Bled Strategic Forum 2021 has come to its end, but its vision still echoes among us to this day. After such a resonating event it is not easy to put all the feelings into words but what can be said is that this year everyone has truly outdone themselves – Bled Strategic Forum 2021 undoubtedly bears the signature of excellence.
With more than 164 participating panellists and speakers from around the world, this year’s event was the most visited, visible, high-profile, and comprehensive Forum thus far. It hosted 12 prime ministers, several foreign ministers, two presidents, four former European heads of state, senior representatives of European and international institutions, members of the European Parliament and representatives of think tanks, civil society, businesses, and academia. More than 170 journalists, who spread the messages of the Forum to a broader international audience, covered the event. In over 40 hours of the programme, we all managed to create an inclusive space, which enabled an open exchange of different ideas and views on various aspects of the future of Europe and the world in the 21st century.
This year’s Forum focused on the future of Europe and the call to increase its resilience. The topics of the discussion touched on the priorities of the second Slovenian Presidency of the Council of the European Union, which takes place under the “Together. Resilient. Europe” slogan.
On the first day, European leaders and EU high representatives discussed main challenges of Europe’s future, including EU enlargement, post-epidemic recovery, the green and digital transformations, and the future of European integration. The second day of the Forum was dedicated to economic recovery and tourism, laying the foundations for a more resilient EU, strengthening cyber resilience and digitalisation. Key topics of the second day included talks on mounting a stronger and more effective response to climate change, the importance of transatlantic cooperation, cooperation in the Indo-Pacific, the challenges of the Eastern Partnership countries and the stability of the Mediterranean.
The recipient of this year’s “BSF Distinguished Partner Award 2021” is Pedro Opeka, a priest and missionary who has devoted more than 30 years of his life to humanitarian work and the fight against poverty in Madagascar.
As an introduction to the Forum, the tenth Young Bled Strategic Forum was held at the beginning of the week in Bled, bringing together more than 30 young people from 12 different countries who discussed the future of Europe, thus enabling active social participation for the younger generations.
You can relive this year’s Forum here:
Thank you note
Centre for European Perspective, as a proud co-organizer of the Bled Strategic Forum, wishes to thank partners, supporters, and friends of the Forum. It was a great honour and pleasure to organise this year’s Bled Strategic Forum – with you and for you.
A sincere thank you for co-shaping with your support the largest Forum to date.
