The Autumn Political Science School was held at Mariupol State University from September 13 to 15. It has become a platform for the exchange of experiences and views on regional policy and international relations.

The school was held as part of the Erasmus + project "Rethinking Regional Studies: Baltic-Black Sea Communication" at the initiative of Associate Professor of International Relations and Foreign Policy Serhii Pakhomenko and with the assistance of scientists from the University of Tartu.

More than 50 students, graduates and lecturers of Mariupol University and Ivan Franko National University of Lviv joined the ranks of students.

Representatives of the universities of Estonia, Sweden and Ukraine became the speakers of the event. They presented to the participants their vision of security issues, state-building processes, urban biopolitics, critical geopolitics, language policy and the importance of civic initiatives. The topics were considered in the context of the Baltic-Black Sea region.

Autumn Political Science School is a great platform for sharing experiences. The world is changing, as is the perception of human role and influence in the world. Svіtlana Lniavska's lecture on language policy in Ukraine and Andrei Makarychev's presentation on the idea of a biopolis or smart city made an impression. The depth and scale of their research, as well as practical significance - this is our reality and we have all the opportunities for its formation. And Olga Bogdanova's meaningful lecture on the development of social entrepreneurship inspired me to try to put my idea into practice,

— Master of International Relations Oleksandra Rabchevska.

Most of the lectures were in English, so it became an additional language practice for the participants. The participants actively participated in the discussion: young people were interested in the level of stability of Ukraine, strategic partnership, economic aspects of the European Union member states.  

In the topics of the school, we deeply considered the existing problems of the Baltic-Black Sea region. This concentration of like-minded people in one hall is inspiring: people of different cultures, different political views, different ages have gathered, who speak different languages, but at the same time understand each other. We are all united by a desire for dialogue,

— Vadym Yali, a student majoring in Political Science. 

According to the results of the Autumn Political Science School, the participants received certificates. Rector of Mariupol University, Professor Mykola Trofymenko and Deputy Head of Academic Affairs of the Institute of Political Studies Johanna Schütte of the University of Tartu Olga Bogdanova congratulated the participants on the successful completion of their studies.

Political science school is an opportunity to study politics not from books, but in practice together with leading experts. Such events accumulate the opinions of experts living in different parts of Ukraine and "stitch" Ukrainian society together. This project definitely impressed all participants. I think that it will definitely give an incentive to move forward - to develop oneself, to develop political science and Ukraine, 

— Elizabeth Luchakova, a student majoring in Political Science.