Consensus Conference

16 –17 February 2011, Berlin, Germany

Programme and List of Participants including links to presentations

Conference materials

Handout on Scenarios

This conference brought together around 60 researchers, policy makers and actors to present the ideas and conclusions realised within the Forward Look, with an aim to agree upon precise and realistic recommendations, and pave the way for their implementation.

The focus of the Forward Look project is on Central and Eastern Europe ‘beyond transition’: the objective being to define the extent to which social science research agendas need to address issues that are specific to this region, and the extent to which pan-European research agendas need to pay more attention to the specific dynamics of change in this region.

Three workshops held over 2010 with experts and stakeholders have considered relevant issues in Economics, Sociology, Politics and Local Governance. An extensive survey of existing research funded by major national and international sponsors has also formed part of the exercise, in order to provide insights into current priorities in social science research on CEE as well as to identify the actors determining them. This is allowing the project to develop recommendations that will serve to set priorities for designing research programmes in social sciences for the next 5-10 years.  The intention is to improve the science policy-making process by providing actors and stakeholders with a more informed understanding of future socio-economic challenges in the region in order to support defining science policy and developing strategy of future research in the social sciences, embedding scientific expertise in the policy-making process.

The aim of the conference is to present the results of the project as well as main thesis of the project report for discussion with representatives of the research community, policy makers and other stakeholders.