Political Scientists from Five Continents Gather at the HSE to Discuss Workings of Public Policy
On May 28-29, 2014, an international academic conference ‘Analytical Communities in Policy Advisory Systems at the Global and Local Level: Comparative Analysis of Policy Impact’ took place at the HSE.
The conference was organized jointly by the HSE Public Policy Department and research committees of the International Political Science Association. Leading researchers and heads of analytical centres from Russia, the CIS, U.S., Canada, Singapore, Turkey, Australia, Germany, Cameroon, the Netherlands, Mexico, and other countries participated in the event. Presenters included specialists from the HSE and other Russian universities, including Lomonosov Moscow State University, Russian State University for the Humanities, Russian Presidential Academy of National Economy and Public Administration, and Peoples' Friendship University of Russia.
Nina Belyaeva, Head of the HSE Public Policy Department, commented on the conference and said that this was the first event on this topic to be held in the CIS. ‘Public policy is a relatively new area of research in the world. This is an integrated area of studies that is of interest for decision-making management and coordination of various development trajectories, which are understood differently by various social actors...The task of public policy is to find joint solutions in every specific area, which would (ideally) serve to benefit society’.
At the conference we tried to find out how analytical communities are structured in Russia, who comprises them, how they collect information and make it comprehensible for decision makers, what political risks exist and how various social groups would react to certain decisions
‘I would especially like to mention that along with international analysts whose h-indexes are beyond all possible limits, such as Jack Goldstone (George Mason University, USA), Michael Howlett (National University of Singapore), and Robert Hoppe (University of Twente, the Netherlands), HSE Master’s and postgraduate students also presented their research and received academic feedback from internationally renowned experts’, Belyaeva added.
The list of topics discussed at the conference included virtually all areas of research that somehow affect society: from migration and educational policy to transport infrastructure and the internet as a political factor. ‘At the conference we tried to find out how analytical communities are structured in Russia, who comprises them, how they collect information and make it comprehensible for decision makers, what political risks exist and how various social groups would react to certain decisions’, Belyaeva said.
In particular, the last session discussed one of the main tasks that analysts face in public policy – telling the truth to authorities. The problem, however, is that there is no one universal truth and no single correct solution. A report by Anna Potsar (HSE) and Vyacheslav Danilov (MSU) was dedicated to the problem of whether intellectual communities should have their own media. The ‘Open Opinion’ project – an experimental initiative to carry out a full-scale sociological study in the ‘collaborative open research’ format, which is new for Russian sociology – was shown as a positive example of independent media.
Iliya Kiriya (HSE) spoke about how contemporary official media work and how they are rigidly integrated with the authorities and dependent on them. Roman Evstifeev (Vladimir branch of the Russian Presidential Academy of National Economy and Public Service) studied how an analytical community in a small provincial town during a change in city government managed to develop an urban development strategy that included areas ranging from culture to transport infrastructure.
According to Belyaeva, the key event of the conference was a special session with participation by editors-in-chief from four international peer-reviewed journals that are indexed in Web of Science and Scopus: Iris Geva-May (Journal of Comparative Policy Analysis), Michael Howlett (Policy and Society), Frank Fischer (Critical Policy Studies), and Kenneth Couch (The Journal of Policy Analysis and Management). ‘This session attracted researchers from virtually all HSE faculties’, Belyaeva said, ‘and, most importantly, we invited representatives both from HSE journals, such as Foresight, and other Russian journals that publish articles on public policy’.
Papers and more information from the event can be found on the conference website.
Anastasia Chumak, HSE News Service
Photos by Nikita Benzoruk
See also:
Political Analysis and Public Policy Programme Leads to Exciting International Career
After graduating two years ago from HSE’s Master’s programme in Political Analysis and Public Policy, Svetlana Kosmakova took a job with the International Committee of the Red Cross as a Migration Program Officer. She recently spoke with Sanjay Rajhans of the HSE News Service about her studies at HSE, the trajectory of her career, and what advice she would offer prospective students in Political Analysis and Public Policy.
Educational Experience in Russia
Matthew Boadi-Ampong from Ghana is a first-year student of Master’s programme in Political Analysis and Public Policy. He has shared his impressions of studying at HSE and living in Russia.
HSE Graduate Applies Lessons to Work in Indonesian Coordinating Ministry for Human Development and Cultural Affairs
Since 2008, Indra Prasetya has been working as Chief of Protocol at the Indonesian Coordinating Ministry for Human Development and Cultural Affairs. A graduate of Gadjah Mada University with a degree in Social and Political Science, the 33-year old native of Kebumen, Indonesia went on to spend two years in the HSE Public Policy Department studying Political Analysis and Public Policy.
Student from Morocco: from Winter School to HSE Master's Program
Hamid Ait-El-Kaid is a second-year student from Morocco of the Master's programme in Political Analysis and Public Policy. His first exposure to HSE took place during a Winter School for prospective students in February 2014. After learning about the Public Policy programme, he decided to apply to HSE.
Migration Expert Stresses Importance of Diversity Ahead of Panel on European Refugee Crisis
On October 22, the HSE Public Policy Department and the Course on Comparative Migration Policy will hold a panel discussion on the European refugee crisis. Dr. Mahama Tawat, Assistant Professor in the Faculty of Social Sciences and a specialist in comparative migration policy, will serve as one of the panel members. Dr. Tawat recently spoke with the HSE news service about his research interests, what attracted him to HSE and his views on tolerance and diversity.
Policymakers Are Like Modern Sisyphuses
On April 13-17, the HSE Public Policy Department will host aseries of lectures by Professor Philippe Zittoun, an internationally recognized expert in policymaking and policy research. He is currently Research Professor in Political Science, University of Lyon (LET-ENTPE); Research Fellow at PACTE, Science Po Grenoble; and Vice-Chair of the Research Committee "Public Policy and Administration" of IPSA. He was a Visiting Professor at Yale University in 2010.
Is Increased Democratization Domestically Linked to Improved Government Performance in Eastern Europe after the Cold War?
Thomas J. Volgy, Professor at the School of Government and Public Policy, University of Arizona USA and Executive Director of the International Studies Association is a political scientist specialising in international politics, democratic processes and domestic public policy. At the XV International April Conference this year Professor Volgy will be delivering two papers, one on his own and one with two fellow academics. We asked him to tell the English News service more about them and about his work with HSE.
Winter Lessons at HSE
On 31st January to 2nd February 2015 HSE held its annual International Winter School. The Department of Public Policy and Master Programme in Political Analysis and Public Policy headed by professor Nina Belyaeva took part in the event. The Winter School welcomed participants from Germany, France, China, Japan and other countries.
HSE Winter School: The Whole World in Miniature
From January 24 to February 4, HSE's Faculty of World Economy and International Affairs hosted an international winter school. Sixty students from across the globe (Korea, Japan, China, Germany, Italy, Poland, Egypt, Morocco, to name but a few) came together for 12 days and were plunged into the hustle and bustle of daily life in Russia.
HSE and University of Bologna sign new agreement on dual-degree programme
Students in HSE’s Political Analysis and Public Policy master’s programme who have studied for at least a semester at the University of Bologna and successfully defended their thesis will be able to receive degrees from both universities. Similarly, Italian students who study for a semester or a year at the HSE will have the same opportunity.
Nina Belyaeva
Head of the HSE Public Policy Department