Linguistic diversity, intercultural competences & European identity

Between the 3rd and 7th of February 22 students and 8 staff from 6 different universities around Europe, 5 from UNINA, met at Palacký University in Olomouc, the Czech Republic, for the second iteration of the BIP course Linguistic diversity, intercultural competences & European identity. 

Focusing on plurilingualism, European cultural and linguistic background, and intercultural skills, the participants learned, discussed, and practiced during a week full of workshops and activities. Coming from various backgrounds and study fields, such as linguistics, finance, pedagogy, philosophy, psychology, and law, they engaged actively in the topic and created a new understanding of the complex situation of language and identity in Europe today. And more than that, they created new international contacts and laid the foundation for new cooperation across the borders of Europe.

The course was organized in cooperation between Palacký University, Università degli Studi di Napoli Federico II in Naples, Italy, Innsbruck University in Innsbruck, Austria, and Universitat Rovira i Virgili in Tarragona, Spain under the auspices of the Aurora network and was taught by Ulrike Jessner-Schmid (UI), Alessandro Arienzo (UNINA), Lídia Gallego-Balsà (URV), Barbara Hofer (UI) and Markus Öbrink (UPOL). It was built on the foundations laid in Naples in 2023, when the course was first taught. The number of participants and the number of universities represented cannot be described as anything else than a great success and proof of the robustness BIP course system. The aim is to not only repeat the course in the future but also to build on the results to grow further cooperation within teaching as well as research.