She is public relations professional and career and life coach, author of LIFE STYLIST project. Holds MA in Sociology from Kyiv National Taras Shevchenko University, MA in Political Science from Central European University (Hungary) and Advanced Certificate in PR from Chartered Institute of Public Relations (CIPR, UK). She has extensive experience in public relations, worked for business, NGO sectors and diplomatic representations, including EU Delegation to Ukraine and British Embassy to Ukraine. As a certified life and career coach, she helps recent graduates and young professionals who are already part of the working world to identify the career they desire and deserve and to navigate the transition towards it.
Experts - Central Europe
Olga Maksymenko
Anton Marcinčin
Studied at the CERGE-EI Prague, completed his dissertation at the Tinbergen Institute in Amsterdam and CEP of the London School of Economics and Political Science, holds also PhD degree at the Charles University in Prague. The World Bank country economist for Slovakia and Slovenia, 1990-2001 editor of Economic Policy in Slovakia. He is also an editor of finances magazine – the Czech Journal of Economics and Finance. During his work at the Czech Academy of Science, MESA10, Centre for Economic Development and Slovak Foreign Policy Association, contributed to several books and published many articles on corporate governance, labour market and public finance. Lecturer at the Charles University in Prague, the Trnava University and at the Comenius University in Bratislava.
Grigorij Mesežnikov
President of the Institute for Public Affairs (IVO), Bratislava, 1997-1999 Program Director (Building of Democratic Institutions Program) of IVO. 1993-1997 Researcher of the Institute of Political Science, Slovak Academy of Science, Bratislava. 1983-1993 Assistant of Comenius University, Faculty of Art - Faculty of Education, Bratislava. Member of Alliance for Transparency and Fight against Corruption(Advisory Body of Transparency International Slovakia). Chairman of Council of the Central European Institute for Economic and Social Reforms - INEKO, Bratislava.
Jerzy Marek Nowakowski
Historian, publicist and politician. Untill February 2007 subeditor of Wprost weekly. Polish commentator in national as well as commercial Polish TV stations. Former Undersecretary of State in the Chancellery of the Prime Minister. Director of the East Center of Polish Open University and deputy of the board of foundation „ Aid for Poles in the East”. Author of many publications about Polish eastern politics.
Tamás Pál
Professor of Sociology, Director of the Institute of Sociology of Hungarian Academy of Sciences, Budapest. Former president of Hungarian Sociological Association, Vice-President of the National UNESCO Commission. Visiting professorships in US, Canadian, UK, German, Austrian, Russian, Ukrainian and other universities. Main interests: political sociology, science policy, sociology of intellectuals, comparative studies on East- and Central Europe.
Czesław Porębski
Philosopher and ethicist; professor at the Cracow University of Economics, Jagiellonian University, Tischner European University in Krakow and International Academy of Philosophy in Liechtenstein. He has spent some time at the Grand Valley State University and at the University of Vienna. He has lectured in Geneva, Freiburg, Tilburg, Vienna, Graz, Uppsala and Stockholm.
Lászlό Rajk
Architect and designer, a former Hungarian dissident. A Doctor of Liberal Arts from Budapest University of Technology and Economics, Faculty of Architecture. In 1998, he was one of the founders of the Network of Free Initiatives and the Liberal Party, the Alliance of Free Democrats. Between 1990–1996 he has a Member of the Committee on Foreign Affairs, Committee on Culture and Member of the Parliament. Since 1992 he has worked as a Professor of Film Architecture at the Hungarian Film Academy in Budapest. From 1995–98 he was an advisor to the Hungarian National UNESCO Committee (World Heritage). In 2003, he became Legal Cultural Advisor to the European Union. A winner of numerous awards, including the Imre Prize (for the design of the reburying of the Martyrs of 1956), and in 2005, Commander’s Cross of the Order of Merit and the Solidarity Award (Poland). Since 2014 giving lectures and master classes at the Center for Human Values at Princeton University, at the Library of Congress in Washington and the Film Factory Sarajevo University. Art director of “Son of Saul” which wonOscar andGrand Prix at Cannes Festival in 2015.
Urban Rusnak
Ambassador of Slovakia in Ukraine. Studied at the Moscow Institute of Oil and Gas and at the Institute of Social Sciences at Ankara University in Turkey. PhD in Public Administration and Political Sciences. 1992-1993 worked at the Federal Ministry of Foreign Affairs; 1994-1998 Deputy Head of Mission at the Embassy of the Slovak Republic in Turkey, Ankara. 1999-2000 Director of the Slovak Institute for International Studies in Bratislava. Former Executive Director of the International Visegrad Fund. Former director of Department of Analyses and Policy Planning in Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Slovak Republic.
František Ružička
Currently, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Slovak Republic to Poland. Graduated from the Moscow Institute for International Relations and Charles University in Prague. In 1993-1996 First Secretary in the Embassy of the Slovak Republic in Washington, USA. From 1996-1999 held posts in the Slovak Ministry of Foreign Affairs as Deputy Director in the Office of the State Secretary, Director of the Department of International Economic Cooperation, Deputy Director General, and Director of the First Territorial Department. In 1999-2003 Deputy Chief of Mission in the Embassy of the Slovak Republic in Prague. In 2003-2005 Director of Department for Internal Affairs and Institutions of the EU. From October 2004 to March 2005 Director General in charge of the European Affairs Section in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Andrea Schmidt
Graduate of Russian Philology and History at the University of Pécs (1993). 1991-1996 pursued Polish Philology Studies in the Eötvös Lóránd University, Budapest. In 1994 obtained MA in Central European Studies and Modern History at the Central European University in Budapest, in 1999 - MA in economics at the Budapest Business School, the College of Finance and Accountancy. Recently student of a doctoral School at the University of Pécs, Faculty of Arts and Political Sciences. 1994-1998 Assistant Lecturer at the University of Miskolc, Department of Modern History. 1999-2001 Program coordinator at the University of Pécs, Institute of European Studies. Since 2003 Lecturer at the University of Pécs, Faculty of Arts, Department of Political Studies. Author of many articles, participant of several joint scientific projects mainly in the field of financial factors of governance, the transitional period of the Central European countries – especially Hungary and Poland.
