Visit of the ifa-Institute to the House of Minorities

Tuesday 31 March Secretary General Robert Grätz and Mr Urban Beckmann, the leader of the “Dialogue”-department of ifa, the German Institute for Foreign Cultural Relations came to Flensburg to visit FUEN and the House of Minorities. The meeting between the leading staff members and a delegation of FUEN started with a presentation of the two organisations and afterwards a discussion developed on which objectives ifa and FUEN have in common and how both organisation might create sustainable added value in the life of the European minorities.

The Institute for Foreign Cultural Relations ifa works closely together with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Federal Republic of Germany, and the participants in the discussion were glad that that a new kind of thinking has emerged in relation to crisis management and crisis prevention. Consequently this means also a new, more open and targeted approach to the issue of European minority policy. Within this context the two organisation quickly found common ground and decided that they will meet again later to discuss more concrete about common project ideas. Cooperation of the two institutions may yield promising opportunities to support the minorities united under the umbrella of FUEN in a sustainable way.