The latest edition of the Euro-Med Award for Intercultural Dialogue is launched on the theme of ‘ecological sustainability’, as last year’s winners embark on their regional tour

On the 30th of March, the Anna Lindh Foundation officially launched the fifth edition of its region-wide prize for intercultural dialogue.

Co-founded in 2006 by the Foundation and its Italian Head of National Network, ‘Fondazione Mediterraneo’, the Euro-Med Dialogue Award is an annual prize in recognition of the achievements of institutions and individuals working for the promotion of intercultural understanding, with a thematic focus announced each year.

Deadline for Nomination:20th May 2010

An Award of the Euro-Mediterranean Civil Society

The Award has a unique format which gives the possibility to members of the Anna Lindh National Civil Society Networks, working across the 43 countries of the Union for the Mediterranean, to nominate candidates for the Prize and to take part the voting process to select the annual winner.

For the first time in 2009, more than three hundred members of the Anna Lindh Networks participated in the online vote to elect the winners and the official runners-up, with former Award winners including Rim Maroun (Lebanon), Rodi Kratsa (Greece), Der Mar Musa (Syria), Jan Willems of Theatre Day Productions (Netherlands/Palestine).

Addressing the issue of Ecological Sustainability

For 2010, which has been labeled by the United Nations the ‘International Year of Biodiversity’, the steering committee of the Award selected the theme of ‘bringing people together for ecological sustainability’ based on the importance the environment represents to many civil society organizations working across the Mediterranean.

With cultural developments arising from the constant interaction between the environment and the communities living in it, the aim of the latest edition of the Dialogue Award is to identify and promote individuals or organizations who are have been engaged in promoting intercultural action to address current environmental challenges and contribute to finding common solutions for the ecological age.

“The Award is an incentive. It helps us to keep focused on our work in the field and inspires us to be creative in addressing the day-to-day issues at stake” Former Winner Jan Willems

Combatants for Peace embark on Regional Tour

One of the outcomes of the annual Award is the involvement of winners in activities organized by the Anna Lindh National Networks.

Over the last weeks, Combatants for Peace, the joint Israeli-Palestinian social movement who won the 2009 prize edition on the theme of ‘coexistence’ have had the opportunity to share their grass-root experiences with audiences in France, Finland and Spain.

In Marseille at the end of March, Bassam Aramin from Palestine and Einat Gutman from Israel met with members of the French National Network, while on the 8th of April project representatives took part at the University of Helsinki to speak on the theme of 'The War in Gaza 2009 and Peace Research’.

Upcoming planned activities include participation at the regional meeting hosted by the Anna Lindh Slovak Network and involving members from Poland, Hungary, the Czech Republic and Austria.

www.euromedalex.org/dialogueaward