Institute for Regional and International Studies

Program areas

Completed projects

Civic Policies and Democratic Political Process

Youth Tourist Exchange. Business Initiatives for Community Development in South Eeastern Bulgaria

In December 2004 IRIS Civil Society Development: Reaserch and Training Program started the implementation of the nine-month project entitled Youth Tourist Exchange. Business Initiatives for Community Development in South Eastern Bulgaria (towns Loznitza, Zavet and Isperih). The project included a number of activities: regular internet communication, working meetings, consultations. This set of activities was aimed at facilitating the process of developing a model of working tourist exchange in the region of Ludogorie.

Three training modules and one seminar were conducted in Razgrad with the major focus on 1) Basic advocacy tools for local community mobilisation (stakeholder analyses, power mapping, strategy planning, media campaign, coalition building, negotiation and persuasion; monitoring, evaluation and continuation of advocacy process); 2) E-business procedures, regulations, practices and trends; 3) Cultural tourism, fund-raising mechanisms and PR strategies; 4) Networking and coalition building

The project was implemented in closed cooperation with representatives of the Center for Ethno-Cultural Studies, Razgrad, Municipality of Razgrad, journalists from the local media and National Park “Sborianovo”.

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The Institute for Regional and International Studies (IRIS) is an independent, non-government think tank. IRIS was established on June 11, 1997 by leading Bulgarian public and political figures, NGO leaders and prominent Bulgarian scholars in international relations, Balkan studies, history, social and political science, anthropology and economics.

The Institute for Regional and International Studies initiates, develops and implements civic strategies for democratic politics on national, regional and international level. The Institute promotes the values of democracy, civil society, freedom and respect of law, assists the process of Bulgarian integration in NATO and the EU and provides public policy analyses on current domestic and international issues. IRIS represents a strategic combination of advocacy-oriented and education-oriented think tank.