Policy Voices | Personal stories of the Western Balkans' brain drain

What do we talk about when we talk about brain drain? What actually makes a highly skilled person choose to move away from their country? What makes them decide to never go back? 

Brain drain has been one of the most hotly debated issues when it comes to the future of the Western Balkans. In this episode, we start exploring the personal experiences and choices, as well as the systemic obstacles that influence the decision to emigrate. 

Host Sabina Șancu is joined by Tijana Tamburic, who co-founded the creative agency Female Narratives. She runs that from London, having moved to the UK as a child because of the impact the ’90s wars had on her home country of Serbia and her parents’ opportunities there. 

Our other guest is Armin Čerkez, the founder of the NGO Youth Power. After working for years to make a change in his home country of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Armin decided to move to Berlin in search of an easier life, one more suited to his personal priorities. 

Both Tijana and Armin are part of our European Young Leaders (#EYL40) programme, a group of people from all across Europe who fight for change in their own countries, cities and communities. EYLs play an essential role in reconnecting people with and rebuilding trust in politics by engaging a wider community around key policy issues.