News, insights & analysis
The challenges facing our societies are complex, fast-moving and deeply interconnected. We convene our Fellows’ community online and in person, creating spaces for constructive dialogue, exchange and learning. Here, you can find individual and collective perspectives, analysis and stories from JST Fellows and partners – leaders working at the frontlines of social change across Europe, the South Caucasus and Central Asia.
From policy analysis to personal reflections and practitioner insights, this is where the JST network thinks out loud - curious, constructive and grounded in experience.
How digital technologies are transforming life in Ukraine
COVID-19 highlighted the importance of digital technologies in connecting people with each other and with essential public services.
How can mentoring change gender biases in the Kyrgyz workplace?
Women are underrepresented in careers in science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM) in many countries around the world. Kyrgyzstan is no exception, but Nazira Sheraly wants to change that.
Protecting Georgia’s forests through sustainable rural development
Forests play a vital role in regulating the world’s climate and preventing biodiversity loss. In Georgia, Nana Janashia is working with both the government and local communities to protect them.
Tech training offers hope for Tajikistan’s unemployed youth
With booming demographics in Tajikistan, few and far between job opportunities are fuelling migration and social problems. Komron Rakhmatullaev wants to change this through training young people in tech and digital skills.
Azerbaijan prison reforms begin to tackle children’s rights
Until recently, young offenders were treated in the same way as adults by Azerbaijan’s punitive judicial system. Legal reforms are gradually creating a more progressive system for offenders of all ages.
Putting sport at the centre of Russia’s health policies
Russia is experiencing a health crisis, with high levels of heart disease being one cause of a declining population. But one man is on a mission to change this, through love of fitness.
When police commit crimes, who holds them to account?
Recent killings – from George Floyd to Roman Bondarenko and many others – have highlighted global patterns of violence committed by police, shining a light on the need for greater police accountability.
Serving the public and driving change in Moldova
When Moldova’s main pro-European party won a resounding victory in parliamentary elections in July 2021, several young candidates were among those elected to become MPs from the Party of Action and Solidarity (PAS) founded by Maia Sandu. One of those elected was JST Fellow Andrian Cheptonar (Moldova, 2018), an entrepreneur, e-governance enthusiast, former civil servant and proud father of two from Ungheni region in western Moldova.
Preparing young Kazakhs for the modern workplace
As in much of the world, COVID-19 dramatically disrupted the education system in Kazakhstan, affecting young people’s opportunities and future job prospects. While many educators saw the transition to online learning as a temporary set-back, JST Fellow Diana Tsoy (Kazakhstan, 2019) has used the challenging circumstances created by the pandemic to establish a forward-looking online training resource for her country’s young population.
Reforming policy-making in criminal justice in Armenia
Armenia has been on a journey to reform its criminal justice system for the decade. Changes to the penitentiary system, and specifically the probation services, have been an important element of the reform process, as the country has taken steps towards a more effective system of rehabilitating offenders and stopping cycles of criminal behaviour.
Advancing gender equality, climate action and social justice in Ukraine and beyond
JST Fellow Lesia Vasylenko (Ukraine, 2017) has been contributing to the 13th Summit of Women Speakers of Parliament, convened by the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) in Vienna.
Championing human resource management reforms in Ukraine
Ukraine is going through unprecedented reforms to consolidate its path to a democratic, prosperous and peaceful future.