Link: Luigi Einaudi Foundation

Liberal Dialogues is a transnational educational and civic initiative, conceived within the South East Observatory (SEE) and launched by the Luigi Einaudi Foundation in partnership with the MIB School of Management of Trieste and Open Society Foundations – Western Balkans. It brings together young leaders, students and early-career professionals from Italy and Southeast Europe for a series of expert lectures about liberal thought, practical workshops and a culminating annual forum in Trieste with representatives of European institutions, ministers and experts. The program fosters critical debate, regional cooperation and capacity building at a time marked by the resurgence of nationalism and democratic stress.

The initiative includes an intensive, multilateral and cross-border academic programme: launched in Trieste (10th of March 2026), the path continues with teaching modules in Ljubljana (31th of March), Belgrade (14th of April), Podgorica (5th of May) and Tirana (19th of May), culminating in the Annual Forum in Trieste (15th of September).

All lectures are live-streamed so that participants across the network can follow the full curriculum. At the end of the programme, participants submit a written reflection to be evaluated by a scientific committee; the winner from each capital will be invited to Trieste to present their work publicly. Travel and participation expenses for selected winners will be covered by the Foundation. Registration is possible on the South East Europe Observatory platform.

The objectives of the project are: to create a sustained space for dialogue across Italy and Southeast Europe; to amplify youth voices on Europe, cooperation and democratic resilience; to build a network that continues to exchange ideas and resources via the South East Europe Observatory platform.

The South East Observatory (SEE) is a permanent regional Observatory launched to monitor and support democratic resilience across Southeast Europe. Its mission is to analyze political, social and economic trends and to promote cross‐border cooperation to address rising nationalism and democratic stress. The Observatory produces evidence‐based policy briefs, convenes expert roundtables and public seminars about liberal thought and offers capacity‐building programs for young leaders, civil society actors and public officials. It serves as an institutional incubator for regional initiatives, providing organizational support, thematic framing and a platform connecting local projects with European institutions and high‐level stakeholders.

The Luigi Einaudi Foundation is a think tank dedicated to the promotion of liberal ideas and political thought, founded in 1962 by Giovanni Malagodi to preserve and advance the legacy of Luigi Einaudi. The Foundation’s core activities include the School of Liberalism, where leading Italian university professors and liberal intellectuals deliver lectures aimed at providing a predominantly young audience with the cultural and philosophical foundations of liberal thought and the civic virtues of the rule of law, an open society, and a united Europe.

The initiative is promoted with the support of the Italian Ministries of Foreign Affairs and of Enterprises and Made in Italy, as well as the European Commission’s Directorate-General for Enterprise and Industry (DG ENER).

For more details and to register, see the South East Europe Observatory website.