ISSN 1023-3725

The Magazine
EDUCATION AND CULTURE IN EUROPE ISSUE 25 2005

EUROPE: beyond gender

European Commission Directorate-General for Education and Culture

3 Foreword 4 Towards a more egalitarian society as regards gender 6 What the new Constitution could offer women and men in Europe 8 The school of equality 10 Gender equality, a subject of study and research 12 The words to say it 12 Migrant father, missing father? 14 Women as senior executives: the right vocational training 15 Technical training courses case studies 16 @lfa-bet@ or how to teach migrant women the numerical approach 17 Soccerlingua: scoring goals 18 The voice of women 20 WWW Women Writers Words 21 Meetings without borders 22 New Europe, new equality, new citizenship 23 Girls in the scrum
European Commission, B-1049 Brussels Tel. (32-2) 299 11 11 Fax (32-2) 295 01 38 Education and Culture DG, Fax (32-2) 296 42 59 e-mail: eac-info@cec.eu.int Internet: http://europa.eu.int/comm/dgs/education_culture/index_en.htm Edited by: Jaime Andreu Romeo Coordination: Frank Pierobon and Jean Jauniaux Graphic design and illustration: Rumeurs and Mostra communication, Brussels The views expressed in this publication are not necessarily those of the Commission. Office for Official Publications of the European Communities, 2005 European Communities, 2005 Reproduction is authorised provided the source is acknowledged. Printed in Belgium Directorate-General for Education and Culture

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Foreword

Equality between women and men in Europe

Dear reader, For Europe and Europeans, equality between women and men is a fundamental right provided for under Article 23 of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union, which was solemnly proclaimed in Nice in 2000 by the European Parliament, the Council and the Commission. It is also enshrined in the EC Treaty, which states under Article 3 that, in all its activities, the Community shall aim to eliminate inequalities and to promote equality between men and women. The Constitution supports our efforts to promote gender equality and non-discrimination by giving an added impulse, as the new Article 3 refines the existing Treaty duty to state that the European Union shall combat social exclusion and discrimination, and shall promote social Commissioner justice and protection, equality between women and men, solidarity between generations and for Education, protection of the rights of the child.
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Training, Culture and Multilingualism

This duty is particularly relevant for the policy areas under my responsibility: education, vocational training, youth, culture, citizenship and multilingualism. Therefore, the Directorate-General for Education and Culture has been ensuring that the European programmes supporting transnational projects in these domains play an important role in addressing discrimination in all its forms. The nature of our policies and activities puts us in the front lines of the battle for equality between women and men, and nondiscrimination in general. As the classic author Charlotte Bront put it, Prejudices, it is well known, are most difficult to eradicate from the heart whose soil has never been loosened or fertilised by education; they grow there, firm as weeds among rocks. Our aim has always been that the European programmes fertilise the heart of each citizen with the values of tolerance.
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Europe: beyond gender

All European programmes have the promotion of equal opportunities as a core principle. A large number of projects promoting equal opportunities and combating discrimination have been financed under these programmes, from Socrates and Leonardo da Vinci to Youth, Citizenship and Culture 2000. Some of them are illustrated in this magazine. I hope they will be a source of inspiration for concrete actions in the areas you are working in. I wish you an enjoyable read of our twenty-fifth edition of the Education and Culture magazine,

