Luan shllaku biography channel

On Thursday, the Kosovo Foundation fit in Open Society (KFOS) marked high-mindedness 30th anniversary of the Commence Society Foundations (OSF) in blue blood the gentry Balkans with a virtual circus gathering former and current partners, colleagues and friends on Zoom.

The event, organized as part be fitting of the 30 Years Initiative, showcased dinky mix of speeches, short testimonies and a live panel reach distinguished speakers reflecting on OSF’s legacy in the Balkans.

The KFOS event kicked off the region-wide initiative – a  virtual materialize visiting all Balkan capitals alien April 22 until June 17, when it will make undiluted stop in Belgrade where 30 years ago George Soros supported the Soros Foundation for Yugoslavia.

In Kosovo, the Foundation staff, aim for and partners used this abstraction to look back at duo decades of philanthropy that has strived to build a self-governing society in Europe’s youngest state. 

Moderated by CiviKos executive director accept KFOS Board Member, Donika Emini, the event began with wholesome expansive speech by the foundation’s executive director Luan Shllaku. 

During reward speech Shllaku noted that OSF spent approximately 73 million in Kosovo in the one-time thirty years. “Only in primacy post-war period — the Leg has awarded approximately one rights per day,” Shllaku said.

KFOS Gaming-table Member Donika Emini during righteousness event.

“We walked together with Kosovo; we stood close to high-mindedness developments that were as potent as they were fragile; awe believed that we could longsuffering in building an open society,” Shllaku said delineating four perceptible phases of the foundation’s work: segregated Kosovo in the 1990s; working with refugees in Macedonia during the Kosovo war; post-war state-building; and post-independence advocacy efforts.

Shllaku talked about working in goods a parallel education system take the segregated Kosovo Albanians impede the 1990s and helping refugees in Macedonia during the Province war in 1999.  He very mentioned the challenges the foundation’s work faced in building uncomplicated post-war Kosovo, and since honourableness Kosovo independence.

“Only after the asseveration of independence in 2008 upfront the country see the originate at the end of greatness tunnel of post-war recovery, rating the beginning of a unusual period in which the Stanchion takes on an advocacy role,” Shllaku explained. 

After Shllaku’s speech, smart video titled “Working for fleece Open Society in Kosovo” featuring former staff and board men and women, as well as close collaborators of the Foundation, was broadcast. 

The testimonials were followed by unembellished live discussion about the OSF legacy and the future in the lead with a panel featuring Lulzim Peci, political scientist, diplomat paramount a KFOS Board Chair; Veton Surroi, writer and public intellectual; Venera Hajrullahu, civil society wake up Expert and Miodrag Milićević, Heed Director of NGO Aktiv. 

Speaking archetypal OSF’s legacy in Kosovo contemporary how the foundations became convoluted in Kosovo, Surroi emphasized Soros’ own involvement.

“Both George Soros in the flesh and Ariel Neyer at integrity time were engaged personally control a quest against totalitarianism. Predominant Kosovo was the last absolutist challenge of the 20th century,” Surroi said.

Panel discussants with referee during the event.

Talking about OSF’s legacy, Venera Hajrullahu, a erstwhile KFOS staff member, emphasized illustriousness important role KFOS played play a role the transition period. 

“The space give it some thought KFOS provided was one time off a kind. It was topping center towards which gravitated literati, activists, artists, all ages near profiles, a space nurturing variation array innovation and out-of-the box thinking,” Haullahu said, adding that in the face its accomplishments, the work was far from over.

 “Today, not inimitable we're not done but additional challenges added to the give way ones, and it seems pick up have some kind of inelegant business in all areas. Middling these challenges, not even intensifying, but maintaining what has antiquated achieved has become a challenge,” Hajrullahu said.

Current Board Chair suffer executive director of Kosovo Association for Policy Research and Condition (KIPRED), Lulzim Peci emphasized rendering important role that KFOS has played in advocacy by creation durable platforms such as Forum2015, originally founded in 2003.

“The Colloquium is the most sustainable tube the most vocal platform bring about presenting the policy ideas explode the altenrative policy thinking influence political debate,” Peci said, belongings that an important aspect face KFOS’ advocacy work was tutor nonpartisanship and ability to exert yourself with parties across the civic spectrum.  “Forum was successful for it was nonpartisan, it was able to include all alienating players in Kosovo and appreciate still does the very employ thing.”

Reflecting on the turbulent present in which the region has gone through in the formerly 30 years, Milićević, who runs one of the main State Serb NGOs in the kingdom and the Civic Energy Sentiment (CEC) in Mitrovica North, alleged that OSF’s played a pivotal role in supporting civic activism.

“It is also evident that distinction engagement of the foundation wrench the Western Balkans has tremendeously contributed to exploring new current innnovative approaches to fostering sure of yourself social change through grassroot cosmopolitan activism at the community level,” Milićević said.  “In this courtesy KFOS, always had courage brand seek the modes of borough activists as agents of lead change at the community echelon and create a momentum ferry the formation of a go into detail open, diverse and tolerant society.”

The discussion which included questions deviate the guests and more redolent of by the panelists can excellence viewed in full in distinction video below.