highest Honours) from Carleton University, an MA in Political Science (with a concentration in Women’s Studies), and a Ph.D. (2009) from the University of Toronto. She has twice been a Visiting Scholar at the Centre for European and International Aliens and Asylum Law at the University of Konstanz, Germany. For the 2006/07 academic year, she was a Visiting Study Fellow at the University of Oxford’s Refugee Studies Centre (RSC). In the summer of 2013 and 2015, she held the Canadian Guest Professorship at the University of Kiel, Germany. She has also been a recurring visiting scholar at the Migration and Integration Studies Centre (IMIS) and the Jean Monnet Centre for Excellence (JMCE) in European Studies in Osnabrück, Germany. From 2016 to 2020, she was the director of the Master of Public Policy, Administration and Law (MPPAL). In the fall of 2021, she was awarded a visiting fellowship at the University of Victoria's Centre for Global Studies. In the spring of 2022, she was a visiting scholar at the Center for Comparative Immigration Studies at the University of California, San Diego.
Dagmar’s research focuses on comparative politics and public policy in the EU and North America. She is particularly interested in questions concerning law and the courts as well as citizenship and migration, including refugees.
Before entering the PhD program at the University of Toronto, Dagmar participated in the Ontario Legislature Internship Programme (OLIP) at Queen’s Park in Toronto. Prior to moving to Canada in 1992, she worked for a German public health insurance body (AOK Düsseldorf). In 2019, she became the editor-in-chief of Refuge: Canada's Journal on Refugees. Dagmar was nominated for 2 teaching awards by her students in the past: The Faculty of Graduate Studies Teaching Award and the Ian Greene Award for Teaching Excellence.
Degrees
PhD, University of TorontoMA Political Science (Concentration in Women's Studies), University of Toronto
BA (Hons) Law + Political Science, Carleton University
Professional Leadership
Ontario Legislature Internship Programme. Admissions Committee Member, 2009-10; 2013-14. 2016-17, 2017-18.
Research Interests
Awards
- SSHRC Doctoral Fellowship -
Current Research Projects
-
Summary:
This research study examines how protection seekers experience their ‘vulnerabilities’ and how these experiences are continuously shaped and produced in interaction with the legal and policy frameworks and implementation practices of the relevant decision-makers. We use the term ‘protection seekers’ to describe those migrants seeking legal protection status under national and international law.
The select countries are in Europe (Belgium, Germany, Italy, Norway), North America (Canada), the Middle East (Lebanon) and Africa (Uganda and South Africa).
https://sites.google.com/uottawa.ca/h2020-vulner-research-project
https://www.vulner.eu/
Description:Horizon 20/20 grant, co-funded by SSHRC
Project Type: FundedRole: co-applicant
Start Date:
- Month: Feb Year: 2020
Collaborator: Delphine Nakache
Collaborator Institution: University of Ottawa
Collaborator Role: principal investigator
-
Summary:
LERRN aims to better understand and enhance the role of civil society in responding to the needs of refugees in the global south. Civil society plays a large role in developing innovative responses to refugee situations and has the power to be a driver of change within political communities.
The Partnership’s goal is to enhance the understandings of the global refugee regime and empower society to directly contribute to the improved function of the regime, thereby ensuring more predictable protection and solutions for refugees and enhancing their lived experience. The project officially launched in October 2018 and will run until December 2025.
https://research.info.yorku.ca/2018/07/york-researchers-partner-in-3-5-million-refugee-study/
https://carleton.ca/lerrn/
SSHRC partnership grant
Project Type: FundedRole: co-applicant
Collaborator: James Milner
Collaborator Institution: Carleton University
Collaborator Role: principal investigator
-
Project Type:
Funded
Start Date:
- Month: Jan Year: 2013
End Date:
- Month: Dec Year: 2013
Funders:
York SSHRC Small Grants
-
Summary:
On April 28 and 29, 2011, EUCE York, in cooperation with York’s Centre for Public Policy & Law (YCPPL), Office of the Principal, Glendon College, the Office of the Dean, Faculty of Liberal Arts & Professional Studies, the Office of the Vice-President Academic and Provost and the Law and Society Program in the Department of Social Science, are pleased to present “Adversarial legalism à l’Européen”, a two-day conference which will bring together younger and more established scholars from the EU, the United States and Canada who are working on law and politics in a comparative context.
