On May 29 and 30, 2023, at the Institute of Balkan Studies and Centre of Tracology "Prof. Alexander Fol" at the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences (IBSCT-BAS), an international scholarly conference "Ethno-religious problems in the Balkans: Theory, practice and policies" was held. Partners of the event were the Cold War Center at Harvard University (USA), the Andrei Sakharov Human Rights Program at the Davis Center for Russian and Eurasian Studies at Harvard University (USA), the Ludwig Boltzmann Institute for the research on consequences of war (Austria) and Haskovo District Administration. The conference is part of the project funded by internal sources "Ethnic, religious and minority problems in the Balkans in the 20th and 21st centuries" led by Prof. Nadia Boyadzhieva, LL. D. A total of 38 established scholars, young researchers, doctoral students from Bulgarian and foreign academic institutes and universities, as well as experts from state institutions participated in the scholarly forum. The program included eight sessions in which theoretical aspects of the topic, current state of research, successful practices and policies of preserving the ethnic and religious diversity, cultural and linguistic richness of the Balkans in the context of the global processes in the region were subject of analysis and discussion.

The scholarly forum was opened by the Chairman of the Organizing Committee, Prof. Nadia Boyadzhieva, LL. D. who emphasized the importance of the research project for science, public interest and the state, and highlighted the main tasks in the work of the two-day scholarly conference.

A solemn address to the participants and guests was given by the Chairman of the Scientific Council of IBSCT-BAS, Prof. Alexandre Kostov, Dr. habil., Corresponding Member of the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, who stressed the relevance and importance of the event in the context of modern dynamic international environment in the world, in Europe and in the Balkans. Support and satisfaction with the organized academic forum was expressed in the congratulatory address on behalf of the Ombudsman of the Republic of Bulgaria, Prof. Diana Kovacheva, PhD. The Chairman of the State Agency "Archives" of the Republic of Bulgaria - Assoc. Prof. Dr. Mihail Gruev, Prof. Dr. Mark Kramer, Director of the Cold War Center at Harvard University (USA) and Prof. Dr. Peter Ruggenthaler, Deputy Director of the Ludwig Boltzmann Institute for the research on consequences of war (Austria) welcomed the participants. Congratulatory letters were sent by the Governor of Haskovo District Administration and by the Governor of the Plovdiv District Administration. Representatives of their leadership, as well as the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Bulgaria and the Ministry of Economy and Industry were among the special guests of the event.

Gratitude to the organizers of the scholarly forum was also expressed by the Deputy Ombudsman of the Republic of Bulgaria - Mrs. Elena Cherneva-Markova, who spoke about the functions and rights of the state institution in the implementation of practices and policies related to the construction of a stable civil society.

The conference was organized in a hybrid format. Prominent scholars and specialists from ten countries were involved in the discussion: Austria, Azerbaijan, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Italy, USA, Serbia, Hungary, Croatia and Montenegro. The first session moderatored by Prof. Bisser Petrov, Dr. habil. (IBSCT-BAS) was dedicated to religious and legal problems in the Balkan countries. Ethnic and religious communities in the Balkans were the subject of discussion during the second session moderated by Assist. Prof. Dimitar Dobrev, PhD (IBSCT-BAS). The third and fourth sessions moderated by Arno Vonisch, PhD (Institute of Slavic Philology of the University of Graz (Austria) and Prof. Nadia Boyadzhieva, LL. D. (IBSCT-BAS) were focused on the challenges facing multi-ethnic societies. The unresolved ethnic, religious, and minority issues of our crossroads region, provoking the stable functioning of some countries, which today many call the Western Balkans, formed the basis of the fifth session of the conference "The Short Life and Violent Breakup of Yugoslavia" moderated by Prof. Mark Kramer, PhD (Cold War Center at Harvard University, USA). The following sixth, seventh and eighth sessions were on the topic: "Religious and ethnic challenges in the Balkans" moderated by Prof. Orlin Sabev, Dr. habil. (IBSCT-BAS), "Policies, strategies and practices towards ethnic and religious groups after 1945" moderated by Assoc. Prof. Antoaneta Balcheva, PhD (IBSCT-BAS) and "The role of external actors in the Balkans" moderated by Assoc. Prof. Mariana Stamova, PhD (IBSCT-BAS).

The international interdisciplinary scholarly conference "Ethnic and religious problems in the Balkans: Theory, practice and policies" found a wide response both among the academic circles: university professors, students, doctoral students and experts on the topic, as well as among the general public. The relevance and significance of the scholarly forum was evaluated and reflected in national and regional media. Together with the established continuity in the previous interpretations of the analyzed processes and phenomena, an upgrade and modernization of the dynamically changing multifaceted issues was achieved.