Europe is facing a major crisis following the recent flows of asylum seekers from different countries: - in the majority of EU states citizens now mostly reject the idea of refugees or migrants settling in their countries - tensions are rising in most EU countries (with noticeable effects, from peaceful protests to violent actions) - discrimination and exclusion of migrants is increasing - radicalisation (both in Muslim communities and in far right movements) is, consequently, increasing In the light of these, the EU has decided that promoting peer-education for diversity, intercultural and inter-religious dialogue, common values of freedom, tolerance and respect, should be one of its main priorities. There are different solutions to these problems and each of the partner organisations has, individually, in one way or another, tried to tackle the topics of refugee integration, tolerance and cultural understanding. Still, there is a need for a more comprehensive solution and we have decided to join efforts in our common aim of facilitating the integration of refugees in the European environment. Our project aims to facilitate the social inclusion of refugees by supporting their process of cultural adaptation and reducing the discrimination they are facing. For this, it proposes an innovative peer education approach, targeting young refugees and EU citizens, that fosters the development of their civic and inter-cultural competences. The main innovative element of the project will be the use of peer education for refugee integration projects. Our research shows that, despite the advantages, at the moment, there is no open peer-education programme available that organisations, schools and other stakeholders can use for implementing such an educational programme. The T-Kit will aim at developing competencies related to: - self-awareness and cultural identity - interactions in an inter-cultural environment - norms, codes and other cultural elements that may cause "cultural friction" - presentation and promotion of different cultures - dealing with situations in which the individual is witness or victim of prejudice/discrimination - taking social action - peer-education The methodology will be tested through: - one joint staff training with 31 participants, coming from each of the participating countries - 2 local trainings with at least 10 peer trainers coming from the refugee community - 6 trainings addressing young refugees/asylum seekers, involving more than 80 beneficiaries - 15 trainings addressing young people from the EU, involving more than 300 beneficiaries In total, the methodology will be tested on more than 400 persons, thus ensuring a relevant feedback from the potential beneficiaries. We expect that by participating in peer-education workshops on anti-discrimination and inter-cultural awareness that use our methodology, refugees/asylum seekers will better understand and embrace cultural diversity, will be aware of the particularities of the European cultural environment and will be more able to integrate in it. Furthermore, by participating in peer-education workshops on anti-discrimination and inter-cultural awareness that use our methodology, young people will better understand and embrace diversity and will be more open to welcoming refugees/asylum seekers.
In the light of the crisis following the recent flows of asylum seekers from different countries, the EU has decided that promoting peer-education for diversity, intercultural and inter-religious dialogue, common values of freedom, tolerance, and respect, should be one of its main priorities. There is a need for a more comprehensive solution and we have decided to join efforts in our common aim of facilitating the integration of refugees into the European environment. During the lifetime of the Peers for Integration project the partners: - an extensive research on barriers standing in the way of young refugees' social inclusion in Belgium, Italy, and Romania. - developed a training methodology using peer education for young refugees and migrants to develop competencies related to self-awareness and cultural identity/ interactions in an inter-cultural environment/ norms, codes, and other cultural elements that may cause "cultural friction"/ presentation and promotion of different cultures/ dealing with situations in which the individual is witness or victim of prejudice/discrimination/ taking social action/ peer-education - tested and piloted the training methodologies during international learning mobilities to which 32 participants coming from Romania, Italy, and Belgium took part. - organized local workshops in Romania, Belgium, and Itlay during which previously trained participants used the Peers for Integration methodology to further give the opportunity to youngsters to be part of this formative process. A total number of 240 participants took part in the local activities. - organized dissemination events in Romania, Belgium, and Italy face to face as well as online in order to promote the newly created methodology. - developed a platform in order to promote and upload into the public space the newly created methodology and also to serve as a platform where future peer trainers who would like to use the Peers for Integration manual can see through tutorials especially created for them how the methods should be devielvered. Due to a need identified after the covid 19 pandemic shut down all face-to-face activities, we also created the Peers for integration open learning platform in order to give the opportunity to peer educators and trainers to deliver the Peers for Integration methodology in an online format. This gives us the opportunity to reach audiences, communities, and youngsters that were not accessible for the project results. The results we created are accessible on the project platform www.integration.ofetin.ro as well as on the Erasmus+ dissemination platform. The websites and project results are translated into multiple languages in order to respond to local needs and also to avoid language barriers when delivering local workshops.