Between 2 and 6 September 2013, the Diplomatic Academy of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Czech Republic already held the 12^th ‘Summer School of European Studies,’ which, unlike the previous years, took place in the South Bohemian town of Telč. In the previous years, the seat of the Summer School was in Horažďovice. The Summer School continues the tradition of seminars about European issues that were organised by Professor Ferdinand Kinský from 1994 onwards in his home town of Horažďovice in West Bohemia. Since 2000, the Diplomatic Academy MFA CZ has built upon this initiative by organising the Summer School of European Studies, in which around forty foreign diplomats and Czech junior civil servants take part every year. Foreign diplomats come especially from those countries with which the MFA’s Diplomatic Academy has signed a Memorandum of  Understanding.

The topic of this year’s Summer School was “Europe and the future of global order”. A number of prominent personalities both from the Czech Republic and from abroad participated in the lectures and round-table discussions. As every year, professor Jacques Rupnik from Fondation Nationale des Sciences Politiques in Paris, professor Michal Mejstřík – Chairman of the International Chamber of Commerce in the Czech Republic, professor Christopher Coker from the London School of Economics or former diplomat Karel Kovanda accepted our invitation to attend.

The summer school was also visited by Jiří Schneider, First Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs who participated in a round-table discussion “The Future of Global Economic Government”. Deputy Minister Schneider is a frequent visitor of this important activity organised by the Diplomatic Academy.

Lectures and discussions were divided into three blocks:

1.      Europe and the Global Order: History, Values and the Future

2.      European and U.S. Economic Recoveries as the Backbone for Future Multilateral-Liberal Global Order

3.      New Rising Powers: Partners, Challengers or Rivals?

The day-long expert programme was always concluded by seminars where participants held group discussions on the day’s topics without lecturers’ attendance. The work in seminars was directed towards the final presentation where each group presented their view of Europe’s future, which concluded the Summer School.

The Summer School’s success was also aided by social activities, such as a visit to chateau Telč, attendance at a presentation of St. Maurus Reliquary – the copy of which was on display in the National Heritage Institute – or last but not least the friendly football match between the Summer School participants and local football club F.C. Telč.