The course is aimed for individuals who for professional reasons need to maintain relations with European Union and international bodies and has restricted access

The first session of the course "Action in international and European organisations" was held today. The course is organised by DIPLOCAT and the Barcelona Institute of International Studies (IBEI), in collaboration with the Catalan Government's Department of External Action and the European Union and the Public Administration School of Catalonia.

The course has 40 participants in this edition and is not open to the public and, as it is aimed exclusively for the staff of public administrations in Catalonia and of the entities that are members of DIPLOCAT. The course is especially conceived to train individuals who for professional reasons need to act or maintain relations with international bodies, representing and defending their own entities' interests competently, effectively and flexibly.

Experts in international relations and the European Union and professionals working in international institutions will explain about the functioning of international organisations, the instruments of cooperation and the decision-making process, the channels of communication, the mechanisms of influence, and the instruments of participation and dialogue. 

The course focus on practical aspects and the examination of cases of best practice as a means of understanding the way in which these international bodies behave and operate. The objective is to encourage interaction with international bodies and to strengthen trainees' ability to negotiate with such bodies and to maintain natural relations with them: how to contact them, how to influence them, how to get to know them and how to obtain the best results when working with them.

The course consists of 7 sessions, which will run until the end of November