Identifying challenges for young people with fewer opportunities is on its own not so easy but also proposing strategies and recommendations towards how to solve or ease these problems is even harder but luckily young people are creative. The 25 participants from 20 different European countries all came prepared and filled with ideas. Their work involves discussing existing challenges, experiences of best practise methods and finally to agree on recommendations for future policies.
Jasna Magić, one of the facilitators from Slovenia emphasized that it is impossible to reach a common definition of intercultural dialogue but more important to have your own understanding of the world and keeping an open-dialogue with others. Some of the different definitions included; cultural communication, discussion of diversity and with that to share differences.
The group identified the three biggest challenges to integrate the young people with fewer opportunities as education (lack of access, unequal opportunities and segregation in schools), economics and lack of understanding but Petter Falk, a participant from Save the Children Sweden underlined the importance of breaking norms “Norms are based on hierarchies and create our behaviours and influence or prejudices. We need to realise how important norm-breaking is”.
By Anna Siitam
