Nino Kalandadze, Founder and Executive Director of the Chavchavadze Center, took part in the 13th Freedom Games (Igrzyska Wolności) in Łódź, Poland, held on October 23-25. One of Europe’s largest forums of ideas, the festival was organized by the Liberté! Foundation and held at the EC1 cultural complex. This year’s theme was “Tech for Humanity,” with the main focus on the impact of technological development on society and on protecting human rights and freedoms in the digital world.

Polish Foreign Minister Radosław Sikorski, Anne Applebaum and others also took part in the event.

In panel discussions, Kalandadze spoke about the challenges facing Georgia and the region, including ways to prevent the “Georgian scenario.” She discussed how European and regional states can avoid authoritarian tendencies and state capture, which Georgia now faces. She also addressed the challenges confronting the NGO sector and independent institutions in Central and Eastern Europe: restrictions, deliberate discrediting campaigns, and the effect of Russian-style “foreign agents” legislation on a country’s European integration.

Kalandadze stressed the importance, in the current context, of uniting the international community, think tanks and civil society organizations around democratic values. country’s European integration.

Kalandadze also stressed that the international community, think tanks and civil society organizations must consolidate around democratic values.