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This book addresses important and under-researched issues such as,
the role of young people in democratization processes, the role of
new democracies in sharing their transition experience, and the
effectiveness of aid. A major theme of the book is democracy
assistance efforts by the NGOs from Central and Eastern Europe to
support young people in Eastern Europe, the Western Balkans, and
Central Asia. It examines this theme in a comparative perspective
and with a deeper analysis of reasons and ways to support young
people, the need to support them and the effectiveness of these
efforts. Bringing together a wide range of material on democracy
assistance of Central and Eastern European countries that includes
surveying the providers and beneficiaries of aid and looking for
better methods of impact evaluation, the book advances a framework
for assessing democracy assistance efforts. It concludes with
implications of the impact of democracy assistance on young people
and democracy diffusion from Central and Eastern European
democracies to other countries. This text will be of key interest
to scholars and students of democracy, democratization, Central and
Eastern Europe, Post-Soviet studies, and European and Comparative
Politics, as well as for practitioners (donors, NGOs) who want to
know what works best, and why and when in aid provision.
This book addresses important and under-researched issues such as,
the role of young people in democratization processes, the role of
new democracies in sharing their transition experience, and the
effectiveness of aid. A major theme of the book is democracy
assistance efforts by the NGOs from Central and Eastern Europe to
support young people in Eastern Europe, the Western Balkans, and
Central Asia. It examines this theme in a comparative perspective
and with a deeper analysis of reasons and ways to support young
people, the need to support them and the effectiveness of these
efforts. Bringing together a wide range of material on democracy
assistance of Central and Eastern European countries that includes
surveying the providers and beneficiaries of aid and looking for
better methods of impact evaluation, the book advances a framework
for assessing democracy assistance efforts. It concludes with
implications of the impact of democracy assistance on young people
and democracy diffusion from Central and Eastern European
democracies to other countries. This text will be of key interest
to scholars and students of democracy, democratization, Central and
Eastern Europe, Post-Soviet studies, and European and Comparative
Politics, as well as for practitioners (donors, NGOs) who want to
know what works best, and why and when in aid provision.
The role of Western NGOs in the transition of postcommunist nations
to democracy has been well documented. In this study, Paulina
Pospieszna follows a different trajectory, examining the role of a
former aid recipient (Poland), newly democratic itself, and its
efforts to aid democratic transitions in the neighboring states of
Belarus and Ukraine.
Belarus is widely regarded as the most authoritarian state in the
region, while Ukraine is witnessing a slow, if often troubled,
democratic consolidation. Each state presents a different set of
challenges to outside agencies. As Pospieszna shows, Poland is
uniquely positioned to offer effective counsel on the transition to
democracy. With similarities of language and culture, and a shared
history, combined with strong civic activism and success within the
European Union, Poland's regional policies have successfully
combined its need for security and a motivation to spread democracy
as primary concerns. Pospieszna details the founding, internal
workings, goals, and methods of Poland's aid programs. She then
compares the relative degrees of success of each in Belarus and
Ukraine and documents the work yet to be done.
As her theoretical basis, Pospieszna analyzes current thinking on
the methods and effectiveness of NGOs in transitions to democracy,
particularly U.S.- and European-led aid efforts. She then views the
applicability of these methods to the case of Poland and its aid
recipients. Overwhelmingly, Pospieszna finds the greatest success
in developmental programs targeting civil society--workers,
intellectuals, teachers, students, and other NGO actors.
Through extensive interviews with government administrators and NGO
workers in Poland and the United States, coupled with archival
research, Pospieszna assembles an original perspective on the
mitigation of the 'postcommunist divide'. Her work will serve as a
model for students and scholars of states in transition, and it
provides an overview of both successful and unsuccessful strategies
employed by NGOs in democracy assistance.
All papers of this edition give an opportunity for reflection on
the chances, challenges and difficulties associated with the
long-term transformation of higher education and scientific
activities. Therefore, the concept of "scientific excellence" has
been perceived as a guiding idea in the academics' efforts. On the
other hand, it seems to be an ideal that can never be achieved but
towards which one ought to strive persistently. Furthermore, the
pursuit of excellence is accompanied by contradictions which have
been pointed out many times in the history of academia in Poland.
This publishing series embodies the belief in the existence of the
so-called invisible college, i.e., the research community,
exemplified by young scientists starting their academic path
inspired by recognized professors.
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