Soroptimist Balkan Leadership Academy

ST-ART LEADERSHIP ACADEMY

Soroptimist Balkan Leadership Academy (SBLA)

Edition - 2026:

September 6 to 12, 2026, Magurele, Romania

The “ST-ART Leadership Academy” is the second edition of an Academy for Leadership in the Balkan region, after the successful SBLA meeting organized in 2025 in Tipchenitza (Bulgaria). ST-ART, used as an abbreviation, comes from STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) and ARTs, and conveys our main aim of approaching the two scientific and humanities cultures as bedrock for a successful leadership. The activities organized within the Academy will highlight how science, technology and arts contribute essentially to successful leadership.

ST-ART will run from September 6 to 12, 2026, in Măgurele, a town situated in the southern part of Romania (16km from Bucharest) and renowned as the „City of Sciences”, the place where nine important Romanian R&D Institutes have their headquarters.

The activities will be hosted by an important institution located in Magurele, the International Center for Advanced Training and Research in Physics (CIFRA), the only UNESCO category II center in Romania and the Balkan region, dedicated to fundamental sciences.

The SI Union from Romania, as main organizer of the SBLA, will cooperate with the SI Unions from Bulgaria, Greece and Turkey.

The event will be held under the patronage of the National Commission of Romania for UNESCO.

The partners that will contribute to achieving ST-ART's objectives from the point of view of SCIENCE will be:

1. The National Institute for Research and Development for Materials Physics (INFIM) that is also the holder of the Romanian UNESCO chair on STEM,
2. Horia Hulubei National Institute for R&D in Physics and Nuclear Engineering with its structure Extreme Light Infrastructure - Nuclear Physics (ELI-NP), the most powerful laser system in the world
3. The University of Bucharest, with its Faculty of Physics located in Magurele
4. The Association of Women in Science, Engineering and Technology(AFIST).
5. The National University of Theatre and Film "IL Caragiale" in Bucharest (UNATC)
6. invitees from ARTEXIM and ArtSafari.

A total of 24-26 participants will be selected by the organizing Soroptimist Unions and other Unions and Clubs across Europe. The selected candidates will have the commitment to pay a fee of 100€.

The participants in the training must:

1. Be non-Soroptimists, with no direct family ties to Soroptimist members
2. Be fluent in English
3. Be aged between 22 and 35
4. Be in their final year of university, employed, or unemployed
5. Attend the preparatory online meeting
6. Commit to full participation in the Academy
7. Participate in the nine-month mentoring program

The selection will be made by analyzing the online application that includes CV, motivation letter, and illustration of leadership potential.

The program will include:

1. Training activities, that will be held in English , hosted by CIFRA and partner institutions as the Romanian Commission for UNESCO, the National University of Theatre and Film „I. L. Caragiale”, Bucharest.
2. Visits at ELI-NP and cultural institutions
3. Sightseeing Bucharest with a visit at the People House, the Headquarters of the Romanian Parliament.
4. Entertainment and interpersonal knowledge activities every evening (one hour about my country).
5. A half-day trip to Targoviste.

For more details, please contact us at the email address office.usir@gmail.com