An international seminar devoted to the role of higher education in promotion of democracy and human rights is held at S. Toraighyrov Pavlodar State University on November 13-14, 2013.

The purpose of this seminar is discussion of the European Union/Council of Europe Joint Programme "Supporting Education Policies in Democratic Citizenship and Human Rights Education in Kazakhstan" which will help promote the experience of the Council of Europe in the field of EDC/HRE in Kazakhstan and ensure partnership and cooperation of Kazakhstan with the Member States of the Council of Europe in the field of education.

Plenary session moderator: Bibigul Utepkaliyeva, the Head of the Strategic and Innovative Development Office at the Department of Undergraduate and Postgraduate Education of the Ministry of Education and Science of the Republic of Kazakhstan.

Serik Omirbayev, Rector of S. Toraighyrov PSU, Doctor of Economics Sciences, Professor, gave an opening speech and welcomed the participants of the event. Among the guests of honor were Aryn Orsariyev, Deputy Akim of Pavlodar region; Yelena Levchenko, Project Manager of the European Union Delegation to the Republic of Kazakhstan; Yekaterina Dolgova-Dreyer, Head of the Unit for Regional and Bilateral Co-operation in CIS, the Department of Education, the Council of Europe; Gabriela Bergan, a member of the European Students' Union. The keynote speech was delivered by Bastian Baumann, an expert of the Council of Europe in the field of higher education.

The seminar will consist of 3 sessions: "The Role of Higher Education in a Sustainable Democratic Culture" (moderator: Serik Omirbayev, Rector of S. Toraighyrov Pavlodar State University), "Promotion of Democratic Citizenship and Human Rights" (moderator: Bibigul Utepkaliyeva, the Head of the Strategic and Innovative Development Office at the Department of Undergraduate and Postgraduate Education of the Ministry of Education and Science of the Republic of Kazakhstan), and "Democracy in Practice" (moderator: Yekaterina Dolgova-Dreyer, Head of the Unit for Regional and Bilateral Co-operation in CIS, the Department of Education, the Council of Europe). The following special guests will also take part in the seminar: Olena Stislavska, an expert of the Council of Europe, the Department for the Development of Social and Civic Competences, Centre for the Development of Education (Poland), and Andrey Kolaza, the Dean of the Faculty of Production Technology of Warsaw University of Technology (Poland).

The following issues will be addressed during the Conference: the European and Kazakhstani experience in student self-government as a form of implementation of the principles of democracy, the role of higher education in a sustainable democratic culture, methods of teaching human rights and democratic citizenship, cooperation between higher education institutions, schools and local communities.

Seminar Proceedings