ABOUT THE FORUM
In search of lost universalism is a major civic Forum which starts from the presumption that there are many cultures – but one civilisation based on human rights, freedom, the rule of law and democracy. That civilisation needs to be constantly refreshed by conscious action and projects.
After the devastation caused by the Second World War, important new international organizations were founded, including the United Nations, the Council of Europe, the European Court of Human Rights, the World Council of Churches, the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund, etc. A universal perception of justice emerged, reflected in key international documents such as the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the European Social Charter, and the European Convention on Human Rights.
Citizens in Europe and around the world were empowered by this universal energy and the civic spirit became embodied in the 1955 Russell-Einstein Manifesto, which laid the foundation in 1957 for the Pugwash movement. The Pugwash Conference on Science and World Affairs is still active today as a forum for scientists working for peace. The Manifesto also led to the Non-Aligned Movement (1961) and to the formation in 1968 of the Club of Rome, also concerned with global problems. The same ethos underpins the Helsinki Final Act at the Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe (1975), the signing of the Maastricht Treaty (1992), and the establishment of the Council of Europe's Commissioner for Human Rights in 1999.
The same spirit is behind the civic Forum In search of lost universalism. Organised by the Council of Europe at the initiative of the founders of the Moscow School of Political Studies, Lena Nemirovskaya and Yury Senokossov, the Forum is supported by important European institutions and think tanks.
The Forum brings together leading cultural figures, experts, representatives of European think tanks, and international journalists to address key democratic challenges facing Europe today and suggest ways to promote solidarity among young people to combat the current crisis.
The Forum marks the beginning of a mission: to spread the ideals of civic society, the practice of discussing and teaching them, and to promote what Jean Monnet called “a civilized state of mind”.
The Forum is designed to rejuvenate the spirit of global civics and to support global civic education.
We invite you to be part of that project.
WHY SHOULD WE SPEAK ABOUT UNIVERSALISM
Foreword to Yury Senosokov’s book by Catherine Lalumière, Secretary General of the Council of Europe in 1989-1994
In 1989 Europe experienced a huge political shock with the fall of the Berlin Wall, an historic event which changed the the lives of Europeans and the face of the world.
It was then, with remarkable foresight, that Lena Nemirovskaya and her husband Yury Senokosov had the idea of setting up a School of Political Studies in Moscow which would later lead to the creation of some 20 similar schools in other countries
At the time I was Secretary General of the Council of Europe and I backed this initiative enthusiastically. The Berlin Wall had fallen because of the failure of the political systems of the Eastern Block, the failure of communism and dictatorship of the proletariat as well as the failure of authoritarian and totalitarian regimes. Pluralist democracy based on respect for human rights and freedoms had seemingly triumphed.
A majority of people in the Eastern Block and their new leaders were in favour of making this radical change. One of the first signs was Mikhail Gorbatchev’s visit to the Council of Europe and his concept of a common European home.
In the West, our leaders welcomed these revolutions and were even ready to take these newcomers in.
For my part, I spared no effort to make the Council of Europe pursue that course. Hence my enthusiastic support for the idea propounded by Lena Nemirovskaya who, to my great joy, had become a real friend
But obviously the question which came to mind was how to achieve this radical paradigm shift successfully?
To this day there are intellectuals and politicians who question whether such a profound change can be achieved in a population with such a long history of ideology and political systems so incompatible with these new values. These are questions which Yury Senokosov’s book sets out to answer so skilfully.
I, for my part, just want to underscore one point: the need for education to achieve a successful transition and consequently the great value of the Schools of Political Studies.
I don’t believe you are born a democrat or a humanist, but you can become one through education, training and thinking and that is why the Schools of Political Studies are so useful.
Ignorance is the greatest enemy of democratic and humanist values. Ignorance of history, geography, philosophy, theology, etc.
Left to one’s own devices human beings would no doubt become, in the words of the old adage, “a wolf to man”. Knowledge and thought are able to transform the “wolf” into a citizen who respects other people and human rights.
Some have argued and continue to argue that these values are not universal and that it is neither desirable nor possible to impose them on a population that has known nothing other than diametrically opposed values.
Initially, in spite of these concerns we had some undeniable successes in countries of Eastern Europe and the European family appeared to be united in the Council of Europe on a bedrock of shared universal values.
But today there are a growing number of dissenters in countries such as Hungary, Poland, Russia....... One of the arguments they use is that these values, contrary to what humanist democrats maintain, are neither universal nor consonant with the aspirations of their fellow citizens whom, they claim, remain wedded to more authoritarian political systems.
This question is at the heart Yury Senokosov’s book, and I have often asked myself the same thing only to reach the following conclusion: yes, it is both desirable and beneficial to preserve and even to promote diversity, for instance in areas such as the fine arts, folklore or other branches of culture for which diversity is a precious asset which it would be highly regrettable and often impossible to destroy.
