Think Visegrad

Think Visegrad—V4 Think Tank Platform is a net­work for struc­tured dia­log on issues of strate­gic regional impor­tance. The net­work ana­lyzes key issues for the Visegrad Group (V4), and pro­vides rec­om­men­da­tions to the gov­ern­ments of V4 coun­tries, the annual pres­i­den­cies of the group, and the International Visegrad Fund. Think Visegrad cov­ers the­matic pri­or­i­ties of V4 includ­ing energy secu­rity, V4’s inter­nal cohe­sion, EU insti­tu­tions and pol­i­tics, the Western Balkans, rela­tions with Eastern Partnership coun­tries, devel­op­ment assis­tance, hard secu­rity, envi­ron­men­tal pro­tec­tion, Roma-related issues, migra­tion, trans­port, etc.

Formation of the net­work of V4 think-tanks was one of the pri­or­i­ties of the Czech Presidency in the Visegrad Group of 2011–2012. This idea reflected the long-term inter­est and will­ing­ness of Central European think-tanks to enhance their coop­er­a­tion within the Visegrad Group and to deepen its cohe­sion. Think Visegrad was estab­lished in 2012 by eight V4 research cen­ters and insti­tutes, and is funded by the International Visegrad Fund.

Founding members of Think Visegrad (in alpha­bet­i­cal order):

• Central European Policy Institute – www.cepolicy.org
• Centre for Eastern Studies (OSW) – www.osw.waw.pl
• Institute for Foreign Affairs and Trade – www.kki.gov.hu
• EUROPEUM—Institute for European Policy – www.europeum.org
• The Society of the Institute of East-Central Europe (TIESW) – www.iesw.lublin.pl
• Institute of International Relations – www.umv.cz
• Research Center of the Slovak Foreign Policy Association – www.sfpa.sk
• Center for Euro-Atlantic Integration and Democracy. – www.ceid.hu

The core net­work of think-tanks includes these found­ing insti­tu­tions with their coor­di­nat­ing abil­i­ties. Think Visegrad remains, how­ever, an open plat­form for coop­er­a­tion with other think-tanks from all V4 countries. Think Visegrad aims to pre­pare exten­sive and detailed long-term analy­ses focus­ing on the most impor­tant pri­or­i­ties of the Visegrad Group, as well as short-term analy­ses reflect­ing the most cur­rent and urgent top­ics. At the same time, the plat­form will coor­di­nates fel­low­ships.

Think Visegrad Fellowship 2021

About: Think Visegrad is a think tank plat­form for struc­tured dia­logue on issues of strate­gic regional impor­tance. The plat­form aims to ana­lyze key issues for the Visegrad Group (Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland, Slovakia), and pro­vides rec­om­men­da­tions to the gov­ern­ments of Visegrad Group (V4) coun­tries, the annual pres­i­den­cies of the Group, and the International Visegrad Fund. In addi­tion, Think Visegrad pro­vides vis­it­ing fel­low­ships to non-Visegrad expert fel­lows. Think Visegrad was estab­lished in 2012 by eight V4 think tanks with coor­di­nat­ing abil­i­ties. This so-called core net­work, how­ever, remains open to coop­er­a­tion with other think-tanks from all V4 coun­tries. Think Visegrad is funded by the International Visegrad Fund.

Eight vis­it­ing fel­low­ships will be avail­able for Autumn or Winter of 2021. Each of the core net­work think tanks (see list below) will host one non-V4 expert fel­low. Each selected vis­it­ing fel­low will have the oppor­tu­nity to take part in the institute’s activ­i­ties for a period of up to eight weeks. During this period, each fel­low will be expected to develop a pol­icy paper and deliver one pub­lic pre­sen­ta­tion on a pre-agreed topic. A lump sum of €3,000 will be given to each selected vis­it­ing fel­low to cover all nec­es­sary costs and expen­di­tures related to his or her stay at the host­ing insti­tute (e.g. lodg­ing and local trans­port). Each fel­low will also be respon­si­ble for pay­ing all taxes and related fees, includ­ing health and social insur­ance, from this amount. Think Visegrad—V4 Think Tank Platform will cover the cost of travel to the host­ing insti­tute for the vis­it­ing fellow.

Topics: Fellowships are avail­able in all areas of research in polit­i­cal sci­ence, inter­na­tional rela­tions and eco­nom­ics. Chosen top­ics should com­ple­ment the research focus of the host­ing insti­tute, and there­fore the appli­cants are highly rec­om­mended to check the institute’s web­site before sub­mit­ting an application.

Duration: The dura­tion of fel­low­ships varies from 6 to 8 weeks (based on agree­ment with the host­ing institute).

Hosting insti­tutes:

• Center for Euro-Atlantic Integration and Democracy (CEID)
• Centre for Eastern Studies (OSW)
• EUROPEUM – Institute for European Policy
• Globsec Policy Institute (GPI)
• Institute for Foreign Affairs and Trade (IFAT)
• Institute of International Relations (IIR)
• The Polish Institute of International Affairs (PISM)
• Research Center of the Slovak Foreign Policy Association (RC SFPA)

Eligibility: Expert fel­lows from non-Visegrad coun­tries with at least five years’ experience in their field of research are eli­gi­ble. Preference will be given to appli­cants who have already made a sig­nif­i­cant con­tri­bu­tion in their field. Fellows who already conducted the Think Visegrad Fellowship in the past are not allowed to participate again and their applications will be automatically dismissed.

Deadline: Application dossiers con­sist­ing of the application form, struc­tured CV (includ­ing the list of pub­li­ca­tions) and a moti­va­tion let­ter (max­i­mum 300 words) are to be sub­mit­ted to thinktank@sfpa.sk by August 15, 2021.

Please note that due to the COVID-19 pandemic the travel restrictions may change. Under such terms, your fellowship may be rescheduled or cancelled. For more information please visit: http://think.visegradfund.org

See also: https://think.visegradfund.org/fellowship/