Weekly discussion clubs featuring Moldovan and international personalities from a variety of fields were launched at the Chisinau School of Advanced Journalism (CSAJ).

Since 30 January, students have met with Arcadie Barbarosie, Executive Director of the Institute for Public Policy, Jerzy Celichowski, Deputy Director of the Open Society Institute Information Program “The Moldovan Blogosfera”, Eugen Roscovan, President of the Small Business Association, as well as Francis Delaey, Head of the Chisinau office of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development. Discussions focused on the social and economic outlook for Moldova in 2007, possibilities for blogging in Moldova, reform of the small business in the country, as well as the Moldova country report for transition for the year 2006. A spin-off project of the Independent Journalism Center, CSAJ provides 10-month, graduate-level, hands-on training in journalism to 20 students from different Moldovan regions.

Discussion clubs offer students an insight into major developments in Moldova, hone their interviewing skills, and develop a network of expert sources for future professional activities.

The CSAJ is a joint project of the IJC, the Missouri School of Journalism, “Press Now” from the Netherlands and the Paris-based CFPJ journalists’ training center. School activities are supported by grants from the U.S. State Department, the National Endowment for Democracy, the MATRA program of the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the British and French embassies in Chisinau, the French embassy in Bucharest, and the OSCE Mission to Moldova (IJC).