Welcome to Neighbourhood Dialogues
Neighbourhood Dialogues 2026
This year, the event will take place in Budapest from May 7 to 9. It is our collective responsibility to examine Europe’s most pressing challenges — and what better location for this than the vibrant Hungarian capital, Budapest?
The conference explores the implications of the “four concentric circles” model, which envisions a far-reaching transformation of the European Union’s institutional framework in the name of efficiency. At the same time, the discussions highlight that while institutional efficiency is essential, the EU’s legitimacy ultimately stems from the consensus of its national democracies rather than directives from Brussels as the strongest “capital”.
Given the historic scale of these debates, the conference brings together international students and young professionals from diverse disciplines to examine how institutional change may reshape the Europe in which their generation will live. Through dynamic panel discussions on Competitiveness, Security and Defence Policy, and Geopolitics: Europe’s Position Among Global Powers, participants will engage in a lively exchange of ideas on how to balance deeper integration with national sovereignty and democratic legitimacy.
The event is organised by Mathias Corvinus Collegium (MCC), an interdisciplinary institute in Hungary that offers extracurricular education and self-training opportunities for students coming from various universities. MCC has more than twenty years of experience in talent management with the main goal of raising a critical-thinking intelligentsia with a deep sense of responsibility. In light of this, organising international, interdisciplinary, future-oriented programmes is a main goal of MCC.
MCC forms a community that can influence and shape both its immediate environment and the future of the country in a progressive and responsible way being loyal to its motto:
„Our mission is to build a community of future leaders.”