Guest speech: Ambassador of Argentina, H.E. Eugenio Maria Curia

As the second in-house lecture for this semester, on the 22nd March 2012, the IMC Export had the honor to welcome H.E. Prof. Curia, Ambassador of Argentina to Austria and the Vienna-based IOs, for a guest speech.

After a warm welcome, Ambassador opened his absorbing speech in the historic Baroque hall, by briefly elaborating on the Argentine’s history, then on the economic, political, educational and cultural currents of this Latin American country. The eloquent and outspoken guest speaker, he himself a former university professor then continued with the Argentine’s role and positions in the main global and regional organizations, referring also to the polar issues and the territorial dispute with Britain over the Malvinas/Falklands archipelago.

The official part of this event was closed with a very lively Q&A session, family photo and the little cocktail – an opportunity for students to address further questions to H.E. Ambassador Curia in equally informative but rather informal setting.

The guest lecture of H.E. Prof. Dr. Curia was the 96th event, and the 6th in the so-called Latina American series, organized under the auspices of the Chairman Prof. Dr. Anis Bajrektarevic. The next in-house event will take place on the 10th of April, when Prof. Bajrektarevic is hosting H.E. Dr. Sandeep Chawla, Deputy Executive Director of the UN Vienna.

Text: Denise S. (A.B. – rev)
Photo: H. Maglock, Lisa P. Gawdy C.

Guest speech: Ambassador of Russia, H.E. Dr. Anwar Azimov

As the opening in-house lecture for this semester, on the 24th of February 2012, the IMC Export had the honor to welcome H.E. Dr. Anwar Azimov, Ambassador at Large of the Russian Federation, former Head of the Russian Mission to the OSCE Vienna, and the current chief Russian negotiator with the EU, for a guest speech.

After a warm welcome, H.E. Ambassador Azimov opened his absorbing speech in the historic Baroque hall, by briefly elaborating on the Russian economic (including energy), political, educational and cultural currents and the forthcoming Presidential elections in Russia. The eloquent and outspoken guest speaker, Dr. Azimov then continued with the Russia’s role and positions in the main global and regional organizations, referring also to the situation in the Middle East and the ongoing talks on visa-free regimes with the EU.

The official part of this event was closed with a very lively Q&A session, and the little cocktail – an opportunity for students to address further questions to H.E. Azimov in equally informative but more informal setting.

The guest lecture of H.E. Dr. Azimov was the 95th event, and the 5th in the so-called Eastern European series, organized under the auspices of the Chairman Prof. Dr. Anis Bajrektarevic. The next in-house event will take place on the 15th March 2012, when Prof. Bajrektarevic is hosting Ambassador of Switzerland to Austria.

Text: Mr. Bajrektarevic
Photo: H. Maglock

Guest speech: Ambassador of the State of Israel, H.E. Mr. Aviv Shir-On

As a continuation of the Middle-East guest lectures series, the Export Study program’s Chair for International Law and Global Political Studies, Prof. Anis Bajrektarevic invited H.E. Mr. Aviv Shir-On, Ambassador of the State of Israel in Vienna, to give a public lecture to IMC Export students.

After a warm welcome and short introduction by Prof. Bajrektarevic, H.E. Mr. Aviv Shir-On opened his lecture by giving an historical overview on the creation of the State of Israel, putting an emphasis on the still ongoing Arab-Israeli conflict and the current threats of Iran. Furthermore, H.E. Mr. Aviv Shir-On talked about the State of Israel today, highlighting their rapidly-developing high-tech and service sector. The lecture was concluded with a short movie and additionally the students of the IMC had the unique opportunity to address further questions to the Ambassador.

H.E. Mr. Aviv Shir-On was born in 1952 in Israel. He served as a soldier in the Yom Kippur War and studied afterwards International Politics at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. He worked as a diplomat in Washington D.C. and Germany and as an ambassador in Switzerland. Before becoming ambassador in Vienna, he was Deputy Director General of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Jerusalem and in charge for media and public relations.

The guest lecture of H.E. Ambassador Aviv Shir-On was the 94th event, and the 4th in the so-called Middle East Series, organized under the auspices of the Chairman Prof. Dr. Anis Bajrektarevic.

Text provided by: Arianisa M. (EXP 2009)
Photo: Max H. (EXP 2009)

Guest speech: Ambassador of Norway, H.E. Mr. Jan Peterson

As the opening in-house lecture for this semester, on the 2nd of November 2011 the IMC Export Department had the honor to welcome the 4th Guest from the far North, H.E. Mr. Jan Peterson, current Ambassador of Norway to Austria and the Vienna-based IOs, former Minister of Foreign Affairs and former National Chairman of the Conservative Party, for a guest speech under the auspices of the Chair for International, Legal and Global Political Studies by Chairman Prof. Dr. Anis Bajrektarevic.

