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Intercultural Citizenship
July 22-August 2, 2002
Course director:
Cesar Birzea, University of
Bucharest, Romania
Resource persons:
Bernd Baumgartl, European Peace
University, Vienna, Austria
Miroslav Kusy, Comenius
University, Bratislava, Slovak Republic
Vedrana Spajic-Vrkas, University
of Zagreb, Zagreb, Croatia
Course objectives
 | to develop interdisciplinary knowledge and
competencies of students, researchers and teachers in political sciences,
civics and humanities; |
| to understand the historical roots of ethnic conflicts
in South-East Europe; |
| to complement initial professional knowledge of
participants by means of a pragmatic approach, focused on solving some
concrete problems of living together in a multiethnic and multicultural
society; |
| to help apply "intercultural citizenship" in
various cultural and political environments; |
| to help participants learn how to use human rights in
a variety of everyday situations; |
| to foster key competencies for peaceful conflict
resolution; |
| to build a network of faculty and professionals in
Southeast Europe which would facilitate sustainable co-operation, exchange
of experience and common projects; |
| to facilitate the establishment of partnership between
Eastern and Western scholars. |
Course level, target audience
Faculty, Ph.D. students, human
rights activists, NGO representatives, researchers and teachers in social
sciences, civics and humanities who have had some prior knowledge of the topics
to be covered.
Syllabus
The course will comprise four
major components:
Defining the concept of intercultural
citizenship
| what citizenship is (a political and legal status, a
social contract, a set of competencies); |
| what intercultural citizenship is (multiculturalism
and interculturalism, developing multiple identities, otherness and
identity, supranational citizenship); |
| nationalism and citizenship; |
| globalism and intercultural citizenship; |
Citizenship in south-east Europe
| historical context of nationalism in the Balkans; |
| failure of federations based on juxtaposition of
nationalism (the case of Yugoslavia); |
| the Stability Pact and the prospects of intercultural
citizenship; |
How to Rebuild Social Fabric in Conflicting
Regions
| intercultural citizenship in conflicting regions; |
| the case of Northern Ireland; |
| community-based intercultural education; |
| intercultural learning and civil society; |
Human Rights and Peaceful Conflict Resolution
| international and European documents for the protection
of human rights; |
| how to use human rights in everyday life (case studies); |
| how individuals and communities can be protected from
state abuse; |
| how real or potential conflicts can be solved with the
aid of human rights; |
| initiation in the use of intercultural learning methods
(to be used in schools, NGOs, communities, daily intercultural encounters). |
The detailed breakdown of the course
content:
Theme 1: "From Sarajevo
to Sarajevo: Old Problems and New Solutions" (Bernd Baumgartl)
At the crossroads of empires, religions
and cultures, the Balkans has always been a problematic region. After the
dissolution of the last empires a medley of sovereign nations emerged whose
identity became associated to contested territories. In this sense, Sarajevo
at the beginning of the century and the Sarajevo in the ‘90s represent two
landmarks of a century marked by intolerance, violence and ethnic conflicts.
In order to break away from this historical conditioning the most diverse
region of Europe must learn to peacefully manage its natural multicultural
dimension. Democratic citizenship and intercultural learning are the
indisputable solutions to the issue.
Number of hours: 12
The teaching format: lecture, movie
screening, discussion and seminar.
Theme 2: "Intercultural
Citizenship: Definition and Practical Consequences" (Cesar Birzea)
Citizenship is a legal membership
status ensured by political rights acknowledged by the State. From the
cultural and psychosocial points of view, membership may refer to several
human environments simultaneously: a town, a region, a nation or a
super-national entity (e.g. European citizenship). This multiple citizenship
encourages dialogue, interaction, shared responsibility, tolerance and
ownership of the same system of values, transcending official nationality and
membership of the same territory. Intercultural citizenship is a form of
global citizenship that unites individuals around a common project and shared
values.
Number of hours: 12
The teaching format: lecture, case
studies, simulation games, discussion, seminar and workshop.
Theme 3: "How to Rebuild
the Social Fabric in Conflicting Regions" (Miroslav Kusy)
Reconciliation is not easy, especially
in regions devastated by war. In this sense, rebuilding the social fabric play
a major role, by regenerating community ethos, interdependency and dialogue in
people’s daily life. Many of these conflicts originate from lack of proper
communication and mutual understanding, based on a common social code.
Concrete case studies will help students to understand how to rebuild
confidence and mutual respect in conflicting regions.
Number of hours: 12
The teaching format: lecture, workshop,
individual work and case studies.
Theme 4: "Human Rights
and Peaceful Conflict Resolution" (Vedrana Spajic-Vrkas)
Human rights offer an operational code
for the peaceful settling of conflicts. We refer to a system that mutually
restricts human rights and liberties. Each individual, group or community is
allowed to act only to the extent to which the respective actions do not
impose any restrictions on the rights and liberties of other individuals,
groups or communities. The Universal Declaration and the European Convention
on Human Rights are super-national instruments that guarantee this operational
code of democratic citizenship.
Number of hours: 12
The teaching format: lecture, discussion,
workshop drama and role-playing.
Non-discrimination policy
statement
Central European University does
not discriminate on the basis of – including, but not limited to – race,
color, national and ethnic origin, religion, gender or sexual orientation in
administering its educational policies, admissions policies, scholarship and
loan programs, and athletic and other school-administered programs.
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