The School of Public Policy (SPP) at Central European University and the Council of Europe co-organized a five-day immersion workshop for future democratic leaders from the Black Sea region October 6-10, 2014. Thirty-two researchers, policy makers, entrepreneurs, and activists from seven countries traveled to Budapest to participate in a series of engaging discussions to develop practical solutions to regional policy problems in the areas of democratic institution building, security policy, and transition economics. SPP Dean Dr. Wolfgang H. Reinicke welcomed the participants to what he described as an opportunity to "encourage innovative perspectives and promote dialogue among civic activists, scholars, and think tanks from the Black Sea region."
"This is a particularly critical period for the Black Sea region," noted Director of Executive Education and Outreach at SPP Dr. Bernhard Knoll-Tudor. "We felt it was important to organize this gathering to provide people from both Russia and Ukraine, and from neighboring countries in Europe as well, with a forum where they could engage in thoughtful and in-depth discussions about some of the most compelling issues confronting the region today."
During the opening debate on Monday afternoon, SPP Distinguished Visiting Professor Thomas Carothers and the founding Chairman of the European Stability Initiative, Gerald Knaus, explored "The Future of Democracy, Security and Economic Policy in the Region." Carothers led two sessions the following day in which he engaged participants in an exchange on democracy indicators, democracy and human rights support under fire ("the closing space"), and the pull and push factors that influence the development of democratic institutions. Knaus and Ulrich Speck, Visiting Scholar at Carnegie Europe in Brussels, led discussions on value conflicts and human rights, which included breakout groups on Russia and the Council of Europe; Turkey and fundamental rights; and Ukraine, Moldova, and Georgia and the future of human rights.
Wolfgang Sporrer, from the Vienna Centre for Energy Diplomacy, made an interesting presentation on natural gas policy noting that it could be both an engine for stability or instability in Eurasia. He provided an overview of the current global picture in the energy sector and said that European countries should work to strengthen energy security in Europe by seeking synergies instead of confrontation.
CEU Associate Professor Matteo Fumagalli chaired distinguished panels on Security Challenges in Eurasia that featured Tetyana Malyarenko, Professor of Public Policy at Donetsk State University of Management in Ukraine, CEU Professor at the Department of International Relations and European Studies (IRES) and the Department of Political Science Bela Greskovits, CEU Professor Agnes Batory from the Department of Public Policy, IRES Assistant Professor Xymena Kurowska, and Nina Belayeva, Professor and Head of the Public Policy Department at the Moscow Higher School of Economics at the Russian National Research University.
On the final day, participants turned their attention to Collaborative Thinking, Collective Action. Dr. Sabine Freizer from the Atlantic Council and Nigar Goksel, Editor-in-Chief of the Istanbul-based Turkish Policy Quarterly were among the panelists who spoke about the role of think tanks in second-track diplomacy. In a second panel that challenged participants to reflect on why and how data and analysis still matter, Nicholas Whyte, Brussels Director of the NGO Independent Diplomat, commented on the difficulties that researchers face when collecting and interpreting data in an environment of extreme politicization.
---
The workshop was financed from a grant from the Council of Europe under its "Ukraine Emergency Measures" program. Reflecting on what he described as a "very timely event," Ambassador Piotr Switalski, Director of Policy Planning, Council of Europe, noted that it had "provided selected young leaders from countries of the Black Sea region with high-quality and up-to-date insight to bilateral and regional policy problems. It enabled them to reflect on the present challenges relating to armed and frozen conflicts, human rights, democratic institutions and economic policy, while envisioning at the same time equitable and sustainable solutions, based on collaborative thinking and collective approaches to conflict resolution."
The workshop is in the University’s series on Frontiers of Democracy, an initiative that aims to promote open debate, discussion, and the exchange of ideas with a diversity of views about the nature of democracy.
Three SPP students were among the participants at the week-long conference: Gulnara Alimbayeva, from Kazakhstan; Nataliya Novakova, from the Ukraine; and Zhanetta Zhakypova, from Kyrgyzstan. Read their reports on some of the sessions:
- Opening Debate: The Future of Democracy, Security, and Economic Policy in the Region
- Thomas Carothers on Democracy
- Human Rights
- Energy Security in Europe
- Security Challenges in Eurasia
