ESF Social Sciences Forward Look Meeting on Cultural Diversity, Collective Identity and Collective Action
ESF news release - issued 10/04/2002 -
11/04/2002
Menaggio, 03/04 - 07/04 2002 -Cultural Diversity, Collective Identity and Collective Action: Understanding Consequences of the Opening up of National Borders in Europe.
Press contact: Dr. Wlodek Okrasa, ESF
The first workshop of the ESF Scientific Forward Looks in the Social Sciences was held from 3 to 7 April in Menaggio (Italy) to debate on Cultural Diversity, Collective Identity and Collective Action, and other issues emerging alongside the progressively intensifying processes of the opening up of national borders in Europe. About 40 leading scholars from across Europe and USA, as well as policy makers and practitioners, attempted to identify challenges that social, psychological, political, cultural and economic phenomena associated with mobility and migration provide for social research, and to suggest how they can be dealt with within a medium-term and long-term high quality perspectives in relevant areas of European science.
While acknowledging the existence of the body of ongoing research on immigration-related issues in Europe, the meeting emphasized the need to address multi-faceted processes of mobility across different types of boundaries (linguistic, religious, legal, institutional, etc.) at national, subnational and supranational levels in a more comprehensive way. Such processes are crucially important in determining patterns of behavior and values of both ‘newcomers’ and ‘host’ communities and require in-depth exploration. The proposed topics range from cultural pluralization, integration and assimilation to cultural diversity and ethnic-based segmentation - often accompanied by socioeconomic differentiation that leads to marginalization and exclusion of the members of certain vulnerable groups.
In considering the strategic courses of action to fill the gaps identified during the meeting, a consensus was reached among participants that a long-running scientific programme would be needed, and should be organized by the ESF. It ought to be longitudinal in terms of both empirical evidence and of theoretical and policy outlook; multidisciplinary and comparative in scope; and evaluative as well as explanatory (or theory-driven) in a policy-relevant conceptual framework of basic research. As far as possible it should be a participatory project in which, in addition to leading scholars and representatives of high level political establishments, researchers, policy analysts and policy practitioners representing both the migrants (newcomers) and local communities (including indigenous ethnic groups) should collaborate to provide a better overall picture of the phenomena under study. Also, in order to improve dialogue between social scientists and policy makers on these issues, and to facilitate science-policy transmission and the dissemination of results of social investigations, representatives of the media ought to be invited to participate actively in any future activities. The programme, besides a strong research component, ought to include a training component for both younger generations of researchers and for non-specialists interested in the utilization of research results – such as media specialists and policy practitioners.
During his opening address, Professor Enric Banda, Secretary General of the ESF, assured participants of the full commitment of the Foundation towards creating, in partnership with national funding agencies and other interested parties including European Union, a sound base for implementing an innovative scientific approach that would advance both social science knowledge and policy making in this important area of European reality.
