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Balkans Connection, your place to connect withe the problems, business and culture of the Balkan countries: news, events, training, projects, grants, jobs and opportunities
Get a Graduate Education in the United States through the Kosovo American Educat Monday, September 03 @ 11:15:35 MDT by balkans (433 reads)
Anonymous writes "Don't miss this opportunity to obtain your master's degree in the United States . . . free! The Kosovo American Education Fund (KAEF) is currently accepting applications for eight full scholarships to Master's Degree programs in the United States. We are looking for qualified Kosovars who want an opportunity to increase their knowledge and skills in areas that would support economic growth and investment in Kosovo.
The online application for the KAEF program will be available until September 14, 2007 at:
kaef-online.org
The competition for KAEF scholarships is open and merit based. The selection process is as follows:
September 14, 2007 - Application deadline Fall and Winter, 2007 - All applications reviewed by U.S. admissions experts, and highly-ranked Fellowship Candidates interviewed, and tested Spring 2008 - U.S. admissions experts reconvene to make fellowship and placement recommendations Summer 2008 - Fellowship recipients are notified Fall 2008 - Academic programs begin
DESCRIPTION
The purpose of the Kosovo American Education Fund (KAEF) Program is to support long-term development in Kosovo by enhancing a cadre of well-educated and trained individuals to address a current lack of human capacity. Funded by the American people through the U.S. Agency for International Development and administered by American Councils for International Education, the KAEF Program is a perpetual education fund that allows eligible/qualified Kosovars the opportunity to increase their knowledge and skills in areas that would support economic growth and investment in Kosovo. For 2005, the KAEF Program awarded eight master's-level fellowships through a competitive, merit-based process. Recruitment is currently under way for 2008.
ORIGINS
Shortly after establishment of the United Nations Mission in Kosovo in 1999, USAID created the Kosovo Business Finance Fund (KBFF) to foster economic development and growth in Kosovo. This fund was used to establish the American Bank of Kosovo, a commercial bank that in the following years built up a loan portfolio and a successful level of deposits. The sale of these assets enabled the creation of the Kosovo American Education Fund (KAEF). In open competition, American Councils for International Education was awarded administration of this endowment in April 2004.
For more information, or to submit an application, visit kaef-online.org TODAY!!!"
Romania: The Growing Trend - Mediation Wednesday, August 15 @ 03:31:19 MDT by balkans (610 reads)
Regional Facilitation and
Negotiation Centre - ‘The Growing Trend - Mediation’ International Conference,
September 14 – 16, 2007, Iasi, Romania
Partners: Ministry of
Justice Romania, Danish Centre for Conflict Resolution, Mount Royal College
Canada, PATRIR.
There will be a one day conference and two day training
on advanced mediation techniques.
The conference includes an exciting
collection of international speakers presenting on a wide variety of interesting
and innovative mediation topics. The goals of the event are to provide a wide
range of information, skill-building, and thought-provoking discussion on the
emerging issues in mediation around the world from community mediation,
peacemaking to mediation in business, banking and politics.
The training
Programme ‘Advanced Mediation Techniques’ is designed for professionals who are
already trained in mediation and want to master advanced conflict resolution
skills. You will have the opportunity to interact with experts with wide
international experience as trainers, mediators, peacemakers. You will have the
option of participating in a training programme that builds up advanced skills
in conflict resolution or in a training that is focused on international peace
work and conflict resolution techniques.
Romania: Legal Contemporary Institutions within the context of the European Integration o Wednesday, August 15 @ 03:27:49 MDT by balkans (373 reads)
Law School of the
Romanian American University - ‘Legal Contemporary Institutions within the
context of the European Integration of Romania’ International Symposium, October
26 - 27, 2007, Bucharest, Romania - Call for Papers Application deadline: September 10, 2007
The event is organized
in close cooperation with and financially supported by the National Authority
for Scientific Research of Romanian Ministry for Education and Research.
