FOCUS! A New Student-Led Talk Series at BCB

The buzz of conversation filled the W15 Café as students gathered for the latest FOCUS event, eager to hear more about elections in Eastern Europe—a region often underrepresented in mainstream discourse. Organized entirely by students, the evening offered first-hand perspectives from Romania, North Macedonia, Slovakia, Georgia, and Belarus. It was precisely this underrepresentation that drew a large crowd to the event, as many hoped to get exposed to perspectives that might otherwise go unheard.

The panel—featuring Ina Constantin ‘26, Vasko Popchevaliev ‘25, Hana Trenčanová ‘28, Stanislava Švekušová ‘28, Tazo Shavgulidze ‘26, and Miron Vitushka ‘27—spoke on the elections (or lack thereof) happening in their home countries. Though grouped under the broad term “Eastern European,” common threads ran through each speaker’s account—corruption, protests, responses to Covid, Rusophilia, Europhilia, and the complex, often non-traditional political divides between “left” and “right.”

FOCUS events manage to be both deeply intimate and intellectually engaging. In the Q&A section at the end, the audience asked questions ranging from the personal realm—“To what extent do you stay connected to the diaspora of your people in Berlin?”—to the political— “What exact role did TikTok play in the Romanian election?” The conversations flowed fluidly between these two registers, making for a lively and thought-provoking discussion.

As the FOCUS organizers and Civic Engagement Office put it: “We imagine this event series as a space outside of the classroom where we can talk about topics that concern us, especially those that don’t make the headlines of international news but are important and relevant to discuss, especially in such an international context as our school.”

Past talks have included a wide range of topics from migration through marriage in 90s Ukraine to neurodiversity in the Middle East.

The aim is not to deliver polished conclusions or neatly packaged arguments but to create a space for conversations that might not otherwise take place in a classroom. The talks thrive because of the diversity and curiosity of the BCB community—there’s always someone with a compelling story to share and someone else who is eager to listen and engage with it.

Interested in hosting a FOCUS talk? You are welcome to reach out with a proposal through the sign-up form.

By: Mishel Jovanovska '25

Post Date: 03-04-2025