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International Scientific Conference “The Three Seas Initiative: One Concept, Different Approaches?”

07 03 2024

 International Scientific Conference
“The Three Seas Initiative: One Concept, Different Approaches?”
organized in the framework of the Three Seas Initiative Summit in Vilnius 
10 April 2024

The Three Seas Initiative (3SI) is a multidimensional regional cooperation platform with shared goals to accelerate the 3SI participating states’ development and coherence with the EU. Seeking innovation and a scientifically driven approach, we invite researchers to engage in a scientific debate to stimulate the development of a future-oriented platform for cooperation between scientific communities and practitioners. This synergy between scientific knowledge and its practical application plays a key role in policy-making, stimulating entrepreneurship and sustainable economic growth in the region, and will positively contribute to strengthening cohesion and enriching bonds between the societies of the 3SI countries.

Programme poster

Context
The Three Seas Initiative (3SI) is an original cooperation format among thirteen EU member states. The initiative focuses on improving connectivity between the North and South of the eastern part of the EU, mainly through the development of transport, energy and digital infrastructure. The Three Seas Initiative brings together thirteen EU member states between the Baltic, Black and Adriatic Seas: Austria, Bulgaria, Croatia, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, and Greece. The United States, Germany and the European Commission are its strategic partners. Lithuania is holding the 3SI Presidency and will organize the 3SI Summit and the Business Forum in Vilnius – more at https://3Seas.eu

Issue
The conference aims to present the research results of a team of scholars and experts from the Three Seas Initiative (3SI) states. We strongly support the idea of developing the scientific aspect of the Three Seas Initiative and the need to conduct research on the Initiative itself, particularly in the fields of political science, economy, history, and sociology.

Proposal
The conference aims to present the research findings of the team of experts from the Three Seas Initiative (3SI) countries. The conference sets out to add to our knowledge of regional cooperation and discuss the current state of research in this area from various academic disciplines and national perspectives. Scholars and experts from all the 3SI states will be invited to the conference. The main research questions the contributors seek to answer revolve around the current state of knowledge on the Three Seas Initiative (3SI) and the reasons for the widely differing levels of interest in this form of regional cooperation. What are the main sources of knowledge about the 3SI, what is the state of the knowledge on the 3SI, and what are the methods of acquiring knowledge about the 3SI in their countries?

The authors examine the state of knowledge about the 3SI and explore the literature on the 3SI in their states. They help explain the reasons for the varied levels of interest in researching this form of regional cooperation. Another major research question concerns the narrative of the 3SI and its perception in individual states. Significant differences exist in the approach to the 3SI between and even within the 3SI states, which the authors explain.

Presently, a new format could be introduced: a scientific conference gathering scholars and academics from the Three Seas Initiative states and beyond. It could bring significant contributions to the development of regional cooperation as an incentive to create a new scientific facet of the 3SI, which is strongly needed in Central and Eastern Europe to enhance mutual understanding and improve communication. Additionally, it is essential to highlight the role of science diplomacy as a component in strategic communication between the states in times of war and peace.

Organizers: Lithuanian Academy of Sciences; The Three Seas Initiative Research Center, Institute of Political Studies, Polish Academy of Sciences; University of Lodz

Contact: Dr Andrius Bernotas, Lithuanian Academy of Science, phone +370 601 117 42, email mos@lma.lt; Dr Barbara Jundo-Kaliszewska, University of Lodz, Faculty of International and Political Studies, email barbara.kaliszewska@wsmip.uni.lodz.pl