2026 Edition

Date and Venue

The 2026 Summer School will take place in Bolzano/Bozen (South Tyrol, Italy) from 11 – 16 May 2026.

Content and Objective

The Eurac Research Institute for Minority Rights’ Summer School, titled “Minority Rights Reloaded: Rethinking Minority Protection for the 21st Century,” aims to critically re-examine the evolving landscape of minority rights and traditional models of minority protection amidst emerging global challenges and opportunities.

These include rising geopolitical tensions and violent conflicts, the far-reaching impacts of climate change on vulnerable communities, and the transformative - yet often disruptive - effects of artificial intelligence and digital technologies. Further challenges arise from intensified migration flows, securitisation policies, and the increasing tendency to ‘other’ minority groups, which can deepen social divides. Additionally, the growing global appeal of authoritarian models poses a serious challenge to democratic traditions and legal protections for minorities.

The Summer School will address one key theme per day, each explored from multiple angles, drawing on both academic research and practical case studies. Participants will engage in in-depth discussions of these issues, analyzing their implications for minority rights frameworks, governance models, and policy tools.

The case of South Tyrol - widely regarded as a successful model of conflict resolution, minority protection and autonomy - will serve as a “living laboratory,” providing a concrete example to examine, test, and debate different approaches, challenges, and solutions in the field of minority protection.

Morning | Welcome by Eurac Research representatives

Keynote 1: Joshua Castellino: The evolution of Minority Rights

Keynote 2: Nicola Immig: The treatment of Minorities pre-WW II

Afternoon | Roundtable: Why do we need to rethink minority protection?

Participants’ Introduction and Reception at Eurac Research

Morning | Case Studies

Ukraine (Sergio Konstantin)

Latvia (Hanna Vasilevich)

Cameroon (Damian Etone)

Afternoon | Case Study South Tyrol

Conflict and Conflict Resolution (Georg Grote)

Lieux de Memoir - A walk through Bozen / Bolzano (Georg Grote)

Morning | Case Studies

Religion and Securitization (Andrea Carla)

Middle East (Lior Volinz)

Ukraine (Alexandra Budabin)

Afternoon | Languages and Minorities (Interactive Presentation by Marta Guarda / Mattia Zeba)

Student Presentations of study Subjects / Peer-led Discussions

Morning | AI (Roberta Medda and Janos Mark Szalkolczai)

Digitization (Kyriaki Topidi)

Afternoon | Environmental Justice (Francesca Rosignolli, Alexandra Tomaselli / interactive role play)

Student Presentation of Study Subjects / Peer-led Discussions

Morning | Erosion of Democracy (Umut Korkut)

Hungary (Peter Balogh)

Afternoon | Populism, Supression and the Future of Minority Protection (Nicolas Levrat)

Panel Debate / Roundtable / Discussion on new authoritarianism 

Farewell Event

(in cooperation with Eurac Reserach’s Center for Autonomy Experience)

Morning – Afternoon | Excursion (Mathias Stuflesser, Romedi Arquint)