Regional Network of Centers for Advanced Studies

31/08/2026

Are young people in the Western Balkans stuck in a perpetual EU "waiting room"?

Writing for Radio Sarajevo, Sead Turčalo (Fakultet političkih nauka Univerziteta u Sarajevu ) breaks down key findings from deliberative workshops conducted across six regional capitals by the Regional Network of Centers for Advanced Studies in Southeast Europe (RECAS).

He points out that young people in the region experience integration as a state of prolonged limbo:

"The Western Balkans occupies a position of 'belonging without membership'—geographically and culturally in Europe, but politically outside decision-making spaces. For post-Dayton youth, integration has become a permanent waiting room where technocratic phrases rationalize uncertainty. Their skepticism is not an anti-European turn, but a demand for Europe to act European."

This research forms part of the RECAS regional project "Youth Agency and New Political Imaginaries in the Western Balkans".

🔗 Read the full analysis on Radiosarajevo.ba: https://radiosarajevo.ba/metromahala/ja-mislim/generacija-u-evropskoj-cekaonici-sead-turcalo/650582

🤝 Supported by: Open Society Foundations Western Balkans, ERSTE Foundation, and the Rockefeller Brothers Fund & Pocantico Center.

Rasprave o mladima i evropskim integracijama u Bosni i Hercegovini i regiji najčešće se kreću oko dvije suprotstavljene teze. Jedna je da su mladi prirodni saveznici evropskih integracija, te da će smjenom generacija dovršiti i dočekati kra...

28/08/2026

What do young people across the Western Balkans really think about the future of EU integration?

Speaking to tacno.net , Sead Turčalo (Fakultet političkih nauka Univerziteta u Sarajevu) presented key findings from the deliberative workshops conducted across the region by the Regional Network of Centers for Advanced Studies in Southeast Europe (RECAS).

He highlighted that youth increasingly distinguish Europe as a set of values from the EU as a political actor:

"Youth across the region view the EU pragmatically rather than idealistically—as a necessary space for education, mobility, and economic standards, but without a strong sense of emotional or political belonging. Integration has become a prolonged 'waiting room', shifting mobility from a tool of knowledge exchange into an infrastructure for permanent departure."

The regional report was produced within the RECAS project "Youth Agency and New Political Imaginaries in the Western Balkans".

🔗 Read the full piece on Tačno.net: https://tacno.net/evropa-kao-izlaz-a-ne-zajednicki-projekt/

Supported by: Open Society Foundations Western Balkans , ERSTE Foundation, and the Rockefeller Brothers Fund & Pocantico Center.

Priča o mladima u Bosni i Hercegovini i regiji i perspektivama EU integracija se često svede na jednu od dvije već potrošene priče. Prva priča obično govori o mladima Zapadnog Balkana kao prirodno proevropski orijentiranim, koji če dovršiti posao koji političari u posljednjih tri decenije ...

26/08/2026

A year of RECAS, from research to open knowledge.

Over the past year, Youth Agency and New Political Imaginaries in the Western Balkans brought together researchers, young people, mentors, institutions and policy actors from across the region.

The program supported 15 fellows, selected from 93 applicants, whose work resulted in 15 policy essays; engaged 92 young people in six Western Balkan capitals through deliberative workshops on Europe, democracy and participation; and created spaces for regional exchange through guest seminars and Surgery Week.

The Western Balkans Policy Hackathon: Youth and Eco-Digital Futures then brought research and youth perspectives into dialogue with policy, exploring social, ecological and technological futures for the region.

Our new RECAS 2025–2026 Summary Booklet looks back at this year of research, exchange and collaboration.

We are grateful to Open Society Foundations Western Balkans, ERSTE Foundation and the Rockefeller Brothers Fund & Pocantico Center for supporting this work, and to everyone across the RECAS network who made it possible.

📖 Read the booklet: https://recas.info/looking-back-at-recas-2025-2026-from-research-to-open-knowledge/

24/08/2026

What do young people in the Western Balkans hear when they hear “Europe”: a promise, a procedure, a delay, a possibility, or something more uncertain?

In a new episode of Zvuk Misli, Filip Balunović speaks with Nemanja Anđelković and Andrej Ševo , researchers at the Institute for Philosophy and Social Theory (Institut za filozofiju i društvenu teoriju) , about the findings of youth deliberative workshops organized in Podgorica, Belgrade, Skopje, Tirana, Pristina, and Sarajevo.

The workshops were part of the current RECAS project cycle Youth Agency and New Political Imaginaries in the Western Balkans, and explored how young people understand Europe, democracy, participation, EU integration, mobility, trust in institutions, and their own role in shaping future political communities.

The conversation reflects on the research process, its key findings, and what young people’s perspectives reveal about political futures in the Western Balkans.

Listen to the episode here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uJeDGEjItmw

Supported by: Open Society Foundations Western Balkans, ERSTE Foundation and Rockefeller Brothers Fund & Pocantico Center.

