Suchergebnisse

Examines 3 main areas in which historical analysis makes a fundamental contribution to policy-making. Provides a series of recommendations for improving co-operation between historical researchers and the policy-making community. (Original abstract - amended)

WHEN WE HAVE SAID THAT THE EDITOR IS IN FULL CONTROL OF editorial policy, we have really said everything, and all the answers are only slight variations on that theme. Naturally, he has his assistant editors; naturally there is full discussion; naturally the circulation departments are usually informed in advance of big editorial developments; but the Editor is in charge of policy.

The Center for Research and Policy Making from Skopje compiled this report for the University of Fribourg as a part of the Regional Research Promotion Program in the Western Balkans (RRPP), supported by the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC). The report offers a review and critical analysis of the policies and decision making related to research work, institutions conducting and supporting social science research and gives an overview of the status of the research activity at the national level. On the basis of the assessment conducted, recommendations for overcoming the detected systemic deficiencies and improving the status of the social science research are offered.

Three main areas in which historical analysis makes a fundamental contribution to policy making are examined: (1) As specialists of the past, historians contribute to the definition & protection of a nation's collective memory &, by the same token, question & reinterpret it where historical fact or analysis constitutes the source of specific contemporary problems. (2) By contributing their detailed knowledge of historical context, historians may deepen understanding of current issues by placing them in their broader temporal context, thereby providing a basis for comparison with past situations that may enlarge the range of policy options considered, as well as assess the real outcomes of past policy choices &, based on past experience, predict possible future issues of concern. (3) In tracing the processes of decison making & the role of individuals & institutions in the policy process itself, historians raise awareness of the causes & consequences of current policy choices; in so doing, they contribute to a more rational approach to policy making. Recommendations are made for improving cooperation between historical researchers & the policy-making community. 1 Photograph, 40 References. Adapted from the source document.