ARCADIA

The Romanian Association for International Cooperation and Development (ARCADIA) was founded in 2008 as a Working Group of the Global Romanians and Young Professionals Society (GRSPSociety). During the GRSPSociety 2009 Annual Conference at the Harvard Kennedy School of Government, Boston, a workshop was dedicated to ARCADIA’s development. In 2010, ARCADIA was established as a separate and legal entity. The idea and need for a Romanian professional association dealing with development and international cooperation appeared in the context of Romania’s 2007 EU membership. This new reality has brought, along with the potential to increase Romania’s relevance as an actor within the international arena, several significant challenges related to the politics, legislation and development and international cooperation policy. Romania currently lacks a proper research infrastructure in these two areas, international and multicultural education in schools/universities and a genuine dialogue on development-related issues in mass-media and society at large. These elements could weaken the prospect for a coherent and substantial contribution of Romania to the EU Development Policy. Our mission is to build a professional community in the field of international development. Also ARCADIA aims to bring a genuine contribution to the evolution of development professionals in Romania and beyond and to promote the field of international development at the national and international level. In this respect, our primary objectives are: 1) Strengthening the network of Romanian scholars, professionals, and experts who work in international development; 2) Helping development scholars, experts, and professionals to further develop their competences in the field; 3) Enhancing knowledge and expertise transfer among members; 4) Publish the Romanian International Development Review, an online professional review.