Romania: ’Ukraine - Romania - Moldova: Historical, Political and Cultural Relations Wednesday, August 15 @ 03:24:59 MDT by balkans (565 reads)
’Ukraine - Romania -
Moldova: Historical, Political and Cultural Relations in the Context of Modern
European Processes’, International Scientific Conference, September 18 –19,
2007, Chernivtsi, Ukraine - Call for papers Application
deadline: August 28, 2007
Organizers: Department
of Political Science and Public Administration of the Faculty of History,
Political Science and International Relations of Yuriy Fedkovych Chernivtsi
National University and Bukovynian Center for Political Studies, in close
cooperation with and financially supported by Friedrich Ebert Foundation in
Ukraine and the Canadian Institute for Ukrainian Studies, University of Alberta,
and with participation of Chernivtsi Regional State Administration.
Croatia: ‘Visual Construction of Culture’ Symposium Wednesday, August 15 @ 03:21:20 MDT by balkans (521 reads)
October 26 – 27, 2007, Zagreb, Croatia - Call for Papers Application deadline: August 20, 2007
(confirmation)
Organizers: The Croatian
Writers' Society, the theory, culture and visual arts journal Tvrða, and the
Zagreb Centre for Visual Studies.
Over the past ten-odd years, the
interest for the establishment of Visual Culture / Visual Studies as a new
interdisciplinary field of scientific study has surpassed the boundaries of
contemporary visual arts. As W. J. T. Mitchell, one of the leading theoreticians
of visuality and the image in the media age puts it, the new way in which images
are created in the digital age requires a paradigm shift. This visual, pictorial
and cultural turn marks the liberation of the image from the dominant paradigms
in language philosophy and from the prevalent iconology interpretations in art
history. Today, the picture is understood as a medium of communication and as a
contextual field of autoreferential denotation. It is no longer a ‘holy’ picture
or a picture of High Art, but a multiplied and networked world of visuality
which demands its own new grammar, syntax, semiotics and hermeneutics.
Turkey: International Symposium on Poverty Wednesday, August 15 @ 03:18:37 MDT by balkans (458 reads)
Deniz Feneri Poverty
Research Center - International Symposium on Poverty, February 1 - 3, 2008,
Istanbul, Turkey - Call for papers Application deadline:
August 20, 2007
Poverty is a widespread
and global phenomenon, which has pervasive effects on global and local
communities. Different social scientific disciplines, vary from sociology to
economics, political science to social work, emphasize on the different aspects
of the problem, and thus contribute the existing literature on poverty and its
causes, pervasiveness and effects in 21st century. Furthermore, there is a
profusion of supranational actors, usually lying beyond the state, to tackle
poverty. UNDP, World-Bank and local or global civil society organizations work
in the field of poverty alleviation and offer a variety of services and
solutions to the problem of poverty alongside the nation-states. In this
respect, it is crucial to bring civil, public, academic and supranational actors
together to discuss different aspects of the problem of poverty and thus to
establish global and local platforms to fight against p! overty.
Roadmap for the Western-Balkans Wednesday, August 15 @ 03:16:02 MDT by balkans (510 reads)
Center for EU Enlargement
Studies, Central European University - 'A Roadmap for the Western-Balkans: Using
IPA and other EU Funds to Accelerate Convergence and Integration' Workshop -
Call for papers Application deadline: August 13,
2007
The main aim of this one
day workshop is to take stock of pre-accession funds available for
Western-Balkan candidate- and potential candidate countries, their ability to
manage and absorb financial assistance received from the EU, and to contribute
to identifying fields of program implementation. The workshop also aims to
discuss the role that new EU member states can play in transferring know-how on
identifying development needs and the management of fund absorption. As a
result, convergence perspectives of the region can be assessed as well as the
role of the wider region in assisting in the development of the Western-Balkans.
The workshop brings together junior researchers and academics with senior
policy-makers from EU institutions, member states, and Western-Balkan countries.
Romania: New Europe College Wednesday, August 15 @ 02:56:23 MDT by balkans (518 reads)
New Europe College,
Bucharest - Fellowships Spring - Summer 2008 Application
deadline: September 30, 2007
The two Fellowships
shall enable young outstanding researchers - social scientists and humanities
scholars - or academics from the Balkan region to pursue their work in
Bucharest, with the support of a decent stipend and benefiting from the
institute's excellent infrastructure and in its stimulating multidisciplinary
atmosphere. Fellows are expected to stay in residence at the New Europe College
in Bucharest and to participate in the academic program of this vital Romanian
centre of research and debate.
