St. Gallen Symposium 2013

Fostering an intergenerational dialogue is the aim of the St. Gallen Symposium. For that reason, 200 talented young people from all over the world are invited to take part in that event . The mission of these Leaders of Tomorrow is to fundamentally challenge the Leaders of Today with critical questions and new approaches. The 43rd symposium will take place on 02–03 May 2013 at the University of St. Gallen in Switzerland. The Conference is the world’s premier opportunity for intergenerational debate on issues of management, politics and civil society – completely run by students.

 

With the ultimate goal  for the sustained success of companies and societies in a globalised world, the St. Gallen Symposium:

• creates added value for a global target group made up of entrepreneurs, top managers, politicians, scientists, decision-makers from civil society, and students
• through gaining insight into fundamental issues concerning management, the entrepreneurial environment and the interfaces between business, politics and society
• through gaining insight into fundamental issues concerning management, the entrepreneurial environment and the interfaces between business, politics and society

Every year, the competition for the St. Gallen Wings of Excellence Award offers graduate and postgraduate university students throughout the world the unique opportunity to qualify for an expenses-covered participation as “Leaders of Tomorrow” in the St. Gallen Symposium. Students enter into a challenging exchange of ideas with today’s global leaders about the pressing economic and societal questions of our time. Competitors are invited to submit their thoughts and visions on the theme of the St. Gallen Symposium. All contributions will be evaluated according to specific criteria by an independent jury, composed of professors, corporate executives, entrepreneurs and politicians.

The authors of the 100 best contributions qualify for a participation in the St. Gallen Symposium. The following highlights await the qualifiers:

• Meet 600 top decision makers and 200 of the world’s brightest young minds
• Expenses for travel, board and lodging covered, travel service provided
• The three winners will present their work in front of the assembled plenum. The three winners share EUR 20,000 prize money

Eligibility

• you must be enrolled at a recognised university or an educational institution that is affiliated to a university,
• you must be enrolled in a graduate or post-graduate programme (e.g. Master, MBA, Ph.D., postgraduate Diplomas)
• you must be born in or after 1983.

The deadline for essay submissions is 01 February 2013.

Read more and submit your essay

Open Ukraine Foundation Writing Competition 2011

Within the framework of the Kyiv Security Forum (KSF), the Open Ukraine Foundation of Arseniy Yatsenyuk  announces a writing competition among young researchers (under the age of 35) from the Black Sea littoral states and also all the other BSEC member-states. The competition is supported by the Black Sea Trust for Regional Cooperation – A Project of German Marshall Fund of the United States.

The Writing Competition 2011 appeals to stimulate regional cooperation in the research field and to promote collaboration among young researchers from the Black Sea region. The prize will be attributed to two researchers who jointly have produced the most innovative and sophisticated analysis of the common security concerns in the Black Sea region with inventive suggestions for resolutions of these issues. 

Prize:

Ø     The 2 authors of the best paper selected by the Board of Experts will be awarded a stipend that allows them to participate in a thematic event in the International Neighborhood Symposium on 28 June – 3 July 2011 in Turkey;

Ø     Three best papers selected by the Board of Experts will be published on the KSF website and widely disseminated via the KSF network, including partner-institutions in each of the Black Sea states and relevant international institutions.

Topic: Any topic addressing current issues of Black Sea Security that have a significant impact on the European and regional security. Papers covering any of the following are eligible:

1.    How the different versions of security – hard and soft (smart) – coexist or complement each other in the Black Sea region?

2.    Marginalization of the Black Sea region in the context of ongoing North African developments: would it be possible to keep the Black Sea security challenges on the radar screen?

3.    How could cooperation among individuals complement the ongoing state-led efforts to deal with the Black Sea region's security challenges?

4.    Innovative and efficient human security strategies in the wider Black Sea region.

5.    Violence and terrorism in the wider Black Sea Region: repercussions for regional and European security.

Eligibility: The competition is open to young researches (under age of 35) from the BSEC member-states (Albania, Azerbaijan, Armenia, Bulgaria, Georgia, Greece, Moldova, Russia, Serbia, Romania, Ukraine, Turkey). Submitted papers must be prepared together by two researchers from different countries and primarily focus on the Black Sea security issues and challenges and the ways of their resolution. They have to represent the most innovative analysis of common security concerns in the region.

Submission requirements:

Ø     Papers must be submitted by the deadline in Word format. A submission identification number will be assigned to you by the Competition Administrator. Include your names, affiliation, contact information and the title of your paper in the body of the e-mail. The names of the researchers should not otherwise appear in the paper text or footnotes of the paper.

