EAEU young leaders: present educational trajectories and future Eurasian brands
The EAEU Young Leaders School was held during the IV Eurasian Week International Forum on September 25-27 in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan. The participants learnt about EAEU universities’ education programmes on the Eurasian integration and brainstormed ideas of Eurasian brands and their global promotion strategies.
The School was at the core of the Eurasian Week youth track, gathering youth activists and young diplomats from the EAEU member states. Chairman of the Board of the Eurasian Economic Commission Tigran Sargsyan pointed out the significance of the youth agenda.
‘For us, it is important to get to know the youth of today, who think and perceive themselves and the world differently. We have to listen to you to understand what awaits our countries as you are our future,’ he stressed.
Addressing the participants, Mr Sargsyan also pinpointed global challenges facing the world nowadays, including the increasing informations flows and their accelerating transmission rates as well as changing patterns of human self-organisation.
‘You are going to live in a tough world of incredibly rapid change relating not only to new technologies, but also to lifestyle in general and values associated with it. What you can do now is to learn to think critically and effectively manage the incoming information to be able to constantly update your knowledge,’ he said.
Presenting educational programmes
The School provided an opportunity for EAEU universities to share their innovative educational solutions and products, learn about best educational practices and exchange views on education and research in the field of Eurasian integration.
Universities such as the Academy of Public Administration under the President of the Kyrgyz Republic, National Research University Higher School of Economics, Saint Petersburg State University of Economics, National Research Tomsk State University, MGIMO University and the Russian Presidential Academy of National Economy and Public Administration presented their Bachelor’s, Master’s and additional education programmes.
Tatyana Meshkova, HSE Deputy First Vice Rector and Director of the Competence Centre for Cooperation with International Organisations, spoke about the current and upcoming HSE programmes and initiatives focused on the Eurasian integration. These include the ‘Eurasian economic integration’ Master’s programme to be launched in 2020 at the HSE Faculty of World Economy and International Affairs jointly with L.N. Gumilyov Eurasian National University, Kazakhstan and Belarusian State University, Belarus, with the Eurasian Economic Commission as the institutional partner and possible involvement of other universities. The programme is aimed at introducing the educational dimension to the EAEU integration process, combining economic and political approaches.
The ‘Higher School of the EAEU’ modular vocational training programme is another initiative aimed at informing professional communities about the Eurasian integration, providing in-depth knowledge on the subject and building a talent pool for the Eurasian Economic Commission, Eurasian Development Bank, Eurasian Fund for Stabilization and Development and other stakeholders. Initially, the programme will be focused on digital transformation in line with the EAEU digital agenda, innovation-oriented and industrial cooperation within the Union, development of legal and institutional EAEU frameworks with due regard to the EU’s and other integration groups’ experiences. It is expected to be launched this year. Furthermore, the HSE is going to hold open lectures under the heading ‘To Live in Eurasia!’ within its Open University project. Current activities include the Student Research Paper Competition with a separate reward for articles on Eurasia-related topics and the International EAEU Forum forthcoming in November 2019.
‘Start your own Eurasian company’ business game
Business cooperation projects involving companies from several EAEU member states is one of the Union’s highest priorities as they constitute the core of integration processes. Thus, some 150 participants of the Young Leaders School, including Alexandra Malakhova, Analyst at the HSE Competence Centre for Cooperation with International Organisations; Alexander Korolev and Yulia Belous, Junior Research Fellow and Research Intern at the HSE Centre for Comprehensive European and International Studies, were invited to think of ‘Eurasian brands’ and their promotion strategies during the ‘Start your own Eurasian company’ business game.
Proposals were assessed by the jury comprised of the representatives of the Forum organising committee, Kyrgyz authorities and Eurasian Development Bank. The submitted projects spanned from the jewellery industry (jewellery made from precious gems and metals, widespread in Eurasia and representing its cultural diversity) and tourism (Eurasian gourmet tour) to pharmaceuticals (cosmetics from natural ingredients found in Eurasia), digitalisation (Eurasian e-commerce platform) and agriculture (system for freezing and storing of agriproducts). Two projects received the special reward: one related to solar panels production, the other concerned with construction of electric buses for EAEU public transport systems. The latter project was presented by Alexandra Malakhova, affiliated with the Competence Centre for Cooperation with International Organisations.