Centro per l’Europa Centro-Orientale e Balcanica

The "Centro" was founded in 1996 by the University of Bologna and the Municipality of Bologna, with the active participation of the European Union, the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Emilia Romagna Regional Government, the Municipalities of Forlì, Cesena and Cervia and the Carisbo Foundation. In 2002 the "Centro" was transformed into a consortium of the University of Bologna and IECOB (the Istituto per l'Europa Centro-Orientale e Balcanica). Currently, Stefano Bianchini is the Centre's president and Francesco Privitera is its director.

The Centre's Academic Board is composed of the "International Network Europe and the Balkans", an extensive network of scholars and experts (over 250 scholars from 36 European countries, the United States, Canada, Egypt, South Africa, India, Japan, Australia and New Zealand). Moreover the Centro relies on thousands of alumni, as well as cooperation with the Central European Initiative and the Adriatic-Ionian Initiative. Its activities include implementing projects for the Italian Institute for Foreign Trade, the Italian Diplomatic Institute, the World Bank, the FAO, the UNESCO-BRESCE and other international organisations.

The Centre's network enables it to cover an extensive geographical area across multiple disciplines, promoting research and providing advice of a political, social and economic nature, and to organise international post-graduate training courses in human rights, economics and the environment for the Balkan states and Eastern Europe.

The three main bodies of the "Centro per l'Europa Centro-Orientale e Balcanica" are:

• The President: Stefano Bianchini
• The Director: Francesco Privitera
• The Administrative Advisers: Stefano Bianchini, Francecso Privitera, Guido Gambetta, Roberto Grandi, Paolo Pupillo and Andrea Segré
• The Scientific Board: Ivo Babic, Jean Blondel, Matilde Callari Galli, Luigi Vittorio Ferraris, Antonio Panaino, George Schöpflin and Milica Uvalic

Aims

Promoting and co-operating on research projects, studies, and international exchange initiatives among scholars and experts on Central Eastern and Balkan Europe.

Promoting the education of young people from Central, Eastern and Balkan Europe, as well as the training of consultants, professionals and teachers in order to significantly contribute to creating a new local managerial class, sensitive to the values of democracy and political and economic integration, pre-requisites for stability and peace; training local personnel both to meet the needs of Italian/EU entrepreneurs and businesses and to establish and maintain effective working relationships.

Training young people from Italy and providing Italian companies with accurate information on the transformation in Central, Eastern and Balkan Europe through research, surveys, publications and by constantly monitoring the formulation of Italian foreign policy towards that area, highlighting its specific interests within the framework of European co-operation.

Promoting the study of Italian, East-European and Balkan languages in order to improve communication and integration between Italy's economic interests and those of the countries the Centre deals with.

Raising awareness in Italian schools about the problems and recent history of an area crucial to Italy's interests, which is especially appropriate now as school curricula increasingly focus on the present day situation.

Activities

• Coordinates research, mainly of an interdisciplinary nature, involving international scholars who are members of the "Europe and the Balkans International Network".
• Develops the Portal on Central, Eastern and Balkan Europe with the goal of spreading constantly updated information, offering a wide range of scientific contributions, reinforcing the visibility of research and facilitating cooperation between groups of professors, researchers and area experts.
• Promotes the mobility of professors, researchers, doctoral candidates, and students by interacting with Italian and international diplomatic representatives.
• Promotes cooperation with European and international research institutions on East European and Balkan study topics, provides consulting services and collaborates with national and international bodies (the European Commission, the Central European Initiative, the Adriatic-Ionian Initiative, the Italian Foreign Ministry, and Italian regional administrations).
• Organizes national and international conventions, conferences, seminars and Summer Schools on European politics and issues of sustainable development and environmental protection (CEI International Summer School of Cervia).
• Organizes training courses and briefings for consultants, teachers, all layers of civil society, young diplomats, public and private managers and administrators from East, Central and Balkan Europe.
• Publishes a series of volumes on Eastern Europe for Longo Ravenna Press, an Annual Guide to the Countries of East-Central Europe and the Balkans for Mulino Press in Bologna as well as an academic journal, "Southeastern Europe", for Brill, Leiden.

Location

View CECOB - Centro per l'Europa Centro-Orientale e Balcanica in a larger map

Contacts & Information

1, S. Giovanni Bosco
I - 48018 - Faenza - (RA) - Italy
Tel.: +39 0544 937950
Fax: +39 0546 372045
info: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it