To which extent are Europeans really “European”? How do people from France, Poland, Hungary, Finland, Portugal and Germany see and evaluate themselves and others? Is it possible to infer that different nationalities are growing together to a united Europe?
The project EU-CAB under the coordination of the Duale Hochschule (Cooperative State Unversity) Karlsruhe, Germany, seeks to find answers to these questions. Therefore, students coming from all six countries learn and research together – building a united Europe along the way.
Multiplier Event 10.12.2021
Initially planned as a crowning final event on site in Baden-Baden, Germany, the Multiplier Event unfortunately also had to be moved online in the end. In the short time after the conclusion of the last ISP in October, the teachers and students involved had prepared the extensive data that had been collected since 2019. In the online conference, the project was examined from various aspects and, above all, the most important results from the analysis of the data collection were presented.
ISP Lodz HYBRID 18 – 22.10.2021: And once again a new event format, due to the ongoing Covid situation. For our last Intensive Study Programme, only the students and teachers from France and Finland travelled to Poland. The participants from Hungary, Portugal and Germany were connected online and included as much as possible. The programme took place in both partner universities – Lodz University and University of Technology Lodz. The programme included some SYMLOG observation sessions and the data entry, as well as exciting lectures on climate policy, responsibility and European solidarity, and industrial change using the example of the textile industry in Lodz. The programme took place in both partner universities – Lodz University and University of Technology Lodz. The programme included some SYMLOG observation sessions and data entry, as well as exciting lectures on climate policy, responsibility and European solidarity, and industrial change using the example of the textile industry in Lodz. A trip to nearby Auschwitz left strong impressions on all participants and made them aware of how important values such as democracy and international understanding are. Consternation and sadness silenced the talks during the long bus ride back to Lodz. On the following and last day of the ISP, however, the students and teachers talked about what they had experienced, also and especially because it was a great concern of the German project management.
3 – 7 May 2021, ISP Mikkeli/Finland: A second Intensive Study Programme that we can only run online due to the ongoing Covid situation. Our host is the South-Eastern Finland University of Applied Sciences in Mikkeli, XAMK. What a pity that we don’t get to experience Finland’s wonderful nature and great people for real. Our hosts compensated us with a friendly programme of interesting lectures, presentations, games and quizzes. Data collection and input were, as always, also a big part of the programme. This is hard work sometimes but after all, we are in search of “the” European identity! But we are making great strides and very much hope to be able to travel again in October for the last ISP in Lodz/Poland.
EU-CAB is back again! We were happy and excited to be able to meet our multinational students and colleagues again for an International Study Programme. For long we had planned and hoped to hold it in Baden-Baden, Germany. Finally all the partner countries had to cancel their journeys. The Corona pandemic forces all of us to act responsibly and to take care of us and others. So we met in the web and surely made the best out of online conferences! On the timetable were interesting lectures, virtual observation sessions, feedback and group sessions, and of course the work with the data and their entry into the database (not so much fun, but very important).
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An International Study Programme in times of Covid 19: the DHBW Karlsruhe invited all former, current and future students of the project and the team of teachers to a “mini-ISP”, taking place on 22nd and 23rd June 2020 – virtually, of course. In this last week of June, the Germany ISP should have taken place in Baden-Baden. Due to the Corona situation, already the Finnish ISP planned for April 2020, had had to be cancelled. So it was high time to meet again, and over 50 participants virtually came together on the afternoon of 23rd June to listen to a lecture by Dr. Stefan Seidendorf of dfi Ludwigsburg (German-French institute), focussing on ‘old and new borders’. A very up-to-date topic given the current situation where everywhere in Europe borders were re-installed under the crisis. In his very interesting lecture, Mr. Seidendorf spoke about historical, social, psychological and other issues of borders. The Lord Mayor of Baden-Baden, Mrs. Margret Mergen, sent a video welcome. Everybody hopes to meet in real very soon.
Third Intensive Study Programme – and last in 2019: a week in Porto, Portugal, one of our six partner countries. Two higher education institutions are our wonderful hosts: ISMAI and ISCAP. Starting with a Think Tank in the form of a panel discussion on issues of Europe, the topics of this week’s programme are especially manifold, going from “What is identity at all?” from the viewpoint of philosophy, over Portuguese culture, to the basic concepts of statistics. In addition are the usual sessions of structured observation work, one of the two scientific tools of this project. Enough time, yet, to visit the town. Beautiful Porto with its friendly inhabitants and palpable joy of living is an unforgettable and impressive experience.
Click here for some Porto impressions!
Happy faces during our second International Study Programme (ISP) from 24 to 28 June 2019 – this time we met in Budapest, Hungary’s beautiful capital city. The Budapest Business School was our host. Again, over 40 students and their teachers from six countries participated and continued their work and research on European identities and behaviour. On the programme: lectures about contemporary Hungary, stereotype and prejudice in general, practical exercises in order to reflect on behaviour and train self-awareness, and of course several sessions of SYMLOG observation practice. Time for analyses and report concluded this really intensive 5-days-programme. Budapest with its impressive architecture and its very friendly people was a wonderful experience.
Click here for our Budapest impressions!
May 2019 – First Intensive Study Programme in Cergy, France
So here we are! 41 students and 11 teachers from all six countries, learning and working together during the 5-days-ISP at the University of Cergy-Pontoise. Wednesday 15th was a day of mere SYMLOG observation practice, a welcome change to the theoretical work of the first two days. In small groups, we observed the behaviour of persons in every-day (like mother-child) and business (like shop assistant-client) situations and took systematical (anonymous) notes. It is not quite easy in the beginning to keep the focus on smallest interactions, but this SYMLOG method can be quickly learned. On the picture: the group on the stairs under the “Grande Arche” in Paris La Défense.
Click here for our Cergy impressions!
January 2019 – Cooperation started!
We had a very good Kick-off meeting last week in Karlsruhe, joining our 1st Transnational Project Meeting with a so-called Joint Staff Training Event. The issues of the three-days-meeting were twofold: a) to discuss and determine the further steps of organisation, as well as dissemination and budget issues, and b) to learn and apply the methods of SYMLOG and Self-Concept Grid in order to be able to teach them to the students during the Study Programmes. We had intensive and long working days, but also lots of fun and team spirit.
Thanks to our guests for their great commitment; all of us are looking forward to meeting again during the first Intensive Study Programme (ISP), held in Cergy in May 2019.