Conferences on integrity and ethics, dedicated to students from Bacău

The subject of the first conference, held on Tuesday, 28^th of November 2023 was: "The role of civil society in the fight against corruption, without compromises”.

Assoc. Prof. Victor Alistar, Vice President of Transparency International Romania, spoke to students about the concept of civil society and its role at the community level; about the phenomenon of corruption and effective tools in preventing and combating corruption, with concrete examples adapted to the age and level of understanding of the students. At the same time, dialogue and exchange of impressions on the topic were encouraged during the session. According to the centralized data from partners, 877 high school students and 41 teachers from partner high schools in Bacău participated in this first online event.

On Tuesday, 16^th of January 2024, the second event dedicated to students took place, focusing on the theme "Transparency and institutional integrity”.

Our colleague Irina Lonean, program coordinator at Transparency International Romania and associate professor at SNSPA, discussed with the students and teachers participating in the event about access to information of public interest, institutional transparency, and the benefits of consulting with citizens. Additionally, an important point of the session was related to presenting ways for young people to get involved in the development, influence, monitoring, and evaluation of public policies.

According to the centralized data from partners, over 400 high school students and 38 teachers from partner high schools in Bacău participated in this second online event.

The third meeting of the educational project “Transparency and Institutional Integrity” took place on Friday, February 2, 2024. This time, the agreed theme focused on judicial independence and impartiality. Associate Professor Dr. Victor Alistar was the guest speaker, addressing the strengths and weaknesses of the justice system, the challenges facing Romania's judiciary, and solutions for its modernization. The targeted questions and examples tailored to the understanding level of the over 500 students present at the online conference proved highly valuable. These thematic conferences, organized online, are part of the “Transparency and Institutional Integrity” educational project conducted by Casa Corpului Didactic "Grigore Tăbăcaru" Bacău, the Regional Resource Center for Civic Education Bacău, and the American Corner Bacău, in partnership with Transparency International Romania.

A new conference on integrity was held on Tuesday, March 19, 2024, Marian Popa, president of Transparency International Romania, as the guest speaker. Drawing from his extensive experience in senior management roles in multinational companies, civil society, and mentoring, Mr. Popa spoke to students about business integrity, covering key concepts, statistics, and their impact at the national and global levels.

Over 400 students participated in the meeting and were encouraged to contribute to shaping the society of tomorrow and to actively combat corruption by leading through example. These thematic conferences, conducted online, are part of the “Transparency and Institutional Integrity” educational project by Casa Corpului Didactic "Grigore Tăbăcaru" Bacău, the Regional Resource Center for Civic Education Bacău, and the American Corner Bacău, in partnership with Transparency International Romania.

Cătălin Sturza, a member of the Board of Directors of TI Romania and product marketing manager at IBM specializing in AI for business, presented a timely topic to students: Artificial Intelligence and the ethical principles applicable to this domain. The online conference, held on May 29, 2024, was attended by over 350 students and teachers from national colleges including “V. Alecsandri,” “Ferdinand I,” and the Catholic College "St. Joseph" in Bacău, as well as from theoretical high schools such as “H. Coandă” in Bacău and “Spiru Haret” in Moinești.

The theme began with a brief history of AI applications, highlighting the benefits and limitations of AI, with a focus on moral dilemmas, challenges, and risks associated with its use. Mr. Sturza also presented ethical principles in the field and discussed the changes AI brings to social structures, labor relations, culture, and human values.

Students learned how to use AI-based programs and applications intelligently and ethically, protect their personal data, and avoid discrimination, fake content, and manipulation. This conference is part of the “Transparency and Institutional Integrity” educational project by Casa Corpului Didactic "Grigore Tăbăcaru" Bacău, the Regional Resource Center for Civic Education Bacău, and the American Corner Bacău, in partnership with Transparency International Romania.

The series of conferences dedicated to high school students in Bacău continued with an online videoconference on Thursday, October 17, 2024. Marian Popa, president of TI Romania, was the guest speaker. The theme addressed the current geopolitical context, the history of military conflicts, and their general causes. The discussion highlighted the enormous costs of wars, including human casualties, material losses, infrastructure destruction, economic and humanitarian crises, poverty, lack of access to food, water, and medical services, and the displacement of communities. Using concrete data on the harmful effects of military conflicts, the debate revolved around a key aspiration: raising awareness of the importance of peace for societal development. Attendees were encouraged to “be a voice for peace” and to discourage any form of violence in their environment. From specific examples to broader contexts, young people were inspired to act as agents of change, putting pressure on national and world leaders to find solutions through negotiation and dialogue to end conflicts and restore peace.

