LDP 7 – Spring Seminar in Brussels and Bruges

The final event for the LDP 7th generation – Spring Seminar – will be organised from April 20 to April 25, 2013 in Belgium, in both Brussels and Bruges. During this seminar the 30 participants will have an opportunity to meet policy-makers from the EU, members of the European Commission, European Parliament and NATO and get closely involved in discussion on a number of important issues regarding the Southeast Europe and its future like the EU-WB relations, EU inter-institutional Relations - Foreign Policy Perspective, The Enlargement Process: State of Play, The Role of the EP in the Enlargement Process, Theory & Practice of Negotiations - Focus on EU Accession Negotiations. This five-day seminar will also include a day at the College of Europe in Bruges, as well as a panel discussion with the Brussels-based think tanks related to the future of the EU and the impact of the Current Crisis on the Enlargement process. The organized reception with SEE Ambassadors in Brussels will also be a worthwhile experience for the young leaders of the LDP Programme. With the already concluded two-week academy and group activities, at the end of this third component of the LDP Programme, the participants will get the certificates and become members of the EFB Community. The Leadership Development Programme was launched in 2006/2007 by the College of Europe and the TRANSFUSE Association. The European Fund for the Balkans began financing the programme in 2008 and since 2009 is organising it jointly with the College of Europe and the TRANSFUSE Association. It is part of EFB’s Experiencing Europe progamme. The Programme is structured around 3 complementary activities which aim to provide participants with a comprehensive understanding of the EU and its relation with the Southeast Europe. Training sessions on negotiation, presentation and project management skills, as well as the development and implementation of joint events in the region are designed to enhance the leadership abilities of the paricipants. 30 graduate students from Albania, Bosnia Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Macedonia, Greece, Kosovo, Moldova, Montenegro, Romania, Serbia and Turkey are selected each year to take part in the 8 month long “Southeast Europe and the EU – Leadership Development Programme”. A limited number of participants are selected from other European countries. The LDP is led by an Academic Dean who guides the participants through the different elements of the program.