Garčević Speaks During Sustainable Development Conference
Ambassador Vesko Garčević, Professor of the Practice of International Relations at the Frederick S. Pardee School of Global Studies at Boston University, participated in a conference titled “Exploring Private Sector Contributions to Sustainable Development Among EU and Aspiring EU Member Nations of South-Eastern Europe.” The conference was held in cooperation with the Kozmetsky Center for Excellence at St. Edward’s University, the Center for European Studies and Center for Russian, East European, and Eurasian Studies at the University of Texas, Austin with support of a grant by the United States Department of Education Title VI National Resource Program.
The conference brought together scholars, public and private sector representatives, state officials, diplomats and business professionals to discuss the need for a comprehensive understanding of sustainability. The discussion reinforced the thesis that sound cooperation/synergy between private and public sector is essential for the creation of prosperous societies and sustainable economic development.
Discussants highlighted the need for a comprehensive understanding of sustainability. As panelists discussed and Garčević ultimately recapped, sustainability is, in the minds of many, associated it with green economy, renewable energy, responsible management of natural resources and human/social capital. In a broader term, it is development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs. It is not imaginable without democracy, strong institutions and accountability of both public and private sector.
Garčević led the concluding session of the conference, which evaluate the overall discussion and outlined a way forward with specific policy proposals.
More information on the conference can be found here.
During his diplomatic career, Ambassador Vesko Garčević dealt with issues pertinent to European security and NATO for almost 14 years. In 2004, he was posted in Vienna to serve as Ambassador to Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe. He had been a Montenegro’s Ambassador to NATO from 2010 until 2014 and served as a Montenegro’s National Coordinator for NATO from 2015 until he joined the faculty at the Pardee School. Learn more about him here.