An Interview with Lidia Kolucka-Zuk
Conducted by Laila Robbins
Lidia Kolucka-Zuk has served as Executive Director for the Poland-based organization Trust for Civil Society in Central and Eastern Europe. Prior to holding this position Lidia worked as strategic advisor to the Polish Prime Minister on issues of state efficiency, reforms in the judicial and legal sectors, and the creation of digital society in Poland.
The Politic: Why did you choose to apply to serve as a Yale World Fellow?
There was a moment in my life when I thought it would be useful to take a step back from the professional career which was really very fast and intense. As Steve Jobs used to say, ‘you can work efficiently and effectively for 20 years and then you have to take a break.’ I strongly believe this is true, and especially for my generation of Eastern Europeans who started their professional life just after the fall of communism in 1989. I call this period and all that happened afterwards ‘Refolution’ – not ‘Revolution’ – because it was a combination of reforms and evolution. For the last 11 years I have been working for an institution called the Trust for Civil Society in Central Eastern Europe – the CEE Trust. I also served as a strategic advisor to the Polish Prime Minister. The CEE Trust was the largest grant-making organization in Central Eastern Europe, funded by the leading American private foundations, i.e. Ford Foundation, OSI etc. The CEE Trust mission has been completed and we closed its activity recently. I was the last Executive Director of that institution. For me personally, it was the right moment to step into something new. I wanted to prepare myself for upcoming challenges and Yale and Yale World Fellows Program in particular is a perfect place to do so.
The Politic: Why did you become strategic advisor to the Polish PM?
In my professional career I was involved in projects on state reforms concerning the state efficiency as well as redefinition of relations between citizens and public administration. The Prime Minister decided to invite a group of experts representing different areas of knowledge and different sectors – i.e. business, academia, and non-profit organizations – to provide its cabinet with expertise and to strategize its activity. The leader of the team of strategic advisors invited me to contribute to the work concentrated on developing the efficient state as well as social capital. I participated, inter alia, in the preparation of the ‘Poland 2030’ strategy for my country. The mentioned strategy outlined the developmental challenges for Poland in the coming 20 years. I think it was a remarkable chance for me to contribute to the changes in Poland as well as to enhance the quality of the public discourse.
The Politic: Was there any project especially important to you?
The strategy Poland 2030 was both the most inspiring and challenging. It was the first comprehensive strategy for Poland after 1989. Additionally, I think the way the document was consulted and discussed changed the pattern of the Polish public debate as well as its quality. I was also involved in the project concentrated on the potential changes in the Polish Constitution. After 20 years of its acceptance there is a time to enhance the constitutional dialogue.
I am really not in favor of changes in the Constitution. I think we should focus on the quality of our constitutional debate and constitutional culture, but nevertheless, any discussion that leads to a common agreement and the development of the constitutional culture is something extremely important to the country.
The Politic: How is the culture surrounding the Constitution different in Poland than it is in America?
As I mentioned already our Constitution is almost 20 years old and we are deeply missing the highly qualified discussion around it and its institutions. I am not sure that we strongly believe that the Constitution protect us. I think American citizens are more convinced that this is ‘their’ Constitution, that they have to fight for it and protect it. There is no similar feeling in Poland.
The Politic: Could you give us a sense of your daily activities?
When I served as the strategic advisor to the Prime Minister, I worked for the CEE Trust at the same time. I was still responsible for grant-making activity of the CEE Trust in 7 countries as well as its strategy at the end of the activity. It was extremely difficult to combine these challenges but we all were highly committed and motivated. I have to say that my CEE Trust team contributed enormously to the success of our institution. I should also mention that it was a huge challenge for me as a working mother. However, I treat it as a part of my own ‘mission.’ I truly believe that the fact that I participated in these two initiatives contributed also to discussion connected with women and their role in modern societies.
The Politic: Do you have a single, most important piece of advice you would like to share with Yale students?
There are two things I would like to share. Mark Twain said, ‘I will never allow school to interfere with my education,’ and I think this is very important. Look around, question everything; do not allow it to interfere.
The second thing that I would like to share is connected with the 11th commandment. As you may know there are many stories about what the 11th commandment is. My favorite story is that when Moses talked to God about the Commandments he realized God gave him 11. After reading the 11th, he asked God if he should really share it with his people – he had problems with it. God insisted that he must share all 11 Commandments with Jews. Moses took the Commandments down, but on the way, he fell down, so the part of the tablet of stone with the 11th commandment on it was demolished. So Moses presented to the Jews 10 commandments only. The 11th Commandment was, ‘Don’t be afraid,’ and I think this is very important. Don’t be afraid of asking people, questioning, and thinking freely.
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