Prior to attending the Brussels Forum, I have been participating in a conference for young leaders from the US and Europe.The German Marshall Fund and the U.S. Helsinki Commission have been working on issues of diversity and inclusion for many years. This has led to the development of a program called the Transatlantic Inclusion Leaders Network (see twitter hashtag #TILN) which brings together young people f to learn from each other and discuss issues faced by ethnic minorities and immigrants in becoming politically active in their respective countries/regions. I have participated in this program since my research has focused on many of the issues related to policies which promote diversity and inclusion, particularly my edited volume, Immigrant Politics which examines ways that political parties and immigrant groups have worked to incorporate young people of immigrant background into national political processes.
On the US side, caucuses have been a means of bringing together groups of legislators, and one idea is to encourage the development of caucuses in Europe and possibly on a transatlantic basis. I also spoke with representatives from several NGOs who work on issues related to race and discrimination in Europe about the possibilities for moving forward at a time when the focus has shifted to restricting immigration rather than fighting discrimination.
Some other ideas from the meeting:
Young professional exchanges like #TILN build partnerships for intl engagement and cultivate global citizenship
Universal values can define and guide a Transatlantic discussion on diversity and inclusion.
"We don't need to reinvent the wheel when it comes to developing inclusive policies." Let's share best practices.
Changing systems is a long term process. In 50 years change has been
steady but there is much more to do to have effective policies.
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