18. 12. 2020 | European Digital Diplomacy Exchange, PR
We successfully concluded two Digital Diplomacy trainings in Ukraine and Georgia. The first training was organized for Ukraine and took place between 14 and 15 December, while the second training was organized for Georgia and took place between 16 and 17 December.
In total 120 government communicators from different ministries and institutions participated in the training, which was organized virtually on ZOOM platform due to the COVID-19 pandemic. In a limited time, we managed to create an agenda with interesting speakers that covered a variety of topics related to Digital Diplomacy – communication theory, the evolution of the digital media information landscape, digital rhetoric, developing effective messaging campaigns, countering disinformation and propaganda, usage of social media and essentials on visual communication.
We would like to thank all the speakers for their time and knowledge that they shared with us – Matt Jacobs from U.S. Department of State, Mykolas Mazolevskis from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Lithuania, Matthias Lüfkens from Burson Cohn&Wolfe/Twiplomacy, Roman Osadchuk from Digital Forensic Research Lab – Atlantic Council, Laura Napoliello and Teddy Wilhite from Facebook, and to Ingrid Omahna from Centre for European Perspective.
Special thanks goes to Ukrainian and Georgian government for making this roadshow possible and to participants for their engagement.
The Training was organized by the Centre for European Perspective, together with the U.S. Department of State.
15. 12. 2020 | European Digital Diplomacy Exchange, PR
First stop of the EDDE Eastern Europe Virtual Roadshow – in Ukraine – has come to an end. Fully packed two-day training took place on 14 and 15 of December over ZOOM platform. Almost 100 government communicators gathered to listen to the lectures ranging from communication theory, the evolution of the digital media information landscape, digital rhetoric, developing effective messaging campaigns, countering disinformation and propaganda to the usage of social media and essentials on visual communication.
The second – and the last – virtual tour stop will take place on 16 and 17 December in Georgia for Georgian government communicators
The Training was organized by The Centre for European Perspective, together with the U.S. Department of State.
12. 12. 2020 | European Digital Diplomacy Exchange, PR
Due to covid-19 pandemic, the second part of European Digital Diplomacy Exchange (EDDE) Eastern Europe Roadshow, taking place in Ukraine and Georgia is touring virtually. It is starting off with a training for Ukrainian government communicators on 14 and 15 December following with the training for Georgian government communicators on 16 and 17 December 2020. Both trainings are organized by The Centre for European Perspective, together with the U.S. Department of State.
ICT revolution has undoubtedly transformed the way people across the world communicate and exchange information. The effectiveness of digital diplomacy in each country is very much dependent on how diplomats and other professionals use digital communication tools to understand and transform their online presence to achieve their goals and objectives. At the times of covid-19 pandemic, the era of broken trust, the knowledge and skills that government representatives need to aquire to effectively communicate with their citizenry are proven to be more important then ever.
This trainings will help to improve the communication approaches, learn about how to develop effective messaging campaigns to perform better in the digital space. Moreover, the trainings will not forget about the dark side of the digital, so the participants will be able to know more about disinformation and how to counter this phenomenon.
28. 9. 2020 | European Digital Diplomacy Exchange, PR
European Digital Diplomacy Exchange Steering Board and Symposium on Government Communication during COVID-19 Pandemic begins virtually
Click here to read more about the project in Slovenian language. 
The Centre for European Perspective, together with the U.S. Department of State and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Slovenia organized a Steering Board meeting and Symposium on Government Communication during COVID-19 pandemic. The event has been hosted via Zoom, taking place from Monday, 28 September to Friday, 2 October 2020.
DAY 1
At the beginning, participants were addressed by Matt Jacobs from the U.S. Department of State and Project Coordinator Ingrid Omahna from the Centre for European Perspective.
The day commenced after the introductory remarks, with a lecture by Tom Fletcher, Former British Ambassador and Downing Street Foreign Policy Advisor and author of the book “The Naked Diplomat: Understanding Power and Politics in the Digital Age”. He presented a lecture about the state of diplomacy before and after 2020, explained current trends, and pointed out 10 crucial questions to consider in order to survive as a diplomat in the future.
Ivana Boštjančič Pulko from Information Security Administration of the Republic of Slovenia continued with a session about “Essentials for Trainers”. The sharing of experience and knowledge is at the very core of the EDDE network, and as participants openly discussed with Mrs. Pulko, there is a dividing line between a good and bad trainer. Mrs. Pulko covered the theoretical essentials of a good trainer, tips and tricks that can help trainers be more confident and advise on how to engage their audience. Guest participants were engaged in an open discussion, that included their questions, challenges and a topic very close to the overall Steering board and Symposium subject, namely how can trainers adapt to the new COVID reality.
