E.M.E.R.G.E. - European Mobility Enabling to Reduce th Ground of Exclusion - European Project hosted by Istituto Sturzo in partnership with ESA and FCASEC

Social inclusion beyond the European Year 2010

Society and poeple with disabilities: future challenges for the EU

giovedì, May 26th, 2011

The fight against poverty and exclusion is still a key challenge for EU. The Member States are committed to reinforcing the institutional mechanism adopting an integrated system, considering themes on social inclusion in national-level policies.

Promoting inclusion means to work in order to assure equal treatment between persons irrespective of religion or belief, disability, age or sexual orientation and to guarantee unquestionable dignity and participation opportunities to all. All the citizens should not be left apart in the personal life and work but actively involved in their community and in the European context.

It also means to act with the aim of making the society truly inclusive and capable of adapting to correspond to the citizens’ concrete rights.

Even if there is an intrinsic solidarity which fully acknowledges the need of adaptations for people with mild disabilities in European societies, people with severe or multiple disabilities need more help in terms of human rights and inclusion. Many disabled people continue to suffer discrimination with regard to the lack of equal recognition before the law and justice. Member States have to remedy these deficiencies including electoral rights.

Compared to the average, people with disabilities have more chance of being poor; around 80 million people with disabilities are poor, including one million deaf people.

In line with what emerged during the European Year for Combating Poverty and social, we need to consider that it is impossible to reduce poverty without integrating people with disabilities in the labor market and to adjust policies supporting incomes in case of disability.

The current systems of education and training do not prevent the dropout among people with disabilities. Its high rate leads to greater social disadvantage and employment especially in this time of economic crisis.

Succeeding in the workplace is still very difficult for people with disabilities, but there are good examples that could show the possibility of a change involving all the EU countries in implementing non-discriminatory and inclusive policies.

An example of this success is the experience of Hungarian Ádám Kósa EPP deputy who oversaw the report on "European strategy on disability 2010-2020. 

An example of this success is the experience of Ádám Kósa, MEP of  PPE, author of the report on EU’s disability strategy 2010-2020.

An interesting interview with Ádám Kósa on problems that disabled people face is published on the European Parliament website here.

The E.M.E.R.G.E. publication

The transnational research staff at work

lunedì, March 21st, 2011

The E.M.E.R.G.E. partnership has realized the volume European Union between defense of the Treaties and electoral consensus. From 2010 Year for Combating Poverty and Social Exclusion to 2014 Year of European elections, co-financed by the European Union under the "Europe for the Citizens" Programme.

The publication gathers the results achieved by the trans-national staff of Italian, Bulgarian and Romanian researchers. It focuses on the activities held by the European Parliament and other EU institutions in relation to the main social problems in Italy, Bulgaria and Romania and the role of European parties through the study of the campaigns promoted on the occasion of the European elections.

This publication enables to deepen the new tool of democratic participation that from April 2012 will allow the citizens to directly begin the European legislative process: the "European Citizens’ Initiative".

For further information and for a copy of the book, plaese email: g.fiaccarini@sturzo.it.

Copertina

Volunteer! Make a difference! Volontari! Facciamo la differenza! Стани доброволец! Дай своя принос! Oferă te voluntar! Schimbă ceva!

giovedì, January 20th, 2011

The year 2011 is dedicated to the people that give their spare time to others, to those working unpaid to improve the life of a person or the community, to all the people hoping for a more democratic and inclusive growth.

After long debates and thanks to the requests made by the associations working in the volunteering field, on 22nd of January 2010 the European Council published on the Official Journal the decision that stated: “Volunteering is one of the most important dimensions of democracy and active citizenship, where the European values such as solidarity and not-discrimination become a reality and for that reason will contribute to the harmonious development of European societies. "

The European Year is one of the activities promoted by ONU for the tenth anniversary of International Year of Volunteers (IVY). All the coordinating bodies have planned their activities referring to the Manifesto of European Volunteering.

An important role is going to be played by civil organizations operating in the volunteering field. For these reasons the local impact will be very strong due to the engagement of private and public stakeholders in the building of a new social reality.

The European Year aims to raise awareness and encourage as many people as possible to volunteer and give their own contribution to the building of a better society.
The Year’s goals are:
- facilitating voluntary activities overcoming current obstacles;
- strengthening and supporting the organizations improving their working coditions;
- encouraging the involvement of citizens recognizing, for example, the competencies acquired during the volunteer activities;
- raising public awareness about volunteering.

More of 20% of European citizens are involved in volunteering activities and they consider it as a basic element of democratic life, that enables to foster social connections, to make a contribution to the welfare and, at the same time, acquiring new skills.
The European Year of volunteering aims at increasing the relationship between the organizations working on local and European level, in order to create a stronger and a larger network of solidarity, able to involve new sectors, such as, for example, sports.
A National Agency will coordinate all the planned activities, and will be the reference for any kind of information for the volunteer and the people who wish to undertake a volunteer experience.
The programme of events planned in the European offices and major cities of Member States, is crowded with appointments.
A team of volunteers along with a group of shifting volunteer reporters, like in a relay race, are going to spend 10 days meeting social operators and politicians in each country of the Member States. At the end they will publishing all articles and audiovisual services done around Europe on the media.
Four thematic conferences will be organized on the key issues of volunteering.
(The program is available at http://europa.eu/volunteering/it/home2).
Although the lack of social policies, the economic crisis involving all member states and the impact that this had on the citizens’ life and on the social organizations, the 2010 European year combating poverty and social exclusion and 2011 Year of Volunteering, demonstrate the will and the need, at European level, to fill a void of conscience and to restore a shared sense of cohesion and solidarity for the common wellbeing.