The Third International Scientific and Practical Conference "Communication as a Factor of Transparency of Social Interaction: Psychological, Historical, Legal, Economic, and Political Dimensions"
The Third International Scientific and Practical Conference "Communication as a Factor of Transparency of Social Interaction: Psychological, Historical, Legal, Economic, and Political Dimensions", organised by the Education and Research Institute of Communications of WUNU, the National Mediation and Reconciliation Service and the National Association of Mediators of Ukraine, has started at West Ukrainian National University.
Oksana Desyatnyuk, Rector of WUNU, welcomed the participants and said: "Thank you to everyone who has joined the gathering of scholars and practitioners, teachers and students who are interested in communication, negotiation and mediation. It is gratifying to note that 80 universities and organisations from 25 countries are taking part in the international conference. The conference covers various aspects of interaction between people, society and institutions. In today's world, understanding communication processes is becoming extremely important, as words are a weapon, and it is important to be able to use them wisely as an instrument of influence, persuasion, and reconciliation."
Today, we are living in a difficult time of war, a time of great trial for Ukraine and every Ukrainian. Every day, in the fierce war with the Russian invaders, our brave soldiers shed their blood for the Ukrainian state and its freedom. With a minute of silence, the participants honoured the eternal memory of the fallen defenders of Ukraine, among whom, unfortunately, there are students and graduates of WUNU.
"Today, each of us has a great opportunity to discuss how communication affects social interaction in psychological, historical, legal, economic, and political dimensions. It's nice that representatives of other countries, despite Russia's full-scale war against Ukraine, came to Ternopil to work together with fellow practitioners!" - said Iryna Khondohiy, director of the Western Interregional Centre for Free Legal Aid.
Paul Fisher, Director of the Oxford Negotiations Programme (OPN), Professor at Saïd Business School and a member of the Oxford University Fellowship, said: "We have a great opportunity to hear the opinions of leading experts and academics. This is an impetus for new research and development of ideas aimed at improving the quality of communication and promoting transparency in society."
The staff of West Ukrainian National University and the participants of the conference were also addressed by the First Deputy Head of the National Mediation and Reconciliation Service, Doctor of Law, Professor Svitlana Zapara and President of the National Association of Mediators of Ukraine Kateryna Narovska.
Numerous reknowned scholars and practicioners from around the world joined the event. Among them: Jan van Zwieten, Rector of the Netherlands Business Academy, former Chairman of the Board of the Netherlands SKM Quality Foundation for Mediators, President of the Federation of Mediators of the Netherlands, Honorary Professor of West Ukrainian National University and member of its Supervisory Board; Steve Alban Tineo, CEO of Assertive Group, guest professor at West Ukrainian National University; Mohammad Farajallah, editor-in-chief of the publication "Ukraine in Arabic", expert on Ukrainian-Arab relations, political analyst; Peter Kesting, professor at Aarhus University, founder of the International Negotiation Training and Research Association INTRA; Remigiusz Smolinski, Professor at HHL Leipzig Graduate School of Management, founder of the International Negotiation Training and Research Association INTRA; Janusz Kowal, Professor, Deputy Dean of the Faculty of Canon Law at the Pontifical Gregorian University; Michal Tyrošik, Dean of the Faculty of Law at the Matej Bel University; and Philip Brown, founder and director of The Negotiation Club.
The moderator of the event, Director of the Education and Research Institute of Communications Oksana Koval, said: "Honourable guests, dear partners, colleagues and students! Today we have united in a common goal - to exchange experiences and opinions on the most pressing issues related to communication. I am convinced that over the two days of work we will find answers to all our questions. I wish you all effective collaboration and interesting research findings!"
Continuing their work in plenary sessions, the participants discussed various topics: "Turnkey negotiations: from self-knowledge to mastery", "Crisis management: effective methods of communication and negotiation", "The role of legal communication in ensuring human rights: international experience", "The impact of war. How to preserve the mental health of Ukrainians", "Psychotherapy in war", "Understanding the causes of unethical behaviour in negotiations".
Presentations were made by scientists, professors, CEOs, practitioners, psychologists, and psychotherapists from Switzerland, the UK, Ukraine, Israel, the Netherlands, Latvia, Georgia, Denmark, the USA, and Poland.
The participants also joined the discussion platform "Certification of Mediators: International Experience".
The first day of the Third International Scientific and Practical Conference ended with an international student teleconference "Preventive Action to Counter Terrorism in the Youth Environment in the Context of National Security".
We believe that each participant and guest will have a chance to engage in constructive and inspiring dialogue with leading experts in various fields and find like-minded people. We wish you all a great time at West Ukrainian National University!