After a warm welcome and brief introduction given by the Chairman Bajrektarevic, H.E. Ambassador Peterson opened his absorbing speech in the historic Baroque hall, by briefly introducing Norway in general, its similarities/differences with Austria, Norway’s relationship to the EU and its role in the North Atlantic Alliance (NATO).

Most of the time, however, was spent on the Nordic/Baltic cooperation, where H.E. Peterson gave us a very informative and comprehensive overview of the current Nordic and North Pole issues (including the Barents Sea).

Moreover, H.E. Ambassador Peterson touched the topic of Norway being a peace broker, talking about the Israeli/Palestinian peace-talks and the relative success of the Oslo accord in 1993, but also about the failure in peace negotiations during the Sri Lanka peace building mission.

The official part of this extraordinary event was closed with a very lively Q&A session and a family photo. Afterwards the students had the unique opportunity to address further questions to H.E. Ambassador Peterson and enjoy the very friendly, relaxed and familiar atmosphere.

The guest lecture of H.E. Ambassador Jan Peterson was the 91st event, and the 4th in the so-called Nordic Series, organized under the auspices of the Chairman Prof. Dr. Anis Bajrektarevic. The next in-house event will take place on the 15th November 2011, when Prof. Bajrektarevic is hosting H.E. Avis Shir-On, the Israeli Ambassador to Austria.

Text: Katharina K. (EXP 2009)
Photo: Max H. (EXP 2009)

Guest speech of H.E. Dr. Wilfried Luetkenhorst

UNIDO Managing Director on global mega-trends affecting industrial development

As a follow-up to previous study visits to the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) at the Vienna International Centre, Dr. Wilfried Luetkenhorst, Head of the Strategic Research, Quality Assurance and Advocacy Division of the Organization, visited the IMC on 15 April 2001 to deliver a speech on global trends that impact industrial development and power shifts around the globe.

Director Luetkenhorst opened his speech by pointing to the economic power shift the world is experiencing starting from an historic perspective. As much as the 19th century was dominated by England and the 20th century by the USA, the 21st century will see the rise of China. In other words, he stated that as much as the 19th century was European and the 20th century was American, the decades to come will be Asian. The centre of gravity is seen as shifting from the Atlantic to the Pacific, from the West to the East. Mr. Luetkenhorst continued by pointing on the rise of the so-called emerging economies (BRIC countries, South Africa, Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia, and Mexico) as major global players, both economically and politically. Statistics on production, export, energy consumption or even foreign currency reserves reveal clearly that the fastest growth is taking place outside the OECD. However, he reminded the students of the dark side of the success story of these countries: more than 70% of the poor live in middle-income countries.

Another mega trend affecting industrial development mentioned in the speech refers to population growth, which is primarily taking place in developing countries. With rising populations, those countries experience heavy migration to urban areas and rising pressure on natural resources, which cause military and civil conflicts. Finally, Mr. Luetkenhorst referred to climate change and organized crime as other key factors which heavily impact economic growth and industrial development globally. Concluding his speech, Mr. Luetkenhorst provided a short overview of the UN system and UNIDO’s core functions and mandate.

Professor Anis Bajrektarevic, chair and host of this event, used this opportunity to inform the students about internship possibilities at UNIDO. Dr. Luetkenhorst explained that the internship programme has a duration of minimum three and maximum six months and is, at this moment, still unpaid. In order to be eligible for the programme, students need to be at an advanced state of their studies and formally apply online at www.unido.org/index.php?id=o82311.

The final part of the session was reserved for questions by the audience. Amongst others, students were interested to learn more about the importance of factoring in inflation into a country’s GDP growth calculations, industrial development and innovation in African countries, and UNIDO’s involvement in WTO negotiations. With a view to giving the audience an idea of how the presented trends and subjects translate into on-the-ground technical assistance, Ms. Boesenhofer (IMC graduate, currently consultant for UNIDO’s Clusters and Business Linkages Unit) presented one project experience targeting the automotive component supply chain in South Africa and current initiatives in the field of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR).

Subsequent to the formal speech and the exchange session, students embraced the opportunity to informally ask specific questions about UNIDO’s work and explore options to write diploma theses on subjects that are of interest to the Organization. Dr. Luetkenhorst expressed his appreciation for the opportunity to interact with IMC students and lecturers in a stimulating atmosphere, and for the keen interest of the university in international development issues. To learn more about the UNIDO’s functions and thematic priorities, please visit the following website: www.unido.org

This was the 88th event organized by the Chair for International law & Global Political Studies (and 27th OUN- related). The next in-house event will take place on 12th of May, when professor Bajrektarevic is hosting H.E. Cardinal Prof. Dr. Christoph Schönborn, President of the Austrian Bishop's Conference in highly topical discussion on “Morality, Spirituality – the human dimension of sustainability”.

Text: M.B. (rev. A.B.)
Photos: Katrin F.