Webinars & Meetings
In order to share practitioner experience and wisdom more widely, A World of Neighbours will be hosting a monthly Zoomcast, drawing on grassroots practitioners and knowledgeable speakers to explore topics relevant to migration challenges in Europe.
PREVIOUS EVENTS – WATCH RECORDINGS
The Migration Challenges of Gender Relations and Equality
Gender relations and the value of gender equality hold a central position in how the reception of refugees and migrants is imagined and implemented in Europe. Differences in cultural values and norms between the newly-arrived and the already-there need to be appropriately considered, understood, and negotiated.
This is a societal process that will inevitably involve confrontation, accommodation and adaptation, leading to degrees of conflict, co-existence, and perhaps even convivenz (living well together). On behalf of all concerned, receiving communities and civil society organizations can play a constructive role in navigating these highly sensitive and often contentious matters.
PARTICIPANTS:
Ingrid Jerve Ramsøy is a social anthropologist with a PhD in International Migration and Ethnic Relations from Malmö University, Sweden.
Anna Wilczyńska is a specialist in Arabic language and Islam, a journalist and a social media expert.
MODERATOR:
Maria Kjellsdotter Rydinger is a theologian working for A World of Neighbours.
(Recorded March 18, 2021)
Interreligious Engagement on the Path to Convivence
What constructive role can diverse religious communities play in the integration of migrants and minorities into the broader secular society?
PARTICIPANTS:
Matteo Bassoli, Assistant Professor of Political Science at the University of Padua, co-founder of Refugee Welcome Italia.
Helena Hummasten, Islamic Relief Sweden.
Majbritt Lyck Bowen, Research Fellow at the Winchester Centre of Religion, Reconciliation and Peace. She is the lead investigator on the research project A Multireligious Approach to Integration.
MODERATOR:
Zachary Gallant is the Director for Development and Strategy for the Practitioners Network of A World of Neighbor. He has served as the Managing Director of the Integrationswerkstatt in Unkel, Germany, the only rural winner of the 2019 German Integration Prize.
(Recorded Jan 13, 2021)
Is Europe Closing the Borders?
The recent changes in migration policy being considered by the European Union are creating a path towards greater restrictions at a time when vulnerable populations are on the rise. The once welcomed elimination of the Dublin protocol is one example of what may now be unforeseen and potentially harmful consequences. What are the ramifications of these policy changes for the lives and aspirations of refugees and migrants and those who work on their behalf? How can the grassroots foster the political will needed to cope with these changes in a constructive way?
PARTICIPANTS:
Peo Hanson, Professor, Institute for Research on Migration, Ethnicity and Society, REMESO, Linköping University.
Domenica Pecoraro, Kent Refugee Project Officer, Diocese of Canterbury, Church of England.
MODERATOR:
Ulrich Schmiedel, Lecturer, Theology, Politics and Ethics, New College – Edinburgh University. Deputy Director of Edinburgh’s Centre for Theology and Public Issues.
(Recorded Dec 10, 2020)
What Does Moria have to Do with Krakow?
Devastating fires in the Moria refugee camp on the Greek island of Lesvos have further stranded 13,000 refugees. In this webinar we will hear Sonia Nandzik working with ReFOCUS Media Labs, dedicated to equip asylum seekers with modern media skills. Yasir Akbari, student at ReFocus Media Labs together with Peter Kessler, Senior Communications Officer at UNHCR will give first-hand accounts from Lesvos.
We will also hear the story of how two individuals, Karol Wilczyński and Anna Wilczyńska, in Krakow, Poland, have been able to convince the city officials of Krakow to declare readiness to welcome displaced persons from Moria.
Does grassroots efforts hold the key to influencing the direction of Europe in coming to grips with this ongoing humanitarian challenge?
MODERATOR: Anna Hjälm, Director of the programme Interreligious Praxis for Peace – A World of Neighbours.
(Recorded Nov 18, 2020)
Backlash: Fear and Hatred in a Time of Covid-19
In times of intense societal stress, those perceived as ‘the other’ – such as foreigners, ethnic minorities, marginalized persons – are often the target of increased fear and even hatred. In this time of Covid-19, such stress is currently expressed in the form of negative narratives, punitive legal and social norms, and humanitarian indifference. What does solidarity look like in the face of such stigmatization and its devastating consequences?
SPEAKERS: Adam Ramsey, journalist and co-editor of openDemocracy UK and Đermana Šeta, Advisor on Combating Intolerance and Discrimination against Muslims at OSCE ODIHR.
MODERATOR: Rebecca Lillian, Rabbi at Shir Hatzafon Synagog, Denmark
(Recorded Oct 27, 2020)