In the year when the whole of Europe focuses on Intercultural Dialogue, young people took the opportunity to talk about our common European identity and heritage and how differences and similarities unite Europeans around their traditions, habits and customs. The activities organised by schools covered a wide range, from “adopting” other countries with the aim of discovering their cultures to preparing traditional dishes. Students were also encouraged to learn poems from foreign European authors and sing traditional songs from other countries.

Schools celebrated similarities and difference that occur not only at a European level, but also in their local communities. The participants were encouraged to increase interaction between students of different ethnicities.

The events also included: theatre performances, visits from MEPs, film festivals, exhibitions. They enabled students to express their creative abilities, but also to acquire communication skills when interacting with peers from other cultures.

For several activities, schools shared their outcomes in their mother tongue and also preferred to share them in a second language to strengthen our European collective identity.

Re-discovering Europe and its cultural assets once again on Europe Day, 9 May, is a way of making a significant contribution to the education of young people in order to overcome prejudices and remove cultural stereotypes, to help them be better prepared for a Europe of tomorrow.