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This introduction from Andrea Óhidy and Katalin R. Forray provides a brief overview of the social and educational situation of Roma in the Western Balkan region and the structure of this book. Like in the books Lifelong Learning and the Roma Minority in Central and Eastern Europe (2019) and Lifelong Learning and the Roma Minority in Western and Southern Europe (2020), Roma are here described as a ‘hidden minority’ (Cavioni, 2020, p. 68), because despite the great number and the century-long history of Roma people on the European continent, there is still only limited information and knowledge about them, both in public awareness and scientific research. Although most members of the Roma minority have been living for centuries in their European home countries, their situation is still different from the non-Roma populations: They often suffer from socio-economic disadvantages and hate-motivated harassment and discrimination (EU-FRA, 2020a). This is not only the case in the member-states of the European Union but also in the Western Balkan region. All across Europe, there are Roma groups, which are considered to be the most disadvantaged minority, regarding their health, employment and housing and also in education. To increase their situation, European Union member states have developed common strategies, which play a part in negotiations for an EU-membership status. The so-called Western Balkan states – Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, Montenegro, North Macedonia and Serbia – might join the European Union in the coming years. The social inclusion of the Roma minority and the protection of their minority rights in these countries were formulated as a precondition for their application for EU membership. Therefore, several goals, policies and measures were implemented there to break the ‘vicious circle of poverty and discrimination’ (EU-FRA, 2020b). Participation in education and lifelong learning have become central elements of these political measures for Roma Inclusion. This book examines the education situation of Roma across the so-called Western Balkan region.

This introduction from Andrea Óhidy and Katalin R. Forray provides a brief overview of the social and education situation of European Roma and also about the structure of this book. Roma are here described as a ‘hidden minority’ (see the country study about Italy from Valeria Cavioni), because – although they are the largest minority group living in Europe for more than a hundred years – we still know very little about them. Although most of the Roma people have been living for centuries in European countries, their situation is still different from the non-Roma population; they often suffered from poverty and exclusion. There is a host of Roma, especially in Southern and in Eastern Europe, who is considered to be the most disadvantaged group in European societies, for example, regarding their (1) health situation, (2) on the labour and (3) on the housing market and (4) also in education. Questions of education are the central elements of politics making the situation of Roma better. To fulfil these requirements some European countries have taken determined steps. As Natascha Hofmann in the country study about Germany wrote, we are in the phase of the ‘dawn of learning’ because there are more and more policies and programs to develop attainment and success of Roma in European education and lifelong learning. This book gives an overview about retrospective and prospective tendencies in the situation of European Roma in education and lifelong learning.

This introduction from Katalin R. Forray and Andrea Óhidy provides a brief overview of the social and education situation of European Roma and also about the structure of this book.

Roma are here described as a ‘hidden minority’ (see the country study about Italy from Valeria Cavioni in the book Lifelong Learning and the Roma Minority in Western and Southern Europe (2019)), because – although they are the largest minority group living in Europe for more than a hundred years – we still know very little about them. Although most of the Roma people have been living for centuries in European countries, their situation is still different from the non-Roma population; they often suffered from poverty and exclusion. There is a host of Roma, especially in Southern and in Eastern Europe, who is considered to be the most disadvantaged group in European societies; that is, regarding their (1) health situation, (2) on the labour, (3) on the housing market and (4) also in education. Questions of education are the central elements of politics making the situation of Roma better. To fulfil these requirements, some European countries have taken determined steps. As Natascha Hofmann in the country study about Germany wrote in the book Lifelong Learning and the Roma Minority in Western and Southern Europe (2019), we are in the phase of the ‘dawn of learning’ because there are more and more policies and programmes to develop attainment and success of Roma in European education and lifelong learning. This book wants to change this and gives an overview about retrospective and prospective tendencies in the situation of European Roma in education and lifelong learning.

What has happened, after 50 years of persistent (deepening, expanding) European integration, to the domestic politics of the nation states involved in this increasingly dense institutional net (whatever its ambiguous nature, inter-governmental or supra-national or both at the same time) is a question of growing importance. This environment, within which the politics of European nation states takes place, has undoubtedly gained a growing importance in itself and a stronger relevance for crucial aspects of domestic political life. More precisely, it must be asked what has been altered in the traditional “setting” within which domestic politics used to develop, how domestic political actors bring into their political calculations the new conditions and how they are affected by them.

