European Commission’s Post

This week we share a project that is focussed on bringing education into conversation with art and activism. Seen and Heard: Young People’s Voices and Freedom of Expression is a European Union project that places youth at risk of marginalisation and exclusion in Malta, Germany and Poland, at the centre of political dialogue. A variety of learning experiences have been designed in collaboration with art practitioners like Sita Brahmachari, Charlie Cauchi, Uli Decker and even a guest appearance by Chris Riddell. The project includes co-creation of art – a book and a docuseries – with children playing a central role.   At a time when Europe is churning - with groups pushing political divisiveness and yet others resisting it – the project explores what it means to be a young citizen in Europe today; what it means to be a child and a grown-up in Europe; what being European in an age of mass-migration feels like.   While the project is based in Europe, learnings from it promise to be meaningful across different contexts. One of the big challenges of our contemporary world is fostering a sense of community and finding ways to connect with those who are different from oneself, reminding oneself of the things that connect us to a shared humanity. What better then, than a project that uses the arts with young people from migrant and local communities, to foster the courage to speak up about injustice, and makes place for them to be seen and heard.    SWIPE to see images from the ongoing work Find out more at <https://lnkd.in/gHDHPCEK> @seenandheardeu @giuliana_fenech @chuckcauchi #childrensvoice #childrensart #cocreation #seenandheard #citizenship #education

This week marks the first official meetings & presentations before French institutions and European & American partners of the European Foundation on Democracy and Culture. I would like to insist on 2 specific aspects as I see already that there is much confusion: 1. the EFDC is a French initiative, with a European and international dimension. The Foundation will be based in Paris, France and is exclusively French, not Greek - French. Greece, unfortunately (despite my personal efforts) will not be represented at the Administration Board. 2. This is a political - cultural initiative, not a human rights association. The Foundation will work, support and further elaborate the role of Culture in promoting or protecting Democracy. It will do it hand by hand with society, with partners, with people. It might give, at first the impression of another intellectual elite Initiative but I have included several personalities incl. grass roots activists and artists who will work together. Culture is an essential component of our society, of our Democracy. This is the main and only purpose of the Foundation. Art & Letters, Culture & Civilization as pillars of Democracy, as integral part of Humanity. The website of the Foundation is on LinkedIn! More announcements to follow! #New #Project #Initiative #European #Foundation #Democracy #Culture #EFDC #Art #Letters #Culture #Civilisation #Intellectuals #Democracy #Society #Humanity #Paris #France #Europe #Monde #activists #artists #authors #journalists #politicians #HRDs #Fondation #europeenne #Democratie #Culture #personnalites #nouvelle #action #collective #française #europeenne #internationale

Dear friends, in the world ripped apart by civic and international conflicts, there is no priority higher than peace. We have seen in the last two years that the civic society can do little when wars are in the full fledge - but social leaders can do a lot to foresee and prevent future conflicts, and to foster conditions for "positive peace". Can collective learning for peace become our salvation and a pathway forward? Join us for two conversations that focus on a global initiative to promote youth-led local peacemaking initiatives across Global South. On 25 January 16-17.30 UTC in collaboration between Global Education Futures and Learning Planet Institute, we hold the session "Moving towards a Peaceful Future". The session will explore some of the world's leading projects nurturing "positive peace" through transformative education, championed by Candice Mama, Catalina Cock Duque, Aart Bos and Mandar Apte. It will also invite participants to co-create ideas for the program on Peaceful Futures. The session is held during the UNESCO-supported LearningPlanet Alliance festival, and you can register here if you want to attend: https://lnkd.in/eqpWwK_G For those of you interested in "philosophical foundations" of peace-based society, join us for the conversation "Are conflicts necessary for human evolution?" happening immediately after the session described above, on January 25 17.30-19 UTC. Conversation DAOlogue engaging Alexander Laszlo, Ph.D., Samuel Guarnaccia, Vincent Brown, PhD, Mischul Brownstone, Roopin Hanspal, Max Andreas Stehle, Kimberly Chapple and many others - including you! - will delve into the complex role of inside/outside conflict, in nature and society–exploring its potential to be both a source of destruction and impetus for transformation. Your link to register for the session is: https://lnkd.in/ekVqE96x

