Aspen Western Balkans Initiative: Engagement for Progress and Stability

The project “Aspen Western Balkans Initiative: Engagement for Progress and Stability” was successfully implemented from 2023 to 2025. Its objectives were to promote dialogue and cooperation in the region, develop concrete recommendations, and raise public awareness of the enlargement and reform process.

The project cycle in 2023 and 2024 included the organization of three conferences. The first international conference took place in Montenegro in 2023 and focused on the intersection of democracy and digitalization. The second conference, held in Berlin in 2024, addressed the topic of European Union (EU) enlargement. A third conference in 2024, held in Bosnia and Herzegovina, was dedicated to reconciliation.

In addition, a vision for the Western Balkans in 2043 was developed. To this end, a foresight process and strategic outlook for the region were initiated at the beginning of the project under the title “Future of the Western Balkans in 2043,” with the aim of developing long-term strategic approaches.

Furthermore, two high-level working group meetings were organized in Berlin, bringing together government representatives and experts from the Western Balkans, Germany, and the EU. One meeting took place in 2023 and another in 2024 to review the respective project year. Each working group meeting was accompanied by a public event where the results of the discussions were presented and discussed. The outcomes and possible policy recommendations were disseminated through the Aspen Institute Germany’s social media activities and documented in publications.

The continuation of the project in 2025 included the organization of a high-level working group in Berlin and a conference on structural change in Albania. The structure and content of the 2025 activities built on the project’s achievements in 2023 and 2024.

The Aspen Institute Germany would like to thank the German Federal Foreign Office for its support of the project.

Mildner, Stormy-Annika, Bories, Tina, Shapiro, Avi (eds.), Structural Change in the Western Balkans, Aspen Institute Germany, December 2025.
Mildner, Stormy-Annika, Bories, Tina, (eds), Reconciliation in the Western Balkans, Aspen Institute Germany, December 2024.
Mildner, Stormy-Annika, Bories, Tina, (eds), Digitalization and Democracy in the Western Balkans, Aspen Institute German, May 2024.
Mildner, Stormy-Annika, Bories, Tina, Kurtenacker, Kilian, Shapiro, Avi, Gordon-Forbes, Duncan (eds), Future of the Western Balkans 2043, Aspen Institute Germany, November 2023.