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Towards a more

egalitarian

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society as regards
uropean society is evolving slowly and surely under its own steam. The balance of power and values between the sexes seems to be evening out. These basic trends are highlighted in numerous statistical analyses. In its February 2005 report on equality between men and women (1), the European Commission emphasised this development by collecting information in the areas of employment, education and social life in the 25 European Union Member States. The overall result was that disparities between men and women seem to be waning. In particular, the rate of employment is continuing to increase and now covers 55.1 % of women. However, an average wage difference of 15 % in favour of men continues to prevail in the enlarged Union. Before enlargement, this percentage was 16 %. This situation is partly explained by the higher proportion of women in part-time employment (30.6 %) than men (6.6 %). Furthermore, part-time employment is less common in the new Member States owing to the rigidity of the labour market and the lower levels of pay. Although unemployment increased only slightly in 2004, there is still a significant gap between women (10 %) and men (8.7 %). Reconciling family and professional commitments in daily life remains a major preoccupation for women. The rate of employment of mothers with young children is 13.6 points lower than that of women without children. As the Commissions report points out, this is the result of limited access to childcare and gender stereotyped family patterns. Indeed, women perform the major part of the domestic work and consequently have more limited time for paid work. Men do less than 40 % of all domestic work and between 25 % and 35 % of childcare work in couples with children aged up to six years. Equality between men and women was at the heart of a great many social and political struggles in postwar Europe. It was an indicator of a decisive evolution in civil society in several European countries. This evolution was independent of the European integration process, but it goes without saying that discrimination between the sexes like all discrimination is contradictory to the principles and values at the heart of the European project. Furthermore, this type of discrimination would hamper and hinder the most central policies in the current, historical phase of the European Union, aimed at inspiring a spirit of economic and social renewal across the continent. However, we cannot hope for any significant and durable change without the participation of the women of European society. Without women, without their contribution to employment, their creativity and their participation in politics, Europe will not be able to achieve the ambitious programme of reforms planned for the current decade. Discrimination against women constitutes an obstacle to a flourishing democracy in the European Union and a waste of talent, energy and motivation. In numerous legislative texts and in a good number of political debates, equality between men and women, also called gender equality, is already prominent. However, men and women are not, in fact, remunerated, valued or perceived on an equal basis, and this long-standing situation is becoming increasingly less acceptable.

If we then look at the world of education, the disparity in the respective participation of women and men is even greater, but in the opposite sense. According to the same report, women still outnumber men in education. The percentage of women with a diploma in higher education increased to 58 % of the total student population in 2003, if we take into account the high level There is still a lot of ground to be covered between the of education in the new Member States. principles and the reality. This path must start in education, at all levels, and continue through culture, politics and society as a whole. Of course, undeniable progress has been made in many respects, but certain disparities remain, perpetuated by deep-rooted resistance.
(1) Report from the Commission to the Council, the European Parliament, the European Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions on equality between women and men, COM (2005) 44, 14 February 2005.

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A fundamental challenge The European Union has long been committed to promoting gender equality as much in its internal policies as in the international arena. During the fourth World Womens Conference, which was held in Beijing in 1995, a certain number of facts were presented that called for decisive action. At the 10th anniversary of the Beijing conference, the European Parliament assessed the situation in a resolution and encouraged both the Member States and the European institutions to go even further in order to fully take into account the gender dimension, notably in European education, training, and health policies and in the fight against social exclusion. For its part, the European Commission devised a Community framework strategy (2) in 2000 founded on a dual approach: the integration of the gender dimension in all Community policies and activities (gender mainstreaming), and setting up specific actions specifically targeting gender equality. It is also based on three major points: raising awareness, collecting precise data and strengthening collaboration between all the players concerned. Through this strategy, the Commission is encouraging gender equality in five areas: economic life, political and social life, civil society and, finally, the fight against stereotypes. Given that women are underemployed, the primary and most important area of focus is the world of work, where we must endeavour to reduce the differences in wages and improve the rate of employment amongst women. This will require an even greater effort given that the women who are the most affected (especially if they have children) are from regions where unemployment is increasing. Because there are fewer women higher up the hierarchical ladder, the second area concerns in particular decision-making, in political and economic life, with a view to ensuring a better promotion of equal participation and representation as regards women in decision-making bodies. In order to encourage the balance between personal life and the world of work, promoting the full exercise of social rights takes us back to a desire to improve the implementation of Community legislation, in particular as regards social welfare, parental leave, maternity protection and career development. The civil life section concerns the fight against violence linked to sex and the crackdown on trafficking in women. Finally, stress is placed on the need for a change in the roles and stereotypes linked to sex. The 200005 framework strategy was extended until 2006, and the Commission has included the funding programme for gender equality in a broader social programme entitled Progress which will begin in 2007 in line with the start of new programmes concerning education and training. Furthermore, the Commission presented a proposal (3) to the European Parliament and the Council for the creation of a European Gender Institute, whose task it will be to gather information and create a reliable database and to support the action of the European Union in the long term. Through its programmes in the sectors of education, training, youth, culture, citizenship and multilingualism, the DirectorateGeneral for Education and Culture plays a strategic role in the elimination of sexist stereotypes and the promotion of respect for differences in other people. Moreover, the promotion of gender equality is one of the objectives of programmes such as Socrates, Leonardo da Vinci and Youth. On a policy level, for instance, the aim is to strengthen the qualification level of women and strengthen the participation of women in scientific and technical fields and those linked to the new technologies, all areas that remain male bastions. Encouraging women to embrace scientific vocations, despite generally accepted ideas, will not only help them to blossom intellectually and professionally, but also provides a response to Europes shortage of qualified scientists at a time when it is committed to becoming a knowledge-based society.

