One of the main goals of the Institute is to organize specialized trainings, lectures, and support scientific research related to minority protection. Within this framework, the Institute organizes thematic conferences and summer universities, and takes part in similar events of other partner institutions. Our conference on minority protection takes place each year in Budapest, and is orchestrated together with our partner organizations, in close cooperation with various law schools. These annual events provide an open platform for dialogue on national minorities in general, and the Hungarian minority communities in particular, introducing the activities of the partner organizations of the Institute to wider audiences. Apart from raising awareness, these conferences also help to facilitate networking opportunities, and to assist partners and participants to acquire up-to-date knowledge on the legal protection of minority rights.
We organize our summer university, called “Minority Protection in Europe”, each year together with the Research Institute for Hungarian Communities Abroad, fostering the participation of mostly law students, doctoral students and young lawyers with a Hungarian minority background, who have a special interest in minority protection. Through these summer universities, the Institute aims to identify, and reach out to young professionals potentially interested in engaging in the protection of minority rights, as well as to contribute to the recruitment of new lawyers, and legal experts in this field. The programmes of the summer university range from simulation trainings of advocacy specialists to interactive debates and discussions, conducted by renowned lawyers, minority rights experts, international office holders, and diplomats.
Additionally, since 2014, the Institute organizes Alumni summer universities for former participants of our summer universities. These Alumni gatherings contribute from year-to-year to bring students, scientists, researchers, lawyers and other professionals together for exchange of views and information in the framework of workshops, round table discussions and cultural programmes.
Through these public events, the Institute promotes a multi-faceted approach to legal work that complements litigation with parallel advocacy activities, such as use of media, organization of awareness raising campaigns, engagement in the work of international fora, as well as capacity building and other related work that helps to maximise the impact of litigation.
