Dusan Sidjanski
Honorary Chairman of the European Cultural Centre
Special adviser to the President of the European Commission
Personal website
Founder of the Department of Political Science at the University of Geneva, Dusan Sidjanski is Professor emeritus at the Faculty of Economic and Social Sciences and at the European Institute in Geneva. From 1956, he worked in close collaboration with Denis de Rougemont at the European Cultural Centre (ECC). He is the author of works on federalism and European integration, among which Le dialogue des cultures à l’aube du XXIe siècle. Hommage à Denis de Rougemont par José Manuel Barroso (Editor in collaboration with F. Saint-Ouen), Bruxelles, Bruylant, 2007; Rôle de l'Union dans le dialogue des cultures et la participation citoyenne, Jean Monnet Conference, 2008; Jean Monnet Conferences on European culture and education, Madrid 25-26 January and Brussels 25-26 May 2010, with special emphasis on "Hands on" and "Pollen".
European cultural heritage and the role of science and mathematics
European culture includes not only religion, philosophy and arts, but also science, mathematics (see Plato) and technology. Human resources are Europe’s best asset. An introduction to science and mathematics has to take place at the early stages of child education, as conceived by the "Hands on" method (L. Lederman and G. Charpak) and spread by the European Commission's projects "Pollen" and "Fibonacci". Education in science and mathematics should always be presented as an integral part of European culture in connection with fundamental values.
Download paper: PDF (49kB)