What better time than summer to strengthen our ties with Norwegian colleagues in the field of education for human rights? This summer, we joined forces with colleagues in Arendal, in Oslo and at Utøya – connecting with our Norwegian network and learning from each other.
By now it has become a yearly tradition. EWC teams up with the other peace- and human rights centres in Norway during the yearly political get-together in Arendal, Norway. Though different i mandate, the centres have much in common, working to promote values of democracy, human rights and intercultural understanding. During the days in Arendal, the centres shed light on the issue of racism in times of societal crises, through the joint op-ed “Racism during the pandemic”, that was published in the Norwegian daily “Verdens Gang”. The topic was further debated at the following seminar “Stop Asian Hate”, which provided insight to the increasing hate and intolerance experiend by people of Asian origin in Norway in times of covid.
The centres have also taken the initiative to establish a Norwegian network on education on democracy, peace, and human rights. The aim of the network is to serve as a space for practitioners in the field, where they can share experiences, reflect and discuss theory and practice, as well as explore new methods and strategies.Every year the network meets for a seminar, and this year it was hosted by EWC in cooperation with the 22 July Centre in Oslo and at Utøya. EWC shared experiences and knowledge from our project on 22 July and Democratic Citizenship and facilitated discussions on questions such as: How can one make sure that education about historic events, such as Holocaust and the terror attacks 22 July, promotes democratic citizenship? How can one make sure that excursions and place-based learning promote learning and meaningful experiences?