But when it comes to fundamental philosophical or theological values which affect both humanity as a whole and all of us as individuals, diversity is no longer appropriate and we need to speak about universality.
As human beings we all have our dignity and whatever the forms political systems may take there is a hard core of basic values which must or which ought to be respected
That is why we speak about universality. Countries can choose different political systems. But while such differences are completely understandable and normal they must respect essential values.
Unfortunately in today’s world, including Europe, we are witnessing a resurgence of authoritarianism in too many countries. This risks turning into the totalitarianism which brought Europeans such terrible suffering in the XXth century. Racism, xenophobia and extreme nationalism are cropping up all over the place. We must make young people aware of the harm these concepts have wreaked throughout history.
There can be no doubting that the Schools of Political Studies, and of course the Moscow School which paved the way 30 years ago, still have a major role to play.
Catherine Lalumière
Secretary General of the Council of Europe in 1989-1994
Founder, Moscow School of Civic Education; Officer of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire; Officer of the French National Order of Merit; Officer of the Medal Bene Merito of the Republic of Poland; Chevalier of the Order of Merit of the Republic of France
Founder and Director of publishing programs, Moscow School of Civic Education. Worked for the Main Library of Social Sciences, Institute of Philosophy of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Questions of Philosophy magazine, published a series of books under the title From the history of Russian philosophical thought. Editor-in-chief to Obschaya Tetrad quarterly journal.
President of the Global Civics Academy, author of the book Global Civics. Responsibilities and Rights in an Interdependent World, Director of the European School of Politics in Istanbul.
Cultural commentator, Observer; Novelist; Journalist; TV-anchor; Tenured Professor and Member of the Academic Council at the Higher School of Economy in Moscow
Diplomatic Adviser, Office of the Federal President of Germany
Research Director, Center for International Climate Research (CICERO)
Director, Stockholm Institute of Transition Economics
Diplomat; Politician & Academic; Board Member, Human Rights House Foundation; Former Deputy Minister/State Secretary, Office of the Norwegian Foreign Minister and Office of the Prime Minister of Norway
Correspondent, El País
Investigative Journalist, Author, Co-founder and Editor of the Agentura.Ru web site; Author of books (with Andrey Soldatov) New patriot games. How secret services have been changing their skin, PSI Handbook of Global Security and Intelligence: National Approaches, The New Nobility: The Restoration of Russia's Security State and the Enduring Legacy of the KGB, The Red Web: The Struggle Between Russia's Digital Dictators and the New Online Revolutionaries
Writer; Editor; Contributor, Project Syndicate
Director, IDEAS Department of International Relations, London School of Economics; Author of books The Future of War: The Re-Enchantment of War in the Twenty-First Century, Humane Warfare, Twilight Of The West, and many others
International Consultant & Domestic Political Activist, Expert, OSCE/ODIHR
CEO, Berlinpolis Politik fur morgen
Head of Department of International Relations Europe and its Neighbours, Robert Bosch Stiftung
Lead editor, Echo of Petersburg
Columnist, Deutsche Welle
Memorial Culture Researcher
Columnist, Deutsche Welle
Journalist, Author, Producer, the film The Man Who Was Too Free (2016)
Journalist; Media critic; Researcher, University College London
Mathematician, Human Rights Activist; Founder, group Grazhdanskoe Sodeistvie
President, Foundation Valsaín, Commissioner for Human Rights of Council of Europe (1999 to 2006)
Director, French Institute of International Relations (IFRI)
Director of Political Planning, Council of Europe
Director, Levada-Center
Director and Founder, Institute on Migration Policy
Economist; Professor of Economics, Instituts d’Etudes Politiques (Sciences Po), Paris
Secretary - General of the European Association of Schools of Political Studies
Head of Department Europe/North America of the Konrad Adenauer Foundation
Economist, political writer, director at the Centre for Post-Industrial Studies, author of books The lost decade and many others
Secretary General, Council of Europe
Lecturer, Institute of International Relations and Political Science, Vilnius University
Policy Adviser, Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Estonia
Journalist, Editorial Director, Le Monde
Senior Associate and Chair, Russian Domestic Politics and Political Institutions Program, Carnegie Moscow Centre; Journalist; Author of books Unknown Chubais, Speechwriters and others
Chairman, Centre for Liberal Strategies, Sofia; Permanent fellow, IWM Institute of Human Sciences, Vienna, Author of books Democracy Disrupted: The Politics of Global Protest, In Mistrust We Trust: Can Democracy Survive When We Don’t Trust Our Leaders?, The Anti-American Century, and many others
Head of the EU/North America Department, Heinrich Böll Foundation in Berlin
Secretary General, Council of Europe (1989 to 1994); Member, European Parliament (1994–2004); President, Association of the Schools of Political Studies of the Council of Europe
Chairman, Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung
Founder and president, Belgrade Fund for Political Excellence
Senior Policy Fellow, European Council on Foreign Relations
Contributing Editor, The Financial Times
Independent analyst, Associate Fellow with IFRI, Non-Resident Fellow with the Lowy Institute
Department for European Security Policy, Ministry for Foreign Affairs
Editor-in-Chief, Russia in Global Affairs; Chairman of the Presidium of the Council on Foreign and Defence Policy; Research Director, Valdai International Discussion Club
Director, German-Russian Exchange
Political Advisor to Chancellor Helmut Kohl (1987 - 1998), Author of books In Search of Germany, German Questions – European Answers, and others
President, European Humanities University
Senior Fellow, Kennan Institute; Editor-in-Chief, Kennan Focus Ukraine ; Editor-in-Chief, Ideology and Politics Journal; Editor-in-Chief , Koine
Human Rights Activist, Political Scientist, Commissioner for Human Rights at the Council of Europe (2012–2018); President, Association of the Schools of Political Studies of the Council of Europe
Editorial Board Member and Columnist, The Guardian
Head of the East Office of Finnish Industries; Ambassador of Finland to Russia (2000–2004)
Life Member, Institute of International and European Affairs; former SMOM (Sovereign Military Order of Malta) Ambassador and UN Representative (ret.)
