Ljupcho Petkovski, currently serving as the director of Innhub (Skopje) and a former director of Eurothink, is a distinguished figure in the sphere of policy research and non-governmental organization management in the SEE region. With formal education in political science and years of experience working in and leading think tanks, Petkovski has developed a keen expertise in confidence-building processes among diverse stakeholders. His tenure at Eurothink (2017-2020) exemplifies his commitment to fostering dialogue and understanding across different societal segments, aiming to bridge divides and strengthen communal bonds. Ljupcho's work, which spans academic and policy documentation with a focus on political ideologies, populism, authoritarianism, and nationalism, further underscores his deep understanding of the dynamics essential for confidence building within and across communities in the SEE region.
Experts
Ljupcho Petkovski
Andrea Petö
Professor at the Department of Gender Studies at Central European University in Budapest, Hungary, Doctor of Science of Hungarian Academy of Sciences. She has edited fifteen volumes in English, seven volumes in Hungarian and two in Russian. Her works have appeared in 15 different languages. She has also been a guest professor at the universities of Toronto, Buenos Aires, Novi Sad, Stockholm and Frankfurt. Her books include a.o.: Women in Hungarian Politics 1945-1951 (Columbia University Press/East European Monographs New York, 2003) and Geschlecht, Politik und Stalinismus in Ungarn. Eine Biographie von Júlia Rajk. Studien zur Geschichte Ungarns, Bd. 12. (Gabriele Schäfer Verlag, 2007). In 2005, she was awarded the Officer’s Cross Order of Merit of the Republic of Hungary by the President of the Hungarian Republic and the Bolyai Prize by the Hungarian Academy of Sciences in 2006. Presently, Prof. Petö is working on gendered memory of WWII and political extremism. Her recent book is co-edited with Ayse Gül Altinay: Gendered Wars, Gendered Memories. Feminist Conversations on War, Genocide and Political Violence,(Ashgate, 2016).
Grzegorz Piątek
Architecturalcriticand curator, graduated from the department of Architectureat Warsaw University of Technologyin 2006. From 2011 onwards he has workedwith the Foundation forArchitectureCenterin Warsaw.He is the curatorof exhibitions andart projectsrelated to architecture, inter alia Hotel Polonia;“TheAfterlifeof Buildings” award the Golden Lionfor the bestnationalexhibition on theXIBiennale, Venice (with Jarosław Trybuś, 2008); Open: Poland. Architectureand Identity, Royal Institute of BritishArchitects, London(as part of“Polska!Year”,with RobWilson,2009);Modernización/Modernització, Cuenca / Barcelona(with J.Trybuś, 2010); Mountainfor Warsaw,Bęc ZmianaFoundation, Warsaw (2009).Currently he leads -LeCorbusYear-artisticeducationprogrammeon the occasion ofthe 125thanniversary ofLeCorbusier.Mr. Piątek has authored numerousarticles and essayson the topics of architecture,design, and city. During the years 2005 through until 2011, he was a member of theeditorial boardof the monthly "Architektura-murator". He was awarded ‘’The annual Laureate of award the Ministerof Cultureand National Heritage andDiplomaof the Minister of Foreign Affairsfor the promotion ofPolishin the world’’, in 2009. Photo: Mikołaj Długosz
Łucja Piekarska-Duraj
Heritage trainer, social anthropologist and cultural project manager. As a researcher, affiliated at the Jagiellonian University, she is mainly interested in relations between social memory, heritage and identity. She publishes articles about: museums, tourism, public space and subcultures. Her current research project deals with europeanisation of heritage. She is appointed professor assistant at the UNESCO chair for the Holocaust research. As a museum trainer, she promotes interpretive and democratic museology, specializing in storytelling for museums and support of brand management. She has co-authored a manual for interpretive museology as well as a number of museum exhibitions and projects, including 'art of the allotment' (Cracow Ethnographic Museum), Wadowice of Karol Wojtyla Malopolska and Malopolska Virtual Museums. For a decade she was a member of Exhibition Dynamics, a museum support team established by Malopolska Cultural Institute.
