Project description

Europe for citizens, Citizen time: act, play, involve!”

• Program: Europe for citizens
• Duration: 12 months

The project with the title ”Citizen time: act, play, involve!” aims to involve citizens through a gamified mechanism in constructing positive narratives on immigrants, stimulating intercultural dialogue and citizen involvement and debate at EU level. Citizen time will address national applications of the integration action plan and find policy suggestions for a strategy to manage migration better, drawing on the partners, experience in education, inclusion, and employment. It will target radicalized behaviors, xenophobia, discrimination and hate speech related to immigrants and TCNs, promote volunteering as a citizen way of EU ownership.

Additionally, the project aims to bring together diverse types of organizations (civil society and public authorities) from 7 EU countries (with very different experiences concerning immigrants and integration, which will lead to a synergic effect in the debates) to tackle an EU current topic of interest. Informing the citizens in 2 international conferences (PT and RO) about the state of current EU policies on integration, organizing special dedicated activities where they can learn how to make their opinion known and having them participate in hands-on activities of policy proposals we will increase their democratic participation, the interest of their social network and home communities. In the volunteering activity, they will practice active citizenship competences. The first conference contains an integration tool fair (that involve citizens in the project and in the social and political agenda of the EU). The involvement of immigrants themselves in the design and implementation of integration policies is essential to improve their participation and make them feel EU citizens.

Participating organizations:

Romania-Associatia Dominu

Greece- Social Youth Development

Portugal-Edu2grow

Malta- Kunssill local Isla

Poland- Euromediterrenean association of exchanges volunteering events

Italy- Prism

Spain- Adefis Juventud international

IMPACT

Mid/long term effects of the project:

-the perpetuation of a positive image of migrants at the national and international level by having them be active actors in volunteering and presentation of positie counter-narratives 10
-increased intercultural dialogue and understanding between ethnically different populations in the local
communities of the partners and at EU level
-increased citizens involvement in local communities, shape their community
-the decrease in xenophobia, intolerance, and discriminations
-promoting synergies between the national networks of stakeholders of the project partners and the partners themselves for learning, exchange of know-how, sparking of new creative ideas and further collaboration in new projects. Making transparent to the first conference participants’ the gamified process of involvement of others will boost their creativity and interaction with all actors involved (public bodies, civil society, decision and policymakers), the multiplication effect of their efforts, promote structured dialogue between citizens and national and EU decision-makers.

This project has been funded with support from the European Commission. This publication reflects the views only of the author, and the Commission cannot be held responsible for any use which may be made of the information contained therein.