The sixth edition of the Bucharest Forum takes place between 4-6 October 2017, at critical times for the region and Europe. The current international context is in flux, as on both shores of the Atlantic national politics is driven by new agendas and discourses, imprinting consequent dynamics to international relations, and affecting economic trends at national, regional and international levels.
Jointly organized by the Aspen Institute Romania and the Romanian Office of the German Marshall Fund of United States, Bucharest Forum enjoys the key support of the Romanian Government, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Romania and the Ministry of National Defence of Romania.
Among participants government representatives, political figures, experts, media and think tank representatives, as well as business leaders.
Bucharest Forum 2017 offers a platform for the various actors to meet and discuss their interests, approaches and goals, analyse potential and existing clashes, their implications and results, and look for ways to maximize the potential benefits of diverging views and mitigate the consequent negative impact.
The agenda of the Forum is structured around an overarching theme, Center and Periphery – Bridging the Divide, and the discussion is focused on its economic, financial and societal implications. The themes brought forward by this year’s Bucharest Forum are:
- Investment climate in Central and Eastern Europe
- Energy Union – a Fractured Market and an Elusive Goal
- The Future of Energy, the Energy of the Future
- A Transatlantic Defense Industry?
- CEE – Losing Its Sense of Direction or Being Pushed off the Cliff?
- Populism Trumping Democracy
- Building New Economies in Old Countries
- Financial Markets – New and Old
- Free Trade in the Age of The Deal
- New Generation of Investments
- Competing for Talent and Skills in the Workforce
- Offshore/onshore Security at the Black Sea
- Digitropolis
- Air and Space Industry
- Smart Cities and a Connected World
- Creating a Culture of Entrepreneurship