Education, Dialogue, and Religion: Shaping Inclusive Narratives for Refugees and Migrants in Europe

A co-hosted webinar between the International Dialogue Centre - KAICIID and COREnet, COST Action EU Project “Connecting Theory and Practical Issues of Migration and Religious Diversity” (COREnet) is an interdisciplinary network that aims at knowledge production, knowledge exchange and capacity building across Europe in the intersection of migration and religious diversity with a particular emphasis on bottom-up research.

Marking and commemorating International Migrants Day this webinar aims to showcase different perspectives from experts who are working in the field of migrant education and interreligious and intercultural dialogue, highlighting challenges, but also good practices, innovative and creative methodologies which contribute to inclusive education policies.

Refugees and migrants often face barriers in accessing quality education and social inclusion due to cultural, linguistic, religious identity and other systemic challenges. These barriers can lead to feelings of isolation and reinforce societal divides. Religious leaders can have a key role in addressing these challenges and joining forces with policymakers, teachers, academia and civil society to help combating prejudices, foster intercultural and interreligious dialogue, and contribute to inclusive education for refugees and migrants in Europe. When educational systems integrate narratives of inclusivity and religious literacy, they empower young learners to navigate pluralistic societies with understanding and mutual respect. Without raising awareness on the risks which already exist in our societies, we are in danger of perpetuating stereotypes, fostering division, and missing the opportunity to shape more inclusive societies.

The discussion will be part of a larger endevour of the COREnet project to provide an initial framework and recommendations which will serve as a starting point for developing a COREnet policy brief on inclusive education and the role of religion in 2025.

SPEAKERS

Leyla Kayacik

Leyla Kayacik has over 30 years of international experience in the field of human rights and the rule of law. Ms Kayacik is a longstanding member of the Secretariat of the Council of Europe. Throughout her extensive career, she has held various key positions, including roles within the former European Commission of Human Rights (European Court of Human Rights), the Secretariat of the European Social Charter, in the field in Ankara programme office, as Director of the Private Office of the Secretary General and Deputy Secretary General and as Deputy to the Secretary of the Committee of Ministers. From 1 January 2022 to 1 February 2024, Ms. Kayacik served as the Special Representative of the Secretary General of the Council of Europe on migration and refugees. After completing her service at the Council of Europe, Ms. Kayacik continues to actively engage as human rights expert, with a special focus on matters related to migrants and refugees.

Angeliki Aroni

Dr. Angeliki Aroni is the Head of the Unit for Integration and Support of Unaccompanied Minors in the General Secretariat for Vulnerable Persons and Institutional Protection in the Ministry of Migration & Asylum in Greece. She was actively involved in the establishment and has been the Head of the Department for the Coordination and Monitoring o f the Refugee Education of the Ministry of Education and Religious Affairs (2016-2020). With an extensive experience as a Physical Education teacher in Intercultural Schools (1998-2016), Gelly is, since March 2013, Coordinator for Greece and expert on the projects “Living Democracy” and “CORE” (Children of Refugees in Education). She has facilitated workshops for Arigatou International on Intercultural and Interfaith Programmes for Ethics Education in Europe, Asia and Africa. Since 2011 she has been working as a teacher trainer for the Council of Europe as well as for the Greek Academy on “Human Rights in Action” (2015).

Manfred L. Pirner

Prof. Dr. Manfred L. Pirner holds the Chair of Religious Education Research at Friedrich-Alexander-University Erlangen-Nürnberg, Germany, where he is also Director of the Research Unit for Public Religion and Education (RUPRE; www.rupre.uni-erlangen.org), Co-Director of the Competence Centre for School Development and Evaluation (KSE; www.kse.phil.fau.de), founding member of the Centre for Human Rights Erlangen-Nürnberg (CHREN; https://www.humanrights-centre.fau.de/) and associated member of the Bavarian Research Center for Interreligious Discourses (BaFID) (https://www.bafid.fau.eu/). His main research fields are: public theology and public education; human rights, education and religion; refugees and religion; interreligious dialogue and learning; religiosity and professionalism of teachers; popular culture, digital media and religious education; faith-based schools. Recent book publications in English include Innovative approaches to religious education (ed. with Bernhard Grümme, to be published in 2025 by Kohlhammer) and Public Theology, Religious Diversity, and Interreligious Learning: Contributing to the Common Good through Religious Education (ed. with Johannes Lähnemann et al., Routledge 2018).

Carla Amina Baghajati

Ms. Carla Amina Baghajati was born in Mainz/Germany in 1966 and lives in Austria since 1987, where she embraced Islam in 1989. She was one of the first two women to enter the Supreme Council of the Islamic Religious Authority in Austria (IGGÖ) in 2000 (until 2019). Now she is board member of EULEMA (European Muslim Leaders’ Majlis). Baghajati is the head of the school supervisory authority for Islamic religious education in public schools. Baghajati is also co-founder of the "Initiative of Muslim Austrians". Successful projects include the nationwide "Open Mosque Days" and the European Imam Conferences. She is engaged in public discourse entering many discussions with the aim to bridge the gap between Muslim self-perception and outside views, creating better mutual understanding and social cohesion. Baghajati is a board member of the interreligious association "Platform Christians and Muslims". In 2008, Baghajati received the Federal Cross of Merit from the Federal Ministry of Education, Arts and Culture.

MODERATOR(S)

Aleksandra Djurić Milovanović

Dr. Aleksandra Djurić Milovanović, is a Network for Dialogue Coordinator, International Dialogue Centre (KAICIID) and Principal Research Fellow at Institute for Balkan Studies, Serbian Academy of Sciences and Art. She received her PhD from the Faculty of Philosophy in Belgrade in 2012 with the topic “Romanian Neo-Protestants in Vojvodina: between religious and ethnic identity”. She has been collaborating with the University College of Cork, Ireland, Department of Religious Studies, where she was also a visiting professor in August-November 2017. In 2017 she has been selected as International Fellow at the International Dialogue Centre KAICIID (Vienna/Lisbon) where she continued from 2019 to coordinate a project Network for Dialogue focusing on inclusion of refugees and migrants in Europe. Aleksandra has participated in numerous scientific conferences worldwide and published four monographs, edited two international volumes in English and published over 100 papers and chapters in edited volumes. Her research interest includes religious minorities, religion and migration, Orthodox Christian renewal movements, Evangelicals, interreligious dialogue. Her latest publication is The Untold Journey of the Nazarene Emigration from Yugoslavia to North America (Lanham: Lexingon books, 2024).

Where Zoom online

Time 02:00 PM Europe/Lisbon