The day concluded with the EDDE Steering Board meeting where the next steps of the project were discussed.
DAY 2
The second day started with a lecture by prof. Corneliu Bjola, Associate Professor of Diplomatic Studies from the University of Oxford. Participants dived deep into The Digital “Dark Side” of the COVID-19 Pandemic with a focus on 5G conspiracy theory. The participants learnt the basics of conspiracy theories, how to detect and counter them effectively and what kind of impact they have on the public health system during the current pandemic.
The second session of the second day focused on the Cases of Disinformation during the COVID-19 pandemic in the Czech Republic. A lecture was given by Veronika Krátka Špalková, Analyst of the Kremlin Watch Program from European Values Center for Security Policy. She focused on the Czech disinformation environment and held a detailed presentation of the context, waves and cases of disinformation during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The third and last session of the day included a presentation by Jakub Kalensky and Andy Carvin, both working at the capacity of Senior Fellow at the Digital Forensic Research Lab within the Atlantic Council. They presented an overview of Disinformation in the new COVID reality. As they suggested, times of crisis have always presented an opportunity/void in which disinformation can flourish, with the current pandemic being no different. The Atlantic Council is working closely from the initial stages of the COVID-19 pandemic and has researched, analyzed, and exposed various harmful narratives worldwide.
DAY 3
The third day of the event started with a session by Bernd Spainer from Communications Policy & Public Diplomacy Division of the European External Action Service. Lecture focused on Strategic Communication during COVID-19 at the EU level. The next presenter was Elina Lange- Ionatamišviili, from NATO StratCom Centre of Excelence, who presented the role of StratComs during COVID-19 emergency, the issue of “infodemic” and its impact on the society in a broader sense. Last but not least, Christ Smith from EUR Stratcom Team of U.S. Department of State, talked about the role of StratCom during the COVID-19 Emergency from the U.S. Perspective.
DAY 4
The fourth day was dedicated to social media and their active role in digital diplomacy. The first session was held by Matthias Lüfkens, Author of Twiplomacy and Managing Director at Burson Cohn & Wolfe. Matthias explained how governments and world leaders reacted to COVID-19 on Twitter. The day closed with a group activity session about the next steps of the EDDE project.
On the last day, the Steering Board members provided an overview of how different governments have responded in relation to COVID-19.
This valuable event would not have been possible without the support of the U.S. Department of State and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Slovenia within the Official Development Cooperation instrument.
21. 9. 2020 | European Digital Diplomacy Exchange, PR
Click here to read more about the project in Slovenian language.
The Centre for European Perspective, together with the U.S. Department of State and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Slovenia is organizing a Steering Board meeting and Symposium on Government Communication during COVID-19. The Steering Board Meeting & Symposium, hosted via Zoom, will start on Monday, 28. September, and will finish on Friday, 2. October 2020.
The COVID-19 pandemic pushed the world in the grip of a crisis that stands unprecedented in living memory. Challenged with uncertainty about the development of the virus and its impact on society, governments and other institutions are under enormous pressure to communicate and introduce policy initiatives under extraordinary circumstances, accompanied by an “infodemic”, with flooding misinformation and disinformation.
This symposium aims to provide an overview of how governments have responded in relation to COVID-19 and to reveal the digital dark side of the pandemic. The event will consist of several engaging sessions with different stakeholders, ranging from government structures to non-government organizations, think-tanks, academia, and tech companies.
The project is a result of a joint cooperation between the U.S. Department of State, the U.S. Embassy in Ljubljana, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Slovenia in the scope of the International Development Cooperation and the Centre for European Perspective.
4. 3. 2020 | European Digital Diplomacy Exchange, PR
The Centre for European Perspective (CEP), together with the U.S. Department of State, and the support from the Moldovan State Chancellery and the Ministry of Health, Labour and Social Protection of the Republic of Moldova, is organizing a two-day training for Moldovan government communicators within the scope of “European Digital Diplomacy Exchange (EDDE)” project. The training will take place on 5 – 6 March in Government House in Chișinău.
Today’s public sphere is shaped by the proliferation of digital communication channels that are constantly bringing new challenges for governments. Government communicators are required to be active on social networks, but this role is too often taken for granted. In order to ensure successful communication, they constantly need to expand their knowledge, experience, different abilities and skills.
This training will cover a range of topics from public relations and public diplomacy theory to the practical application of digital tools, conducted by experienced public and private sector communicators in this emerging media environment.