The October 17, 2024, online conference was attended by over 1,200 students and 93 teachers from various institutions, including “Ferdinand I” National College, “Vasile Alecsandri” National College, “Ion Ghica” Economic College, “Mihai Eminescu” College, Catholic National College "St. Joseph," “Ștefan cel Mare” National Pedagogical College, “Henri Coandă” Theoretical High School in Bacău, “Dimitrie Cantemir” National College, “Grigore Moisil” National College in Onești, “Dimitrie Ghika” Technical College in Comănești, and “Spiru Haret” Theoretical High School in Moinești. Methodists from Casa Corpului Didactic Bacău also attended. The conferences are organized by Casa Corpului Didactic "Grigore Tăbăcaru" Bacău, the Regional Resource Center for Civic Education Bacău, and the American Corner Bacău, in partnership with Transparency International Romania.

The videoconference organized on November 26, 2024, on the topic “Integrity in a knowledge-based economy” featured Dragoș Șeuleanu, Executive Director of the Măgurele High Tech Cluster and a member of the Board of Directors of Transparency International Romania, as a speaker. He addressed themes such as the role of education in the economy of the future, intellectual property protection, combating corruption, and the necessity of knowledge transfer based on integrity and transparency. Students were encouraged to actively participate in the dialogue through questions and debates on the proposed topics, in a format adapted to their level of understanding.

A point of interest for the students was the idea that, in an AI-driven, information-based society, the education of human resources takes on a predominantly continuous character. Consequently, the educational system must respond to market demands to adequately prepare future employees. On the other hand, companies will distinguish themselves by how effectively they attract, develop, and retain a human portfolio composed of the best available talents. Ethical behavior in maintaining organizational credibility and developing human capital thus becomes an essential component of business strategies.

The event garnered the interest and appreciation of over 760 students and 58 teaching staff members from the following schools: National College „Ferdinand I,” National College „Vasile Alecsandri,” National Catholic College „Sf. Iosif,” College „Mihai Eminescu,” National Pedagogical College „Ștefan cel Mare,” and Theoretical High School „Henri Coandă” in Bacău; National College „Dimitrie Cantemir” and National College „Grigore Moisil” in Onești; Theoretical High School „Spiru Haret” in Moinești; and Technical College „Dimitrie Ghika” in Comănești, along with methodology experts from CCD Bacău.

The conferences are organized by Casa Corpului Didactic “Grigore Tăbăcaru” Bacău, the Regional Resource Center for Civic Education in Bacău, and the American Corner Bacău, in partnership with Transparency International Romania

Dragoș Șeuleanu, Executive Director of the Măgurele High Tech Cluster and a member of the Board of Directors of Transparency International Romania, reconnected with students from Bacău on Friday, December 6, 2024, during thematic conferences held online as part of the educational project “Transparency and Institutional Integrity.”

The explored theme, “Ethics in space economy business,” was highly engaging. Discussions focused on contextual information, such as key areas of the space economy (satellite communications, Earth observation and monitoring, space exploration and exploitation, space tourism, and advanced space technologies), the role of space agencies and private companies in this domain, space policy, and current concerns in the field of security. Students showed interest in business opportunities in the future space economy, as well as in the skills required in the geospatial field, business needs, and how these can be aligned with human resource development and workforce support strategies. Another topic of interest was the objectives of the Romanian Space Agency (ROSA), the contributions of Romanian researchers, and the involvement of the Bacău community in this field. Dragoș Șeuleanu specifically emphasized Romania's role and the significance of emerging technologies in this domain, highlighting the importance of a responsible approach that integrates innovation with moral values.

The event was attended by over 570 students and 59 teaching staff members from the following schools: National College „Ferdinand I,” National College „Vasile Alecsandri,” Economic College „Ion Ghica,” College „Mihai Eminescu,” National Catholic College „Sf. Iosif,” National Pedagogical College „Ștefan cel Mare” in Bacău, National College „Dimitrie Cantemir” and National College „Grigore Moisil” in Onești, Technical College „Dimitrie Ghika” in Comănești, and Theoretical High School „Spiru Haret” in Moinești, along with methodology experts from CCD Bacău.

The conferences are organized by Casa Corpului Didactic “Grigore Tăbăcaru” Bacău, the Regional Resource Center for Civic Education in Bacău, and the American Corner Bacău, in partnership with Transparency International Romania.