WEASA 2022 concluded successfully at Natolin

The Warsaw Euro-Atlantic Summer Academy (WEASA) concluded its 9-day programme of events at Natolin on Monday, 18 July 2022.

Nearly 40 participants from the Eastern Partnership and Western Balkan regions of the EU's neighbourhood took part in an intense series of discussions and workshops during this period. The programme examined information war and unfolding geopolitical realities in 2022. Further, participants learnt about open-source intelligence gathering, debated the role of NATO in the fight against disinformation, and discussed the strengthening of democratic values and continued European integration in their respective countries.

WEASA opened on 10 July with a high-level keynote speech by Mr Linas LINKEVIČIUS, former Minister of Foreign Affairs of Lithuania. Over the following days, workshop trainers from distinguished institutions such as Bellingcat, the Atlantic Council’s Digital Forensic Research Lab, Cardiff University, Internews and the EU Institute for Security Studies, came to Natolin to share their expertise with the WEASA participants.

The programme concluded with the issuing of diplomas to participants, during which the new graduates of WEASA shared reflections and ideas for future WEASA editions and alumni activities. The closing of the programme included a keynote address delivered by Roman WASHCHUK, Ukraine’s Business Ombudsman and former Ambassador of Canada to Ukraine from 2014 to 2019. 

WEASA is an annual summer school for mid-career professionals from the Eastern Partnership, the Western Balkans, and Poland. Each year, a wide range of policy analysts, experts, advisers, civil servants, NGO professionals, and journalists, take part in the academy. WEASA is co-organized by the College of Europe in Natolin, the German Marshall Fund of the United States, and the Polish-American Freedom Foundation.

The 2022 WEASA was the 10th edition of the summer school. To mark the occasion, a group of 20 WEASA alumni from previous editions were invited to the College of Europe in Natolin to network and establish work plans for the WEASA alumni of the coming years.