Romania: Grants for Romanian Audiovisual Professionals Wednesday, August 15 @ 02:43:28 MDT by balkans (394 reads)
Grants for Romanian
Audiovisual Professionals - Call for proposals Application deadline: September 17, 2007
This Call for Proposals
is based on the decision taken by the European Commission's PHARE Programme for
the implementation of the support project ‘Enhancement and development of the
professional expertise of the Romanian audiovisual sector’. The project purpose
is to strengthen the audiovisual sector in Romania, with the aim to promote
European cultural diversity and to develop a viable national audiovisual
industry.
Balkans: PROGRESS (2007 - 2013) Programme for Employment and Social Solidarity Wednesday, August 15 @ 02:39:00 MDT by balkans (420 reads)
European Commission DG
Employment - PROGRESS (2007 - 2013) Programme for Employment and Social
Solidarity Application deadline: September 3, 2007 (for
Section 3)
PROGRESS is the new
Community Programme for employment and social solidarity which will run from
2007 until 2013. The programme replaces the former Community programmes covering
anti-discrimination, gender equality, the fight against social exclusion and
employment incentive measures which provide financial support to the EU's Social
Policy Agenda. This single programme complements the European Social Fund as
well as the financial support provided for social dialogue, free movement of
workers and social studies.
The Balkans is the historic and geographic name used to describe
southeastern Europe (see the Definitions and boundaries section below). The
region has a combined area of 550,000 km˛ and a population of around 53 million.
The region takes its name from the Balkan mountains which run through the centre
of Bulgaria into eastern Serbia.
Definitions and boundaries
Peninsula
The Balkans are sometimes referred to as the Balkan peninsula as they are
surrounded by the Adriatic, Ionian, Aegean, Marmara and Black seas from the
southwest, south and southeast. While it is not a model peninsula as it has no
isthmus to connect it to the mainland of Europe, this definition is often used
to denote the wider region.
The Balkans
The distinct identity of the Balkans owes as much to its fragmented and often
violent common history as to its mountainous geography. The region was
perennially on the edge of great empires, its history dominated by wars,
rebellions, invasions and clashes between empires, from the times of the Roman
Empire to the latter-day Yugoslav wars. Its fractiousness and tendency to
splinter into rival political entities led to the coining of the term
Balkanization (or balkanizing). The term Balkan commonly connotes
a connection with violence, religious strife, ethnic clannishness and a sense of
hinterland.
Southeastern Europe
Due to the aforementioned connotations of the term "Balkan", many people prefer
the term Southeastern Europe instead. The use of this term is slowly
growing; a European Union initiative of 1999 is called the Stability Pact for
South Eastern Europe, and the online newspaper Balkan Times renamed
itself Southeast European Times in 2003. The use of this term to mean the
Balkan peninsula (and only that) technically ignores the geographical presence
of northern Romania and Ukraine, which are also located in the southeastern part
of the European continent.
Ambiguities and controversies
The northern border of the Balkan peninsula is generally considered be the line
formed by the Danube, Sava and Kupa rivers and a segment connecting the spring
of the Kupa with the Kvarner Bay. There are also some other definitions of the
northern border of the Balkans:
the line Krka (river in Slovenia) - Vipava - northern boundary of the
Gulf of Trieste
the line Dniester - Timişoara - Zagreb - Triglav (mountain).
the line Sava - Ljubljansko polje - Idrijca river - Soča river.
The most commonly used Danube-Sava-Kupa northern boundary is arbitrarily set as
to the physiographical characteristics, however it can be easily recognized on
the map. It is historically justifiable because the region so defined (together
with Romania and excluding Montenegro, Dalmatia, and the Ionian Islands)
constituted most of the European territory of the Ottoman Empire from the late
15th to the 19th century. The Kupa forms a natural boundary between
south-eastern Slovenia and Croatia, the Sava bisects Croatia and Serbia and the
Danube, which is the second largest European river (after Volga), forms a
natural boundary between both Bulgaria and Serbia and Romania. North of that
line lies the Pannonian plain and (in the case of Romania) the Carpathian
mountains. Although Romania (with the exception of Dobrudja) is not
geographically part of the Balkans, it is conventionally included as a successor
state to the old Ottoman Empire. The Romanian culture contains many Balkanic
elements and the Romanian language belongs to the Balkan linguistic union.
