International Conference: “Building Resilience Through Sharing Democratic Experiences: A CEI Appraisal”
International Conference: “Building Resilience Through Sharing Democratic Experiences: A CEI Appraisal”
On June 23, the University of Warsaw hosted an international academic conference titled “Building Resilience Through Sharing Democratic Experiences: a CEI Appraisal,” co-organized by the Faculty of Political Science and International Studies at the University of Warsaw, the Institute of Central Europe, and the Central European Initiative.
The event was organized to mark the 30th anniversary of the establishment of the Secretariat of the Central European Initiative and was held under the honorary patronage of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Poland and His Magnificence the Rector of the University of Warsaw.
Before the conference began, the guests gathered at the Kazimierzowski Palace at the invitation of Prof. Maciej Rasia, Vice Rector for Student Affairs and Educational Quality at the University of Warsaw. Among those attending the meeting were Franco Dal Mas, Secretary General of the Central European Initiative; Yuri Mushka, Deputy Secretary General of the CEI; Cosmin Onisii, Romanian Ambassador to Poland; and Alfredo Maria Durante Mangoni from the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation.
The Faculty of Political Science and International Studies at the University of Warsaw was represented by, among others, the Vice Dean for International Cooperation, Prof. Agnieszka Bieńczyk-Missala, and Dr. Spasimir Domaradzki. The meeting provided an opportunity to discuss strengthening regional cooperation and the role of the Central European Initiative in building democratic resilience.
The conference was opened by: Prof. Maciej Raś, Vice Rector for Student Affairs and Educational Quality at the University of Warsaw; Franco Dal Mas, Secretary General of the CEI; Ignacy Niemczycki, Secretary of State at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Poland; and Cosmin Onisii, Romanian Ambassador to Poland.
The first panel, titled “Democratic Experience in Central and Eastern Europe,” focused on the experiences of democratic transition in Central and Eastern Europe. The discussion was moderated by Prof. Agnieszka Bieńczyk-Missala, Associate Dean for International Cooperation at the Faculty of Political Science and International Studies, University of Warsaw. The panelists included: Prof. Jacek Czaputowicz, Luisa Chiodi from Osservatorio Balcani e Caucaso Transeuropa, Bálint Magyar from Central European University, and Tin Gazivoda from D-Hub.
The second panel, “Integration, Democracy, and EU Enlargement,” focused on the connections between European integration, democracy, and the European Union’s enlargement process. It was moderated by Prof. Dorota Heidrich. Participants in the discussion included Prof. Remigijus Šimašius of Vilnius University, Gazela Pudar Draško of the University of Belgrade, Hanna Hopko of ANTS—National Interests Advocacy Network, and Adrian Ermurachi of IPRE.
The final segment of the conference was a roundtable organized in cooperation with the Institute of Central Europe. The main theme of the discussion was the role of regional organizations in times of dynamic change. The meeting was moderated by Dr. Grzegorz Gil of the Institute of Central Europe. Participants in the discussion included Matteo Bonomi from the Istituto Affari Internazionali, Alfredo Maria Durante Mangoni from the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, Magda Modrzyńska from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Poland, and Konstantine Vardzelashvili from the OSCE ODIHR.
The conference provided an opportunity to exchange experiences regarding democratic transition, the resilience of public institutions, and the importance of regional cooperation in the face of contemporary political challenges.
We would like to thank all participants for attending, for their inspiring presentations, and for the substantive discussion on the future of democracy, institutional resilience, and regional cooperation.