Deadline: 30 December 2016
The Challenging Diversity Youth Forum on Refugee and Migrants in the new media in selected countries of Europe is currently open for applications with an aim to discover how the new media in these regions have been reflecting on the migrant and/or refugee crisis and to what extent they contributed to the promotion of diversity. The project is being implemented by Mladiinfo International, together with its project partners, and it has been generously supported by CEI Cooperation Fund and Visegrad fund.
The Youth forum is the follow-up event within the project You(th) Challenging Diversity: Representation of Minorities in the New Media, aiming to foster European citizenship and improve conditions for civic and democratic participation at Union level. This event will tackle yet again the issues of minorities and new media, but mostly in the context of the ongoing migrant and/ or refugee crisis.
Topics Covered
The topics can encompass the following questions:
- How are migrants portrayed in the new media? Is the new media setting the agenda and framing the debate on the migrant and/or refugee crisis?
- How does the use of labelling (migrant, refugee, immigrant etc.) vary among the countries in question?
- Have you been personally engaged in this cause and helped refugees in any sense?
- How the migrant and/or refugee crisis “brought Central Europe together”? Can the principle of “flexible solidarity” be proposed by Visegrad Four (V4) group as a solution to migrant and/or refugee crisis?
- What are some of the “myths” being constructed and prevailing among the public on this issue?
- Is the media building or preventing stereotypes about the minorities? Why migrants are still perceived as “others”?
- Is the migrant and/or refugee crisis often a subject of political contestation in media coverage?
- How can migrants begin to be portrayed as a benefit to host societies, rather than as a problem?
- What qualities can the new media bring for the promotion of diversity?
- Would the migrant and/or refugee crisis somehow “reshape” the European Union?
- What solutions to the migrant and/or refugee crisis are already present in the new media channels?
- What can academics do about this crisis?
- What are the responsibilities that we as humanity should take? What are the steps to be taken on local/national level by the respective countries?
Benefits
- The travel costs are going to be reimbursed, after the selected speakers, panellists and participants, in communication with Mladiinfo’s staff, have arranged their travel to Macedonia, choosing the most affordable, but also most convenient means of transport;
- Accommodation, breakfast, lunch and coffee breaks will be also covered by the organisers. Please note that the accommodation will be in a youth friendly venue, located close to the city centre of Skopje;
Eligibility Criteria
Young students, researchers, journalists and activists coming from Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Hungary, Macedonia, Montenegro, Poland, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, and Slovenia are welcomed to apply. There is no age limit, however, applicants aged 18-35 will have the advantage to be selected.
How to Apply
Participants must submit applications with the required documents via email.
For more information, please visit this link.