Conference “5 years since maidan: Changing communications and communicating change”

Rebecca will be at the conference speaking on the panel on creating a narrative for Ukraine and its reforms. The panelists will discuss whether a more effective, transparent and accountable communication can both support the reform process as well as protect against disinformation?

Panel I: Creating a narrative for Ukraine and its reforms
Five years after Maidan, what is the global image of Ukraine and its reform process? Ukraine has strengthened its public diplomacy efforts with the aim of building a globally respected international ‘brand’. Moreover, the country has bolstered its efforts to unify government communications, bringing together different institutions in order to promote the idea of ‘one voice’ communications. Thus, both externally and internally, Ukraine is adopting a more sophisticated approach to government communications. Ukraine however faces multiple challenges, including internal resistance to reforms linked to its Euro-Atlantic integration process and external disinformation efforts aimed at presenting a false image of the realities on the ground. Can more effective, transparent and accountable communication both support the reform process as well as protect against disinformation?

Moderator: Fredrik Wesslau, Deputy Head of EUAM Ukraine

Speakers:
• Ivanna Klympush-Tsintsadze, Deputy Prime Minister for European and Euro-Atlantic  Integration, Ukraine
• Hugues Mingarelli, Head of the EU Delegation to Ukraine
• Dmytro Zolotukhin, Deputy Minister of Information Policy, Ukraine
• Rebecca Harms, Member of the European Parliament, Member of the Delegation to the EU-Ukraine Parliamentary Association Committee
• Natalie Nougayrède, journalist, member of the Guardian’s editorial board, editor of Europe Now

By Hafsa Gulnur Erdogdu