The V4 meets EaP initiative is an extension of the current Visegrad School of Political Studies that aims to promote the collective and individual V4 democratic transition experiences to young political, social and governmental leaders from Eastern Partnership countries. The V4 meets EaP has brought together more than 120 participants over 2 years from the EaP and V4 to undertake workshops focusing on EU integration, civil society development, and the general transitional experience.
The 2015 sessions were organized by the EAD, Antall Jozsef Knowledge Center, the Slovak Atlantic Commission, International Centre for Democratic Transition & the Diplomatic Academy of Prague. The CoE – SPS network in the EaP (Armenia, Belarus, Georgia, Moldova, the Ukraine) provided recruitment and methodological support, including a needs assessment.
The V4 meets EaP was divided into several thematic blocks that included skills training. Topics discussed during the session covered the V4 transition experiences, successes & failures in regional V4 cooperation, use of twinning as an institution building tool, EU decision making and lobbying, social media campaigns for political activism, preparing official correspondence, grassroots movements to political parties, youth political party organization, citizen diplomacy & civil society, role of think-tanks in public policy, fighting corruption & political transparency.
The 2015 program was co-financed by the International Visegrad Fund and the Department of Public and Cultural Diplomacy of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Poland.
The program was a 100% scholarship initiative, with all fees, materials and meals (lunches and coffee breaks), and accommodation covered. Sessions were held in Warsaw.
