The record-breaking Economic Forum has finished!

The jubilee 30th edition of the Economic Forum took place at the beginning of September in the Gołębiewski Hotel in Karpacz. During the three-day conference, representatives of politics, business and science met. Among the most important guests were the Prime Ministers of Poland, Slovenia and Ukraine.

4350

guests from the world of politics, business and science

47

this is how many countries the participants came from

500

journalists

400

panel discussions and plenary sessions.

We have managed to create this unique institution together – an institution whose greatest value is that we just talk to each other. We have no other plans, we do not want to involve our guests in any other way. We just want them to talk to each other – said Zygmunt Berdychowski, the Chairman of the Economic Forum Programme Council and the originator of the conference.

For thirty years the Forum has been a meeting platform for leading representatives of business, science and politics from the countries of Central and Eastern Europe. This year’s jubilee edition was record-breaking in many respects. The conference was attended by 4350 guests from the world of politics, business, science from dozens of countries and nearly 450 journalists. They had the opportunity to take part in over 400 events – discussion panels, talks and plenary sessions. There were also several hundred representatives of the media present at the Forum, who created a total of over 10 thousand publications on the conference – including nearly five hundred in foreign media. The partners of the 30th Economic Forum were 156 institutions and companies. The jubilee edition of the Forum broke records of previous years, strengthening its position as the largest international economic and political conference in the region.

Political summit in Karpacz – Forum guests from Poland and the region

The coronavirus pandemic did not prevent the organisers from inviting leading national and regional politicians to the Forum. The conference brought together numerous representatives from different sides of the Polish political scene. Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki and two deputy prime ministers, Piotr Gliński and Jacek Sasin, as well as ministers Andrzej Adamczyk, Michał Kurtyka, Tadeusz Kościński, Marlena Maląg, Adam Niedzielski, Grzegorz Puda, Zbigniew Rau, Konrad Szymański came to Karpacz. Representatives of many opposition parties were also present – including Szymon Hołownia, Jarosław Gowin, Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz and Krzysztof Gawkowski. Numerous local government officials were present at the conference – including the Marshal of Lower Silesia, Cezary Przybylski, who acted as host, and the Mayor of Karpacz, Radosław Jęcek. As well as Marek Brzezin, Marshal of Warmińsko-Mazurskie, Artur Kosicki, Marshal of Podlaskie, Elżbieta Polak, Marshal of Lubuskie, Jakub Chełstowski, Marshal of Śląskie, Piotr Pilch, Vice Marshal of Podkarpackie Region, Jacek Sutryk, President of Wrocław, Aleksandra Dulkiewicz, President of Gdańsk, Tadeusz Truskolaski, President of Białystok, Marcin Krupa, President of Katowice, Małgorzata Mańka-Szulik, President of Zabrze.

Heads of governments of other countries and regions visited the Golebiewski Hotel – Prime Minister of Slovenia Janez Jansa , Prime Minister of Ukraine Denys Shmygal and Michael Kretschmer, Prime Minister of Saxony. Also present were Jakov Milatovic, Minister of Economic Development of Montenegro, Péter Szijjártó, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Hungary, Balázs Rákossy, State Secretary for European Funds at the Hungarian Ministry of Finance. The Belarusian opposition – headed by Svitlana Tikhanouska – and the Baltic States were well represented at the conference. Guests from outside Europe also arrived in Karpacz, including Cardinal Peter Kodwo Appiah Turkson, former US Ambassador to Poland Georgette Mosbacher and the Vice-President of the Republic of Liberia, Jewel Howard-Taylor. Also present was the European Commissioner for Agriculture, Janusz Wojciechowski.

