Ruben Zaiotti, Director of the European Union Centre of Excellence and Assistant Professor of the Political Science Department, Dalhousie University, Halifax
Moderator Paweł Świeboda, President of demosEUROPA Panelists Prof. dr Marc Cools, Professor of Criminology, Department of Criminal Law and Criminology, Vrije Universiteit, Brussels Ilkka Laitinen, Executive Director, Frontex Dr Anna Mrozek, Research Assistant, Faculty of Law, University of Leipzig Patryk Pawlak, Senior Analyst, EU Institute for Security Studies
Moderator
Benjamin Tallis, Researcher at University of Manchester and Lecturer in International Politics at Anglo-American University, Prague
Panelists
Lt Marvin Ingólfsson, Special Operation and Bomb Disposal Unit, Icelandic Coast Guard
Cristina Jorge, Head of Joint Operations Unit, Frontex
David Rios Morentin, Contract Manager at ISDEFE’s Intelligence and Homeland Security Division – Border Management Area, and member of the CLOSEYE project
Giorgos Tsarbopoulos, Head of UNHCR Office in Greece
Moderator
Dr. Gil Ad Ariely, Liron Systems Ltd. and Lauder School of Government Diplomacy and Strategy, Interdisciplinary Center Herzliya
Panelists
Mari Juritsch, Head of Analysis and Planning Sector, Frontex
Henrik Nielsen, Head of Unit, Directorate General Home Affairs, Border Management and Schengen Governance/Relations with Frontex, European Commission
Richard Warnes, Doctoral Researcher, University of Surrey and part-time Analyst, RAND Europe
Moderator
Edgar Beugels, Head of Research and Development Unit, Frontex
Panelists
Gavin McCairns, First Assistant Secretary, Risk Fraud and Identity Division, Department of Immigration and Border Protection, Australia
Sadhbh McCarthy, Director of Centre for Irish and European Security
Dr. Frank Paul, Adviser to the Director-General, Head of the Task Force Irregular Migration, Head of Unit a.i. "Transeuropean Networks for Freedom and Security and Relations with eu-LISA"
Raphael Ron, President and Chief Executive Officer, New Age Security Solutions
Starting in autumn 2015, Frontex will be offering the first European master’s degree programme in Strategic Border Management, a unique European higher education offer dedicated to support the leaders of border guard organisations in developing strategies to jointly manage border security challenges at an EU level and enhancing cooperation and interoperability at the EU borders.
During the 1.5 years programme, the mid-high level managers of the BG organizations will have the opportunity to advance best practice in border management by learning together in a context that reflects operational realities, reinforces the European dimension of border guard work and builds a higher level of common organisational culture. The programme focuses on strategic leadership and European cooperation and contributes to leaders’ development, aiming to promote a culture of shared EU values including fundamental rights and professional ethics within the European border guard organizations.
High profile academics and experienced border guard specialists from over twenty EU member states and other Frontex partner organisations were working together under Frontex’s lead for over 2 years, to develop a European curriculum applicable to all. The curriculum integrates a professional applied perspective with academic standards, where the learning has a practical application to the border guard organizations – the ultimate beneficiaries of this programme.
Six universities are committed to jointly deliver this programme, in close collaboration with border guard academies and training centres (Estonian Academy of Security Sciences, Distance Learning University of Spain (UNED) in cooperation with the Academy of Guardia Civil of Spain, University of Salamanca in cooperation with the Academy of National Police of Spain, the Defence Academy of the Netherlands in cooperation with Royal Marechaussee, Rezeknes Augstskola University in cooperation with the Latvian Border Guard State College and Mykolas Romeris University of Lithuania in cooperation with the Border Guard State Service).
During ED4BG 2014, the Consortium Agreement between the Academic Partners and Frontex will be signed, marking the end of the development process and the beginning of the programme’s implementation. The first admission procedures will start in early 2015 for the first Master’s degree programme and the first successful graduates of the Master’s programme will celebrate their graduation ceremony in June 2017.
Speakers
Ilkka Laitinen, Executive Director, Frontex
Prof. Bairbre Redmond, Dean of Undergraduate Studies and Deputy Vice President of Teaching and Learning, University College Dublin, Ireland
Prof. Dr. Henrik Rudolph, Dean of the Faculty of Military Sciences (FMS), Netherlands Defence Academy