The Second Summer School on Modern Diplomacy: Across Actors, Levels and Tracks was co-organised by UNU-CRIS and the Diplomatische Akademie Wien, in collaboration with the Flanders Department of Foreign Affairs, Ghent University and Vrije Universiteit Brussel (VUB), and was held virtually from 24 August to 4 September 2020.
The Summer School welcomed 46 participants spanning 31 nationalities from five continents. Braving the adversities of time differences and Zoom fatigue, participants actively engaged with our speakers to discuss the theory and challenges of the new age of diplomacy. The broad and diverse topic was tackled in ten modules, with interventions from leaders in their fields, such as Karel De Gucht, Johan Verbeke, Linda Yueh, Veronika Hunt Šafránková, Emil Brix, Jovan Kurbalija, and Noé Cornago, to name just a few. After an introduction on international relations and diplomatic practice today, modern diplomacy was analysed from climate, cultural, economic, migration, science and health, functional skills, digital, subnational and supranational perspectives.
Thanks to the organising partners’ collaboration, the speakers’ expertise, and the participants’ preparedness and enthusiasm, the Summer School was an inspiring and fruitful forum of discussion on the different facets of modern diplomacy and how they shape the world we live in.
