Disrupting polarisation: building communities of tolerance through football

ended

Objectives -To identify, analyse and address the spread values of intolerance through football by extremist parties, engaging particularly youth. -To design and implement a holistic community building methodology, preventing and combating intolerance, while addressing community disintegration, through football. - To empower adolescents, their parents and local authorities (incl. sports professionals) to form powerful networks of change at local level disrupting polarisation through the creation of poles of tolerance. Activities - Development of an Action Plan, promoting community building through football, while disrupting polarisation. - Capacity building actions, building a network of agents of change promoting community building through football. - Playing community-creating football, creating poles of understanding at local level. - Dissemination of the project: Promoting the message of “Football for All: making extreme discourses irrelevant”. Type and number of persons benefiting from the project - 4000 adolescents (aged 12-18), 4000 parents, 500 civil servants, 500 youth leaders, 500 football coaches / social workers, 2000 members of the general public. Expected results - Empowered adolescents and youth with informed decision-making and conflict resolution skills, critical in order to combat irrational arguments and stereotypical thinking leading to xenophobia. - Developed capacities of key local stakeholders (CSO and civil servants) to prevent and combat intolerance, while being networked to monitor and address social cohesion. --Type and number of deliverables to be produced -1 primary and secondary research findings reports, 1 methodology / tools and Action plan, 1 Integrated training toolkit, 16 training seminars, 500 football sessions, 4 local (6 month) and 1 international tournament, 1 EU protocol of cooperation, 1 manual, 1 impact assessment report, 1 policy recommendations, 1 webinar, 4 info days, 1 final conference.