Head, Energy Programme, Norwegian Institute of International Affairs (NUPI); Research Professor, University of Nordland
Director general, Center of Ethno-Political and Regional Research
Chairperson, Centre for Anti-Corruption Research and Initiative Transparency International, the Russian chapter of Transparency International; Director, Transparency International
Long time editor and correspondent at The Financial Times, Mercator Senior Fellow, Europe Programme, Chatham House
Political Analyst; Director, Centre for Political and Geographical Studies; Co-author of books Russia in 2020: Scenarios for the Future, Between Dictatorship and Democracy: Russian Post-Communist Political Reform, The State of Russia: What Comes Next?
Member of German Bundestag; Chairman of the Committee on Foreign Affairs (2005 to 2013)
Author, Vatican Analyst
Historian, writer, author of the book Between two worlds
President, European Parliament (2007– 2009), Chairman, Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung
Research Professor, Norwegian Institute of International Affairs
Political Analyst Scientist; Academic Secretary, Member of the Editorial Committee, The New Model of Economic Growth Group; Columnist at Vedomisti daily business newspaper, Novaya Gazeta, RBC, Suddeutsche Zeitung and The Financial Times
Associate Professor, Stockholm School of Economics
Executive Vice President, Development and Business Administration; Faculty Member, the Stockholm School of Economics in Riga
Economist, Politician, Academic, Former Minister of Finance and Deputy Prime Minister of the Republic of Poland
Politician; Historian
Head of the Educational Programs of the International Society Memorial
Historian, author, professor of Russian History at the Ecole des Hautes Etudes en Sciences Sociales
Chairman of the Pskov regional branch, Member of the Federal Political Committee of the Political Party Yabloko; Deputy, Pskov Regional Assembly; Human Rights Activist
Regional editor, Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP)
MP; Emeritus Professor of Political Economy at the University of Warwick; Author of the Biography of John Maynard Keynes; Member of the British Academy
Programme Director, Centre for Liberal Strategies, Sofia
Leading research fellow, Institute of Sociology, Russian Academy of Sciences
Chairman, Swedish Institute for Foreign Policy; Member, Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences; Executive director, Nobel Foundation (1992 to 2011)
Investigative Journalist; Russian Secret Service Expert; Co-Founder and Editor of the Agentura.Ru web site; Author of books (with Irina Borogan) New patriot games. How secret services have been changing their skin, PSI Handbook of Global Security and Intelligence: National Approaches, The New Nobility: The Restoration of Russia's Security State and the Enduring Legacy of the KGB, The Red Web: The Struggle Between Russia's Digital Dictators and the New Online Revolutionaries
Minister for Foreign Affairs
Director, Civic School of Political Studies, Tessaloniki
Associate Professor, Section of European Integration, Institute of international relations, University of Warsaw
Editor–in–Chief, Wonderzine
Editor in chief, Internationale Politik
Author and Chief Editor, The Russia File, Kennan Institute; Columnist, The New York Times
Deputy director, Levada Center (Moscow)
Advisor on International Relations, Advocacy and Media, Prague Civil Society Centre
Ambassador of Germany to the Russian Federation
Deputy Secretary-General and Head, the European and International Cooperation Department of the Konrad Adenauer Foundation
Editor, Neprikosnovennyi Zapas: Debates on Politics and Culture magazine
Program Director, Head of the International Politics Master’s Program, The Moscow School of Social and Economic Studies
Executive Director, Memorial human rights and humanitarian society