Summer Academy on European Integration

On the 23-28th of September 2008 the Amicus Europae Foundation in cooperation with the German Hertie Stiftung organized the Aleksander Kwaśniewski SummerAcademy on European Integration. The venue of the Academy was the Krokowa Castle near Gdańsk, a symbolic place for Polish-German reconciliation and dialogue. The main purpose of the Summer Academy was to gather over 30 young "leaders of tomorrow" from Central and Eastern Europe - representatives of different sectors and professions, including politics, administration, business, NGO's, universities and the media to discuss different issues concerning EU policy, enlargement issues and integration opportunities. The participants of this year meeting (28 leaders) were the representatives of governmental bodies, media and NGO’s from Russia, Belarusia, Germany, Austria, Serbia, Ukraine, Poland, Moldova, Romania, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Armenia and other countries. The Amicus Europae Foundation selected the participants from candidates recommended by mentors; direct applications were not accepted. So Civil Society Institute recommended two candidates from Armenia. Among the speakers at the Academy were renown politicians and experts from around Europe. They introduced the participants into the main topics and then led them through discussions and debates. The Amicus Europae Foundation envisages that the participation in the SummerAcademy will give the young European a broader outlook on the processes of European Integration and enrich them to better serve their own countries and societies.

On October 9th , Aram Voskanyan and Armen Grigoryan, the Armenian representatives of Summer Academy 2008, shared their impressions and knowledge gained during the program, during the meeting organized in the office of Civil Society Institute.