CMDR COE turns 5!

Date: (31-03-2020)
Dear CMDR Community,
Since its accreditation as the 21st NATO`s Centre of Excellence in 2015, the CMDR COE has been incessantly improving its capacity to serve as a hub of crisis management and disaster response expertise within a cooperative Community of Interest in support of NATO’s adaptive transformation. Our 2019 Quality Assurance certified by NATO SACT has brought us pride in our progress yet made us ever more cognisant of the responsibility for setting and upholding ever higher standards of performance and achievements.
The CMDR COE’s area of responsibility, clearly seen through the lens of the complexity of the present security environment, and the absolute necessity of as comprehensive as possible an approach to tackling challenges, is of critical importance for the Alliance, also forming part of its strategic core tasks. The CMDR COE has solidified its position as a constructive partner and as a valuable tool for enhancing civilian and military CMDR capabilities within NATO, Allies’, and Partners’ crisis management systems.
During these 5 years, the Centre has generated a wealth of information, has identified lessons-learned, and recorded and shared good practices in an ever increasing effort of improving interoperability and strengthening collaborative partnerships among key CMDR stakeholders. Likewise, the CMDR COE has participated in, hosted, organised, and co-organised an array of events among which its resident courses; workshops; seminars, and conferences. The CMDR COE staff members are continuously building their personal expertise so as to be in a position to confidently share it within our Community of Interest.
Inter alia, the CMDR COE’s Education & Training initiatives on resilience; on gender mainstreaming; on climate change; the research products on mass migration, gender equality, and climate change are indicative of the CMDR COE’s understanding of the importance of cross-cutting matters within a framework of a comprehensive approach to peace and security. The Centre also successfully capitalises on modern technology having a fully operational modelling and simulation (M&S) laboratory.
Through its Annual Conference on Interagency Interaction, the CMDR COE nurtures collaborative partnerships premised on good practices and constructive exchange.
We are continuously improving our resident course and developing new training solutions, including recently launching our Advanced Distributed Learning platform with courses already open for registration. Our mobile training teams have been involved in a number of exercises and trainings in different countries. We are serving as a Discipline leader in CSDP training for discipline Military Contribution to EU Disaster Response, Humanitarian Assistance and Civil Preparedness.
Over the years, the Centre has established close cooperation within NATO and the EU, noteworthy with the Supreme Allied Command Transformation, SHAPE, the Euro-Atlantic Disaster Response Coordination Centre (EADRCC), the Allied Joint Force Command - Naples, the European Commission's Humanitarian Aid and Civil Protection Department (ECHO), and with other relevant stakeholders such as the US European Command, the George Marshall Centre, US Federal Emergency Management Agency.
With the unwavering support of our Framework and Sponsoring Nations, we stand ready to meet challenges and seize opportunities which to take us ahead on our mission to contribute to shaping better, more inclusive and integrated CMDR.
I would like to thank all CMDR COE staff members - former and present, for their enthusiasm, determination and zeal in pursuing the vision of our Centre, and to wish them continuous success in all our future endeavours.
Congratulations!
Col. Orlin Nikolov
CMDR COE Director
News

An intern project on “Social Capacity in Disaster Respond: Enhancing Resilience by Education and Training”
» read more
CMDR COE is proud with the received and focused on further challenges
» read more
On the 10th June 2025 , 20 students from 4 different nations started the 4-day long Building Integrity in Crisis Management and Disaster Response Course.
» read more
CMDR COE serves as the Department Head for the NATO BCM discipline.
» read more
Placing the focus on the arising security challenges
» read more
The Crisis Management and Disaster Response Centre of Excellence (CMDR COE), in cooperation with NATO and the NATO- Istanbul Cooperation Initiative (ICI) Regional Centre, successfully delivered a Mobile Training in Kuwait from 25 to 29 May 2025.
» read more
CMDR COR Participation to the solemn ceremony organized by the Romanian Embassy in Bulgaria.
» read more
Gender Focal Point Course at CMDR COE
» read more
The Final Planning Conference (FPC) for the Euro-Atlantic Disaster Response Coordination Centre (EADRCC) Emergency Management Exercise "BULGARIA 2025" took place from 20 May to 22 May 2025.
» read more
Respect on the occassion of the 75th Anniversary of the fondation of the Scientific Applied Center for Military Epidemiology and Hygiene (NPCEH).
» read more
CMDR COE Intern Mr. Can Uyar participated in an Extensive Disaster Risk Reduction Education Program and OSAKA EXPO 2025 BOSAI Summit
» read more
From 13th to 16th of May in CMDRCOE was conducted Crisis Management in a Multilateral Framework course
» read more
Main Planning Conference of AMMON SENTINEL 2025 exercise
» read more
Titled “Contemporary Crisis Management in Times of Great Power Competition”, 28 April 2025
» read more
End of Autumn Iteration Internship
» read more
CMDR COE staff enjoyed the magic of oil drawing in the Art Academy Studio on 25 APR 2025.
» read more
A Collaborative Initiative with NATO Mission Iraq to Foster Resilience and Preparedness in Emergency Response
» read more
First Prize: Simona Marinova, 12-year old
Second Prize: Damyan Tonchev, 9-year old
Third Prize: Nikol Marinova, 10-year old

Veles, North Macedonia – CMDR COE successfully took part in Exercise SEVEN STARS 25, held from 07 to 11 April 2025.
» read more
Participation of the CMDR COE Director to the third panel: “The Role of Academia in Building National Capacity – Expanding Engagement and Connecting Theory with Practice.”
» read more
From 7 to 11 April 2025 CMDR COE, in close cooperation with the U.S. Department of Energy, conducts Disaster Response and Consequence Management for a Radiological Incident course.
» read more
Hot Climate Change and Security Topics will be discussed from 01 April to 05 April in CMDR COE.
» read more
CMDR COE Successfully Delivers Mobile Education on Managing Contemporary Crisis in Ethiopia
» read more
CMDR COE celebrates a decade since its accreditation as NATO Centre of Excellence.
» read more
Experts from Bulgaria, Greece, Cyprus, and the UK met in Athens to discuss energy security and how to best protect critical national Infrastructure.
» read more
Quality Assurance Team of Experts from the NATO Allied Command of Transformation carried out 2-day inspection on Quality Assurance standards.
» read more