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Ardian Kastrati (born 18 July 1975) is a Kosovar Albanian politician. He is a member of the Assembly of the Republic of Kosovo, and a professor at the Department of Political Sciences at the University of Pristina.

Early Life
Kastrati was born on 18 July 1975 as the first of two children, in the city of Pristina, Kosovo, then a part of Yugoslavia.

His father, Sylejman Kastrati, originated from the village of Kishnareka, having moved to Pristina to finish his secondary education. He took interest in Albanian political movements, at the time illegal under the Yugoslav regime. During the year of 1968, when protests were taking place in Zagreb and Belgrade for other reasons,

Kastrati completed his primary and secondary education in Pristina.

On 15 May 1999 Kastrati enlisted into the surveillance diversionary special unit of the Kosovo Liberation Army Main Headquarters.

Political career & Work experience
The professional work experience of Ardian Kastrati is mainly related to the development of higher education in general and the University of Pristina in particular. Before the war of 1998-1999, Kastrati was a member of the leadership of the University of Prishtina student union (1997-1998). As one of the leaders of the organization that was by then known as the October 1st Student Movement, in addition to the contribution of the organization of protests in 1997-1998, Kastrati together with colleagues also presented the political positions of the Student Movement to foreign diplomats, such as the US President's Special Envoy for the Balkans, Mr. Robert Gelbard, ambassadors and other representatives of the embassies in Belgrade, representatives of the Contact Group as well as other political structures of the time from the EU, European Parliament, OSCE and mediators to various international organizations and world media.

After the war, Kastrati worked for various international organizations and national institutions. He was, among many, a Program Coordinator at Internews Network (2000-2001), Program Manager at WUS Austria (2001-2002), Manager of Academic Services at the American University of Kosovo (now RIT Kosovo ; 2003-2006), Higher Education Expert in the United States Embassy of Kosovo (2006-2011), Advisor to the President of the Republic of Kosovo (2011), Foreign Expert in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (2012) and Advisor at the Rectorate of the University of Pristina (2012-2013).

One of the most noted successes of Kastrati, during his work at the American Embassy, ​​was the initiative for the establishment of the Fulbright Student Program in co-financing with the Ministry of Education of the Republic of Kosovo. This program is still functional to this day, giving young Kosovar students the opportunity to study at the most prestigious American universities.

For his innovative performance and contribution to higher education projects, Kastrati was awarded the Superior Honor Award, signed by the Assistant Secretary of State, Philip H. Gordon and given from the US Department of State. == Education == Kastrati completed his first Master's program at the University of Graz (Austria), graduating with a Master's in European Studies, and his second program at the Department of Political Sciences and Sociology at the University of Salzburg (Austria), where he graduated with a Master's in Political Science. Meanwhile, he completed his doctoral studies in International Relations at the University of Zadar in Croatia. During his academic career, Kastrati has been the recipient of some of the most prestigious scholarships in the world, such as the Erasmus Mundus 'Sigma Agile', State Department Funds and Open Society Foundation (Soros Foundation).

He has published and presented scientific papers from his field of interest in various international scientific conferences and journals, including his book, "The Difficulties of Developing Civil Society in Kosovo: Birth and Rebirth of Civil Society", as well as having been abroad and lectured in various programs and universities inside and outside Kosovo.

Political Positions & Interests
The field of interest of Kastrati's research are contemporary theories about civil society and democracy, thus exploring different topics about civil society, respectively its relations with other political and social phenomena, such as social movements, religion and ethnic conflicts, as some of the crucial phenomena in the contemporary world. The research of Kastrati has a special interest in the concept and models of democracy, democratization as a process and its determinants and various aspects, such as culture and its role in democracy, the influence of culture in the democratization process, the role of international organizations in the promotion of democracy, as well as some of the alternative concepts such as trust and social capital.

Family & Life
Ardian Kastrati lives in Pristina with his three children.