13/08/2026

How can a river become a site of political belonging and collective action?

The RECAS Academic Policy Lab Research Repository includes recordings from the Seminars with Guests series, making important regional research and policy debates openly accessible.

In this seminar, Azra Hromadžić examines protests against a planned dam on the Una River in Bihać and explores how local memories, emotional attachment and place-based identity developed into political mobilisation.

Explore the seminar in the RECAS Academic Policy Lab Research Repository: https://recas.info/books/cas-see-seminars-with-guests-azra-hromadzic/

Supported by: Open Society Foundations Western Balkans, ERSTE Foundation and Rockefeller Brothers Fund & Pocantico Center.

11/08/2026

The RECAS Academic Policy Lab Research Repository brings together research, policy insights, seminar recordings and other programme outputs in one openly accessible regional knowledge space.

In one of the available Seminars with Guests, Lura Pollozhani presents Democracy Pulse, a regional study based on surveys with more than 6,000 young people and 19 focus group discussions across the Western Balkans.

The research examines how Generation Z understands democracy, political participation and trust in institutions, revealing strong democratic aspirations alongside scepticism towards formal politics.

Explore the seminar in the RECAS Academic Policy Lab Research Repository: https://recas.info/books/cas-see-seminars-with-guests-lura-pollozhani/

Supported by: Open Society Foundations Western Balkans, ERSTE Foundation and Rockefeller Brothers Fund & Pocantico Center.

06/08/2026

The RECAS Academic Policy Lab Research Repository brings together policy essays and other outputs produced through the RECAS Fellowship in one openly accessible regional knowledge space.

In Variation in Democratic Belief Systems Across the Western Balkans, 2026 RECAS Fellow Nemanja Batrićević examines how citizens across the region understand democracy and how democratic beliefs differ between countries and generations.

The essay shows that support for democratic values does not necessarily form a coherent belief system, and that young people are not consistently more democratically oriented than older generations. It highlights the need for stronger civic education and new forms of participation adapted to different national contexts.

Explore the publication in the RECAS Academic Policy Lab Research Repository: https://recas.info/books/variation-in-democratic-belief-system-dbs-across-western-balkans-youth-agency-and-the-future-of-democratic-resistance/

Supported by: Open Society Foundations Western Balkans, ERSTE Foundation and Rockefeller Brothers Fund & Pocantico Center.

04/08/2026

The RECAS Academic Policy Lab Research Repository brings together policy essays and other outputs produced through the RECAS Fellowship in one openly accessible regional knowledge space.

In A Decade of YOU(th): Youth and the Responsibilization of Democratic Renewal in the Western Balkans, 2026 RECAS Fellow Ajda Hedžet examines how young people are positioned as agents of democratic reform, reconciliation and European integration.

Focusing on Bosnia and Herzegovina and Serbia, the essay asks what happens when youth are expected to address structural political problems without the institutional power needed to change them.

Explore the publication in the RECAS Academic Policy Lab Research Repository: https://recas.info/books/a-decade-of-youth-youth-and-the-responsibilization-of-democratic-renewal-in-the-western-balkans/

Supported by: Open Society Foundations Western Balkans, ERSTE Foundation and Rockefeller Brothers Fund & Pocantico Center.

31/07/2026

The RECAS Policy Hackathon brought together fellows, alumni and participants from deliberative workshops across the Western Balkans to explore inclusive and sustainable eco-digital futures for the region.

Working across social, ecological and technological dimensions, participants identified shared priorities around democratic governance, meaningful participation, responsible innovation, education, inclusion and regional cooperation.

The resulting Policy Hackathon Summary is now available in the RECAS Academic Policy Lab Research Repository, alongside other research and policy outputs produced through the programme.

By making these materials openly accessible, the Repository supports further academic research, teaching, policy development and civil society engagement across the region.

Explore the Policy Hackathon Summary in the RECAS Academic Policy Lab Research Repository: https://recas.info/books/western-balkans-policy-hackathon-youth-and-eco-digital-futures/

Supported by Open Society Foundations Western Balkans, ERSTE Foundation, Rockefeller Brothers Fund & Pocantico Center.

24/06/2026

How can structured research and youth engagement drive democratic renewal? Watch the full discussion online.

The final event recording for "Youth Agency and New Political Imaginaries in the Western Balkans" is now live on YouTube.

Click the video link below to see our young researchers, fellows, and mentors present the results of our 1-year fellowship program, the policy proposals from our Hackathon, and the findings from our deliberative workshops with young people across the Western Balkans.

📺 Watch the full video recording here: https://youtu.be/Y1pyQSrXTY0?si=fIZ_m-IlmBdnjMLo

🔗 Full project details: https://recas.info/project-results-showcase-event-recording/

Supported by Open Society Foundations Western Balkans, ERSTE Foundation, Rockefeller Brothers Fund & Pocantico Center.

The Institute for Philosophy and Social Theory (IFDT) and the Regio...