According to the most commonly used border, Slovenia lies to the north of the
Balkans and is considered a part of Central Europe. Historically and culturally,
it is also more related to Central Europe, although the Slovenian culture also
incorporates elements of culture of Balkanic peoples. However, as already
stated, the northern boundary of the Balkan peninsula can also be drawn
otherwise, in which case at least a part of Slovenia and a small part of Italy
(Province of Trieste) may be included in the Balkans. Slovenia is also sometimes
regarded as a Balkan country due to its association with the former Yugoslavia.
When the Balkans are described as a twentieth-century geopolitical region, the
whole Yugoslavia is included (so, Slovenia, Istria, islands of Dalmatia,
northern Croatia and Vojvodina too). The aforementioned historical justification
for the Sava-Kupa northern boundary would preclude including all of Croatia
(whose territories were by and large part of the Habsburg Monarchy and Venetian
Republic
during the Ottoman conquest). Other factors such as prior history and culture
also bind Croatia, like Slovenia, to Central Europe and the Mediterranean region
more than they bind it to the Balkans. Nevertheless, its peculiar geographic
shape inherently associates it with the region Bosnia and Herzegovina is part
of, as well as the recent history with Yugoslavia etc.
Current common definition
In most of the English-speaking, western world, the countries commonly included
in the Balkan region are:
Albania
Bosnia and Herzegovina
Bulgaria
Croatia
Greece
Republic of Macedonia
Serbia and Montenegro
Turkey, but only the European part of it around Istanbul (traditionally
called Rumelia or Eastern Thrace)
Romania and Slovenia are sometimes included in the list as well. Many regions in
the countries listed as Balkan states can be in many respects rather distinct
from the remainder of the region, so countries that are borderline cases (often
far away from the Balkan mountain itself) usually prefer not to be called
Balkan countries. Prime examples of this are Romania and Slovenia, sometimes
also Croatia and Greece.
Related countries
Other countries not included in the Balkan region that are close to it and/or
play or have played an important role in the region''''s geopolitics, culture
and history:
Cyprus
Hungary
Austria
Italy
Russia
Nature and natural resources
Most of the area is covered by mountain ranges running from south-west to
north-east. The main ranges are the Dinaric Alps in Slovenia, Croatia and
Bosnia, the Šar massif which spreads from Albania to Republic of Macedonia and
the Pindus range, spanning from southern Albania into central Greece. In
Bulgaria there are ranges running from east to west: the Balkan mountains and
the Rhodope mountains at the border with Greece. The highest mountain is Musala
(2925 m) in Mount Rila in southwestern Bulgaria. On the coasts the climate is
Mediterranean, in the inland it is moderate continental. In the northern part of
the peninsula and on the mountains, winters are frosty and snowy, while summers
are hot and dry. In the southern part winters are milder. During centuries many
woods have been cut down and replaced with bush and brush. In the southern part
and on the coast there is evergreen vegetation. In the inland there are woods
typical of Central Europe (oak and beech, and in the mountains, spruce, fir and
pine). The tree-line in the mountains lies at the height of 1800-2300 m. The
soils are generally poor, except on the plains where areas with natural grass,
fertile soils and warm summers provide an opportunity for tillage. Elsewhere,
land cultivation is mostly unsuccessful because of the mountains, hot summers
and poor soils, although certain cultures such as olives and grapes flourish.
Resources of energy are scarce. There are some deposits of coal, especially in
Bulgaria, Serbia and Bosnia. Lignite deposits are more widespread. Petroleum is
scarce, although there are small deposits in Serbia, Albania and Croatia.
Natural gas deposits are also scarce. Hydropower stations are largely used in
energetics. Metal ores are more usual than other raw materials. Iron ore is rare
but in some countries there is a considerable amount of copper, zinc, tin,
chromite, manganese, magnesite and bauxite. Some metals are exported.
History and geopolitical significance
The Balkan region was the first area of Europe to experience the arrival of
farming cultures in the Neolithic era. The practices of growing grain and
raising livestock arrived in the Balkans from the Fertile Crescent by way of
Anatolia, and spread west and north into Pannonia and Central Europe. In
pre-classical and classical antiquity, this region was home to Greeks,
Illyrians, Paeonians, Thracians, and other ancient groups. Later the Roman
empire conquered most of the region and spread Roman culture and the Latin
language but significant parts still remained under classical Greek influence.
