INSTITUTE BURJA EXPLORING EUROPE UNDER ERASMUS+

By implementing learning mobility of staff within the framework of the accredited Erasmus program in 2022-2027, we are improving approaches to the informal education of members of ethnic minorities in Slovenia.

We went to Berlin in the middle of the summer. The giant, full of summer bustle, is one of the cultural metropolises of Europe. The city impresses with the intercultural coexistence of immigrants from all over the world. A lot of systematic work is needed to acquire such a status.

One of the organizations that have been actively engaged in this kind of work for over three decades, involving immigrants from South-Eastern Europe, is Südost Europa Kultur. The organization has more than 15 full-time employees and many external collaborators, which regularly provides immigrants with counselling, educational activities, employment opportunities and legal protection during long-term integration processes. At the same time, it offers immigrants a whole range of systemic support for integration into the majority society. 

We held a series of meetings and consultations with representatives of the visiting organization on the topic of good practices of inclusion and non-formal education. At the same time, we visited their green oasis in the centre of Berlin. It is the Rosenduft Intercultural Garden, where they grow flowers and vegetables in an environmentally friendly way, take care of bees and do their work more relaxedly. Here they hold lectures, various meetings and, in a way, escape from their offices, woven with bureaucratic charm. Their Rosenduft Intercultural Garden was also visited a few years ago by the then Prince of Wales, now the British King Charles. King Charles is undoubtedly an ardent advocate of environmental protection, and you could also call him the green king.

At the end of the visit, we met with the rest of the organization’s representatives, where we could exchange our experiences at work and, at the same time, touch on the specifics of the working environment in the field of adult education in Slovenia and Germany. In addition to the present differences, we also found many common points. 

It is mainly about the conclusions that achieve substantial effects through different strategies and work methodologies in informal learning. It is necessary to actively introduce new models, be creative, invest a lot of work in staff development, and above all, listen to the wishes of members of the process and coordinate them with their actual needs for independent functioning within society — both in the phase of needs analysis and in the actual implementation of learning programs. 

Our Institute Burja has obtained Erasmus Accreditation for 2022 – 2027 after several years of staff mobility projects in the field of adult education. Through the previous implementation of mobility projects, we gained the confidence to start implementing more complex projects in non-formal adult education. 

Above all, we gained a lot of experience and strengthened the international network of partner organizations. We introduced new knowledge, good practices and joint initiatives, mutual learning, and new projects into our work processes. In this way, we contribute to the more significant role of minority organizations in non-formal adult education and more excellent added value for our target groups. With each working visit, we strengthen our key priority areas in the long term. We enhance the motivation of our adult minority members in non-formal education, create new learning opportunities and potentials, promote awareness, information and social inclusion activities, improve our organization’s institutional capabilities, and develop regional and international partnerships. To strengthen cross-sector integration, we choose various institutions abroad, from municipalities to folk universities and governmental or non-governmental organizations.

We decided to visit Südost Europa Kultur for multiple of those reasons. Mainly, they represent an example of a good practice organization that coordinates the entire community’s progress. We were able to convince ourselves of all this in the short time of our visit.