“Policy should be made based on knowledge, data and analysis. People can sometimes harm both themselves and Bulgaria while thinking they are saving it”, said Minister of Environment and Water Yulian Popov to the trainees of Class of 2026 of the National Program at the opening of the academic year.
Popov, who was the Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Bulgarian School of Politics (BSoP) until 2013, gave a retrospective to the new trainees, reflecting on the establishment of BSoP and the launch of the National Program “Governing Skills” 24 years ago. In a candid discussion, he also shared his experience as a minister in one regular and two caretaker governments, discussing topics such as carbon trading and the risks of collectively making wrong political decisions.
During the four training days of the first course, the participants had the opportunity to listen to attend lectures, engage in discussions, and work on practical case studies.
Prof. Ivan K. Ivanov from Veliko Tarnovo University spoke about leadership, personality and power, as well as the challenges facing the modern leader. Prof. Lachezar Afrikanov from NBU presented the processes of team formation and development, along with systemic leadership as a management approach. Ivelin Nikolov, a lecturer in conflict management, combined a theoretical part with role-playing games, exploring types of conflicts, the reasons for their occurrence and possible models for their management. Prof. Ivanka Mavrodieva from Sofia University presented the structure of public speaking, while Prof. Tatyana Burudzhieva shared key aspects for successful political campaigns.
For the 24th consecutive year, BSoP is conducting the National Program “Governing Skills”. Traditionally, a total of 40 trainees – politicians and civic leaders have been admitted to Class 2026. Following a preliminary selection process, members of parliament, mayors, municipal councilors, representatives of non-governmental and professional organizations, as well as heads of municipal and private institutions, were selected for it.
The full cycle of four training courses for the current cohort of the National Program will conclude at the end of September.
