Note: On this website, which is structurally identical to its Czech version, English texts are available in a selective manner, as relevant to its English-speaking users.
- Social Sciences
2012–2016
Principal Investigator: Martin Potůček
From July 2012 to December 2016, the CESES is a partner in one of the Charles University Programmes of Development of Scientific Disciplines (PRVOUK). The goal of the Programme is to develop research in sociology, public policy, political science, international relations, area studies, media studies and journalism. - Innovating Economic Study Programs in line with the Demands of Knowledge Economy
2012–2015
Principal Investigator: Martin Potůček
Funded from the Education for Competitiveness Operational Programme, the project brings together the CESES and the Department of Public and Social Policy, Faculty of Social Sciences, Charles University in Prague, as partners of the Lead Beneficiary, the Faculty of Economics and Administration, Masaryk University in Brno (FEA MU). It aims is to advance graduate and doctoral study programmes in economic disciplines at the FEA by innovating the study standards in line with those of prestigious international economic universities and, ultimately, to better adapt students to the demands of the labour market and practice. The project envisages that domestic and international social science experts will collaborate and FEA students will obtain an excellent study environment. - Civil Security as a Part of the Security System in the Czech Republic and Poland – Theoretical Conceptualization and the Assessment of Similarities and Differences in a Broader European Context
2013-2014
Principal Investigator: Martin Potůček
The project is developed under the MOBILITY Programme of the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports of the Czech Republic. The Polish partner is Adam Mickiewicz University at Poznaň. The goal of the project is – based on comparative analysis – to conceptualize the notion of the security system, with special attention paid to the role of civil security system within it, and to establish research cooperation in the area of Public Policy between the two partner institutions. - Enhancing the Analytical, Planning and Implementation Capacities of Strategic Governance in Regions
2012–2013
Principal Investigator: Martin Potůček
The project is co-funded by the Technology Agency of the Czech Republic. It is implemented within the OMEGA Programme which supports applied social research and experimental development. Its objectives are to build a cognitive and methodological foundation for enhancing strategic governance processes at the regional level; and to identify the possibilities the Association of Regions of the Czech Republic has for initiating, shaping and coordinating those processes and for providing them with methodological guidance. The project will result in drafting a certified manual of recommended procedures and a methodology for enhancing the analytical, planning and implementation capacities of strategic governance in regions. - Income from Work after Retirement: Country Report on the Czech Republic
2012
Principal Investigator: Martin Potůček
The international project has been commissioned by the European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working Conditions (Eurofound). It focuses on work at retirement age. The CESES is working on a country report for the Czech Republic, which consists of two parts. The first part analyzes conditions for the employment of retired persons and related national policies. The second part presents cases studies analyzing the motivations for and existing practices of the employment of retired persons at the level of specific firms and organizations.
Report - Social services in the territory of the capital city of Prague: Needs assessment and analysis of supply
2011-2012
Principal Investigator: Martin Potůček
The project was commissioned by the Prague City Hall, Department of Social Care. It produces underlying evidence for the Mid?term Plan of Development of Social Services in the Territory of the Capital City of Prague. In particular, it identifies to what extent specific social services meet the needs of the target groups of social service users; confronts the needs assessment with existing supply of social services; and proposes measures for the system of social service provision in the capital city of Prague that might be implemented under the Mid?term Plan of Development of Social Services in the Territory of the Capital City of Prague. - Global Emerging Issues
2011
Principal Investigator: Martin Potůček
The project was commissioned by CENTRA Technology, Inc. (USA). Two reports were produced. We identified fifteen emerging global challenges with potential impacts on global security and quality of life, and described the methods used in selecting them and ranking them by relevance. - Visions and Strategies of the Development of Czech Society within the EU
2005–2011
Principal Investigator: Martin Potůček
The project is developed within the framework of a joint Research Intent of the Faculties of Social Sciences and Philosophy & Arts, Charles University. Its objective is to identify a set of relevant visions for modernizing the Czech Republic, to ascertain the parameters of existing potentials and moving forces for fulfilling them, and to develop possible strategies for accomplishing these visions within the Czech Republic as well as within the contexts of EU integration and global division of labour. It also aims to cultivate the conceptual and methodological framework for forecasting and policy making. - Key Threats and Opportunities in the Development of the Czech Republic until 2025
2011
Principal Investigator: Martin Potůček
The study was commissioned by the Technology Centre, Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic. It identifies, describes and justifies the most important threats and opportunities in the development of the Czech Republic over the next 15 years, i.e. until 2025. - From Practice to Theory and Back: Innovating the Master’s and Doctoral Programs in Public and Social Policy
2009–2011
Principal Investigator: Martin Potůček
The project is developed within the framework of the Operational Programme “Prague – Adaptability”. The main objective of the project is to optimize the education content of Master’s and doctoral programs in Public and Social Policy (KKOV classification codes: 67031T; 6731V016) at the Faculty of Social Sciences, Charles University in Prague, for the practical employability of graduates, by significantly improving the quality of both the content of education and educational methods. The basic instrument in fulfilling this goal lies in the transfer of demands of practice (as they are articulated by the students of the combined Master’s program) into education content and into the development of theory and methods in general (particularly in the content and outcomes of the doctoral program). - Rodinná politika na regionální a lokální úrovni (july 2010-february 2011) – Cílem řešení projektu (č. HC199/10 – MPSV) jsou možnosti tvorby a rozvoje české rodinné politiky na regionální a lokální úrovni na základě platných právních úprav, zmapování stávající situace v této oblasti v České republice, existence a rozvoj prorodinných opatření na regionální a lokální úrovni v jiných evropských zemích a možnosti inspirace pro Českou republiku, doporučení, příklady dobré praxe. Zároveň výzkum specifikuje činnost neziskových organizací pracujících ve sféře prorodinné politiky a jejich způsob a kvalitu ovlivňování regionální rodinné politiky.