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(2) See the proposal for a decision of the European Parliament and of the Council amending Council Decision No 51/2001/EC establishing a programme relating to the Community framework strategy on gender equality and Decision No 848/2004/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council establishing a Community action programme to promote organisations active at European level in the field of equality between men and women [COM (2004) 551, 19 August 2004]. 3 ( ) Proposal for a European Parliament and Council Regulation concerning the creation of a European Institute for Equality between Men and Women [COM (2005) 81, 14 February 2005].

What the new

Constitution could offer women and men in Europe

Prof. Teresa Freixes Professor of Constitutional Law (Independent University of Barcelona) Jean Monnet Chair for European Constitutional Law EU network of independent experts in fundamental rights

he achievements made by the Community in terms of equality are already considerable. Equality between women and men is a principle of Community law that expresses a true basic right, as confirmed by the European Court of Justice. This principle of law, which is enforced in all areas governed by the Community, had led to positive action; it is enshrined in the Charter of Fundamental Rights, which was adopted in Nice, and serves as a reference for judges and legislators in interpreting the law and decision-making. Indeed the principle of gender equality has been a common thread running through all Community policy since the Treaty of Amsterdam, which also included specific measures relating to wage equality and equal treatment in employment and work. The Charter of Nice also states the need to reconcile professional and family life, which translates into a large number of social rights, all of which are decisive tools in helping to evolve towards true equality. Furthermore, numerous rules of secondary legislation (hard law as well as soft law) amplify and reinforce the Community standard of equality and provide the necessary framework for a social acquis that is already considered as a hallmark of our Europe.

between women and men. On the one hand, it was necessary to maintain the existing acquis and, on the other, this had to be improved by writing new laws on gender as well as further specifying the legal guarantees contained in all regulations governing gender equality. Unfortunately, it was not possible to obtain all of this from the Convention on the future of Europe, even though a major battle was waged by the Commission and the European Parliament and by womens organisations. The Convention, in which only 17 % of the seats were held by women, showed great resistance, not only to the incorporation of new rights, but also to maintaining a Community acquis that, in the final phase of its work, it finally agreed to keep. It was only at the level of the intergovernmental conference that the text was enriched with the most significant new items, in particular the mention of equality between women and men in Article I-2 of the Constitution. By examining what figures in the text with regard to gender equality, and what emerges from an interpretation of all of the Constitutions texts in these terms, we can see an improvement if we take into consideration the following remarks:

