Sport and Intercultural Dialogue
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Sebahattin Devecioglu
Oct 14, 2010, 5:38:50 PM10/14/10
to Turkish Sports Manager
Sport and Intercultural Dialogue
Published: 25 March 2008 | Updated: 25 February 2010 Already accepted
as a tool for social integration, sport is also seen as a means of
promoting intercultural understanding in an increasingly diverse
Europe.
Milestones
2008: European Year of Intercultural Dialogue.
17 March 2008: EU Sports ministers adopted a Joint Declaration on
Social Significance and Dialogue in Sport.
March 2008: Commission published the final report on "Sharing
Diversity - National approaches to Intercultural Dialogue" (see
executive summary and country sheets).
15-16 May 2008: An international round-table on sport and
intercultural dialogue resulted in Ljubljana Sport for all
Commitments.
25-27 Sept. 2008: 6th World forum on sport, education and culture.
5 Dec. 2008: Sport organisations from the Mediterranean area held an
informal meeting to discuss future regional cooperation.
2010: First Youth Olympic Games in Singapore.
Policy Summary
The integration of different cultures into European society is under
the spotlight this year in the context of the European Year of
Intercultural Dialogue (EYID 2008), which seeks to help citizens deal
with a "more open and complex" environment.
According to the Commission, successive enlargements of the EU, as
well as increased migration and interaction with the rest of the world
through trade, education and leisure, have "increased the
multicultural character of many countries, adding to the number of
languages, religions and ethnic and cultural backgrounds found on the
continent".
The EYID 2008 initiative has an overall budget of €10 million, which
will be used to fund projects and events aimed at promoting dialogue
between cultures on relevant policy areas, including sport. Examples
of projects in the sports domain range from establishing specific
sports networks to drafting a sports charter for intercultural
dialogue, as well as street soccer or special initiatives run by
sports clubs.
Intercultural dialogue as such is not a specific legal category and
thus no international, European or national laws on the issue exist.
However, it is argued that constructive dialogue can only take place
in an environment guaranteeing equal opportunities, freedom of
expression, safety and dignity.
Regarding the contribution of sport to intercultural dialogue, a
declaration annexed to the Amsterdam Treaty (1997) "emphasises the
social significance of sport, in particular its role in forging
identity and bringing people together". In addition, politicians and
sports stakeholders agree that sport can act as a tool for social
integration.
Several Eurobarometer surveys show that almost three in four EU
citizens view sport as a means of promoting integration, while two
thirds perceive sports as a means of fighting discrimination.
Issues
Back in 2003, the European Commission ordered a study to examine "the
contribution of sport, as an instrument of non-formal education, to
the multicultural dialogue between young people" as well as "the part
it plays in promoting the integration of recent migratory flows".
The study on Sport and multiculturalism, published in 2004, evaluates
the ways in which sport has been used to reduce intercultural tensions
in the then 25 EU member states.
Based on the four models of nationality and citizenship that are
illustrative of the range of approaches in the EU - the French
republican model, the German ethno-nationalist model, the Anglo-Saxon
pluralist model and the emergent Polish/post-Communist model - the
study found five typical policy approaches in relation to sports
policy for ethnically diverse populations:
Three of them emphasise or reinforce diversity and cultural pluralism:
interculturalism: promoting intercultural exchange with equality of
emphasis on each culture (i.e. funding cultural sporting exchanges);
separate but equal development for ethnic groups (i.e. direct funding
of ethnic minority associations);
market pluralism: diversity through fostering of commercial and
voluntary sector activity rather than by direct public sector
provision (i.e. reliance on commercial and voluntary sectors to meet
social needs).
Two of them emphasise cohesion rather than diversity, with 'unitary'
notions of national culture.
assimilationist policies, which seek to incorporate groups into
existing national culture (i.e. sport as a vehicle for tackling
problems of general social exclusion or urban renewal);
non-intervention, where populations are regarded as homogeneous and
there is no perceived need for provision (i.e. no perceived need for
action).
The study provides policy recommendations on increasing the use of
sport to promote intercultural dialogue as well as on issues related
to refugees and asylum seekers and the use of EU structural funds . It
gives examples of good practice for sporting organisations serving
culturally diverse communities.
In the framework of the European Year of Intercultural Dialogue, the
European Institute for Comparative Cultural Research (ERICarts
Institute) is currently finalising a study analysing how different
sectors, including sport, promote intercultural dialogue.
