How to successfully tackle a problem of “Brain Drain”
Promotion of the results and findings of the research TRP 2019 “Brain circulation”
You’ve probably already heard of the term “brain drain”. It could be said that this is a loss of human capital for the country of origin, when an individual who could contribute to the development and well-being of the country of origin, leaves to follow new opportunities. They usually choose globally the most developed and successful countries, which are also well-supplied with highly educated and qualified personnel.
Most likely, in such moments, questions arise as to why this is happening and how we could close this circle so that young intellectuals, who leave the country with a desire for new challenges and experiences, come back with satisfaction and a feeling of acceptance, returning with fresh ideas.
The current situation in Slovenia is far from perfect. To explain this with a number, between 8 and 10 thousand people emigrate annually, in other words – more people emigrate every year than the entire Slovenian army counts. Data that clearly shows this situation is that with approximately 20 thousand newborns per year, Slovenia loses an entire generation every 2 to 3 years.
We better believe that in the future the economically strongest countries will not resist the influx of highly qualified experts, top scientists and entrepreneurs. Changes will only happen if the countries of origin stand up for it. In fact, the only option for countries of origin is an active policy of connecting and involving professionally working scientists and experts abroad in solving domestic development issues – this policy is called brain circulation.
Improving the situation and promoting the transformation of brain drain into brain circulation cannot be solely in the hands of one government office or organization. The activities of other civil organizations are of key importance – in Slovenia such organizations are Slovenska izseljenska matica, Svetovni slovenski kongres, Izseljensko društvo Slovenija v svetu, Rafaelova družba and more recent organizations The Association of Slovenes Educated Abroad (Društvo VTIS) and the American-Slovenian Educational Foundation (ASEF). They have developed various programs that can be understood as steps towards the concept of brain circulation.
If we have sparked your interest and you would like more insight into the problem of brain drain and the ways in which we can turn it into brain circulation, follow us, as in the next months we will share with you even more findings from our research project.
Mentioned findings were obtained within the framework of the TRP project “Brain Circulation,” which was carried out between November 1, 2019, and October 10, 2021. The project is partly financed by the Slovenian Research Agency (ARRS) and the Slovenian Ministry of Education, Science and Sport (MIZŠ). Participating research organizations were the ASEF Institute for Education and Research (ASEF) and the Research Center of the Slovenian Academy of Sciences and Arts, Slovenian Migration Institute (ZRC SAZU SMI), with Dr. Dejan Valentinčič as the project leader.