The chapter analyzes tendencies and initiatives regarding entrepreneurship development and support at European Union and Romanian levels, and also the role and importance of education by investigating the existence of specific training courses for entrepreneurs and guiding successors from family-owned technology-based businesses. The purpose of the analysis is to determine the tendency to involve graduate students in entrepreneurial field and to provide solutions to streamline entrepreneurship education and educational institutions.

The chapter focuses on the difficulties faced by the Romanian family-owned and technology-based businesses (in general) and small businesses in particular – the aim of this chapter is to reveal that – while [technology] entrepreneurship and small business management are topics fairly well covered by the engineering curricula of the Romanian technical universities – the problem of business succession (either property or management succession) is not discussed; therefore, there is no wonder that entrepreneurs are not prepared to make the related decisions; even worse, they are not aware of the capital importance of planning the succession process well in advance, and – as result – their decisions in this regard are precarious.

Conclusions can be useful to engineering professors, university managers and policymakers as well as young people who want to pursue an entrepreneurial path or are about to take over the management of the family business; they should realize that entrepreneurship is not just starting-up a business, but it involves a way of strategic thinking which leads to attitude formation and development of useful skills in the field of business development and management.

The rebirth of populist agenda echoes at the end of the 20th century and beginning of the 21st century is the birth of populist unrest in democratic and in authoritarian regimes alike – in Europe, the Middle East, America, Africa, Latin America, and Asia. Regardless of many faces and appeals to diverse constituencies, as well as clearly established trends, a current escalation in the rapid and widespread development of populist insurgency is an outcome of two factors. One is the weakness of representative politics and the party system in many states across the globe. The other is the global economic recession or crisis that has led to an increase in economic disparity between social classes and impoverishment of the poorer and middle social strata combined with the establishment of global economic, multinational giants.

In this chapter, Andrea Óhidy discusses some pivotal issues of the book. Firstly, she shows the common challenges for current and future EU-member states to increase the participation and success of Roma people in education and lifelong learning. Then she discusses policy strategies and measures for Roma Inclusion in the Western Balkan states Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, Montenegro and Serbia. They try to improve the social situation of Roma people but also to promote minority languages and cultures. She found the main cause of the similarities concerning the strategies and concrete projects for possible solutions in the adaptation of the EU Roma inclusion policy in the Western Balkan states as part of their negotiations for EU membership. She considers the implementation of these policy measures and also the educational attainment and success of Roma in the Western Balkans unsatisfactory.

In this chapter, the author provides an overview of some central issues of the book. First she shows the similarities in the challenges to increase the participation and success of Roma people in education and lifelong learning in the selected European countries; then she discusses their policies and support programmes, which on the one hand try to improve the social situation of the Roma while promoting minority language and culture on the other hand. The author finds the reason for their similarities regarding the wording, defining and communicating and also concerning the main ideas and concrete projects for possible solutions, in the Roma inclusion policy of the European Union in the frame of the Open Method of Coordination, which has been introduced within the Lisbon Strategy, linked to the idea of lifelong learning. She considers the realisation of these policy measures at national, regional and local levels to have shown only unsatisfactory results until now.

In this chapter, Andrea Óhidy provides an overview of some central issues of the book. First, she shows the similarities in the challenges to increase the participation and success of Roma people in education and lifelong learning in the selected European countries; then, she discusses their policies and support programmes, which, on the one hand, try to improve the social situation of the Roma while promoting minority language and culture, on the other hand. She finds the reason for their similarities regarding the wording, defining and communicating and also concerning the main ideas and concrete projects for possible solutions, in the Roma inclusion policy of the European Union in the frame of the Open Method of Coordination, which has been introduced within the Lisbon Strategy, linked to the idea of lifelong learning. She considers the realisation of these policy measures at national, regional and local levels to have shown only unsatisfactory results until now.

This chapter analyses the emergency policy responses that the European Union made during the summer of 2015 to manage the significant numbers of migrants entering Europe. The chapter employs Broadbent’s (1998) ideas of ‘accounting logic’ to analyse these policy actions. The chapter argues that there are multiple and complex reasons why people migrate, and why in this instance people are prepared to risk their lives by taking perilous journeys. An ‘accounting logic’ leads to decisions being based mainly on financial inputs and expected outputs rather than on the social and humanitarian needs of migrants and refugees. Despite the significant amount of resources provided by the European Union, the crisis continues. The risks associated with employing an accounting logic are that it may preclude a full understanding of situations by silencing other values and logics.