Please join the SEEKCommons team on Tuesday, May 7th at 10:00 am ET for the next installment of our Community Call Series! We will be speaking with Alberto del Val Jiménez de Cisneros,  from Spain’s National Research Council in Madrid.  In a recently co-authored book, Free Culture and the City (Cornell, 2023), Alberto Jiménez describes the history of the free culture movement in Spain as a long trans-logistical journey of democratic experimentation from the digital to the urban realms. Over a twenty-year period (1990s-2010s), free culture activists in Spain experimented with systems of congregation, apprenticeship and infrastructural design that enabled unsuspected alliances between a variety of public institutions, commons projects and social movements. In this guise, the public, the libre and the commons worked less as paradigms, typologies or philosophies of political action, than as situated, interrelated and sometimes also diffractive logics, logistics and locations of democratic process. In this talk, Public, libre, commons: ethnographic refractions of free culture in Spain, Alberto Jiménez will revisit some moments of this history to extrapolate potential lessons and insights. The series is open to public participation: everyone is welcome to join! Please visit register for this talk at: https://lnkd.in/dB95-RYD #SEEKCommons #CommunityCall #FreeCulture #Spain #NationalResearchCouncil #Madrid #Democracy #PublicParticipation #UrbanStudies #Culture #CommonsMovement #politicalaction #OpenAccess

The African Union stated that, through knowledge, competencies, skills, innovation, and creativity, it is #education that will be essential to nurturing African core values and promote sustainable #development. How can we make it possible? By creating "the conditions that make it possible to access #education anytime and anywhere, fostering critical thinking and self-awareness, promoting the creation of open, inclusive communities" - as Giampaolo Silvestri, AVSI Secretary General, highlighted today at Global Partnership for Education event. Civil7 Italy 2024 | Save the Children Italia | Global Campaign for Education (GCE) | Ministero degli Affari Esteri e della Cooperazione Internazionale

MassDevelopment Issues $12M Bond for Boston Latinx Cultural Center Read the full article below..

📢 Language plays a crucial role in shaping narratives, policies, and public perceptions of shifts towards more environmentally friendly industries and processes.     ✒ Narratives that promote sustainability transitions in different European countries use different terminologies that populations respond to.    📖 In DUST, we are exploring the familiar terminologies related to sustainability transitions in our case-study regions Read more here: https://lnkd.in/eWzBKeiE     📮 We want to know what terminologies are common in narratives around sustainability transitions in your country! Contribute to the discussion here: https://lnkd.in/ebxWWNNH. #DUST #JustTransition #SustainabilityTransition #citizenparticipation #terminology #communities #narratives #Europe #language #collaboration Delft University of Technology ISOCARP Institute | Centre for Urban Excellence University of Zurich University of Strathclyde European Policies Research Centre Uniwersytet Ekonomiczny w Katowicach Brandenburgische Technische Universität Cottbus-Senftenberg Nordregio Center for the Study of Democracy Zentrum für Demokratie Aarau (ZDA) Riksorganisationen Hela Sverige ska leva KiJuBB Kompetenzzentrum Kinder- und Jugendbeteiligung Brandenburg   

Language is the medium but also the message - it can shape our cultures, way of seeing and describing our world and our realities. Why should it be different for sustainable transitions? "Language plays a crucial role in shaping narratives, policies, and public perceptions of shifts towards more environmentally friendly industries and processes. ✒ Narratives that promote sustainability transitions in different European countries use different terminologies that populations respond to." DUST is an Cluster2 #HorizonEU funded project, currently exploring the familiar terminologies related to sustainability transitions in their case-study regions! Want to contribute to discover what terminologies are common in narratives around sustainability transitions in your country, or simply know more about their research, and how this could help shape our futures? Click on discussion here and make your contribution: https://lnkd.in/ekuVN24v European Research Executive Agency (REA) #sustainabletransitions #language #trasitionnarratives

Local governments play a key role in influencing the design of neighbourhoods and have many tools available to activate best practices in designing for social connectedness. Participatory models, deliberative ways of working with community, change making to drive social cohesion outcomes for communities and approaches to strengthening social cohesion have been extensively studied and developed. These practices along with other case studies will be highlighted the upcoming national Strengthening Social Cohesion Conference, 3-5 July 2024, delivered by Western Sydney University with the support of the Department of Home Affairs and the NSW Premier’s Department. Early bird ticket sales will be closing 10 May 2024, however if cost is a barrier there are a limited number of travel subsidies available, and ticket fees may be waived upon request. The conference, held over three days between July 3-5, will bring together representatives from community, government and industry across the nation to discuss all aspects of social cohesion and democratic resilience. It will focus on the practical skills and capabilities that are critical for creating positive impacts within the community, featuring both Australian and international speakers. I encourage anyone who works in this space to attend and participate in this important conversation. https://lnkd.in/gwiAsXWz