REFORMING GOVERNMENTAL GEOSCIENCES IN CENTRAL-EUROPE - A CASE-STUDY FROM HUNGARY

The establishment of democratic governments in Eastern Europe has brought many problems to the forefront and has created arduous tasks, namely that the laws, the regulations, and the Governments' regulatory bodies have to be restructured if they are to survive in market economies. Scientific institutions, such as those in Hungary, also are affected by this transformation. This article, a case study (of the governmental geosciences in Hungary, summarizes the trials and tribulations of and the educational process involved in transforming institutions from central planning and decision-making roles, as well as from positions of authority, to the public-service role. The lessons learned are that new institutions always are easier to create than existing ones are to restructure, that concerns about organizational structure will overwhelm interests in developing an agency's mission, and that the public-service role will take a long time to develop. The story presented here is an unfinished one for the reasons just mentioned, but it may serve to guide those who have embarked on they same task elsewhere in central and Eastern Europe and perhaps in countries that have emerged from the ashes of the former Soviet Union.