Our Projects
Tertiary Education
University education is crucial not only for creating a growing economy but also for providing upward mobility. Currently, Greek universities underperform compared to other European institutions. In addition, there is a big disconnect between what degree programs are offered and the needs of the market, leading to high levels of unemployment among graduates. In parallel, Greece finds itself in the unique spot of holding a constitutional ban against privately held universities. Policy reforms are required on many fronts. Deon Policy Institute has identified three areas of focus:
(1) Improving the performance of public universities,
(2) Better linking universities with the market, and
(3) Supporting the establishment of non-public universities.
Beyond these three core priorities, there also exists an opportunity to position Greece as a regional player for higher education in the Southern Mediterranean, by expanding the availability of English-speaking programs
EXECUTED
Repatriating Greek Academic Talent
During the financial crisis, Greece experienced a mass exodus of talent: 500,000 people left after 2010, the majority of which hold higher education degrees. Now, Greece needs to repatriate its lost talent, particularly those holding positions in academia to propel the country’s growth on the basis of a knowledge economy.
In our proposal we outline three ways to reverse brain drain for Greece’s Higher Education:
Visiting professors: Offer visiting professor appointments for 6 months up to 3 years, working remotely or having a physical presence at the campus.
Early-career faculty positions: Establish a short-term professor position (3-5 years) for early-career scientists, with the prospect of becoming an independent investigator in Greek academia.
Hiring the best: For the long-term, establish named academic chairs, with competitive compensation and start-up funding. For the short-term, named chairs should be established in academic areas with major gaps.
The higher education law, which was passed in July 2022, introduced the institution of “Visiting Professor”.
EXECUTED
Attracting Top-Tier Researchers
According to the European Commission, Greece is considered a “widening country” in research and development (R&D), meaning that the country’s performance in that field lags behind the average of the European Union. However, many top-tier research scientists are picking Greece as their location for new research projects.
For example, in the 2022 ERA (European Research Area) Chair Program, funded by the European Commission, Greece secured €17.5mn out of €80mn distributed ranking first in the European Union. Seven scientists secured €2.5mn each to conduct research in cooperation with a research institute or university in Greece. However, the current legal framework does not cover their needs as set forth by the European Commission.
Deon Policy Institute conducted field research to better understand the needs of these scientists and submitted a proposal to expand the rights of joint chairs. The latest education law, which was passed in March 2024, incorporated Deon’s recommendations.
IN PROGRESS
Licensing Agreements for Technology Transfer
The country’s research ecosystem (in universities and research institutes) is not well connected with industry, and as a result very few inventions are commercialized each year.
To address this challenge, as part of a broader education sector reform, the country revamped its technology transfer offices within Greek universities and research centers. However, in practice, given that these initiatives are new, they lack the proper tools to effectively transfer knowledge from research into commercial entities.
Deon Policy Institute is developing a guidebook to support Greek universities as they grow the impact of their technology transfer office. More specifically, learning from best practices of universities like MIT, Harvard and Stanford, who effectively commercialize their research, Deon is identifying the elements that need to be incorporated in each technology transfer agreement as well as preparing other recommendations for the efficient and productive function of the technology transfer offices in Greece.
PLANNED
Survey: Repatriating Greek Professors
The Greek administration has announced its plans to introduce non-public universities. One of the key open questions is: Who will teach at these institutions? Deon Policy Institute is planning on running a survey on Greek professors living, teaching and conducting research abroad to understand their willingness to return and the criteria upon which they would repatriate.
PLANNED
Strategic Hiring for University Professors
Public Greek universities are currently facing difficulties in attracting top-tier teaching talent from around the world. Greece can mimic the example of the University of Cyprus and set up strategic position hiring. This would mean that new position openings will be allocated to the departments that showcase that they are able to attract top talent from around the world.
Entrepreneurship
Greece currently ranks as one of the least productive economies in the European Union, with one of the highest rates of micro-enterprises (less than 5 employees). In parallel, some of the largest sectors of the economy are low value-add (like agriculture and tourism). In order to maintain high levels of economic growth, Greece needs to redefine its relationship with entrepreneurship. Over the past decade, the sector has grown significantly with investments growing by more than 10x and the first unicorns (companies valued at greater than $1Bn) making an appearance. Yet, in order for the growth to continue the country needs to:
(1) Improve entrepreneurship education and perception
(2) Spur more innovation in universities, research centers and the private sector, and to
(3) Attract more top-tier talent
In parallel, the countries needs to be exploring opportunities to become a regional entrepreneurship hub, taking advantage of its high quality of life, membership in the European Union, and strategic geopolitical location.
