During the last few months, the Mediterranean landscape has witnessed a wave of historical changes. The uprisings in Tunisia and Egypt and other social mobilizations in the region have demonstrated that youth and civil society are eager for more freedom, social change, and consolidation of democratic values within their respective societies.

In this context, and in response to the concern of its National Networks about the implications and challenges that this historical shift can bring to the Foundation’s work and the civil society at large, the Anna Lindh Foundation decided to launch a region wide initiative titled “Believe in Dialogue, Act for Citizenship -Exchanging Practices on Participation and Democracy”.

The initiative aims at exchanging good practices and debate about citizenship and democracy among cultural operators, non-governmental organizations, media and young activists at the Euro-Med level as well as empowering and building the capacities of member organizations of the Anna Lindh civil society networks.

In this framework, two major events will take place in both the Egyptian and Tunisian capitals; the Regional Training Seminar on Intercultural Dialogue and Social Change (Cairo), and the Anna Lindh Exchange (Tunis).

Regional Training Seminar on Intercultural Dialogue and Social Change- Cairo (Egypt), from 1 to 6 June 2011

The Cairo Training Seminar, which will bring together over 50 Arab participants, will consist of a capacity building scheme for the Anna Lindh Arab Networks, addressing the new challenges of the southern civil societies and preparing for new actions and initiatives.

The seminar will focus on the role of civil society in promoting citizenship and democracy through intercultural dialogue; enhancing youth leadership and their role in generating social changes; and reinforcing the use of the social media and new technologies in information and communication.

 Selected candidates who applied for the “Call for Trainers” will be notified on Tuesday, 26^th of April 2011.

Selected candidates who applied for the “Call for Participants” will be notified on Monday, 2^nd of May 2011

The Anna Lindh Exchange – Tunis (Tunisia), from 23 to 26 June 2011

The Anna Lindh Exchange in Tunisia is a region-wide meeting of civil society players acting for democracy and freedoms with an intercultural perspective.

Gathering between 150 and 200 participants from all over the Euro-Med region who work in the fields of Artistic creation,  Media and Social Networks,  Civil society development and Resources for Citizenship, the event will be a great opportunity for participants to learn from each other, exchange experiences, best practices and project ideas as well as to build partnerships .

Participants will also debate about the major challenges which the EuroMed societies are facing in terms of promoting citizenship and intercultural dialogue, especially in contexts of social change and democratic transition.

The Anna Lindh Exchange will offer the following spaces:

• Plenary Sessions,
• Debate Workshops,
• Presentation of Best Practices and Project Ideas,
• Resources for Action and
• Room for informal exchange.

“Selected candidates who applied for the “Call for Participants” will be notified on Monday, 31 May 2011”

Furthermore, “Believe in Dialogue, Act for Citizenship” initiative encompasses the following new specific activities as well as revisited on-going actions:

• Launching of the 2011 Euro-Med Dialogue Award on the theme of “Dialogue for citizenship and freedom”.
• Launching of a special category of the 2011 edition of the Anna Lindh Mediterranean Journalist Award on the theme of ‘Reporting on Youth Participation in Social Change’.
• Supporting local actions, with a special focus during the Alexandria’s Farah el Bahr Festival on the ALF Initiative themes
• Introducing a financial support mechanism to allow National Networks to invite organisations from other Euro-Med countries – with preference to Network members and other organizations in the Southern Mediterranean, in particular Tunisia and Egypt – to participate in meetings and local actions carried out in the framework of the ‘Believe in Dialogue, Act for Citizenship’ Initiative.
• Organising a meeting for the Advisory Council with original members of the ‘Group de Sages’ to reassess the role of intercultural dialogue in the Euro-Mediterranean region and contribute to the institutional dimension and strategy of the Anna Lindh Foundation in its next phase of operation;.
• Preparing the 2012 edition of the Anna Lindh Report on Euro-Mediterranean Intercultural Trends; the next Public Opinion Poll and the relevant analyses shall be tailored to the new situation.

For enquiries, please contact:

team@believeindialogue.org