Ø     Papers shall not exceed 6-8 typewritten pages in length (18000 symbols) double-spaced (Times New Roman or Arial typeface), including footnotes and appendices (both of which may be single-spaced). 12 point font size shall be used for text and appendices; 10 point or 12 point font size may be used for footnotes. Same-page footnotes are strongly preferred instead of endnotes. Proper citation forms must be used.

Ø     Papers should be prepared in pairs and submitted in English.

Ø     No more than one paper may be submitted by the same pair of researchers. 

Cover page information: Each submitted paper shall have a cover page which includes (i) the title of the paper; (ii) the names, affiliation, addresses, phone numbers, e-mail addresses and scanned copy of the IDs of the submitting researchers.  

Deadline for submission:  All papers submitted for the Competition must be received by the Foundation no later than 6:00 p.m. CET, 2 May 2011. They should be transmitted electronically, in MS Word, to Ms. Mariya Heletiy, Program Manager at the Open Ukraine Foundation, at: mh@openukraine.org or at ksf@openukraine.org

Selection of winners: Papers will be judged based on criteria including: originality, timeliness of topic, quality and creativity of analysis, knowledge of common security concerns in the wider Black Sea region. Winning papers will be selected by the Board of Experts, comprising of the 9 distinguished experts in the field of the Black Sea security. Competition winners will be notified before on May 31^st, 2011, and an announcement of the winners will be sent to all entrants shortly thereafter.

Inquiries: Any inquiries regarding the Competition should be directed to Ms. Mariya Heletiy, at +380 44 235 95 68 or mh@openukraine.org. For additional information visit: www.openukraine.org or http://ksf.openukraine.org.

Young Journalists Competition

CSR (Corporate Social Responsibility) Europe invites young journalists from around Europe interested in socio-economic and environmental issues to take up the challenge to cover Enterprise 2020 in an innovative and creative way. CSR offers participants the opportunity to connect with CSR Europe’s partners in a variety of countries across Europe. The competition is open to citizens of the 27 EU Member States and Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Macedonia, Montenegro, Norway, Serbia, Switzerland, Russia, Turkey and Ukraine. All submissions must be submitted to CSR Europe by e-mail between 28 October 2010 and 31 December 2010.

Participants will also get the chance to speak to member of consortia developing these new joint ventures on CSR issues including enabling technologies for environmental sustainability, demographic change in Europe, new business models against poverty, health literacy, financial capability for Europe’s youth and retirees, and many more.

Background

CSR Europe, the European business network for corporate social responsibility. Enterprise 2020 is the future vision for sustainable and responsible business in Europe. Today’s economic, societal and environmental challenges are driving a profound transformation of our world. Within the next decade, they will increasingly bring into question our current patterns of living, working, learning, communicating, consuming and sharing resources. What will the world look like in 2020? How will trends such as increasing globalisation, demographic change, natural resource scarcity, technology acceleration, global health challenges and social divisions shape business and society? How will they influence the capacity of enterprises to create value that contributes to economic, societal and environmental progress? The competition is organised in partnership with European Youth Press and supported by the Belgian EU Presidency.

Why Participate?

• The entries will be published on CSR Europe’s website.
• The 3 winners will be rewarded with prizes of technical equipment for journalists from sponsors.
• A selection of entries will be published in an online catalogue disseminated to all CSR Europe’s member companies and published on CSR Europe’s website and newsletter.

General Rules and Eligibility

• Participants must be aged between 16 -30 years.
• Topics of all entries must be clearly linked to corporate social responsibility and the issues addressed by the Enterprise 2020 initiative.
• Submissions must be submitted to CSR Europe by e-mail between 28 October 2010 and 31 December 2010.
• Entries must be written / presented in either an official language of one of the EU Member States, or Croatian, Norwegian, Russian, Turkish or Serbian.
• Entries must include an English synopsis of a maximum of 300 words for the international jury.
• Team entries will be accepted provided that all major contributors (e. g. researchers, journalists and editors) are listed and that the team does not exceed 3 people.
• Previously published entries are eligible.
• The winners will be chosen by a jury comprising representatives of CSR Europe, CSR Europe’s member companies and national partner organisations, media and the European Commission.
• CSR Europe reserves the right to use the winning articles for presentation and publicity purposes, and is allowed to reproduce them for the promotion of the competition and its results.
• Entries will not be returned to competition participants.