The ERICarts study's executive summary, which is already available,
states that national approaches to promote intercultural dialogue in
sports are often "challenge and/or target group oriented," such as
combating racism and xenophobia or encouraging post-war
reconciliation. It also states that "there is a heavy burden placed on
local and voluntary associations to promote the social inclusion of
specific target groups" such as immigrants, children and Muslim female
teenagers.
Positions
In the framework of the European Year of Intercultural Dialogue, a
special award was given to a basketball league operator based in
Slovenia. The award acknowledged the league's efforts and achievements
in bringing diverse cultures together through sport in the former
Yugoslavia, as it brings together several teams from Slovenia,
Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina and Serbia and Montenegro. Delivering
the prize, Slovenian Minister for Sport Milan Zver said sport could
break all stereotypes. "Each experiment of uniting nations in this
region is even more important and the international, regional-oriented
basketball league ABA Sidro NLB has managed to realise it in the great
project through the most genuine way of connecting people's values,"
said Zver.
The International Sport and Culture Association (ISCA), which
contributed to the Commission's upcoming 2008 study entitled "Sharing
Diversity - National approaches to Intercultural Dialogue," argues
that current methods of using sport as a tool for promoting
intercultural dialogue in Europe lack an overall strategy and policy
and are based on good practice rather than evidence-based research.
It underlines the voluntary character of the settings in which
intercultural interventions are implemented, such as sport
associations and clubs, and argues that few of these civil society
organisations are "beyond the critical mass when it comes to
involvement in work with integration through sport". However, it
argues that in volunteer-based NGOs, critical mass is important both
in shaping the internal and external profile of such organisations and
in attracting human and financial resources.
Regarding the informal "intercultural learning dimension," ISCA argues
that "it takes more than sport and physical activities to facilitate a
useful and valuable intercultural dialogue." Namely, an objective
beyond the sport activity and an educational perspective are needed,
along with "proper settings where the [...] perspective is transformed
into action".
ISCA President Mogens Kirkeby regrets that the European Year of
Intercultural Dialogue 2008 was launched without the involvement of
the European sport sector. "It is an unfortunate missed opportunity
not to support and highlight the sport sector's capacity to assist
intercultural dialogue and integration," he said.
"It is the goal to make 2008 a grass roots-oriented campaign year.
What is more grass-root oriented and widespread than this civil
society sector - the sport sector? The sector – especially 'sport for
all' - has operational structures locally, nationally and
internationally, with more than 70 million Europeans directly
involved."
ISCA recommends that the increased interest in intercultural dialogue
among civil society organisations and sport associations be further
strengthened with the support of European funding. It calls for a
European programme to be developed to facilitate national strategies
and local interventions. Furthermore, it recommends that "European and
national campaigns should be directly connected with local
implementation settings".
UEFA president Michel Platini said: "European sport has always been a
powerful catalyst for social and cultural integration. Millions of
children from all parts of the world have become and continue to
become European by kicking a ball around a muddy pitch in our towns or
countryside before going to school [...] Grassroots sport is an
extraordinary catalyst for ethnic intermixing and integration.
Football in particular is a welcoming, protecting and integrating
sport."
However, Platini regrets that many social problems, including
violence, are "unfortunately" also a part of sport and in particular
football. "Society has also passed other scourges on to the world of
sport: money-laundering, match-fixing, illegal betting, racism and
xenophobia, doping and child trafficking," he said.
The International Olympic Committee (IOC) aims to promote the
development of the culture and Olympic education agenda through sport
at national, regional and international levels, as well as at the
Olympic Games. IOC policy aims to "develop the link between sport and
culture in all its forms, encourage cultural exchange and promote the
diversity of cultures". Secondly, it aims to promote Olympic education
and supports other institutions which promote the values of
'Olympism', which is described as "a philosophy of life". "Blending
sport with culture and education, Olympism seeks to create a way of
life based on the joy found in effort, the educational value of good
example and respect for universal fundamental ethical principles."
The first Youth Olympic Games, which will be held in Singapore in
2010, "are the flagship of the IOC's determination to reach out to
young people. These Games will not only be about competition. They
will also be the platform through which youngsters will learn about
the Olympic values and the benefits of sport, and will share their
experiences with other communities around the globe," said IOC
President Jacques Rogge.