During the Middle Ages, the Balkans became the stage for a series of wars
between the Byzantine, Bulgarian and Serbian Empires, as both countries
struggled to establish control over this key region. By the end of the 16th
century, the Ottoman Empire became the controlling force in the region, although
it was centered around Anatolia. In the past 550 years, because of the frequent
Ottoman wars in Europe fought in and around the Balkans, and the comparative
Ottoman isolation from the mainstream of economic advance (reflecting the shift
of Europe''''s commercial and political centre of gravity towards the Atlantic),
the Balkans has been the least developed part of Europe. The Balkan nations
began to regain their independence in the 19th century, and in 1912-1913 a
Balkan League reduced Turkey''''s territory to its present extent in the Balkan
Wars. The First World War was sparked in 1914 by the assassination in Sarajevo
(the capital of Bosnia and Herzegovina) of the Archduke Franz Ferdinand of
Austria. After the Second World War, the Soviet Union and communism played a
very important role in the Balkans. During the Cold War, most of the countries
in the Balkans were ruled by Soviet-supported communist governments. However,
despite being under communist governments, Yugoslavia (1948) and Albania (1961)
fell out with the Soviet Union. Yugoslavia, led by marshal Josip Broz Tito
(1892–1980), first propped up then rejected the idea of merging with Bulgaria,
and instead sought closer relations with the West, later even joining many third
world countries in the Non-Aligned Movement. Albania on the other hand
gravitated toward Communist China, later adopting an isolationist position. The
only non-communist countries were Greece and Turkey, which were (and still are)
part of NATO. In the 1990s, the region was gravely affected by armed conflict in
the former Yugoslav republics, resulting in intervention by NATO forces in
Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo and the Republic of Macedonia. The status of
Kosovo and ethnic Albanians in general is still mostly unresolved. Balkan
countries control the direct land routes between Western Europe and South West
Asia (Asia Minor and the Middle East). Since 2000, all Balkan countries are
friendly towards the EU and the USA. Greece has been a member of the European
Union since 1981. Slovenia and Cyprus since 2004. Bulgaria and Romania are set
to become members in 2007. Croatia is also expected to become part of these
organizations, however due to lack of cooperation with the International
Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) in a manhunt for fugitive
general Ante Gotovina, in March 2005 its entrance has been postponed. Turkey
initially applied in 1963 and as of 2004 accesion negotiations have not yet
begun, although some customs agreements have been signed. As of 2004 Bulgaria,
Romania and Slovenia are also members of NATO. All other countries have
expressed a desire to join the EU but at some date in the future.
Population composition by nationality and religion
The region''''s principal nationalities include Greeks (10.8 million), Turks
(9.2 million in the European part of Turkey), Serbs (8.5 million), Bulgarians (7
million), Albanians (6 million, with about 3.3 millions of them being in
Albania), Croats (4.5 million), Bosniaks (2.4 million), Macedonian Slavs (1.4
million) and Montenegrins (0.265 million). If Romania and Slovenia are included,
then also Romanians (26 million) and Slovenians (2 million). Practically all
Balkan countries have a smaller or larger Roma (Gypsy) minority. Other much
smaller stateless minorities include the Gagauz, the Gorani, the Karakachans and
the Vlachs. The region''''s principal religions are (Eastern Orthodox and
Catholic) Christianity and Islam. A variety of different traditions of each
faith are practiced, with each of the Eastern Orthodox countries having its own
national church. Eastern Orthodoxy is the principal religion in the following
countries:
Bulgaria
Greece
Romania
Serbia and Montenegro
Catholicism is the principal religion in the following countries:
Croatia
Slovenia
Islam is the principal religion in the following countries:
Albania
Turkey
The populations living in the following countries have a variety of religious
and philosophic affiliations:
Albania: Islam, Eastern Orthodoxy, Catholicism.
Bosnia and Herzegovina: Islam, Eastern Orthodoxy, Catholicism.
Republic of Macedonia: Slavic population is mostly Eastern Orthodox,
Albanian population is mostly Muslim.
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