Week one has come to a close

Week 1 has come to a close and what a week it was

First – we learned plenty about the role of social media in democracy and diplomacy. Moira Whelan, who managed the US State Department’s social media strategies, gave a series of lectures and fireside chats. Kateryna Kruk, whose prolific English-language tweets exposed EuroMaidan to the world, also shared her experiences with participants. Liia Hänni, a former Estonian parliamentarian and advisor to the Estonian President, discussed her country’s e-governance experiences. Finally, Jakub Janda gave a fascinating lecture about Russian disinformation and how we can best fight it.

Soon thereafter, we began a series of lectures on the digital economy. It’s difficult to figure out how to best frame competition law in a digital era. Still, Mario Mariniello stood up to the challenge and gave participants some fascinating insights about the modern digital economy. Peter Chase similarly offered a series of riveting lectures, explaining why the US and EU seem unable to agree on monopoly and privacy laws.

Still, we did not focus on lectures alone. Participants also took part in a series of soft skills workshops, learning about debating, public communication, policy writing, and negotiation skills which often prove invaluable in their professional lives. Finally, we ended up going on a study trip and visiting the National Bank of Poland (NBP), which culminated in a series of meetings and discussions with Polish officials specialising in digital policy and cybersecurity.