This acquis complements other existing regulations concerning equality between women and men, present in the international > The Constitution maintains the Community acquis concerning equality between women and men, as well as the treaties ratified by the Union or the Member States. Should the above-mentioned regulations. Between this statutory corpus standard recommended in the Charter of Fundamental Rights be and the objective of equality between women and men that less extensive than that set out in these other regulations, the the Union has set itself in all its policies, the issue of gender Charter itself stipulates that the furthest-reaching provision equality has taken on a whole new dimension that has must prevail. This provides Europe with a highly efficient legal further increased with the enlargement of the Union and the tool as regards equality between women and men. adoption of a new legal framework for external action as well as the disappearance of the former pillars, which have been The drafting of the European Constitution provided an transformed in the Constitution into Community policies. opportunity to act on two fronts to better emphasise equality

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> The new Constitution tackles very specific new areas such as the fight against the trade in humans, focusing especially on the trade in women and children and sexual exploitation. Similarly, the need to combat all forms of domestic violence and to do everything possible at Member State level to prevent and crack down on these criminal acts and help and protect the victims is proclaimed in a declaration annexed to the Constitution.
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> The Constitution has added several general clauses to the Charter of Fundamental Rights. Henceforth, it will be necessary to refer to these clauses to precisely determine the constitutionally appropriate interpretation of all of the fundamental rights, which naturally include gender equality. Of course, the distinction between rights and principles with reference to the explanations that the Presidium will give on the Charter, and requested by the Convention for the future of Europe may hinder that interpretation favouring the highest standard regarding equality between women and men with a view to aligning the underlying social rights and actual equality itself. The principle of the single and systematic interpretation of the constitutional text may, in this sense, provide a suitable response to the needs of equality. > The Constitution states that equality between women and men is a characteristic of European society and this initial claim, in Article I-2 concerning the Unions values, allows us to interpret this equality as also covering the gender dimension. Indeed equality is not defined as such as a strict value and its content remains to be identified through the reference made to it in all of the Constitutions texts. In other words, equality between women and men is set out in the Constitution as a

legal structure, as the Unions objective, as a fundamental right (including positive actions) and, finally, as a common thread running through the Communitys policies; it can also be found in those parts of the text concerning the world of work, migration policy and external action. We can therefore claim on this basis that equality between women and men also constitutes one of the Unions fundamental values, under the general title of equality and is thus protected by the sanction procedure of Article I-59. This legal expression of equality between women and men is in fact the principal new item in the Treaty establishing a Constitution for Europe.

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The school of equality

The Community programmes Socrates and Leonardo da Vinci offer very concrete opportunities to further equality between men and women in the world of education and vocational training. This action, which is essential within the framework of the Lisbon strategy, will reinforce the expected results of the political cooperation between the Member States. The success of rebalancing the genders, both as regards education and the world of work, relies on the active participation of all concerned. The positive results already obtained provide us with a glimpse of all that still remains to be done.

he world of education and training is one of the places in which we can most clearly observe the problems, prejudices and preconceived ideas concerning the respective roles of men and women in European society. Thus, whilst women make up the majority of students aged between 20 and 24 (55 % in 2004), and generally obtain better results, there are no more than 20 % in the teaching profession at university level (according to data collected in 2002).

The specific tools of the Socrates and Leonardo da Vinci programmes These programmes endeavour to fight against exclusion in all its guises: they naturally aim to promote equality between men and women, just as Community cooperation at political level is devoted to doing. The Socrates programme, which is dedicated to education, and the Leonardo da Vinci programme, devoted to vocational training, are two important strategic instruments in the promotion of equal opportunities. Their strength is derived from the fact that they act as closely to the field as possible, directly involving players from the world of education and training through cross-border exchange and mobility projects. Each of the projects that these programmes support must outline at every stage in their development (conception, implementation, assessment) how gender equality is taken into account and promoted.

