Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world, Nelson Mandela famously said. But what happens when education is used to deepen divisions within countries and between people? Education in the Western Balkans is in need of important reforms, and we need to talk about this. We discuss what is currently happening with the …

Have we not all dreamed of owning real estate on the Croatian Riviera, or somewhere in the Bosnian wilderness? But where to start, and what are the advantages or disadvantages of looking for property in the various Western Balkan countries? Don't worry, we got you! Sanir and Sandro give you an analysis of the real estate markets in all the Western …

Everybody with some kind of relationship to the Western Balkans has encountered it: Yugonostalgia. A fascinating phenomenon found among younger and older generations of Western Balkan people, and something that has been debated often. But what does the term even mean? Do people still identify as Yugoslavs, and why do they do so? Sanir and Sandro di…

What has the US presidency done for the Western Balkan region the past 4 years? Would a re-election of Donald Trump be the best outcome for the region, of would they be better off with a Biden-led administration? The upcoming US election will have an impact all over the world, and not the least in the Western Balkans. We analyse what has happened t…

What does your path look like when you make your way from Bosnia and Herzegovina during the war, and wind up building and scaling a successful IT company in the United States 20 years later? What are the lessons learned from that process and what do you have to keep in mind when you want to do international business? Sanin Saracevic, CEO of Maestra…

A lot has been happening in Serbia over the last few weeks. Protests have made a big impact on the country, and are exposing underlying problems in the relationship between citizens and government. These problems are seen in more countries around the Western Balkans, and now it is putting Serbia at a crossroads. Sanir and Sandro discuss the recent …

Does being a woman in the Western Balkans differ fundamentally from other developed countries? What is there to say about the position of women in the region, and how has this developed over time? In this episode, we invited Marjolein Koster, a freelance journalist who often reports on the region to talk about her views on these topics and her expe…

Renewable energy is the future! Why are the Western Balkans seen as the potential battery of Europe, and why is the renewable energy sector one of the most promising sectors in the region? Sanir and Sandro talk about the current state of the sector, and all the opportunities that exist within the sector with regards to hydroelectric, wind and solar…

What are our favourite places to visit in Bosnia and Herzegovina? Why should you consider the country for your next visit in the Western Balkans? If you like active vacations or if you would like an unique culture to immerse yourself in, then look towards Bosnia and Herzegovina for your next trip! We invited Vildan Korjenić from Dit Is Bosniē (This…

How does reputation affect your relations with others? What influences reputation? What does this mean for the nations of the Western Balkans? And why is Aleksandar Vucic featured on a Chinese poster? All of these questions are answered in our sixth podcast of this season, where we dive into the dynamics and details of reputation, popularity and ho…

The world has been put under the spell of the coronavirus. Our lives have been put to a grinding halt as we are collectively fighting the virus. But what are the mid- to long-term effects awaiting us when this is all over? What will it mean for the world and society as a whole. What impact will it have on the Western Balkan region? Sanir and Sandro…

If you were to start doing business in the Western Balkans today, where would you start? A question often asked, and our hosts Sanir and Sandro take their time talking to you about all the business opportunities that exist in the region nowadays. Learn about experiences from others, about the opportunities in various industries and more relevant in…

You have probably listened to his Spotify playlist at least once: Balkan Hitovi 2020 by Armin Hamzic, the most popular Balkan Spotify playlist you can find! How did this playlist come into existence, what impact is music from the Balkans making and what will the future hold? We talk about all these questions and more as we focus in on the music ind…

Keep calm and carry on! Or isn't it business as usual this time around? While everybody is talking about Brexit and the looming goodbye of the United Kingdom, in this episode we focus on what this and other developments in the European Union means for the Western Balkans. What is the current state of things, and how will it impact future accession …

What is the tie that Sander Schimmelpenninck has with Croatia? What brings him to the region, and what keeps pulling him back time and again? To learn more about one of Sander's biggest passions, go and listen to this first episode of the second season of The Balkan Talks! Our Dutch listeners are probably familiar with the work of Sander, but for o…

In our final episode of the season we have invited a voice that is not heard (or listened to) that often. What is it like to be an expat from the Western Balkans, to work and live away from your home region? We invited Dusan Radicanin to talk about his experiences as an expat. Dusan is from Novi Sad, Serbia. He currently works at the Rabobank as a …

Making the step as a Western entrepeneur to start doing business in the Western Balkans, it is a step that Joris Aalberse has made. Joris is a Dutch CEO and investor, and together with a business partner he owns Jumbo-Groenewegen group, a company specializing in the production of truck trailers. The business owns two factories in Bosnia and Herzego…

What does it take to become a successful entrepreneur? What does it mean to be somebody who takes ownership of their own life and takes full advantage of the opportunities that exist in the world? To learn more about this, we invited AI specialist, speaker, motivator, entrepreneur and manager Amir Sabirovic, to talk with him about his life and care…

During the quiet summer months your The Balkan Talks-hosts Sanir and Sandro take the time to tell you more about the Western Balkans Business Group (WBBG), the company behind The Balkan Talks. Next to hosting The Balkan Talks, Sanir and Sandro are also the Managing Partners of WBBG, where they engage in doing business with the Western Balkans on a …

Producing a garment in Albania, transporting it to Italy, sewing on a button there and labelling it 'Made in Italy'? We talk about Albania and more with Veerle Luiting, about her experiences in the garment industry of the country and what somebody can generally expect from Albania. Veerle has a background in sustainable fashion and business develop…

Some might know him as Dino Karajic, some might know him through his online handle Mr. Slavic. In any case, Dino is an entrepreneur, IT consultant and Youtuber who has a lot of interesting stories to tell. During this episode he shares his views on how to empower, motivate and stimulate youth in the Western Balkans. We come to the conclusion that t…

If you are a EU-citizen, then soon you will have to vote again. With the upcoming EU Parliamentary elections, we speak with Andreas Zenthöfer about the EU, the elections and of course the relations of the EU with the Western Balkans region. What do the EU elections mean for the region and what can we expect in broader terms for the future of the EU…

The Western Balkan region is known for all her beautiful nature and spectacular sites worth visiting. But there is so much more potential to discover when it comes to tourism. We sit down with Julian Buijzen, a journalist currently working with NOS and L1 (news outlets in The Netherlands) to talk about this potential. Julian has developed a love fo…

During our visit to Brussels we got the opportunity to speak with Adi Cerimagic, a member of the European Stability Initiative (ESI). The ESI is an initiative that is focussed on the role of Southeastern European affairs in the European context, and Adi travels all over Europe to speak at congresses, forums and panels about his research on the West…

The launch of The Balkan Talks! What is it like to outsource your IT services and business to the Western Balkans? We have Amer Grgic on as our guest, sharing his views and experience on outsourcing in the Western Balkans region. Amer is the CTO of Tevreden.nl, a Dutch customer satisfaction research company that relies on its software application t…