Challenges and Prospects of Science Diplomacy in Central and South-Eastern Europe

The training course “Challenges and Prospects of Science Diplomacy in Central, Eastern and South-Eastern Europe” will take place in the Friuli Venezia Giulia Region from 25 to 28 November 2025.

Around thirty participants from twelve CEI Member States — Italy, Slovenia, Romania, Albania, Serbia, Poland, the Czech Republic, Montenegro, Hungary, North Macedonia, Moldova and Croatia — will take part. The group will be multidisciplinary, bringing together diplomats, researchers, civil servants from ministries and public administrations, staff from universities and research institutions, business professionals, and NGO representatives.

The initiative is co-organised by the CEI Executive Secretariat, the Autonomous Region of Friuli Venezia Giulia and the Department of Political and Social Sciences (DISPES) of the University of Trieste, in collaboration with the Scientific and Innovation System of Friuli Venezia Giulia (SIS FVG) and the EU Science Diplomacy Alliance (EUSDA).

Area Science Park — which supports and promotes the initiative — will play a leading role on the final day of the course, 28 November, with two dedicated events:

• There will be a contribution by Dr. Salvatore La Rosa, Director of the Research & Innovation Division, in a round table on “The Role of Research Infrastructures in Science Diplomacy”, taking place during the study visit to FERMI, the free-electron laser located on the Area Science Park campus in Basovizza;
• A final round table to mark the conclusion of the training programme, held at the conference centre on the Padriciano Campus and featuring President Caterina Petrillo, representatives of the CEI and EUSDA, and experts from the CNR and the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

According to Caterina Petrillo, “Trieste, thanks to its history, geographical position and the concentration of internationally renowned scientific institutions it hosts, is the ideal place to organise a school on science diplomacy — a tool of undisputed value where training is essential. In this context, the contribution that the institution I chair can offer is twofold: on one hand, its long-standing experience in managing complex projects in the Balkan region and Central-Southern Europe; on the other, the recent development of research and technology infrastructures, which serve as hubs attracting both the scientific and business communities and as drivers of growth for the territories that host them.”

The initiative is set within a particularly dynamic international and European framework. In 2025, UNESCO launched the first Global Dialogue on Science Diplomacy, while the Council of the European Union is discussing the adoption of a Recommendation encouraging Member States to develop a shared European Framework for Science Diplomacy.

With this initiative, Trieste and Friuli Venezia Giulia reaffirm their role as a laboratory of international dialogue, where science becomes a driving force for peace, growth and cooperation among nations and cultures.