Russian-Danish Students Conference in Copenhagen. November December 2018 - Bjørnø Irina

Russian-Danish Students Conference in Copenhagen. November December 2018

Editor Bjørnø Irina

Editor Irina Degtiareva

Editor Mikhail Kozitsin

Editor Alina Oboysheva

Created with Ridero smart publishing system

Preface

Dear friends! Here is a book of reports from the conference, which was held in November and December 2018 in the Russian Center for Science and Culture, Copenhagen, Denmark. Students were from the Institute of World Civilizations (Moscow, Russia), that participated at this conference. Their contributions and reports were devoted to current issues of modern Denmark  pension system, gender policy, corruption, environmental issues, politics and more.

The students spent a week in Denmark to see for themselves how the social, political, and economic system of this small Scandinavian country works. They were in the Danish Parliament and tried to debate with Danish politicians and in the Danish Trade Unions, as well as they visited educational institutions, particularly International School of Business, and participated in various public services institutions. They got acquainted with the Danish waste recycling system and they saw how disabled people actively participate in business structures. Students tested on practice the concept of the happiest peoples life in Denmark compared to the whole world, as well as experienced the influence of Danish constantly changeable weather!

The conference was the highest point of students visit to Denmark. The expert panel, consisting of representatives of scientific, public and educational institutions of Denmark, highly appreciated the reports presented by students.

One of the experts, Anders Muller, was surprised at the complexity of the subjects that the students had chosen for their presentations. Karl Erik Foverskov, another expert, several times noted that the differences between Russia and Denmark are great  both in economics and in historical development. He recommended next time to add a comparative analysis between Russia and Denmark in students reports.

The Expert panel of Danish students from the University of Copenhagen, Diana Madsen and Julia Samokhvalova, noted the good level of spoken English language. It was highlighted, that the group presentation of the reports was done at a high level of excellence.

Students actively answered experts questions, showing a deep understanding of the presented subjects. The best students report and presentations were appointed by Panel of Experts (see text later).

The conference ended with a practical workshop, where students tried the methods of collective decision-making, which is widely used in Denmark  both in politics and in the management system.

In general, it can be concluded, that such an educational students trip with a final conference is an important part in the system of training future specialists of an international profile in the modern conditions of world globalization.

I hope that you will enjoy reading reports of students, presented in this collection. It is good to keep in mind, that the future of every society is laying in the hands of the younger generation. They should solve the problems of building better and happier society for all mankind.

Irina Bjørnø, Ph. D, project coordinator.

Introduction

At the present stage, Russian-Danish interaction is characterized by a wide range of areas of cooperation, including high-level contacts, trade, economic and humanitarian ties.

Despite the fact that the relations between Russia and Denmark were not good-neighborly in all historical periods, at present both sides are making all possible efforts to establish strong relations, developing joint projects in various fields.

This collection of articles is based on the results of student scientific conferences held under the auspices of the Russian Cultural Mission in Denmark and the Russian Center for Science and Culture.

The first part of the collection is called Social, political and economic trends in modern Europe on the example of Denmark. The issues covered in this section are devoted to the consequences of migration and the aspects of socio-religious character related to this, current socio-economic trends in the development of the Danish society, as well as issues of self-determination of such parts of Denmark as the Faroe Islands and Greenland. The focus of this section is on a general analysis of the main spheres of society in Denmark with a view to a deeper understanding of the causes of success and/or failures of the Scandinavian model of government.

The second part of the collection is titled Theory and practice of implementing political, economic, and social projects as an opportunity for solving problems in a society: Denmark, from an individual consumption society to a society of social justice and responsibility. Within this part, the specific reasons for the success of the state model of Denmark, as well as some of its shortcomings, are considered in more detail. The students analyzed exactly how Denmark managed to move on to a model of the structure of society, in which such concepts as social responsibility and justice set the tone for the functioning of the entire state. As it turned out, the success of the Danish state system lies in almost pedantic attention to everything: from the formation of environmental literacy and the search for the most effective ways of recycling household waste to cultivating a negative attitude of society to such a phenomenon as corruption and social indifference. However, even in such a progressive society there are own drawbacks.

As was mentioned above, it is equally important for Russia and Denmark to strive to develop joint projects in the political, social and economic sphere in order to solve common problems in their societies in both the short and long term. If the model of the public-state system of Denmark has already managed to show itself as successful, Russia in this regard should pay more attention to the positive experience of its Western colleagues.

The students of the Institute of World Civilizations, who took part in a series of these conferences, gained invaluable experience not only in the analysis and writing of articles of a scientific nature, but also expanded their professional and personal horizons, immersing themselves in the culture, history and traditions of Denmark.

