In This Issue:

Moldova

Impact: Armenia

Ukraine

South Caucasus

Georgia

Armenia

Belarus

Kazakhstan

CRRC

Events:

May 15-16, Seminar: Professional Skills and Ethics for Legal Clinic Students, NEE: Minsk, Belarus — Russian

May 18-19, Class: Modern Methods of Teaching Business Disciplines, NEE: Minsk, Belarus — Russian

May 25, Roundtable: Business Education in Belarus from an Academic Perspective, NEE: Minsk, Belarus — Russian

Dear Readers,

This is the inaugural issue of the re-constituted Eurasia Foundation e-Bulletin, our monthly e-newsletter showcasing our initiatives across the region.  In this and future editions we’ll feature program updates, event announcements and other regional EF news.

A link to the full version of each article is provided, directing you to our web site (www.eurasia.org).  I encourage you to explore the wide range of information found there. 

We hope you come to look forward to reading the EF E-Bulletin each month, but if you wish to be removed from our mailing list, instructions are included.

Sincerely,


W. Horton Beebe-Center
President

Highlight

Eurasia Foundation Impact

Negotiate, Don't Litigate
An overwhelming majority (88%) of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in Armenia believe litigation is the way to solve economic disputes. Over 80% percent also believe that it's difficult to find a reliable neutral party to facilitate dispute resolution; therefore direct negotiations or litigation is the best option for resolving commercial disputes. These findings, collected through a Eurasia Foundation-sponsored assessment of alternative dispute resolution (ADR) practices in Armenia, prompted EF to devote programming resources to improving acceptance of mediation and arbitration as a means to solve business disputes. More...

Ongoing Activities

Local Voices Heard
In Ukraine, there are few mechanisms for the public to provide feedback to the government. Eurasia Foundation, thanks to funding from the Charles Steward Mott Foundation and USAID, is changing that. More...

Keeping Food Safe in the South Caucasus
Food safety standards are an integral part of the agricultural success of a nation and a requirement for membership in the European Union. Recently, Eurasia Foundation’s South Caucasus Cooperation Program (SCCP) gathered government representatives and civil society members from Armenia, Azerbaijan and Georgia to share experiences in their development of food standards and safety policies. More...

Teaching Tracking
Recently, Eurasia Foundation hosted a workshop for several Georgian NGOs, allowing them their first opportunity to exchange ideas on the current state of civic monitoring in Georgia.  More...

Boosting Independent Media
Armenian independent media face the challenge of insufficient resources and inefficient distribution practices which keep their newspapers from reaching a wide audience.  EF partnered with the Open Society Institute to alleviate this problem by providing much-needed skills necessary to increase subscriptions. More...

Two Diamonds, Three Stars, Four Roosters?
Western tourists take travel guides and rating systems like Michelin, Fodor and Lonely Planet for granted. Thanks to a New Eurasia Establishment (NEE) project, tourists in Belarus now have a means to make more informed choices when choosing from the inns and guesthouses springing up as part of the country’s nascent eco-tourism industry. More...

Blogging the Social Science Beat
The Caucasus Research Resource Centers program (CRRC) recently launched a web log or blog to disseminate its research and provide commentary on social science developments in the South Caucasus. More...