The first Tauranga public lecture was a success and now the floor will be open to discuss what migration, terrorism and populism looks like in the modern age.

The second lecture for the University of Waikato's new Tauranga public lecture series will explore how the integration of Europe is threatened and how democracy is in danger of being rolled back under the impact of these threats.

Dr Simona Soare, who is a security and defence advisor to the Vice-President of the European Parliament and a research associate with the Institute of European Studies at the Université of Saint Louis in Belgium, will be presenting this lecture.

She says the integrity and viability of the European project is threatened by multiple crises including a crisis of political legitimacy due to the rise of populism, extremism and Brexit, a severe migration crisis, and the complex threat of international terrorism and foreign terrorist fighters returning to Europe.

'To survive, the European Union is implementing an ambitious strategy to re-gain the trust of its citizens by re-capturing the functions of successful polities: a monopoly on the use of force, reliable and credible control of borders, and the upper hand on the political narrative,” says Simona.

'The future of the European project may depend on its success and effectiveness. While there are several risks that, left unaddressed, may derail Brussels' efforts, there are also important signs of success for the Union's strategy so far.”

The European Union (EU) is a political and economic union of 28 member states with an estimated population of 510 million people or 6.9 per cent of the world population.

Simona's research advises and drafts policy on European and transatlantic security, including the EU Global Strategy, the EU's security relations with the US, NATO and emerging powers, and transnational and trans-regional security issues.

She holds a PhD in International Relations and an MA in International Security and Conflict Studies from the National University of Political and Administrative Studies (NUPAS) in Romania and is a former US State Department Fellow.

The free Europe in crisis: the impact of migration, terrorism and populism lecture will be held on Thursday, August 17, at the Trinity Wharf at 5.30pm.

The first lecture began in July with hundreds braving the wild weather to hear Professor Devon Polaschek discuss psychopathy.