Sabato 28 aprile presso il Centro Veritas il Club Alpbach Senza Confini tiene la conferenza “Borders of Europe: Between geography and culture”. La lingua sarà l’inglese
The event will focus on the notion of borders from a historical, scientific and cultural perspective and will discuss to what extent borders in Europe have been both the sources of conflicts and their solutions. The conference will also be the occasion to present current and future initiatives of our association, which for 15 years has reunited young people from Austria, Slovenia and Northern Italy.
Agenda
17:30 Looking at the past and thinking of the future: Club Alpach Trentino & Club Alpach Senza Confini present their stories and future initiatives
Vesna Kuralt, President, Club Alpbach Senza Confini
Giulia Giuliani, Secretary, President, Club Alpbach Trento
17:50 Key note speech by Francesco Russo, former Senator of the Italian Republic
18.15 Panel discussion: borders of Europe or Europe without borders?
Chiara Sighele, Project director, Osservatorio Balcani e Caucaso – Transeuropa
Štefan Čok, Researcher, Slori-Slovene Research Institute in Trieste
Elisabeth Oberzaucher, Biologist and Evolutionary Psychologist
19.15 Debate & concluding remarks
Moderator: Federica Pesce, Alumna, Club Alpbach Senza Confini
19.45 Networking cocktail
About the topic: Borders of Europe between geography and culture
“Senza Confini” means without borders. Yet, borders in Europe have been for years both the sources of conflicts and their solutions. Geographic borders such as rivers basins and mountains peaks are immediately visible, as anyone who has crossed the Rhine or the Alps has experienced. Cultural borders, however, aren’t always as striking. Both culture and geography remain controversial concepts in the human efforts to imagine and understand a world increasingly defined by flows and barriers. And Europe is no different. While trying to abolishing its internal frontiers, Europe is becoming a fortress to the outside world. Historic transitions, cultural differences, identity formations and relations to our environment all shape our individual and common understanding of borders.
Therefore, as young Europeans, we need to ask ourselves the questions: what is the impact of geography and culture on our perception of borders? How do geographic and cultural identities shape individuals’ minds and actions? Are multi-cultural and cross-borders initiatives a thing of the past or of the future?
About the speakers
Francesco Russo is a History Professor at the University of Udine. He has been Senator of the Italian Republic from 2013 to 2018.
Dr. Elisabeth Oberzaucher is an Austrian biologist and evolutionary psychologist. Her research focuses on human behavior and cognition.
Chiara Sighele is the Project director of OBC Transeuropa, a think tank focusing on South-East Europe, Turkey and the Caucasus.
Dr. Štefan Čok is a part of the Slovene Research Institute in Trieste. His research focuses on the recent history of the Northern Adriatic region and on Italian-Slovenian relations in Trieste.
Federica Pesce is an Alumna of the Club Alpbach Senza Confini. She works on European external relations at the European Commission.
About the European Forum Alpbach
The European Forum is an interdisciplinary platform for science, politics, culture and economics. Each year since 1945, international high-profile decision-makers and experts from all sectors of society gather in the village of Alpbach to contribute to a highly intensive programme of seminars, open debates and lectures. Forum’s goal is to address the relevant socio-political questions of our time and formulate interdisciplinary solutions. The open character of the event promotes dialogue across the generational, national, ideological and other lines that divide us. In 2017, the Forum’s excellent reputation attracted more than 5.700 participants from 100 different countries, of which 720 were young scholarship holders.
About the Club Alpbach Senza Confini
For 15 years, Club Alpbach Senza-Confini has been the official provider of scholarships for the European Forum Alpbach for Carinthia, Slovenia and Northern Italy. We are a non-profit organisation of full-time students and young professionals who believe in the idea of the European Forum Alpbach and we promote it. Our aim is to raise awareness for political and societal issues in the European context and to support the unification of Europe within the Alpe Adria Region.