Description
The project will allow development of stronger bilateral ties between the two partner institutions, working together on a common project and reflecting jointly on issues of migration. As a part of Charles University in Prague, the Protestant Theological Faculty can help to build increased partnerships with Norwegian institutions and the research on the reception of migrants and the roles the churches play in that will be of benefit in terms of helping to give focus to bilateral partnerships but also for both the countries. The project will see the already established international collaboration of the MHS – School of Mission and Theology further broadened, and will also expand contacts between the Protestant Theological Faculty of Charles University and Norway. Through focus on the particular issue of migrants, the importance of the institutions in both countries will also become more evident to a broader public.
Summary of project results
The outcomes of the project have been met. Continuing bilateral cooperation between the Czech and Norwegian partners has been institutionalised with the signing of an Erasmus agreement. Three conference presentations were given, which have been submitted or are in the process of being submitted for publication. These presentations also allowed for the presentation of the programme, and the programme was also presented at conferences and meetings in the Czech Republic, Norway, Finland, the Netherlands and Bulgaria. A conference was organised in the Czech Republic with participation of both academics (Czech and foreign, from fifteen different countries) and civil society representatives. Norwegian partners participated in this conference and a visit was made to the partner institution, resulting among other things in the preparation of an Erasmus contract, and invitations to cooperate in future grant projects. The overlapping interests of our respective institutions, especially with the transformation of the Norwegian partner institution into part of the VID Specialized University, has opened up many possibilities of future cooperation, which both partners are keen to pursue. In terms of dissemination, the project has carried out a number of important tasks. We have produced a brochure on migration and the churches to be sent to church communities around the country, and have contributed heavily to an online encyclopaedia of migration that aims at informing the public on issues connected with migration, including theological questions. Radio broadcasts have also enabled the wider sharing of the themes of the project. These contributions aim at increasing dialogue and social justice, especially given the continued resistance to the presence of migrants in the Czech Republic. Thus the project has worked at both the academic level and the level of civil society to promote greater integration in Czech society.
Summary of bilateral results
The project arose out of attitudes expressed in 2015 about the acceptance of refugees from Syria, Afghanistan and Iraq in the Czech Republic, which were frequently negative. It was hoped that church based groups would play a role in building a more equitable and receptive society, and the project aimed to contribute to this activity. Problems arose principally because there were practically no such refugees accepted in the country, so that we had to deal with a hypothetical situation that was nonetheless perceived as threatening. It also meant that the church-based organisations themselves had little work to do with refugees in the country in the period of the project, though they were working abroad, and doing some work with people in camps inside the country. The reality slightly altered the need for and anticipated outcomes of the project. The main results of the project are the brochure we have produced to be distributed to church communities and the online encyclopaedia, both of which will continue to be of service for a number of years to come. We will also personally be engaged in the issues of hospitality and welcome as mission in our ongoing academic work. We have made contacts with many people working in this area in different civil society organisations and we will be willing to continue to work with them to the extent that they find it helpful The project aimed at contributing in four areas: research and scholarship; human and social development; justice and home affairs; promotion of decent work and tripartite dialogue. The first was achieved through academic presentations and writing. The second was aimed at by offering a positive counter-position to the negative portrayals of refugees and migrants in sections of our society, and by arguing for a Christian contribution to their welcome. This also touched on issues of justice and home affairs, even if the project did not explicitly follow a political line, given anyway that most political parties were speaking out against accepting any refugees. We sought to show that it was a question of justice, especially of human rights, and the duty of countries to accept refugees. Finally, we tried in the project to engage with those who had different opinions and to do so in a way that tried to take their fears seriously and to offer ways to overcome those fears.