The goal of the Olympic Movement is "to contribute to building a
peaceful and better world by educating youth through sport practiced
without discrimination of any kind and in the Olympic spirit, which
requires mutual understanding with a spirit of friendship, solidarity
and fair play," states the movement.
http://www.euractiv.com/en/sports/sport-and-intercultural-dialogue-linksdossier-188453
Published: 25 March 2008 | Updated: 25 February 2010 Already accepted
as a tool for social integration, sport is also seen as a means of
promoting intercultural understanding in an increasingly diverse
Europe.
Milestones
2008: European Year of Intercultural Dialogue.
17 March 2008: EU Sports ministers adopted a Joint Declaration on
Social Significance and Dialogue in Sport.
March 2008: Commission published the final report on "Sharing
Diversity - National approaches to Intercultural Dialogue" (see
executive summary and country sheets).
15-16 May 2008: An international round-table on sport and
intercultural dialogue resulted in Ljubljana Sport for all
Commitments.
25-27 Sept. 2008: 6th World forum on sport, education and culture.
5 Dec. 2008: Sport organisations from the Mediterranean area held an
informal meeting to discuss future regional cooperation.
2010: First Youth Olympic Games in Singapore.
Policy Summary
The integration of different cultures into European society is under
the spotlight this year in the context of the European Year of
Intercultural Dialogue (EYID 2008), which seeks to help citizens deal
with a "more open and complex" environment.
According to the Commission, successive enlargements of the EU, as
well as increased migration and interaction with the rest of the world
through trade, education and leisure, have "increased the
multicultural character of many countries, adding to the number of
languages, religions and ethnic and cultural backgrounds found on the
continent".
The EYID 2008 initiative has an overall budget of €10 million, which
will be used to fund projects and events aimed at promoting dialogue
between cultures on relevant policy areas, including sport. Examples
of projects in the sports domain range from establishing specific
sports networks to drafting a sports charter for intercultural
dialogue, as well as street soccer or special initiatives run by
sports clubs.
Intercultural dialogue as such is not a specific legal category and
thus no international, European or national laws on the issue exist.
However, it is argued that constructive dialogue can only take place
in an environment guaranteeing equal opportunities, freedom of
expression, safety and dignity.
Regarding the contribution of sport to intercultural dialogue, a
declaration annexed to the Amsterdam Treaty (1997) "emphasises the
social significance of sport, in particular its role in forging
identity and bringing people together". In addition, politicians and
sports stakeholders agree that sport can act as a tool for social
integration.
Several Eurobarometer surveys show that almost three in four EU
citizens view sport as a means of promoting integration, while two
thirds perceive sports as a means of fighting discrimination.
Issues
Back in 2003, the European Commission ordered a study to examine "the
contribution of sport, as an instrument of non-formal education, to
the multicultural dialogue between young people" as well as "the part
it plays in promoting the integration of recent migratory flows".
The study on Sport and multiculturalism, published in 2004, evaluates
the ways in which sport has been used to reduce intercultural tensions
in the then 25 EU member states.
Based on the four models of nationality and citizenship that are
illustrative of the range of approaches in the EU - the French
republican model, the German ethno-nationalist model, the Anglo-Saxon
pluralist model and the emergent Polish/post-Communist model - the
study found five typical policy approaches in relation to sports
policy for ethnically diverse populations:
Three of them emphasise or reinforce diversity and cultural pluralism:
interculturalism: promoting intercultural exchange with equality of
emphasis on each culture (i.e. funding cultural sporting exchanges);
separate but equal development for ethnic groups (i.e. direct funding
of ethnic minority associations);
market pluralism: diversity through fostering of commercial and
voluntary sector activity rather than by direct public sector
provision (i.e. reliance on commercial and voluntary sectors to meet
social needs).
Two of them emphasise cohesion rather than diversity, with 'unitary'
notions of national culture.
assimilationist policies, which seek to incorporate groups into
existing national culture (i.e. sport as a vehicle for tackling
problems of general social exclusion or urban renewal);
non-intervention, where populations are regarded as homogeneous and
there is no perceived need for provision (i.e. no perceived need for
action).
The study provides policy recommendations on increasing the use of
sport to promote intercultural dialogue as well as on issues related
to refugees and asylum seekers and the use of EU structural funds . It
gives examples of good practice for sporting organisations serving
culturally diverse communities.
In the framework of the European Year of Intercultural Dialogue, the
European Institute for Comparative Cultural Research (ERICarts
Institute) is currently finalising a study analysing how different
sectors, including sport, promote intercultural dialogue.