The most important economic issues were discussed in Karpacz by representatives of Polish and foreign companies and institutions of regional and global range. Among them were: Marcin Chludziński, President of the Management Board of KGHM Polska Miedź S.A.; Daniel Obajtek, President of the Management Board of PKN Orlen, Jan Emeryk Rościszewski, President of the Management Board of PKO Bank Polski; Teresa Czerwińska, Vice-President of the European Investment Bank; Leszek Skiba and Jerzy Kwieciński, President and Vice-President of the Management Board of Bank Pekao S.A. CEO of PKO Bank Polski; Krzysztof Mamiński, President of the Management Board of Polskie Koleje Państwowe S.A.; Olgierd Cieślik, President of the Management Board of Totalizator Sportowy; Dimitri Gitas, Managing Director of MSD Polska; David Anderson, Senior Vice President of RES Development at BP PLC and Tomasz Suchański, President of the Management Board of Żabka Polska Sp. z o.o.

What future for Europe? – themes of the 30th Economic Forum

The theme of this year’s Economic Forum was: “Europe in search of leadership” and it was precisely this theme that received much attention. Leading representatives of politics, business and science from the countries of Central and Eastern Europe debated about the future of the European community and the changes forced upon Europe by the pandemic. In addition to the pandemic, many discussions focused on the second great challenge of modern times – global warming and the related energy transition. The six plenary sessions addressed the topics:

“New Deal 2021 – opportunity or challenge?”
“Europe in search of leadership”,
“Time of transition. Europe at the threshold of a new decade”,
“Challenges of the post-Victorian era”,
“The post-pandemic world. Economy, Sovereignty, Solidarity”,
“Europe: the direction of reconstruction”.

The plenary sessions provided an opportunity for the leaders of the countries of the region not only to present their opinions on the most important current socio-economic issues, but also to seek common solutions. A similar function was fulfilled by the panel discussions, of which nearly 400 took place during the three-day conference. They were divided into 16 programme tracks, including the Health Forum, the Polish Forum, the Ukrainian Forum and the Forum of Regions, which is prepared every year. Other issues discussed at the Forum included international politics, energy and security.

Cooperation with scientists – Report of the Warsaw School of Economics and the Economic Forum

Since 2018, an important element of the Economic Forum has been the presentation of the Report prepared by the organiser together with the Warsaw School of Economics. This publication is one of the most important and comprehensive studies on the economic and social situation in Poland and the region of Central and Eastern Europe.

The report, created by 55 experts from the best economic university in the country, focuses on 11 research areas – including the development transformation of Central and Eastern European countries, labour market changes, active ageing and the impact of the pandemic on the banking sector. The presentation of the Report, which took place on the first day of the Forum, was attended by the Rector of the Warsaw School of Economics, Piotr Wachowiak, PhD; the President of the Programme Council of the Economic Forum, Zygmunt Berdychowski; the Deputy Prime Minister, Piotr Gliński; the Vice-President of the European Investment Bank, Professor Teresa Czerwińska, as well as the authors and editors of the study.

Awards of the Economic Forum

The Economic Forum also means annual awards for persons, organisations and companies of merit for the Central and Eastern Europe. Each evening during the conference, the award galas took place, which were honoured with musical performances – among others by Kasia Moś and the Lower Silesian Philharmonic Orchestra.

This year, the Man of the Year award went to the Prime Minister of Slovenia, Janez Jansa, and was presented by Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki. – Today, it is people like Janez Jansa who make us realise and remind us what the Solidarity revolution was for– said Zygmunt Berdychowski, Chairman of the Programme Council of the Economic Forum, in his laudation.

The Company of the Year 2020 of the Economic Forum was selected as KGHM Polska Miedź S.A., and the Non-governmental Organisation of the Year 2020 – Polish Scouting and Guiding Association. There was also a special award for the Ukrainian society (received by Prime Minister Denys Shmygal) and – for the first time – a Polish award for the Chairperson of the Union of Poles in Belarus, Angelika Borys, and a member of its Supervisory Board, Andrzej Poczobut. On behalf of the activists detained in a Belarusian prison, the award was received by the representatives of the Union – Irena Biernacka and Maria Tiszkowska.

For the first time the Economic Forum awards for journalists were granted. They were given to Magdalena Graniszewska from “Puls Biznesu” in the category “climate and environment”, Grzegorz Osiecki from “Dziennik Gazeta Prawna” in the category “politics” and Wojciech Jakóbik from “Biznes Alert” portal in the category “economy”.