Part I: Social, political and economic trends in modern Europe using the example of Denmark

Copenhagen, Russian Center for Science and Culture

Opening of the conference, prof. Markarjan A.A., director of RCSC, Copenhagen

Experts comission: L. Hardonk, O. Olesen, A. Müller, moderator assoc. prof. Irina Bjørnø

Danish welfare model in a pan-European crisis

Mary Rotar, 3rd year student of the faculty of International relations and geopolitic, Institute of World Civilizations, Moscow

Abstract: This article gives the analysis of the Scandinavian model of the general welfare with a detailed review of the Danish miracle that shows that it is possible to govern a state with minimal interference in the states economy and to provide social security sector. The peculiarity of the Scandinavian model lies in its exclusiveness, because for a long time all Scandinavian countries stood apart from wars and revolutions and were least affected by their destructive impact. These countries also make the main contribution to the welfare of the state and its inhabitants, and it allows them to succeed in all spheres of human life.

Keywords: Denmark, economic crisis, policy, Europe, eurozone.

Introduction

The first stage of the global crisis, that began in 2008, is a crisis in the global economy. It made itself felt in the United States of America, when the downturn in the US economy pulled the European continent down with it. Despite the fact that a long period of time has passed, the crisis has not been completely overcome. It fully declared itself not only in the United States but also in Western Europe and practically destroyed the entire European economic system. The crisis was also fraught with the increase in the euro exchange rate in the CIS countries, with all the consequences that come with it.

However not all the countries of the European Union can improve the economic conditions. A striking example is: Spain, Greece, Germany, and other countries that depend on the European economic system. The economic crisis in the eurozone and the United States of America is the longest in the entire history of their existence. The main consequences of the economic catastrophe in the world are the impoverishing of the middle class on a global scale, complications in the situation of the unemployment in the whole world, external debts and refugees.

Different analysts explain the crisis in different ways, although they all converge on several main reasons. The Russian economist Kondratyev said: The economy has its cyclical wave drops and rises.

The basis of the crisis failures includes:

But not all the European countries had those economic problems. Some of them were like a good example of a perfect economic system.

Scandinavian model of universal welfare, transformation in the conditions of crisis

The idea of equality is not new at all. It goes back to the period of antiquity and is known from the time of Plato in his work The State. Plato in his works relied on total justice, thanks to which he extolled his state as an ideal one. His work influenced the time. As far back as in the fourth century AD, Greek society was familiar with the ideas of socialism, which Plato also reflected in his works.

The Middle Ages epoch reveals the concept of social equality in the form of communism among utopian philosophers, including Thomas More. In his idea, he creates a mysterious island  it is a utopia, where there is no private property at all, there is no personal property to hold on to, but there is only society and work, where every citizen must work together and enjoy. Families should share property with their neighbors in order to promote social equality in society, but this idea did not receive strong support.

The new rise of socialist ideas falls on the 19th century and is associated with such well-known names as K. Marx and F. Engels. Although basically Marx is the main acting figure in the development of ideas of the socialist movement, therefore he was the main influence on the minds of mankind. His vision went beyond the usual society. He believed that everything that preserves the features of the former does not give rise to communism. The theory recognizes the system of equality of labor spent, depending on how much time and effort the manufacturer has spent on manufacturing products and they are related to wages.

Time passed, but the capitalist society of philosophers did not develop, and capitalism gained momentum, although the ideas of thinkers influenced capitalism, thereby giving it development in the new direction, which included socialism and positive principles of communism ideas.

In modern Western European countries, the theory of socialism becomes an integral part of the life of the capitalist system, in which a materialistic view of things, earning money and running a business becomes impossible without respectful treatment of the population directly related to the further enrichment of resources created through the use of human labor. There was a reassessment of values: from the enslavement of an employee and a businessman by the top of capitalist society to respect for an individual who has his own needs for social support, economic stability, and ensuring the future well-being of the state.

Social guarantees provide the working class and incompetent population with a safety cushion in the world of money, where there are no guarantees and confidence in the future. Although the concept of capitalism is already implemented on a different, higher level, this is why many economically advanced powers unobtrusively demonstrate their economic miracle by example.

The formation of a special model of economic development should be in the developed world points of an economic oasis, which is distinguished by a more efficient system of managing economic and economic resources that can withstand the changes taking place in the global economy, which should result in the emergence of various models of the economy and market. One of the most successful of these models is the Scandinavian model of general welfare. On the world stage against the background of world economic confusion, the Scandinavian countries easily overcome the economic crisis. These countries are Denmark, Finland, Sweden, Norway and Iceland.

The Scandinavian countries show by their example how to manage their own resources to ensure economic stability without undue influence of politics. The key difference of the Scandinavian model is that many already call this model modern socialism, which differs significantly from the model of the 70s.

To date, the Scandinavian countries have long caught up with the United States in terms of the level and quality of life, and health care and education are considered the best in the world. With the absolute freedom of the private sector, the public sector still plays an important role and is an essential part of the Scandinavian miracle. The main feature of the transformation model is the dominant role of the state in the socio-economic activity.

The uniqueness of the Scandinavian model lies in the fact that for a long time countries stood apart from wars and revolutions, and therefore were least affected by the destructive impact. In the thirties of the last century the Social Democrats came to power in the Scandinavian countries. They set a course for a market type of economic activity, including the entire degree of protection of the population at the same time. Consequently, we can say that the Scandinavian economy is a mixed type of economy with the overwhelming role of private property and the constant participation of the state.