Is revolution a destructive and sudden phenomenon by nature? Can it only be outlived by those people able to accept and adapt to the new status quo? Those where the questions dominating the first part of the opening panel of the third day of the Economic Forum of Young Leaders.

– We mostly focus on what the fourth industrial revolution brings about from an employee’s and an employer’s perspective, and how, in the current state of things, should we adapt robotics to the production process – said Bernhard Budaker, Head of the Business Unit of Automotive Fraunhofer IPA.

Piotr Dardziński, the Under-Secretary of State, Ministry of Science and Higher Education of Poland, noticed the influence of the contemporary revolution on the reversal of roles in the relationship between those who listen and those who give orders.

– It’s no longer the case that only politicians and leaders know what to do. Nowadays we must arrive at solutions together – said the Under-Secretary.

According to Angelika Jarosławska, the Project Coordinator of Poland 3.0., a revolution should begin with a single individual.

– We need to prepare appropriate staff for new operations in Poland. We are a generation that will watch the Polish economy change – she said.

Jarosławska talked about the Poland 3.0. project and invited new leaders to cooperate.

– Poland 3.0. is a project on the scale of the Central Industrial District which it has been compared to. The concept is similar – a creation of the largest logistics center in Poland – she added.

The panel’s guests all agreed that the Ukraine conflict was a decisive factor in the way security in Europe has been perceived over the past two years. The participants also pointed to the noticeable rebuilding of NATO and strengthening its Eastern flank.

– An aggressive Russia isn’t the only challenge. Terrorist organisations not only destabilise the countries they come from, but also export fright all the way Europe - said Timo Koster, Director of the Defense Policy and Capabilities at the NATO Headquarters. He also mentioned those areas of the Treaty which have been somewhat forgotten by the public, such as the Arctic and the northern Atlantic Ocean. – Those are also dimensions of our security and should not be neglected – he added.

– We should be thinking about a more sustainable economy, one which is immune to external blows. Perhaps we should talk about an economy that is more “green”? – proposed Kristian Vigenin, former Bulgarian Minister of Foreign Affairs.

– Above all else, we should consolidate our own European economies. There are still great differences between the East and the West, North and South. We’ve been mentioning the migration of Polish workers. As Bulgarians, we face the same issue – he added.

Vigenin also pointed towards the characteristics of migratory movements: – We need to manage migration in such a way that people entering the EU will be adding to the economy and not in the way we’ve seen in the past year.

Interview with KRISTIAN VIGENINEM

Lack of systematic recruitment, insufficient information on volunteering opportunities available to those who are concerned and shortcomings in legal education amongst volunteers – those are just some of the issues concerning the free social assistance, as pointed out by Wojciech Kaczmarczyk, government plenipotentiary for social security. The Polish Solidarity Corps is supposed to be the answer to all those.

– Our program aims to increase the citizens’ social involvement for support of volunteers and volunteering organisations - said Kaczmarczyk, adding at the same time that one of the basic areas of action of the Corps will be support towards the forgotten and neglected activists of the Solidarity movement.

On the other hand, Michał Łuczewski, the Deputy Director of Center for the Thought of John Paul II, pointed towards the roots of the ideas discussed at the panel of ideas in the Solidarity movement.

– The Solidarity movement is an example that there was once a time in Poland, when the society worked against the state to change the course of the world. Those men were preoccupied by constant self-improvement. They were men of action – he said.

– A leader is a person able to lead a team, create a strategy and also to draw people towards themselves with their charisma and personality – said Prime Minister Beata Szydło in Nowy Sącz.

The Prime Minister argued that we can’t pretend like nothing’s happening in Europe.

– The greatest crisis we face today is a crisis of value – she emphasised. She also added that a „spirit of change” can be sensed in Europe. She pointed towards a growing role of the Visegrad Group. She stated that the Group is beginning to set pace for the EU and is coming up with creative proposals.

– We can’t let the European Union project be squandered – argued the Prime Minister. – We have to do all we can to breathe a new life into this project. In such a way that will cause the EU to regain the role that was assigned to it by the founding fathers and begin to serve the European nations – she added.

The Prime Minister also encouraged the listeners to not fear change. – Progress comes from change. The world is changing and so is life. But of course among all this change we need to preserve something constant, something that binds us to this place we are living in – she argued.

– We are currently seeing a model of leadership which is based on a “leader one click away”. Politics is competing with the media, and adjusting to their logics, which is why we have leaders who are stylish, but without content – argued Dimech.

He appealed for a recreation of the missing content of leadership and stressed that only a concept of leadership made for serving others makes any sense.

Zoltan Csefalvay, Hungary’s representative at OECD and UNESCO noticed that many of the audience were a part of the “Z” generation.

– Nations with no leaders, no elite, are nations without a future – said the Prime Minister and Minister of Science and Higher Education Jarosław Gowin, one of the guests of the special third day at the Economic Forum of Young Leaders in Nowy Sącz.

The Prime Minister also emphasized the tragic mutual experiences of the Central-Eastern European countries over the past eighty years.

– A fundamental task for Poland and other countries in our region is the rebuilding of a national elite – he argued.

Jarosław Gowin in turn pointed out the necessary willingness of a leader to sacrifice themselves. He also talked about the issues and challenges facing higher education in Poland.

– If we don’t establish universities that will offer education at a level competitive with that of decent and of excellent European universities, then the drainage will grow more prominent year on year – said Jarosław Gowin.

He also claimed that the answer to the issue lies in establishing specialized research universities that focus on collaborating with their students and getting them involved in research.

– The past twenty seven years has been a time of catching up by trial and error, and as there have been way too many errors, I am hoping for Morawiecki’s plan to amend them – summed up Jarosław Gowin.

Interview with JAROSŁAW GOWIN

According to Paweł Szefernaker, Secretary of State in the Chancellery of the Prime Minister of Poland, in order for the Central European markets to be competitive against international markets, we need to put emphasis on promoting new technologies, innovation and successful people valued abroad.

– Towards the end of Poland’s presidency in the Visegrad Group we’d like to organise a congress of Central-Eastern Europe innovators in Warsaw – announced Szefernaker.

When asked whether Eastern European start-ups stand a chance of global success, Anna Savchuk answered that while it’s not easy, it is certainly possible. She also stressed that the high level of support given to start-ups by the government is an unquestionable advantage of this region. However, she added that the sheer amount of formalities that need completed in certain Eastern European countries could scare off potential investors.