EXECUTED
Introducing new Research Fellowships
Researchers and professors who hold full-time positions abroad, are currently unable to lead research projects in Greece in public institutions. As a result, Greece is unable to capture talent that is interested in transferring knowledge and state of the art technologies to Greece.
We worked with the relevant stakeholders to establish a fellowship to sponsor researchers. Now, Greece is able to reverse part of the brain drain and bring distinguished scientists back to the country to conduct cutting-edge research. This fellowship not only brings knowledge and first-of-a-kind technologies to Greece, but also talent. Beyond the lead scientist, this fellowship will enable the hiring of research teams, setting the foundations for the establishment of Greece as a world-class research destination.
EXECUTED
Talent Visa
Since the end of the crisis, the Greek economy has been booming. The entrepreneurship ecosystem is rapidly expanding, research and development is flourishing, and exports are increasing steadily.
At the core of each of these activities is talent. Highly skilled, highly educated, and highly motivated talent is contributing to the Greek economy with their knowledge, experience and passion.
Given the recent increase in the economy’s extroversion, and the high levels of economic growth, Greece is positioned better than ever to attract high caliber talent from around the world. High potential individuals from around the world can become startup founders, join high-growth startups, become employees in export-driven corporations, establish non-profits, and drive research and development. They should be given time to incubate these ideas, understand the Greek market, and test potential projects.
Deon Policy Institute has partnered with Endeavor to prepare a proposal to allow graduates of the top 100 universities from around the world to come to Greece through a streamlined visa process that does not require them to hold a job offer in hand.
PLANNED
Increasing prevalence of EU Blue Card
The European Union has a special visa for highly-skilled individuals known as the Blue Card. Even though such a visa exists, currently very few of them are being awarded in Greece. Deon Policy Institute is investigating the causes of the low levels of usage and preparing recommendations for the improvement of the process.
PLANNED
Attracting highly skilled talent to Greece
Greece currently has ~40,000 high-skilled labor job vacancies that companies are unable to fill. To find such talent, Greek companies are now looking abroad: either to repatriate Greeks or to attract foreigners. Deon Policy Institute is assessing ways through which talent and companies can be better connected.
Energy & Climate
Climate change is bringing two sets of impacts to Greece. Firstly, the energy transition not only forces Greece to decarbonize to comply with its EU commitments, but also creates an opportunity for the country to reposition itself in the global energy map. Given the abundant resources the country has, it can emerge as a leading producer of renewable energy. In parallel, given its geopolitical location, it can become an import hub for green energy sources to Europe. On the other hand, the impacts of climate change are already being experienced in Greece through longer and more frequent heat waves, increased size of wildfires, and larger flooding instances. The country needs to start actively adapting to climate change, by redesigning its infrastructure, adopting new technologies, and incorporating climate risk assessments in all decision making.
IN PROGRESS
Technologies to Address Wildfires
The summer of 2023 was devastating for Greece with regards to wildfires. As the world is getting hotter, Greece is increasingly at risk of wildfires. However, as technology is evolving, preventing, predicting, detecting, monitoring and fighting wildfires is changing. Those technologies include machine learning, satellite imagery, heat sensors, cameras and drones.
That said, these types of technologies are not one size fits all. There are various criteria that determine their viability for a specific country. Those include country size, daily satellite coverage and resolution, forest type and density as well as local weather conditions.
Deon Policy Institute is assessing the fit of these technologies for Greece and preparing recommendations for their implementation.
IN PROGRESS
Biomass Removal through Civic Service
One of the root cause of wildfires in Greece is biomass accumulation. To reduce wildfire risk, forest cleanup must be priority. Forest cleanup includes removed dried accumulated leaves and branches, but also removing trees and bushes to reduce the density of the forest.
Such techniques are wildly adopted around the world. Deon Policy Institute has partnered with Ecogenia - a civic service organization in Greece focused on creating sustainable impact - to draft a proposal for how to incorporate civic service organizations in the country’s biomass removal plan for wildfire protection.