Jan Piekło
Ambassador of Republic of Poland to Ukraine and former director of the Polish-Ukrainian Cooperation Foundation (PAUCI) which manages the trans-border projects with Ukraine, Moldova, Georgia and Armenia. Previously program director for ZNAK Foundation in Krakow and the editor of “Tygodnik Powszechny”. As a journalist, he covered the Romanian Revolution and war in the former Yugoslavia. Author of two documentary books on the Balkans and a novel Scent of the Angel which is based on his work experience in the Balkans and Eastern Europe. He has been working for the Polish and international media. As a conflict resolution journalism trainer and media consultant he co-operated with the Rutgers University of New Jersey, MU Columbia School of Journalism, Jagiellonian University of Krakow, IREX Pro Media, Groeningen University and other institutions. He was involved in journalism and civil society trainings in Bosnia, Slovakia, Ukraine, Romania and Poland. Since 2020, Chairman of the board of the Villa Decius Association.
Jan Piekło
Ambassador of Republic of Poland to Ukraine and former director of the Polish-Ukrainian Cooperation Foundation (PAUCI) which manages the trans-border projects with Ukraine, Moldova, Georgia and Armenia. Previously program director for ZNAK Foundation in Krakow and the editor of “Tygodnik Powszechny”. As a journalist, he covered the Romanian Revolution and war in the former Yugoslavia. Author of two documentary books on the Balkans and a novel Scent of the Angel which is based on his work experience in the Balkans and Eastern Europe. He has been working for the Polish and international media. As a conflict resolution journalism trainer and media consultant he co-operated with the Rutgers University of New Jersey, MU Columbia School of Journalism, Jagiellonian University of Krakow, IREX Pro Media, Groeningen University and other institutions. He was involved in journalism and civil society trainings in Bosnia, Slovakia, Ukraine, Romania and Poland.
Katarzyna Piotrowska
Katarzyna Piotrowska specializes in the protection and shaping of cultural landscapes, the protection of industrial heritage and the history of gardens. She has more than 20 years of experience in the protection and management of cultural heritage. She is a member of the International Council for the Protection of Monuments ICOMOS and the International Committee for the Protection of Industrial Heritage TICCIH. She has worked for many years with ICCROM, and advisory organization to the World Heritage Committee, participating in training and other work on the implementation of the Convention. She has participated in the work of national and international expert teams. She has a number of studies and publications in the filed of heritage conservation and management.
Krzysztof Pleśniarowicz
Professor of Philology and Management & Administration. Main interests: theory of literature, science of theatrical matters, cultural management. 1994-2000 Director of Cricoteka Centre for the Documentation of the Art of Tadeusz Kantor, Krakow. Visiting Professor at Cleveland State University (1992) and at the University of Rochester (2000). Author of numerous books, e.g. The Dead Memory Machine(1994). Tadeusz Kantor's Theatre of Death (2000).
Andrei Pleșu
Born in Bucharest, he studied Art History at the National University of Arts in Bucharest, where he taught from 1980 to 1982. Between 1991 and 1997 he was Professor of Philosophy of Religion at the Department of Philosophy, University of Bucharest. After the fall of the communist regime he was appointed Minister of Culture (1989-1991) and Minister of Foreign Affairs (1997-1999). He held several other important public positions, such as: Member of the National Council for the Study of the Securitate Archives, Presidential Adviser on International Affairs, or Director of the Institute of History of Religion of the Romanian Academy. In 1994 he founded the New Europe College - Institute for Advanced Study in Bucharest, and was its first Rector until 2014. He is currently the President of the New Europe Foundation. He founded the cultural magazine Dilema Veche and is very active in contributing to this and other journals. The topics of his books range from art history, philosophy, and history of religion to theology and ethics, and include: Minima moralia, On Angels: Exposition for a Post-Modern World, Parabolele lui Iisus. Adevărul ca poveste / Jesus’ Parables. Truth as Story.
Eszter Pócs
Born in Kecskemét; she has been working in the Kecskemét Animation Film Studio founded by her mother – an animated film Director – for ten years. She has always been interested in animated films and film making and claims that “animation is visual poetry, where creators can express their thoughts and feelings about the world in a free and individual way”. At present, she deals mainly with film making. She has taken part in the making of many foreign and domestic films but Hungarian Folk Tales is her favourite work. She is currently working on some further episodes of this series.
