Seminar “Dialogue on the Social Contract and the Renewal of Ukraine” took place in Berlin

As part of the development of international cooperation and the establishment of horizontal connections between leadership communities from different countries, Aspen Institute Kyiv held a series of events in Berlin on June 9-10, 2023 comprising of the following:

• A seminar
• A panel discussion with German politicians
• A meeting of leaders from Ukraine and Germany

For participation in these events, the Institute engaged those alumni who were forced to leave the country due to full-scale invasion or are abroad for work reasons. Additionally, representatives from Aspen Institute Germany and the German leadership community were involved. 

The first of the events, which Ukrainian participants joined, was the seminar “Dialogue on the Social Contract and the Renewal of Ukraine.” The relevance of this topic sparked lively discussions and the consideration of acute issues from various perspectives.

Primarily, participants focused on the future of the social contract — what it should be like, which factors will influence its change, and what society needs to pay attention to today. Moreover, some participants shared their experiences and observations of temporary residence abroad, which could become a source of ideas for Ukraine’s renewal in the future. 

Sergii Rogol, co-owner of the group of companies “ESTET,” and Andriy Kulakov, Program Coordinator of Aspen Institute Kyiv Community, moderated the event. Alina Shklyaruk, Seminar Program Director at Aspen Institute Kyiv, organized the seminar.

Ukrainian Ambassador to Germany Oleksii Makeiev (Responsible Leadership — 20), the Aspen Institute Germany, and Aspen Institute Kyiv Supervisory Board member Andrey Stavnitser (Responsible Leadership — 12) supported the series of events.

We sincerely thank the seminar participants for the exchange of thoughts and ideas. As one of the participants noted: “Aspen is a place where differences in opinions and practices lead not to competition, but to mutual enrichment.”

The “Social Contract for Ukraine” project is implemented with the support of NED (National Endowment for Democracy).