ISN Junior Associates, a group of ambitious, Swiss-based young professionals and advanced degree students will get together today to listen to a series of talks at the inaugural Junior Associates event, and to brainstorm on new avenues of thought and debate under this year’s thematic umbrella. The idea is to engage fresh young minds in an issue that is hugely consequential already and is only likely to become more so in the future; a key fault line in world politics: the relationship between European countries and the wider Islamic world.
In addition to examining more traditional foreign policy-related topics, such as Swiss and European foreign policy in the Middle East, our distinguished speakers will examine issues as varied as Indonesian bilateral relations with Switzerland, economic prospects between Switzerland and the Middle East, cultural and religious coexistence between Muslims and Europeans, as well as the importance of education and the challenge of integration for European Muslims.
From a wide variety of perspectives, and with a little enthusiasm and fresh thoughts thrown in for good measure, we hope to come to new and interesting conclusions about how this vital relationship can be maintained and steered toward a more constructive course.
The program will continue after the event with collaborative work, undertaken by the Junior Associates on an online platform, with the aim of producing new, innovative research on a wide variety of topics related to this theme. What would you, dear reader, like to see covered? What do you see as the most interesting aspects of the relationship between Europe and the Islamic world?
For a participant list and further information on the program, please go to the ISN Junior Associates page.
We will post pictures and impressions of the event in the coming weeks on the ISN blog. Stay tuned for more.