The ERICarts study's executive summary, which is already available,
states that national approaches to promote intercultural dialogue in
sports are often "challenge and/or target group oriented," such as
combating racism and xenophobia or encouraging post-war
reconciliation. It also states that "there is a heavy burden placed on
local and voluntary associations to promote the social inclusion of
specific target groups" such as immigrants, children and Muslim female
teenagers.
Positions
In the framework of the European Year of Intercultural Dialogue, a
special award was given to a basketball league operator based in
Slovenia. The award acknowledged the league's efforts and achievements
in bringing diverse cultures together through sport in the former
Yugoslavia, as it brings together several teams from Slovenia,
Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina and Serbia and Montenegro. Delivering
the prize, Slovenian Minister for Sport Milan Zver said sport could
break all stereotypes. "Each experiment of uniting nations in this
region is even more important and the international, regional-oriented
basketball league ABA Sidro NLB has managed to realise it in the great
project through the most genuine way of connecting people's values,"
said Zver.
The International Sport and Culture Association (ISCA), which
contributed to the Commission's upcoming 2008 study entitled "Sharing
Diversity - National approaches to Intercultural Dialogue," argues
that current methods of using sport as a tool for promoting
intercultural dialogue in Europe lack an overall strategy and policy
and are based on good practice rather than evidence-based research.
It underlines the voluntary character of the settings in which
intercultural interventions are implemented, such as sport
associations and clubs, and argues that few of these civil society
organisations are "beyond the critical mass when it comes to
involvement in work with integration through sport". However, it
argues that in volunteer-based NGOs, critical mass is important both
in shaping the internal and external profile of such organisations and
in attracting human and financial resources.
Regarding the informal "intercultural learning dimension," ISCA argues
that "it takes more than sport and physical activities to facilitate a
useful and valuable intercultural dialogue." Namely, an objective
beyond the sport activity and an educational perspective are needed,
along with "proper settings where the [...] perspective is transformed
into action".
ISCA President Mogens Kirkeby regrets that the European Year of
Intercultural Dialogue 2008 was launched without the involvement of
the European sport sector. "It is an unfortunate missed opportunity
not to support and highlight the sport sector's capacity to assist
intercultural dialogue and integration," he said.
"It is the goal to make 2008 a grass roots-oriented campaign year.
What is more grass-root oriented and widespread than this civil
society sector - the sport sector? The sector – especially 'sport for
all' - has operational structures locally, nationally and
internationally, with more than 70 million Europeans directly
involved."
ISCA recommends that the increased interest in intercultural dialogue
among civil society organisations and sport associations be further
strengthened with the support of European funding. It calls for a
European programme to be developed to facilitate national strategies
and local interventions. Furthermore, it recommends that "European and
national campaigns should be directly connected with local
implementation settings".
UEFA president Michel Platini said: "European sport has always been a
powerful catalyst for social and cultural integration. Millions of
children from all parts of the world have become and continue to
become European by kicking a ball around a muddy pitch in our towns or
countryside before going to school [...] Grassroots sport is an
extraordinary catalyst for ethnic intermixing and integration.
Football in particular is a welcoming, protecting and integrating
sport."
However, Platini regrets that many social problems, including
violence, are "unfortunately" also a part of sport and in particular
football. "Society has also passed other scourges on to the world of
sport: money-laundering, match-fixing, illegal betting, racism and
xenophobia, doping and child trafficking," he said.
The International Olympic Committee (IOC) aims to promote the
development of the culture and Olympic education agenda through sport
at national, regional and international levels, as well as at the
Olympic Games. IOC policy aims to "develop the link between sport and
culture in all its forms, encourage cultural exchange and promote the
diversity of cultures". Secondly, it aims to promote Olympic education
and supports other institutions which promote the values of
'Olympism', which is described as "a philosophy of life". "Blending
sport with culture and education, Olympism seeks to create a way of
life based on the joy found in effort, the educational value of good
example and respect for universal fundamental ethical principles."
The first Youth Olympic Games, which will be held in Singapore in
2010, "are the flagship of the IOC's determination to reach out to
young people. These Games will not only be about competition. They
will also be the platform through which youngsters will learn about
the Olympic values and the benefits of sport, and will share their
experiences with other communities around the globe," said IOC
President Jacques Rogge.
The goal of the Olympic Movement is "to contribute to building a
peaceful and better world by educating youth through sport practiced
without discrimination of any kind and in the Olympic spirit, which
requires mutual understanding with a spirit of friendship, solidarity
and fair play," states the movement.
http://www.euractiv.com/en/sports/sport-and-intercultural-dialogue-linksdossier-188453
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