- Social and Cultural Cohesion in a Differentiated Society – Research grant 1J 028/04-DP2 guaranteed by the Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs under National Research Program I: The project centers on the current situation, changes and developmental possibilities of Czech social and cultural cohesion with the aim of proposing a realistic strategy to boost cohesion on both the macro level (the State) and the mezzo and micro levels of society. More information about this project is available here.
- Civil Society and New Forms of Governance in Europe (2005-2009) (CINEFOGO) – 6th EU Framework Program Research Project. The CINEFOGO Network is concerned with the importance of improving citizens’ participation in governance. This requires new knowledge on the role of multiple identities, active citizenship and organized civil society. CINEFOGO is a consortium consisting of more than 40 universities and research institutes, and a number of public service institutions in 15 European countries. In addition, Harvard University from the U.S.A. participates. The Network includes about 100 individual researchers. The CINEFOGO’s mission is to generate and spread knowledge on the evolution of citizenship and multiple identities in Europe, and addressing civic apathy and social exclusion in Europe.
- Joint teaching program of Charles University and the University of California at Berkeley “Society and Mental Health Policy Research Training Program”: provides for long-term post-doctoral sojourns at the University of California at Berkeley to outstanding Czech doctoral graduates in social sciences or medicine.
- Research project “Quality of Life in the European Union and the Candidate Countries”: expert collaboration in researching the quality of life and the level of social and health services in the EU Candidate Countries organized by Wissenschaftszentrum für Sozialforschung Berlin (Germany) and funded by the European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working Conditions.
- Research grant GA ČR č. 403/03/0109 Systematic Development of the Methodology of Forecasting, 2003-2005 – systematic monitoring, experimental verification, development and evaluation of internationally applied forecasting methods and procedures: Development of new methods and their inclusion in the comprehensive system of the forecasting methodology and practice of researching the future development of the Czech Republic. The main outputs of this project are the Manual of Forecasting Methods and the holding of two international working conferences under the keynote: The Prague Workshop on Futures Studies Methodology.
- Dynamics of Transformation of the Czech Social Protection System in the Context of Globalization and European Integration: A European Union project funded under the COST A15 Project – Reforming Social Protection Systems in Europe: Comparing dynamics of construction: The main purpose of the project was to expand knowledge on the reforms of the social protection systems in Europe in the context of globalization and European integration. The main output of the project is CESES Paper 7/2004, Czech State of Public Social Services: Changing environment, changing institutions.
- Research on behalf of the Ministry of Education, Youth Affairs and Physical Education: “Mechanisms of Social Cohesion, Stratification and the Role of the Welfare State”, 2003: Solving the mechanisms (inter-mediators) of functional strengthening of social cohesion and its possible uses – an institutional framework of public and social policies.
- Millennium Development Goals Report on the Czech Republic: coordination of the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) on the national level: This report was conceived as part of a regional report comprising the Czech Republic along with Hungary, Slovakia and Slovenia as well as a regional comparison. These reports are but the first step to invite public interest in the MDGs for these countries. All these reports can be downloaded from the project websites.
- Human Development Report: Czech Republic 2003 – UNDP coordination on national level: This report follows its countless predecessors presented by various Czech research institutions and teams over the past years. Logically, our paper builds upon all these inputs. However, in compliance with our given assignment, we have tried not to replicate the diction of any of them. In addition to adding thematic inputs into, and bringing up to date, the previous analyses, we have conceived an overall wording so as to identify the key problems of human development in the Czech Republic and formulate priorities and solutions through coordinated public activities. The report can be downloaded in Czech and English.