Institute of Public Affairs - IPA

🤝 Strengthening Our Partnership: Scott Bates and Zuzana Papazoski Visit ISP

Today, the Institute of Public Affairs (ISP) was delighted to welcome a delegation from the National Democratic Institute. We hosted Scott Bates, Regional Director for Europe and Eurasia, and Zuzana Papazoski, Resident Senior Director for Central Europe.

This meeting was a perfect blend of new and long-standing connections: it was Scott’s first visit to the ISP office, and a wonderful opportunity to reconnect with our dear friend Zuzana, with whom we have worked closely for many years. For over two decades, ISP and NDI have partnered to strengthen civil society in Central Europe, most recently through our joint project “Promoting Citizen Engagement in Political Processes in Hungary and Poland” (2023–2025).

ISP President Dr. Jacek Kucharczyk joined our guests to discuss several critical issues:

🔹 Strategic Outlook: NDI’s future initiatives in the region against the backdrop of shifting political landscapes in Central and Eastern Europe and the U.S.
🔹 Combating Disinformation: We identified disinformation as a primary threat to democratic stability, particularly concerning Polish-Ukrainian relations, migration, and climate change. We emphasized the need for cross-border cooperation to counter these challenges.
🔹 Polish-Ukrainian Civil Society: The vital importance of supporting cooperation between think tanks and NGOs from both Poland and Ukraine.
🔹 Democracy in Hungary: Lessons learned from Poland’s post-2023 experiences and how they can support the rebuilding of democratic institutions in Hungary.

We look forward to many more years of successful collaboration! 🌍🇪🇺🇺🇸

🎓 International Summer School: Feminist Futures for Foreign Policy

Our partners in Prague invite applications for an international summer school focused on feminist approaches to foreign policy.

The programme will take place 8–12 September 2026 in Prague and is aimed at MA/PhD students, early-career researchers, and practitioners from Poland and across Central Europe.

The programme includes:
• feminist foreign policy analysis
• decolonial and intersectional approaches
• the Women, Peace and Security agenda
• policy-writing workshops and exchanges with experts

Participation costs (accommodation, meals, and travel) are covered by the organisers.

📅 Application deadline: 31 May 2026

More details and how to apply:

Call for Applications - International Summer school Feminist Futures for Foreign Policy The Prague office of the Heinrich-Böll-Stiftung is cordially inviting students, young researchers and practitioners from Czechia, Slovakia, Hungary and Poland to participate in this year's International Summer School “Feminist Futures for Foreign Policy”.

The Institute of Public Affairs is a partner in the international research project NET-ROL, implemented under the Horizon Europe programme.

The project examines the rule of law as a phenomenon shaped not only by formal institutions, but also by networks of interaction among social, political and economic actors, as well as by norms and values influencing how institutions function in practice. Its aim is to better understand how these factors translate into socio-economic outcomes.

One of the project’s communication formats is the podcast series NET-ROL Voices, in which project experts present its conceptual foundations and research directions.

In the first episode, hosted by Kacper Dziekan (Institute of Public Affairs), Nadia von Jacobi (University of Trento) discusses the project’s analytical framework and how it connects perspectives from law, economics and political science.

🎧 The podcast is available on Spotify:https://open.spotify.com/episode/5Mzib2Yu2KWBHI0bOXv0Op?si=D5diduMTRKCNEORVZlh2qQ

more about the project: https://www.net-rol.eu/

On March 16–17, we were in Sarajevo participating in a digital security workshop organized by our partner organization, Belgrade Centre for Security Policy Bezbednost.org. Local cybersecurity experts are strengthening the digital resilience of the third sector by sharing good practices and demonstrating useful tools. We’re benefiting from this as well!

In a world of escalating armed conflicts, what role should Europe take to prevent further ones?

Dr. Sonia HoronziakSonia Horonziak, Director of our Democracy and Civil Society Program, is currently in Taiwan as part of the Taiwan-US-Europe Policy Program (TUPP), organized by the The German Marshall Fund of the United States.

The goal of this program is to deepen understanding of Taiwan among future socio-political leaders and to strengthen cross-national exchange and advocacy for closer cooperation between Europe, the United States, and a democratic Taiwan.

Taiwan currently faces numerous challenges to its security, both military and information. As the world's largest producer of semiconductors and chips, which are found in most of our devices, Taiwan is a significant player in the global economic arena, and destabilizing peace in its region would impact the daily lives of most people around the world. For this reason, the strategic approach of Europe, including the EU, to cooperation with the island has recently become one of the most important challenges for European leaders.

We are pleased to announce that Professor Wojciech Sadurski, Member of the Board of the Institute of Public Affairs, has been appointed as a member of the Venice Commission representing Poland for a four-year term.

The Venice Commission is the Council of Europe’s advisory body on constitutional matters and the rule of law, playing a crucial role in safeguarding democratic standards across Europe.

The substitute member has been appointed Professor Monika Florczak-Wątor (Jagiellonian University), co-author of the Institute of Public Affairs’ publication “Democracy in Poland 2024”.

Congratulations!



Photo: Wikipedia

Dr Jacek Kucharczyk was a guest at TVP World, where he commented on the proposal of the so-called “Board of Peace” and its significance from the perspective of Poland's security and Russia's war against Ukraine. In the interview, he emphasized that any peace initiative should be assessed in terms of its real effects and responsibility for aggression, rather than political symbolism.

The speech concerned, among other things, the consequences of Donald Trump's international actions, the role of global institutions, and the challenges facing European security policy today. As he pointed out, for Poland, the issue of Ukraine is not an abstract debate, but a key dimension of our security and the stability of the region.

📺 The entire conversation can be viewed at the link in the comment.

One week to go!
Register for the International Conference, “Education in Countering Gendered Disinformation”!

📅 When? 20-21 January 2026, 9:30-18:00 EET
📍 Where? Online Streaming (hosted from Bucharest)

20.01 - International Conference
We will explore how gendered disinformation works, its impact on individuals and societies, and how education can strengthen resilience, critical thinking, and media literacy.

21.01 - Online Workshop
We invite educators & youth workers to the online workshop on 21 January (5–7 PM EET), featuring the G-LENS methodology and practical tools for working with young people.

Detailed information about the conference and its agenda can be found on the event's website.

👉 Register now and secure your place! https://forms.office.com/e/pcTSNG80ux

This event is part of the G-LENS project, co-funded by the European Union.

Dr Jacek Kucharczyk took part in a Polish Radio for Foreigners programme reviewing key political developments of the past year. We invite you to listen to the programme. https://www.polskieradio.pl/395/7991/Artykul/3628035,the-year-in-review-poland-in-2025

Season’s greetings, with our best wishes for a peaceful year ahead.