21–23 May 2025, Warsaw, Poland

Held under the Polish Presidency of the Council of the European Union and hosted by the Lech Kaczyński National School of Public Administration (KSAP), a conference of the European Network of Directors of Schools of Public Administration (DISPA) brought together 57 participants from 27 European Union and candidate countries.

Director Handjiska-Trendafilova announced ReSPA’s proud role as hosts for the next DISPA meeting in October 2025: "It is a great honour for ReSPA to host the next DISPA meeting. We look forward to maximizing this opportunity for Montenegro, our Western Balkans members, and all participants. This event will be a pivotal moment for our region, and ReSPA is committed to ensuring a memorable experience when we convene again in October in Montenegro!"

Leaders from public administration schools and institutes across the EU and candidate countries discussed the role that public leadership plays in a resilient state and the challenges of leadership in the face of contemporary threats. The topic of crisis leadership is gaining importance in the context of contemporary threats, such as potential armed conflicts, global health crises, climate change or the growing risk of cyber-attacks. Leaders in public administration need to have the right skills to anticipate threats, respond quickly, adapt to change, make good decisions and mobilise teams for action.

Diverse and engaging meeting formats – from speeches, panels, workshop sessions or study visits – enabled participants to analyse the resilience needs of leaders, teams and organisations in the public sector, under the theme “Public Leadership for a Resilient State” focusing on: Competences of administration leaders, Innovative approaches to institutional resilience and Modern, experiential training practices