Okrągły jubileusz – trzydzieści lat Forum

W Hotelu Gołębiewski odbyła się również gala z okazji 30-lecia Forum Ekonomicznego. Podczas niej przypomniano w filmowym skrócie najważniejsze wydarzenia z historii organizowanego od trzech dekad spotkania, które w Krynicy i Karpaczu gościło znanych europejskich przywódców, ekspertów, biznesmenów, naukowców i ludzi kultury.

Podczas jubileuszowej gali zostały wręczone również wyróżnienia dla osób oraz instytucji, które przez lata dawały impuls do rozwoju Forum. W kategorii „Osobowość” otrzymali je były Marszałek Sejmu Marek Kuchciński, Minister Infrastruktury Andrzej Adamczyk oraz Prezes Polskiego Funduszu Rozwoju Paweł Borys. Natomiast wśród wyróżnionych firm znalazły się: Philips, Totalizator Sportowy i MSD Polska.

30 lat konferencji to czas, w którym dochodziło do niezwykle ważnych dla Polski i świata wydarzeń gospodarczych, politycznych i społecznych. Podczas prezentacji historii Forum wrócono do najważniejszych z nich. Prezentacja została podzielona na trzy dekady i rozpoczęła się od roku 1989 – początku przemian w naszej części Europy, a zakończyła na współczesnej rzeczywistości – pandemii koronawirusa.

W trakcie gali przedstawiono kolejne etapy kształtowania się Forum. Pokazano, jak zorganizowana po raz pierwszy w 1992 roku konferencja w niedługim czasie stała się „środkowoeuropejskim Davos” – miejscem, w którym czołowi politycy różnych opcji z naszego regionu dyskutują ze sobą i składają ważne deklaracje. Dzisiaj Forum Ekonomiczne to unikalne w regionie wydarzenie odwiedzane przez ponad 4 tysiące gości i blisko 500 przedstawicieli mediów z całego świata, które nawet pomimo pandemii wciąż się rozwija.

Program Kulturalny

https://youtube.com/watch?v=UleXJ8dpKiw%3Ffeature%3Doembed

Integralną częścią XXX Forum Ekonomicznego w Karpaczu był program wydarzeń kulturalnych. Przez dwa wieczory uczestnicy Forum mogli słuchać koncertu fortepianowego Jakova Katznelsona – profesora Moskiewskiego Konserwatorium Państwowego im. P. I. Czajkowskiego, laureata wielu międzynarodowych konkursów m. in. we Włoszech, Gruzji, Belgii czy Szwajcarii. Członek Rady Programowej Grzegorz Gauden poprowadził rozmowę z profesorem Jerzym Bralczykiem „Jak rozmawiać, żeby się porozumieć?”, podczas której zastanowiono się nad granicami rozumienia i języka w kontaktach z innymi ludźmi.  Eksponowane było polskie szkło artystyczne z Dolnego Śląska, który może się poszczycić bogatymi tradycjami w tej dziedzinie. W czasie uroczystych wieczorów połączonych z wręczaniem nagród Forum Ekonomicznego wystąpili: Jacek Wójcicki oraz Orkiestra Filharmonii Dolnośląskiej w Jeleniej Górze pod batutą Szymona Makowskiego; Kasia Wilk, Atom String Quartet oraz Orkiestra Filharmonii Dolnośląskiej pod batutą Adama Sztaby; Kasia Moś oraz Narodowa Orkiestra Dęta w Lubinie pod batutą Mariusza Dziubka.

Organizatorem XXX Forum Ekonomicznego jest Instytut Studiów Wschodnich. Głównym partnerem jest Urząd Marszałkowski Województwa Dolnośląskiego, Partnerami: Miasto Wrocław oraz Miasto Gospodarz – Karpacz, Port Lotniczy Wrocław oraz Dolnośląska Agencja Współpracy Gospodarczej. Partnerami strategicznymi Forum są: KGHM Polska Miedź S.A. i Hotel Gołębiewski.

Link do ogólnodostępnej kroniki ze zdjęciami: https://bit.ly/3tM2aa2