PLANNED
Small Nuclear Reactors for Green Energy
Greece has become a leading nation in renewable energy. However, in order to fully decarbonize, the country will have to also find solutions to provide clean non-variable electricity (baseload). Small Nuclear Reactors present an opportunity for the country, to provide electricity when renewables cannot. Our Institute is exploring proposing a legal framework that would allow their use in Greece.
PLANNED
Increasing the number of GR-eco Islands
The country has introduced the first set of GR-eco Islands: Small islands that are energy independent, by consuming energy they produce onsite renewably. Deon Policy Institute is interested in assessing how this pilot initiative can be expanded to other islands and be scaled up.
Hellenic Diaspora
During the crisis, 500,000 Greeks left the country in search of better opportunities; 67% of them held higher education degrees. This level of brain drain has been unprecedented in recent decades, yet it has created a new type of Diaspora. These primarily young Greeks joined a Hellenic Diaspora that consists of at least 3 million. Given Greece’s declining population, expected to drop from 10.3 million to 8 million by 2050, the role of the Diaspora is more important than ever. The diaspora:
(1) should strengthen its ties with the mainland, particularly through exercising their voting right
(2) can be repatriated to help address demographic challenges and fuel economic growth,
(3) can support through soft diplomacy to strengthen the country’s influence on the global stage.
EXECUTED
Increasing Greek Voter Registration Abroad
Greeks living abroad were given the right to vote, under certain criteria, in 2019. Despite original estimates of 300,000 - 500,000 sign-ups, by January 2022 only 4,000 had registered. As a diaspora organization, Deon strongly supports the voting rights of Greek expats and therefore acted with the goal of increasing registrations.
We outlined Ten recommendations to increase Greek voter registration abroad. Most of our recommendations were about informing various demographics of Greeks living abroad, through targeted means, that they are eligible to vote. In addition, we suggested two low cost ways for the Greek government to offer support to voters trying to register. Two of our recommendations were implemented by the Ministry of Interior.
We developed a Greek voter registration guide and ran an awareness campaign targeting 850 individuals and organizations, to inform them of the new legislation, explain the qualification criteria, and outline in detail the registration process.
EXECUTED
Streamlining Voting for Expats
In late 2023, the Greek administration announced its plan to introduce voting by mail in the upcoming European Elections of 2024. Greeks living abroad will only be able to vote by mail in those elections.
Deon Policy Institute considers equitable access to voting a core democratic priority, and celebrates the initiative to expand voting through the introduction of the postal vote. However, it is equally important to create streamlined processes to increase voter registration.
We proposed that registration be enabled by using a Greek passport or national ID for authentication, as is the case with in-person voting. Adding this option to the existing taxisnet authentication process is very important for the diaspora, as many Greeks of second or third generation do not have a relationship with Greek tax authorities, yet are able to vote according to law. This proposal was implemented in the draft law presented to Parliament in January 2024.
In addition, Deon Policy Institute has made other recommendations about how the Greek state can more effectively and efficiently inform voters of their voting rights, and how to streamline the process overall.
IN PROGRESS
Identifying the Diaspora through Technology Tools
Official reports estimate that the size of the Hellenic Diaspora worldwide is 3 million. However, it is expected that in reality the number is much larger. Currently, Greek consulates and embassies around the world do not know exactly how many Greek nationals live in the areas they oversee. Identifying the Hellenic Diaspora is the first step in bringing them closer to their mainland.
Creating an exhaustive database is necessary. This can be used as a means of communications for any new legislative amendments that relate to the diaspora. However, and more in importantly, it can be used to inform people of their rights and responsibilities during a crisis, like the recent pandemic, or the war in Ukraine.
Historically, such a task would have been labor intensive, time consuming, and expensive. However, with the use of modern technology tools such as AI, the cost and time required for such an exercise are significantly reduced. In countries where the appropriate legal framework and technologies exist, Greece can use such instruments to identify its diaspora.
PLANNED
Survey: Repatriating Greek Professors
The Greek administration has announced its plans to introduce non-public universities. One of the key open questions is: Who will teach at these institutions? Deon Policy Institute is planning on running a survey on Greek professors living, teaching and conducting research abroad to understand their willingness to return and the criteria upon which they would repatriate.
PLANNED
Strategic Hiring for University Professors
Public Greek universities are currently facing difficulties in attracting top-tier teaching talent from around the world. Greece can mimic the example of the University of Cyprus and set up strategic position hiring. This would mean that new position openings will be allocated to the departments that showcase that they are able to attract top talent from around the world.