Nataša Pavlović Bujas Remains the First Lady of PR in 2025!

Prepared by: Ekrem Dupanović

Nataša Pavlović Bujas is an entrepreneur, international communication expert, personal and corporate development advisor, and owner of the Blumen Group communication agency in Belgrade.

She began her international career in communications in 2012 when she won the prestigious IPRA GWA and IPRA Grand Prix awards for the first time. She continued her career as a member of the Worldcom PR Group (2012–2016) and later as a member of the IPRA Board of Directors (2019).

Today, Nataša has been elected the global president of the International Public Relations Association (IPRA) for 2024 and 2025, an organization celebrating its 70th anniversary this year, operating across all continents. This marks the first time someone from the Balkans has been elected to such a high-ranking position. It represents another managerial and communication challenge in her career within a multicultural environment.

Nataša was first elected as IPRA president for 2024. At that time, I interviewed her and asked, among other things, “How would you like to be remembered after your year as IPRA president?” A few days ago, she emailed me saying that my question had echoed in her mind every day throughout 2024. She saw it as both an obligation and a responsibility, especially since her mandate as IPRA president was extended into 2025.

When I asked her this question in February 2024, Nataša responded:
“By transparency, accessibility, trust, and ethical conduct – always and everywhere. By valuing people, mutual differences, and human relationships highly. By believing in and acting upon universal, human, and civilizational values – not just locally proclaimed or so-called traditional ones. By my deep conviction that together we can achieve much more. By proving that ‘together’ means in all countries, on all continents.”

A year after this interview, I asked Nataša about the results. Here’s what she said. She immediately emphasized that all achievements were made possible thanks to the exceptional and fantastic support of colleagues from the region and around the world.

The results:

1. Our region and our top professionals, who meet and often exceed global standards, have become more visible through an increased number of active IPRA members, reinforcing the understanding that WE ARE THE WORLD.
2. The final IPRA jury session was held in Zagreb last year, thanks to Krešimir and the colleagues from Manjgura (and broader support, of course).
3. We established the IPRA ABA (Alps-Balkans-Adriatic) Chapter—Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbia, and Montenegro. I am proud of all co-founders who boldly stepped into this collaboration despite our differences.
4. I connected the academic community with PR practitioners worldwide, firmly believing that practice and academia must go hand in hand. This was particularly important in discussions about ethical principles in the development and use of artificial intelligence. The initiative is led by our people, as we truly have outstanding professionals.
5. The IPRA Academic Chapter is being established for the above-mentioned reasons.
6. We now have IPRA-endorsed events in the region: BledCom, PROACTIVE, and the Women.Comm Conference.
7. The 2025 IPRA jury session is planned in Slovenia during the BledCom conference, further merging academia and practitioners while spotlighting our region among global PR professionals.
8. The IPRA Golden World Awards Ceremony was held in Belgrade, which included a regional-global PR Summit. This has now become a model for future IPRA GWA Ceremony events. Yes, Belgrade-Zagreb-Ljubljana are in focus, but Sarajevo and Podgorica are also well-followed.
9. Significant improvements have been made in IPRA’s internal operations, including the organization of thematic and regional chapters that will set trends in key areas of our work, as well as greater transparency in operations and communication while supporting various regions worldwide.
10. Globally, IPRA members now view our profession in the region with greater respect and trust, anticipating our next steps.
11. To ensure the continuity of my approach and initiatives within IPRA, I insisted on selecting the 2026 president much earlier. We succeeded—Esther Cobah from Ghana, Africa, has been elected (well-deserved in many ways) to collectively implement existing values and new working principles across other parts of the world, including Africa.

There are, of course, many plans for 2025. In our region, we will continue what we started. We, who understand the growing importance of our profession, also recognize the increasing responsibility—professional, personal, and social. It is no small task to uphold the mission of an organization celebrating its 70th anniversary this year: “IPRA – Leading Trust and Ethics in Global Communication.”

Is that not an achievement?

Bravo, Nataša – congratulations!