13. 3. 2023 | European Digital Diplomacy Exchange, PR, Strategic Communication
More than ever, the unstable and uncertain times call for effective and trustworthy communication from governments and institutions. They are under enormous pressure to introduce and communicate policy initiatives under extraordinary circumstances while simultaneously competing with the flooding of misinformation and disinformation. Digital capabilities and strategic thinking have undoubtedly become the core of governments’ communications and public affairs operations.
Once again, European Digital Diplomacy Exchange will gather government communicators for a 4-day training, where they will be polishing their digital communication competencies. Participants from Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Canada, Czechia, Estonia, Georgia, Kosovo, Latvia, Lithuania, North Macedonia, Moldova, Montenegro, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, and Ukraine will join us in Portorož from 21 to 24 March.
The theme of this training will be “Turning Practice into Strategy, Structures, and Systems.” With the focus on returning participants, we will be shifting our attention to how participants can translate the skills they have developed during previous workshops into policies, protocols, and procedures that will foster institutional systems that better enable digital strategic communications practices. Participants will learn from experts in this field and participate in practical exercises that will provide tangible, workable solutions to their home ministries.
The project is a result of cooperation between the U.S. Department of State, the U.S. Embassy in Ljubljana, and the Centre for European Perspective.
The project is partially financed by the Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs of the Republic of Slovenia in the scope of the program activities of international development cooperation.
Klikni tukaj za več informacij o projektnih aktivnosti v slovenščini.
24. 1. 2023 | European Digital Diplomacy Exchange, PR
For the first time, government communicators from Bulgaria are attending the European Digital Diplomacy Exchange (EDDE) digital strategic communication training, which will take place next week, from the 30th to the 31st of January 2023, in Sofia. The event will bring together communicators from various ministries, agencies, and other state institutions.
The main focus of this in-country training is the conceptualization, development and implementation of digital strategic communication practices and campaigns identified as necessary together with the Diplomatic Institute to the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Bulgaria. Besides that, individual consultations will be offered to the participants in the following days to discuss specific communication items.
Since 2017 CEP and the U.S. Department of State have been conducting a digital diplomacy project titled European Digital Diplomacy Exchange (EDDE), an intergovernmental network of government communicators committed to increasing members’ collective capacities to operate within the digital information space more effectively. A fundamental offering of this network is hands-on government-to-government digital strategic communications guidance, training, and mentorship.
More information about the project can be accessed at the EDDE webpage: https://www.bedigitaldiplomat.com/.
This project is supported by the U.S. Department of State.
19. 12. 2022 | North Macedonia - Communication, PR
Klikni tukaj za več o projektnih aktivnostih v slovenskem jeziku 
The third workshop for the Working Group in charge of communication in the negotiation process on the content of Chapter 24 was held in Strumica, North Macedonia, from 13-15 December. During the workshops, the members of the group, coming from the Ministry of the Interior, the Financial Police, the Customs Administration, the Ministry of Justice, the Public Prosecutor’s Office, and the National Security Agency, continued to strengthen their communication capacities both in the area of content and in the area of communication skills and techniques.
After years of waiting, North Macedonia finally started its EU membership negotiations this summer. The first reviews of alignment with the EU acquis have already started, so adequate and good communication of the Working Group with all stakeholders and in all directions is of utmost importance. Practical exercises and experiences from other countries are particularly welcome.
The participants of the workshops in Strumica received training in communication on the fight against organised crime (financial investigations, money laundering), migration (legal and illegal migration, readmission), and border management through interactive exercises and based on current messages from the latest EC Progress Report on North Macedonia. The exercises were conducted in two directions: on the one hand, training in understanding or interpreting the messages and information provided by the EC in the Progress Report, and on the other hand, training in information transfer or reporting back to the EC team members on the achievements and work carried out by North Macedonia.
The workshops also gave participants the opportunity to learn about the experience of communication in the negotiation process with colleagues from Montenegro, Serbia, and Slovenia. They were very grateful for guidance on their good practices and advice on how to avoid bad ones.
The practical exercises also offered the participants training to improve their oral and written communication skills and techniques, both with domestic and foreign audiences.
These were the last workshops of the project Communication in Negotiation Chapter 24, which is implemented with Slovenian international development assistance from January 1, 2021, and ends on 31 December, 2022. The members of the Working Group in charge of communication in the negotiation process on the content of Chapter 24 confirmed that their communication capacities have been greatly strengthened and that they have made significant progress in this area. They expressed their deep appreciation for the knowledge, guidance, and training they have received and considered it extremely useful for the work they are doing and the work that lies ahead of them on the road to the EU.
The project is part of the activities of Slovenia’s Development Cooperation Programme, financed by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Slovenia.
Further information:
Andreja Dolničar Jeraj
Programme Director
Centre for European Perspective
13. 12. 2022 | Danube, PR
The TalentMagnet consortium is happy to present the last eNewsletter of the project!
Two years of the project have already gone by in a flash, and the consortium has created important outputs, completed their pilot actions, tried out the tools prepared in the scope of the project, and more. Presentation of local plans for talent attraction and retention, all project activities, and a chat with TalentMagnet stakeholders were all a part of the final conference in Ptuj, Slovenia.
But we won’t spoil more about the content of the eNewsletter – you can read it here.
For more information about the TalentMagnet project, check out the Danube Transnational Programme website or TalentMagnet Facebook page.
6. 12. 2022 | PR
Yesterday, on 5 December 2022, we hosted a delegation of the Foreign Relations Committee of the Parliament of Georgia headed by its Chairperson, Prof Dr Nikoloz Samkharadze, for a discussion on the current situation in Georgia and the region.
Moderated by the Executive Director of CEP, Ms Katja Geršak, the stimulating discussion focused on the current state of affairs of Georgia, its Euro-Atlantic aspirations and the effects of the Russian aggression on Ukraine on Georgia.
During the discussion, Mr Samkharadze emphasised that in 2008 Georgia was the first victim of Russia’s aggression, and they warned the West that they will not be the last one. We can now see the story repeating in Ukraine. Russia still poses a substantial danger to Georgia’s sovereignty and statehood since it still hosts several thousand Russian soldiers on the occupied territories that can be mobilised at any moment.
Russia’s appetite for Georgia was not triggered by the talks of Georgia’s NATO accession but was present from Georgia’s independence onwards and has been manifested on several different occasions when the territorial integrity of Georgia was violated. Nonetheless, Georgia is a stabilising country in the Caucasus region and could further strengthen this role if it would be a member of NATO and the EU. The support of Euro-Atlantic integration is widespread – more than 80% of the population supports joining NATO and the EU; moreover, the integration is supported by all the political parties. Whereas “in reality, Russia has veto power over NATO accession”, there is no “reasonable explanation” why the EU did not grant EU Candidate status to Georgia. Mr Samkharadze and his colleagues see no other option than Georgia firmly embarking on the path of Euro-Atlantic integration.
