The Lifelong Learning Week took place as every year at the beginning of December with a dense and interesting programme. This year’s LL week was also the occasion to launch the New Manifesto on Building the future of learning in Europe.
EFIL was glad to take actively part to two of the events within this week.
On 1st December we organised together with ESN, EEE-YFU and EucA the thematic workshop ‘Learning mobility: yes, but quality mobility ‘ which explored the issue of quality learning mobility, both from the policy and from the practice perspective. The workshop wished to help participants get a better understanding of the implementation of current instruments for quality learning mobility, in particular the European Quality Charter for Mobility, and offer a space for joint reflection on the kind of support still needed to ensure that quality mobility becomes a reality.Some key questions were addressed: to which extent was the EU Charter on Quality Learning Mobility used in implementing quality mobility? What are organisations/institutions/structures doing to ensure quality in their mobility programmes? What gaps still need to be bridged? How can the Charter be better implemented, 10 years after its release?
The workshop featured two presentations from the policy side, one by Davide Capecchi Research and Policy Officer at the EU-CoE youth partnership on the work of the European Platform for Learning Mobility and one by Ms Frédérique Chabaud, Advisor on Education, Youth and Culture for the European Greens. After the introduction to the policy framework, the practise came into the picture with four presentations by the organisers of the event: EFIL, ESN, EEE-YFU and EucA.
We hope this is only the first step for further cooperation and debate among the several stakeholders in the field of mobility and lifelong learning and that, 10 years after the Quality Charter for Mobility has been adopted, we can together ensure its implementation.
On 2nd December EFIL was invited to speak at the debate ‘Education in Promoting Intercultural Dialogue and Citizenship’ at the European Parliament. Mr Roberto Ruffino was EFIL’s speaker at this high level event hosted by MEP Krystyna Łybacka. The Roundtable further included the ambassador of the Council of Europe towards the EU, a representative from the Cabinet of the Commissioner Tibor Navacsics, MEP Julie Ward, the director of ECHO and the researcher Martyn Barrett well known by EFIL since he attended two editions of the Forum on Intercultural Learning and Exchange. The main topic of the Roundtable was how to mainstream intercultural dialogue in our educational systems, given the growing intolerance and radicalism, islamophobia, racism and other worrying trends all around Europe.
Finally, EEE-YFU celebrated its 30 years during this LLL week and we would like to congratulate them for their work and achievements!
For more information: elisa.briga@afs.org