Ten undergraduate, MA and doctoral students and Associate Professor and Head of ADandPRLAB, Betty Tsakarestou as academic lead adviser, participated in the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) Journalism Bootcamp in Washington, D.C. with the exclusive support of Stavros Niarchos Foundation (December 2019, January 2020).
During an intensive International Affrairs and multimedia Journalism practicum, the Bootcamp, offered a rich experience through deep-dive seminars and workshops, with CSIS policy experts on the topic of Innovating public diplomacy through entrepreneurial initiatives for social impact.
The students’ work culminated in a long-form reporting project that incorporates video, audio, and data visualization elements titled:
"Enabling Entrepreneurship: Diplomatic Responses to Greece's Brain Drain. Collaborations between embassies and entrepreneurs are opening up new opportunities for young professionals in Greece."
The project was produced in collaboration with CSIS’s Dracopoulos iDeas Lab. SNF Co-President Andreas Dracopoulos along with iMEdD Managing Director and SNF DIALOGUES Executive Director, Anna-Kynthia Bousdoukou, visited CSIS on the final day of the Bootcamp to see the students present their work.
Among the highlights of the CSIS Journalism Bootcamp on Entrepreneurial Public Diplomacy is the talk and interview with Ambassador John Heffern, Distinguished Fellow of Diplomacy and Entrepreneurship at Georgetown University, the opportunity to visit Newseum before closing its doors, meeting with Halcyon Incubator founders, supporting early-stage social entrepreneurs in Washington DC. The students worked with Seth Center of the Brzezinski Institute’s Project on History and Strategy of CSIS and Erol Yayaboke, Deputy Director and Senior Fellow, Project on Prosperity and Development, Project on U.S. Leadership in Development. They learned about the role of Think Tanks and met with a CNN national security expert. They interviewed U.S. and Dutch diplomats and startup entrepreneurship leaders and ecosystem builders in Athens. The students worked in teams as story & web editors, audio producers, video producers and data reporters/ visualizers under the guidance of Yumi Araki, Senior Producer & Editorial Lead of iDeas Lab, CSIS.
Based in Washington, D.C., CSIS is a nonprofit, bipartisan organization that for over half a century has provided policy to guide society toward a better future. SNF has provided support for a number of other events at CSIS, notably the CSIS-TCU Schieffer Series, hosted by former CBS News Chief Washington Correspondent Bob Schieffer.
Congratulations to CSIS Journalism Bootcamp on Entrepreneurial Diplomacy Student Fellows:
- Dimitris Boutsikos, ADandPRLAB
- Romanos Gkotzos, Journalism Lab
- Fotini Maltezou, MA Information Society, Media and Technology
- Vasilis Plegas- ADandPRLAB
- Nikos Serafetinidis, ADandPRLAB
- Athina Simatou, Ph.D Candidate in Journalism
- Lambrini Tsiligianni, ADandPRLAB
- Katerina Vlassopoulou, Ph.D Candidate in Entrepreneurial Journalism
- Maria-Elpiniki Zafeiraki, Culture Lab
- Rania Zokou, Journalism Lab
