3–5 November 2026, Strasbourg (France) & Kehl (Germany)

How can public leaders make sound decisions when events move faster than certainty? This question was at the heart of the second module of the ReSPA Leadership Academy, “Leadership: Embodying, Inspiring, and Mobilizing”, dedicated to Decision-Making in Crisis Situations.

Hosted at the Institut national du service public (INSP) in Strasbourg on 3-4 November, the programme combined strategic crisis-management foundations with hands-on simulations. Guided by experts Clément Judek and Alexandra Le Meliner, participants practised organising crisis cells, assessing impacts, delivering situation briefings, managing difficult trade-offs and preparing for recovery. A visit to the European Parliament added a valuable European institutional perspective.

On 5 November, learning continued at Hochschule Kehl (University of Applied Sciences), Germany, where Dr. Osman Bayraktar and Prof. Dr. Jürgen Kegelmann introduced practice-based professional education and facilitated a forward-looking exchange on the skills public administration leaders will need by 2030.

“True leadership is not the absence of uncertainty. It is the ability to turn uncertainty into purposeful decisions, shared trust, and action that serves people.” - Jelena Mrdak, ReSPA Director a.i.

ReSPA extends its sincere appreciation to INSP, the trainers Clément Judek and Alexandra Le Meliner, and Paul Halluin for his dedicated support in organising this learning journey, as well as Dr Osman Bayraktar and Prof. Dr Jürgen Kegelmann for the warm welcome and valuable insights in Kehl.

The Academy is delivered with the support of the 𝐁𝐑𝐈𝐃𝐆𝐄 𝐭𝐨 𝐄𝐔 – 𝐅𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐞 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐆𝐨𝐨𝐝 𝐆𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐧𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐞 𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐖𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐧 𝐁𝐚𝐥𝐤𝐚𝐧𝐬, funded by the French Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs, and co-funded by the European Union. Special recognition goes to Caroline Socie for her tremendous coordination efforts, and to every participant and colleague helping turn shared learning into stronger, more resilient public institutions.