In addition, the following specifications must be followed: 

Written Articles

• Articles must be written in a journalistic style. Academic papers will not be accepted.
• Articles should not exceed 1500 words in length.

Radio

• Entries can include interviews, documentaries, panel discussions, reports or short stories – formats that are eligible for being aired in radio stations.
• Format of the radio entry: MP3 or Windows Media file.
• Entries must not exceed a maximum length of 5 minutes.

Video

• Entries can include interviews, documentaries, panel discussions, reports or short stories – formats that are eligible for being aired in radio stations.
• Format of the video entry: Windows Media or Flash video file.
• Entries must not exceed a maximum length of 5 minutes.

For more information on the Enterprise 2020 initiative, please visit the website http://www.csreurope.org/pages/en/youngjournalists.html

Global Youth Essay Contest 2010

Raise Your Voice, Share Your Ideas, and Get Involved in Democracy! Submit your essay on democracy, and win an opportunity to attend one of the largest global gatherings of democracy leaders!

The World Youth Movement for Democracy (www.wymdonline.org), a youth network of the World Movement for Democracy (www.wmd.org), is pleased to announce the launch of its Global Essay Contest. Fifteen semi-finalists (3 in each region: Asia, Central/Eastern Europe & Eurasia, Middle East & North Africa, Latin America & Caribbean, and Sub-Saharan Africa) will be announced on Human Rights Day, December 10, and will have their essays published on the WYMD Web site. Two global winners will be invited to participate in the upcoming Community of Democracies Ministerial Meeting in Vilnius, Lithuania, in July 2011. (www.community-democracies.org)

Questions

Democracy has been practiced in different ways and in different contexts. We believe there are core universal democratic values and aspirations that we all share, which transcend our differences, even though we live in different cultures, speak different languages, and eat different food. The purpose of this essay contest is to highlight personal engagement in democracy by promoting critical thinking about the role of young people in democracy and to connect youth with broader democracy movements. The questions posed below for this essay contest aim to challenge youth to write about their perspectives on democracy and their understanding of democracy activism, particularly their own.

Essays are required to address one or more of the following questions:

1. In what ways have young people contributed to democratic participation in your community? Highlighting some of the strategies and tools they have used, what difference have their efforts made?

2. New media and social networking are increasingly becoming popular tools for community organizing. In what ways have you and/or your organization been using new media for democracy promotion? How effective has it been and what challenges have you faced in using these tools?

3. What practices, do you think exemplify human rights activist protection or violation in your country that is not openly recognized? What do you think are the justifications for this and how can it be either replicated, in the case of a good example or stopped, in the case of a bad example?

4. What new factors can youth activists bring to longstanding human rights issues in your country? How have these issues been addressed in the past?

Submissions

Please submit your essay by World Youth Day for Democracy, 18 October 2010, via email attachment as a Word document. The format must have 1’’ margins, double spaced, Times New Roman font, and size 12 font. Please make sure to clearly designate, in the body of your email, your full name, age, gender, physical address, and phone number, to the relevant regional email address listed below. Do not enter your name or other details on your actual essay. Essays can be submitted in Arabic, English, French, Russian, or Spanish, and the essay must be no more than 2,000 words. Authors must be no younger than 18 and no older than 30 years old before October 18).

Timeline

* August 12, 2010 – Launch of the Essay Contest

* October 18, 2010 – Deadline for the essay submission

* December 10, 2010 – Announcement of 15 Semi-finalists

* January 2011 – Semi-finalist essays posted on WYMD Web site

* February 2011 – Announcement of 2 Global Winners

* July 2011 – Global winners attend Community of Democracy Ministerial Meeting

Review Process

The submitted essays will be reviewed by regional committees each of which will determine three regional semi-finalists. The semi-finalists will be announced on Human Rights Day (December 10). If needed the each of the regional committees will also translate 3 semi-finalist essays into English to post on the World Youth Movement for Democracy Website. Essays will be evaluated based on: Composition; Clarity; Creativity; and Practicality.

* Essays must be based on your own personal experiences and must be your own original work. Please do not use outside sources without citing properly.

Prizes

The Two Global winners will be announced and provided with a sponsorship to cover travel and othere expenses related to their participation in the Community of Democracies Ministerial Meeting in Vilnius, Lithuania, in July 2011. (www.community-democracies.org)

The 15 Semi-Finalists (3 from each region) will be announced and their essays will be posted on the World Youth Movement for Democracy Web site.

Contact Information:

Cecilia Andersen

Fax: +1.202.378.9889

Email: ceciliah@ned.org

Website: WYMD