ICDG faculty have worked in Croatia for almost eleven years. The primary focus of the work has been to build an outreach capacity at the University of Zagreb to carry out activities in Croatia similar to those conducted through the outreach programs at the University of Georgia, primarily modeled on activities offered through the Carl Vinson Institute of Government. This cooperation has resulted in the University of Zagreb rewriting their statues to incorporate outreach activities into the overall mission of the university—the first university in Europe to do so. In addition, the University of Zagreb, with ICDG’s assistance, will create a Centre for Sustainable Development at Mrzlo Polje, a small village approximately 30 miles from Zagreb. This center will provide outreach activities and programs and will serve as a model for university-based outreach activities for the entire region of south-central Europe.

The Association Liaison Office for University Cooperation in Development, through a United State Agency for International Development (USAID) award, has twice supported ICDG’s work in Croatia, providing a total investment of $185,000. Significant outcomes of the collaborative work between the University of Georgia and the University of Zagreb include the creation of a model of higher education at the latter institution that transfers the relevant and appropriate technology of the University of Georgia’s land-grant model of public service and outreach to Croatia’s citizens, civic society, governments, and businesses. This outcome now positions the University of Zagreb to become a major catalyst for improving quality of life and sustainable economic development.

In addition, ICDG has worked closely with the Ivo Pilar Institute for Social Sciences, the leading social science research institute in Croatia, to establish governmental training programs.

ICDG also has worked with World Learning, a nonprofit international development agency, to conduct trainings for Croatian mayors from the war-impacted regions along the Bosnian border. Conducted in 2004, this training provided 14 mayors with information about how to build multisector partnerships for effective local economic development.

ICDG has ongoing work with the International Centre for Anthropology Motovun—a nongovernmental organization out of Rijeka, Croatia—on rural development activities in the Zumberak and Gorski Kotar regions of Croatia. The aim of the program, supported by a grant for the Association Liaison Office/USAID, is to build the capacity for community economic development among local governments in Croatia by employing rural development strategies while focusing on three elements of a vibrant civic society: businesses, government, and nonprofit sectors. ICDG has hosted five mayors from these two Croatian regions at the University of Georgia to allow them to see how local government supports economic development in Georgia.

In 2005, Lawrence V. Phillips, MD, and his wife, Sara Mae, donated $500,000 to ICDG to support its work in Croatia. This donation, set up as an endowment, will be used to support ICDG’s continued work in Croatia and especially will support innovative programs that look at the linkage between governance and public health policy. As a result of this donation, the University of Georgia established the UGA-Croatia Partnership fund under the direction of Professor Rusty Brooks to use the proceeds of the endowment to expand ICDG’s work in Croatia. Dr. and Mrs. Phillips traveled with ICDG faculty to Croatia in 2006 to see firsthand the work that ICDG had been doing. As a result of March 2006 trip, they have continued their support of ICDG work in Croatia with additional donations.

ICDG also has created a Croatia Study Abroad program at the University of Georgia. In 2006, 21 students went to Croatia in the second ICDG-led study abroad there. Students experienced the tangible and intangible cultural elements that help shape who Croatians are and where they see themselves in historical and contemporary contexts of Europe. Subject matters included politics, history, and elements of culture that define Croatian society, including language, literature, art, music, and architecture. Students also examined how Croatians are preserving and using their heritage. The program provided an opportunity for students to learn firsthand about Croatia’s transition to democracy and renewed sense of identity. Students had the opportunity to talk directly with Croatian faculty, nonprofit leaders, and citizens from different walks of life, allowing them to see and experience these individuals’ lives during a time of transition and social stress. The 2007 study abroad program will focus on nationalism and ethnic conflict, culture and national identity, the conservation and interpretation of tangible and intangible cultural heritage, and public health as a societal issue in Croatia.

[Outreach Magazine coverage of the Croatia program, Winter 2007]

[Photos from the Croatia program]