progetto TBNTB

To believe or not to believe? Why not living

together?

 

1 September 2022 – 1 March 2024 (18 months)

 

 

PARTNER

Axcent (Belgium, project leader)

Red Incola (Spain)

Giolli coop (Italy)

 

 

GENERAL OBJs

1) Support the inclusion of target groups with fewer opportunities.

The plurality of religious beliefs and convictions has grown in Europe as migratory movements have increased. These arrivals, often the most vulnerable, face difficulties of inclusion. This plurality remains invisible, contrasting with the rise of xenophobic and racist discourses, in which there is a link between immigration and religious diversity.

Recognizing religious and convictional diversity would therefore be another of the objectives to encourage, teach, train and inform citizens about interreligious dialogue as a means to transform exclusion into inclusion, lack of understanding into respect and conflict into peace.

2) To promote an active, committed and participative citizenship, which gives answers of dialogue, solidarity and welcome to the different situations of diversity.

3) To offer innovative educational tools to bring citizens, especially youth, closer to the management and knowledge of prejudices and hate speech, which are linked to intolerance.

4) To favour the construction of values, increase the critical attitude, encourage teamwork and conflict resolution through participation.

5) To improve coordination and networking in the interreligious field, often fragile in the local contexts in which we want to have an impact.

 

SPECIFIC OBJs

1) Promoting cooperation and exchange of knowledge, experience and methodology among partners to improve the skills to activate interconvictional dialogue with youth.

2) Exploring and developing non-verbal tools for interconvictional dialogue, accessible for everyone. Dialogue isn't only about talking with each other, it is also to have shared experiences and to transfer these experiences to the 'real world' for a better living together.

3) Empowering young people and especially young migrants to express themselves on conviction without fear.

4) Learning young people the skills of engaging with Otherness: active listening, mutual respect and understanding, critical attitude, teamwork, conflict resolution, agreeing to disagree, the search for shared values.

 

PRIORITIES

- Inclusion is promoted by following all the general objectives listed above as fostering dialogue among religions and stimulating reflection on beliefs, allows to find bridges and to reach common respect. Note that not only the objectives, but also the methodology that will be used in this project (Theatre of the Oppressed) is inclusive and empowering in itself as it is based on the common value that solidarity is better than exclusion and this also is a mean to transform in a positive way the

will to change society.

- Common values, is a consequence of the activities, as we want to activate paths with youth, to share beliefs and find the common ones. Moreover, to put at the same level each religion/conviction suggests the common value of mutual respect.

- Radicalisation is prevented as, when people feel respected, they have less push to radicalise their belief.

 

What do we want to achieve by implementing the project?

Cultural diversity is a reality in society and convictional pluralism is a natural part of it. Yet it remains invisible and we observe an increase in hate speech and discrimination towards (religious) minorities. We want to support the inclusion of groups with fewer opportunities and promote inter-religious and inter-convictional dialogue through innovative educational tools that promote an active, committed and participatory citizenship, using the Theatre of the Oppressed as a tool to

transform.

 

IMPLEMENTATION

Key activities are:

  • 1 online theoretical seminar about Inter-religious/convictional dialogue

  • 1 training in Brussels (Belgium) about how to use Theatre of the Oppressed in interreligious/convictional dialogue

  • 3 local paths to apply what was learned in the training, held in Brussels, Parma, Valladolid, with groups of youth, mist for religions and beliefs

  • 1 feedback seminar, to collect the results of the 3 local paths and setting the tool-kit

  • 1 tool-kit about inter-religious/convictional dialogue approach, integrated with Theatre of the Oppressed.

     

RESULTS

We expect these concrete results:

1) Invented and tested new approach to inter-religious/interconvictional dialogue, integrated by Theatre of the Oppressed method

2) High quality tool-kit about this integrated method

3) Spread results and tool-kit in the youth work area in Brussels, Parma, Valladolid in specific and Europe in general

4) Improved collaboration among Axcent, Giolli, Red Incola.