Living together in Europe includes the multifaceted challenge of finding constructive procedures for dealing with cultural and religious differences in daily life. Key competences are required to enable people flexibly to adapt to a rapidly changing and interconnected world. As we seek to identify and define those competences for personal fulfillment, active citizenship, social cohesion and employability in a knowledge-based society, educational institutions throughout Europe are asked to help in their promotion. Expectations in respect of their contribution are high.
The European Year of Intercultural Dialogue encourages exchange and debate about examples of good practice and about the structures required so as to facilitate collaboration between actors in civil society and the European political institutions. The overall task is to develop constructive methods and channels to deal with cultural and religious diversity that are a concomitant of living together in Europe. Among the key competences, social and civic skills are particularly important. Good practice that contributes to intercultural dialogue and to democratic European Citizenship is to be encouraged.
The demand for the “Europeanization“ of education can only be realised, when diversity and difference are not perceived as a threat and when constructive educational methods enrich the context.
Against this background, the conference will offer opportunities for the presentation of current European developments with workshops that draw on examples from different regions of Europe. The program includes presentations and speeches that provide political as well as academic perspectives, together with dialogue sessions between representatives of political institutions and networks of Christian churches in Europe.
Intereuropean Commission on church and School ICCS
International Association for Christian Education IV
The Protestant Academy in Berlin
Europe, CoGREE, The Comenius-Institut, Münser and the EKD office in Hannover
Programme
18 th September Thursday
13.00 Welcome and introduction
(Dr. Rüdiger Sachau, Eckhart Marggraf)
13.15 Intercultural Dialogue and the Role of Religion
Ambassador Heidrun Tempel
Special Representative for Dialogue among Civilizations,
Federal Foreign Office, Germany
14.30 Coffee / Tea
15.00 – 16.00 “Studies of religious diversity as a contributor to intercultural and citizenship education”
Prof Dr Robert Jackson
Professor of Education and Director of the Warwick Religions and Education Research Unit, England, introducing results of REDCo and work with the Council of Europe “
16.00 Break
16:15 “Sharing Concerns” – Religions and the European Year of Intercultural Dialogue”
Imam Dr Abduljalil Saijd
Chairman “European Union Taskforce 2008 European Year of Intercultural Dialogue”, UK
17.30 Dinner
19:00 Cultural program
Ruslan & Elena Krachkovsky
classic and traditional accordion music
19 th September Friday
8.45 Meditation
9.00 Workshops
1. Integrating Schools in Northern Ireland (Terry McMackin, Belfast)
2. Islamic Religious Education in Baden-Wuertemberg, Germany, Dunja el Missirie, University of Education, Weingarten
3. FELS: Family, educating, life school (Protestant Comprehensive School in Gelsenkirchen-Bismarck, Head Teacher Harald Lehmann)
4. Tolerance as a basic condition for intercultural dialogue (Prof Sofiko Lobzhanidze, Tbilissi, Georgia)
5. REDCo: Religion in Education: A contribution to Dialogue or a factor of Conflict in transforming societies of European Countries – a comparative research project (Prof Wolfram Weiße, Hamburg)
6. Islamic Religious Education in Spain (Prof Gunther Dietz)
7. Pilgrim Schools in Austria: Living Consciously – Giving Future (Dr Hans Hisch)
8. Religion and Schooling, new approaches in France (Eric Schiffer, Strasbourg)
9. The boundaries of religious freedom: some interactive exercises for schools (Dr Barry van Driel, Amsterdam, senior education consultant for the ODIHR/OSCE)
10.30 Coffee / Tea
11.00 Introduction to panel discussion:
Ján Figel
EU Commissioner: “A commitment for an open and structured dialogue with religious communities”
11.20 Panel: Religion in Education. A contribution to Dialogue or a factor of Conflict in Europe
Ulrich Bunjes, Coordinator Thite Paper o n Intercultural Dialogue, Council of Europe
Ján Figel’, (EU Commissioner for Education, Training, Culture and Multilingualism)
Rüdiger Noll, (CEC/CSC Director, Brussels)
Michael Kuhn, (COMECE, Brussels)
Dr. Simona Santoro (OSCE Advisor, Warsaw)
Moderator: John Keast, advisor to the Council of Europe
12.30 Close
