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Publications / Annual Report 2006
Foreword In the context of European enlargement, ever-increasing globalisation and current demographic and immigration trends, European societies are witnessing a noticeable increase in cultural and social diversity. While CEJI cherishes this diversity as an invaluable resource, there are many challenges facing today's diverse societies. In November 2006, the Council of Europe's Commissioner for Human Rights warned of a surge of support for extremist right-wing views, bringing racism, islamophobia and antisemitism into mainstream European politics, while the UK's All-Party Parliamentary Inquiry into Antisemitism observed a notable rise in antisemitism on the left of the political spectrum. The particular vulnerability of Roma to racist violence and crime was underlined by the Chair of the Board of the European Monitoring Centre on Racism and Xenophobia, who decried 'the lack of a substantial improvement with regard to racism and xenophobia in EU member states' during 2006. The need to tackle discrimination and to develop integration policies is on the political agenda of both EU member states and the European Institutions. The EU has declared 2007 'European Year of Equal Opportunities for All', with 2008 designated 'European Year of Intercultural Dialogue'. In this context, CEJI's aim to provide a 'Jewish Contribution to an Inclusive Europe' is more relevant than ever. CEJI Moving Ahead Because an inclusive Europe is not a given, but must be continuously nurtured, CEJI reaffirms its commitment to contribute to a Europe that is respectful of its diverse citizenship. How can this be achieved? The tough issues for defining our shared culture and space must be tackled through legislation and policies. At the same time, sensitivity and skills for living in positive interaction must be developed by all society's members so that schools, workplaces and public institutions can welcome the full participation of all. Over the last 10 years, CEJI has established its expertise to develop effective educational programmes that are highly relevant to current social needs across Europe. We have demonstrated our capacity to work in partnerships, mobilise resources and adapt pedagogical tools to local realities. Moving ahead, CEJI now aims to inspire more people and organisations to actively join us in the pursuit of inclusiveness in all sectors of European society. We would like to express our sincere gratitude to the CEJI Board, staff, and organisational and institutional partners for their continued dedication and hard work to create inclusive environments. CEJI is a small organisation, but with a large extended family, making all of the good work found in this annual report possible.
CEJI in 2006 CEJI continued to be a leading provider of diversity education in Europe in 2006, overseeing the implementation of the A CLASSROOM OF DIFFERENCE™ Teacher and Peer Training Programmes which have reached more than 25,000 pupils since their introduction ten years ago. We also led the development of new subject-specific training modules tackling religious discrimination and gender discrimination and homophobia in partnership with NGOs from a broad range of European countries. In addition, CEJI took the lead in a new initiative to promote dialogue, co-operation and partnership between Jewish and Muslim communities in Europe, and facilitated the European-level involvement of Jewish community groups by means of a capacity-building seminar and a one-year internship opportunity. 2006 was a special year for CEJI. We celebrated the 10th anniversary of the European Peer Training Organisation (EPTO), which we are proud to see has developed into an independent youth organisation, although links between CEJI and EPTO nevertheless remain strong. 2006 also saw some significant personnel changes within the organisation with the arrival of a full-time Policy Officer, who has been following European-level political developments related to our mission, and a Training Assistant to administrate our newly-developed Religious Diversity & Anti-Discrimination training module. The year also saw CEJI bid farewell to two staff members: Carine Douenias left after almost 10 years with the organisation, and European Volunteer Ania Solomiak returned to Lithuania after a year in Brussels. Finally, 2006 saw the appointment of Robin Sclafani as CEJI's Director. Formerly New York City Project Director and then Director of Programs and Special Projects at the Anti-Defamation League A WORLD OF DIFFERENCE® Institute in New York, Robin began at CEJI in 2001 after a year as a Fulbright Scholar with the European Commission and five years consulting with CEJI on the development of its educational programmes. |
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