LDSA is the seat of the International Scientific Association “DemoBalk”, which aims at investigating recent demographic developments and their impact on the Balkan countries.

Participation in International Networks

• Creation (1998-2008) and coordination of DemoBalk network (www.demobalk.org)

• Participation in the European network OPPA (Network for the implementation of an Outil Prospectif pour les Personnes Agees, 2000- 2001)

• Participation in the European Observatory for Education and Information about population issues (Observatoire Européen pour l'Education et l'Information sur les Questions de Population, 1998 -2002).

• Participation in the European Network TIES (The Integration of the European Second Generation)

• Participation in the informal network of researchers from Spain, Italy, Portugal and France for the investigation of consequences of economic crisis for demographic components (2016->)

LDSA collaborates with some European demographic research centers and often invites researchers from these centers to give lectures and participate in seminars that take place in the Dept. of Planning and Regional Development (School of Engineering, University of Thessaly). In parallel, it aims at setting up Inter-Balkan collaboration in its activity fields by inviting, in recent years, scientists from Balkans countries to give lectures and exchange ideas with them.

Academic and Research Collaboration

LDSA invites Greek and foreign scientists to give lectures and seminars. The seminars are almost exclusively organized for its members, while the lectures are addressed to a broader public (undergraduate and post-graduate students and doctoral candidates) and are usually carried out in the context of the courses taught by the academic staff of LDSA. Thus, for the last decade, more than 25 scientists have been invited to take part in all those activities, and, at the same time, within the framework of LDSA’s collaboration with European research centers and higher education institutions, academic staff and researchers coming from countries from South and South-eastern Europe (Italy, France, Belgium, Bulgaria, Rumania, Yugoslavia, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Serbia-Montenegro, and Albania) have been hosted for periods ranging from two weeks to three months.

LDSA also hosts academic staff and researchers from Greek and foreign universities in the context of their sabbatical as well as students from other European countries doing their traineeship or working on their post-graduate or doctoral thesis.