Monday, April 25, 2016

The second national course of the Albanian School of Political Studies on the topic "Leadership and public engagement", was held on 22-24 April 2016 in Gjirokastra. Thanks to the best expertise as well as open discussions, participants of the program had the opportunity to deepen their knowledge and be trained on important aspects of their careers.

The first module of the course focused on "the process of consultation and lobbying", not only as a legal obligation for decision makers, but also as an important aspect of public involvement and avoiding conflicts with citizens. Mr. Alban Bala, PR expert and founder of the Institute for Public Relations, offered specific instructions regarding communication techniques and engagement of citizens in various political, business and social causes.

The second module was conducted as an open discussion with Mr. Ermal Hasimja, researcher and lecturer at the University of New York in Tirana, on the topic of "logical fallacies in political discourse". Through practical examples of Albanian and international politics,  Mr. Hasimja presented a critical approach to the classic model of political representation in modern democracies.

The third part of the course was designed as a comprehensive leadership exercise with the aim of developing new conceptual foundations on effective democratic leadership and change. Mrs. Eldisa Zhebo, director of the Institute for Change and Leadership, developed a series of modern theoretical techniques and practical exercises, in which participants worked to improve their leadership skills with the objective of strengthening the capacities of the individual and the team. The module methodology was created on the basis of the training session’s certification of the George Washington University in USA.
The course was an additional opportunity for the participants to visit the touristic town of Gjirokastra, part of the UNESCO world heritage list.