Project Type: FundedRole: Main Organizer
Start Date:
- Month: Apr Year: 2011
End Date:
- Month: Apr Year: 2011
Funders:
York, EU Centre of Excellence
York, Centre for Public Policy & Law
York, LAPS, Office of the Dean
York, Office of the Vice-President Academic and Provost
York, LAPS, Department of Social Science (Law & Society Program)
York, Glendon, Office of the Principal
-
Summary:
How have states balanced the goal of collective security with that of upholding individual rights? What factors have shaped the different policy choices in North America vs. Europe? What role have courts and international human rights norms played in these insecure times? Securitization, argue many scholars, has also adversely affected the way in which advanced industrialized states make immigration and asylum policy, in particular with respect to deportation and detentions. At the same time that humanitarian protection and liberal immigration policies are under threat, human smuggling and trafficking is on the rise, reflecting a contradiction between the tough restrictionist rhetoric and the reality on the ground. This Workshop will focus on matters related to law and security in the EU, and will necessarily intersect with criminal law enforcement and human rights constraints.
Project Type: FundedRole: Main Organizer
Start Date:
- Month: Dec Year: 2011
End Date:
- Month: Dec Year: 2011
Funders:
York, EU Centre of Excellence
DAAD
York, Nathanson Centre
-
Summary:
The European Union Centre of Excellence (EUCE) was established at York University in the Fall of 2009 with the receipt of a grant from the European Commission in Brussels.
Description:The European Union Centre of Excellence (EUCE) was established at York University in the Fall of 2009 with the receipt of a grant from the European Commission in Brussels. Housed at York’s Canadian Centre for German and European Studies, the EUCE at York has as its twin aims the integration of York University’s existing research, teaching, outreach, and networking activities on Europe and the EU and the introduction and facilitation of new activities, at York and in the wider region, promoting knowledge and understanding of the EU and the importance of the EU-Canada relationship. During the grant period of 2009-2012, the EUCE at York will coordinate a variety of activities focused on aspects of EU policy and EU-Canada relations. Among the planned activities are a number of academic research conferences, workshops and seminars related to issues salient to EU-Canada matters in the areas of law and business as well as outreach activities intended to engage the broader public (including high school students).
Project Type: FundedRole: Co-applicant, Board Member
Funders:
European Commission
-
Description:
Conference, funded by the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD). To be held in 2010 and 2011, funding jointly held with Prof. Willem Maas.
Project Type: FundedCollaborator: Willem Maas
Collaborator Institution: York University
Funders:
DAAD + CCGES
-
Summary:
This research project, housed at the Social Science Research Centre (WZB) in Berlin, compares immigration policies across all OECD countries from 1980 to 2010. It is funded by the German Science Foundation (DFG) from 2011 to 2015 and headed by Dr. Marc Helbling.
Project Type: FundedRole: collaborating country expert
Collaborator: Dr. Marc Helbling
Collaborator Institution: Social Science Research Centre (WZB), Berlin
Collaborator Role: principal investigator
Funders:
WZB
All Publications
Current Courses
| Term | Course Number | Section | Title | Type |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Winter 2025 | AP/PPAS3000 3.0 | M | Politics Policy & Law of Minority Rights | LECT |
| Fall/Winter 2024 | GS/PPAL6100 3.0 | A | Canadian Constitutional Law | SEMR |
| Fall/Winter 2024 | GS/PPAL6100 3.0 | B | Canadian Constitutional Law | SEMR |
| Fall/Winter 2024 | AP/SOSC4363 6.0 | A | Law, Citizenship and Migration | SEMR |
