Youth Campaign Against Hate Speech Seminar, Strasbourg

Deadline: 15 September 2012
Open to: governmental and non-governmental representatives and youth leaders from Council of Europe member countries
Venue: 10 – 12 October, European Youth Centre, Strasbourg

Objectives of the seminar

  • To develop a common understanding of the realities of hate speech and the importance of addressing hate speech on-line, and to create a sense of urgency among the stakeholders of the Council of Europe’s youth sector
  • To further develop the main messages and approaches of the campaign
  • To clarify the means and methods of the campaign in its European and national dimensions
  • To elaborate proposals for the programme of key activities of the campaign and tools to be developed, including the roles of the European and national levels
  • To associate the campaign preparations with the Council of Europe’s work against hate speech and on Internet governance
  • To develop communication, cooperation and partnerships among the national and European stakeholders of the campaign and to create a sense of shared ownership of the project and of the campaign

Programme and working methods

The programme of the seminar is currently being prepared by the Follow-up group of the project set up by the Joint Council on Youth and will be sent to all the participants ahea of the seminar. The programme will include:
– Presentation and discussion about the importance of addressing hate speech online and how to recognise it
– Discussion of the preliminary results of the Europe survey about young people’s perception of hate speech on-line
– Sharing experiences about on-line campaigning and developing participants competences for this purpose
– Introduction to the Council of Europe’s work against hate speech, against racism and discrimination and in Internet governance and identify links with the campaign
– Preparation of the programme of activities of the campaign at European level and connection with national activities
– Practical workshops and capacity-building for activities and tools for the campaign
– Agreement of guidelines for campaigning and communication.

If possible (i.e. if ready), the campaign’s message and visual identity will also be presented and discussed with its creators.

Profile of participants

The seminar is primarily addressed to governmental and non-governmental representatives and youth leaders who seriously intend or expect to take a leading role in organising, mobilising young people or disseminating information in their countries, services or organisations. These may include, for example:

– Leaders and representatives of youth organisations and groups working with racism, discrimination, hate speech and online environments
– Representatives of national youth councils and international youth organisations
– Representatives of national and international organisations active for human rights
– Representatives of youth governmental services and decision makers in respect to youth policy and Internet governance
– Youth workers and education professionals involved with hate speech, racism, human rights and online technologies
– Bloggers and on-line human rights activists.

All participants must be:

– able to work independently in English;
– motivated to contribute to the seminar
– available for the full duration of the event and, most important,
– seriously intending to take an active in organising national campaigns or projects in the framework of the European campaign.

Financial conditions for participation

Travel expenses and visa fees will be reimbursed (on presentation of the relevant receipts) according to the rules of the Council of Europe. Only the participants who attend the entire seminar can be reimbursed. The payment will be made either by bank transfer after the course, or at the end of the seminar in cash (in Euros). Board and lodging will be provided and paid for by the Council of Europe at the European Youth Centre Strasbourg.

Procedure and deadline for application

All those interested to apply for the seminar are invited to apply on-line by 15 September 2012.

Contact and further information

For questions and further information, please contact us at eyc.programme@coe.int.

More information could be found HERE

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