PEACEMAKERS Project: “Peace dialogue campus network: fostering positive attitudes between migrants and youth in hosting societies”: needs analysis

Peacemakers Project team members: Koç University: Project Coordinator: Nilüfer Akpınar Şahin,Scientific Coordinator: Şebnem Köşer Akçapar, Project Assistant: Bora Berke Şahin; Universidade Aberta: Mário José Filipe da Silva, Lúcio Sousa, Rosa Maria Sequeira, Joaquim Gronita, Natália Ramos; University of Bologna: Monica Rubini, Silvia Moscatelli, Michela Menegatti, Elisabetta Crocetti, Francesca Prati, Flavia Albarello; Erasmus University Rotterdam: Phyllis Livaha; Gaziantep University: Metin Bedir, Ins. Simge Akbaş; Humboldt Universitat zu Berlin: Matthes, Kristin Küter.The ongoing refugee crisis in Europe and Turkey reinforced xenophobic and anti-immigrant sentiment, manifested in attacks on migrants, and those perceived as foreigners and support for populist anti-immigration parties in many European Union (EU) states. In many of the EU member states, high levels of immigration appear to have produced an increase in hostility toward immigrants (Quillian 1995; McLaren 1996b), increased support for right-wing parties (Knigge 1998; Lewis-Beck & Mitchell 1993), and even produced violent right-wing behaviour (McLaren 1999). “In September, United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Zeid Ra’ad al-Hussein warned leaders of populist parties in Europe about the corrosive effect on societies of their instrumentalization of bigotry and xenophobia for political ends.” (Human Rights Watch, 2017). As we see this trend continuing in Europe and Turkey, the question to ask is how to reduce intergroup prejudice and discrimination in order to promote inter-ethnic social inclusion. Indeed, immigration is very often source of “shock of the culture” for both native and immigrant people, often leading to what is called the “integration crisis”, that is, a conflictual situation among individuals with different geographical, cultural, or ethnic background. Such crisis is often caused by the necessity for individuals to redefine social interactions and norms that are adaptive for all social groups. To do this, it is essential to understand the perspective of both native, or the majority, and immigrant people, or the minority group. Research on social integration has shown that the inclusion of the new members in the host societies is the basis for social cohesion (Fleras, 2009), and continuous positive contacts between members of different groups (Allport, 1954) are necessary, as they increase native people’ knowledge about immigrants and vice versa, then break prejudices and stereotypes, facilitating the social cohesion.With the support of the Erasmus+ Program of the European Union