For as long as women do not feel accepted in these domains, which are strategic for the development and prosperity of European society, this imbalance will continue to exacerbate the lack of students in science subjects and will consequently reduce the potential for innovation and scientific research in the Union. This is why the Council of Ministers of Education agreed in 2003, amongst the decisions taken within the framework of the Lisbon strategy (March 2000), to increase the total number of students qualified in mathematics, sciences and technology by 15 % by 2010 and, at the same time, reduce the gender imbalance. The objective, established by the Stockholm European Council in 2001, is to attract 100 000 new female students each year so that they represent 15 % of graduates in these disciplines in Europes 25 Member States in 2015. These guidelines are based on a range

(1) For more information on the implementation of the Lisbon strategy in the areas of education and training: http://www.europa.eu.int/comm/education/policies/2010/et_2010_en.html

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The stereotypes persist, both as regards the supposedly male character of scientific research and the male stranglehold on all forms of power (of which the control of knowledge is clearly part). Therefore, we can see a severe imbalance in the technical, technological and scientific subjects, which girls still tend to neglect. There are two to four times as many male students studying scientific and technical disciplines, although a more in-depth analysis would show great disparities within these specialisations themselves. There are far more women following technical training for professions in healthcare and the environment than in IT, for instance; this leads us to believe that this is due to the continuous portrayal of certain domains as characteristically male technology, industry or female services, healthcare.

of common objectives to be achieved by 2010 (1) and henceforth constitute the framework for political cooperation at Community level as regards education and training. The question of equality is one of the key objectives of this new political framework and the work programme that underpins its implementation. The education ministers have undertaken to fully integrate the dimension of equal opportunities into the objectives and workings of education and training, and to ensure fair access to the acquisition of skills for the underprivileged and those who, for the time being, do not fully benefit under the existing systems. In order to ensure that these commitments are implemented in reality and encourage the exchange of good practices between Member States, the concrete progress achieved at national level in this domain will be regularly assessed through follow-up reports on the implementation of the Lisbon objectives.
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to involve migrant men to a greater extent in the upbringing of their children, a role essentially left to women in numerous The Socrates programme, which is currently in its second phase, population groups. includes a series of actions dedicated to specific types of teaching: school education (Comenius), higher education (Erasmus), adult education (Grundtvig). Furthermore, the Minerva Leonardo da Vinci facet of this programme has several points in common with the new e-Learning programme in that it was designed to stimulate Since 1995, the Leonardo da Vinci programme has been the European cooperation in the integration of the information and principal Community tool for vocational training. Several communication technologies (ICT) and the development of Leonardo da Vinci projects aim to encourage women to follow distance learning. Finally, the Lingua action covers issues related training leading to professions traditionally considered as male bastions. The problem is fundamentally the same insofar as this to learning languages. involves training programmes in the technical and scientific Each Socrates programme action has specific tools that address spheres, as well as other professions affected by preconceptions particular aspects of the promotion of gender equality in such as transport. The Loupe project concretely addresses the education, from pre-school to higher to adult education. For gender dimension used as a criterion in the choices people make instance, in the Comenius programme (cooperation at school regarding technical training; it also includes a presentation of level), the emphasis is placed on preventing dropping out and case studies observed during training courses. exclusion. In this respect, it is worth mentioning the Italian project, which raises awareness of sexist stereotypes in textbooks. The dissemination of experiences and the exchange of good As the cultural context traditionally conveys certain types of practices are a key element in the Leonardo da Vinci programme identity-related behaviour, we can indeed expect this to be strategy, which aims to promote gender equality. This is in fact reflected in textbooks, and the recommended critical analysis one of the lessons learned from a project organised in the region must constantly maintain a sense of nuance. The Erasmus of Vstra Gtaland in Sweden, which aims to reinforce the programme, which was designed to encourage students to follow training of women so that they can occupy managerial positions part of their course abroad, is proving highly successful with in the public sector. This, again, implies a modification in practices female students, who are more numerous than their male and mentality: in 2003, women represented barely 31 % of counterparts. But Erasmus is not limited to student or teacher managers in the 25 European Union Member States. exchanges; this action also supports thematic university networks including the Athena network, which promotes gender as a subject for study in its own right. Socrates Grundtvig, another action within the Socrates programme, focuses on lifelong learning by offering training to adults. Several networks and various projects aim, in particular, to overcome the persistent inequalities between women and men in everyday life, as in the particular cases and difficult situations experienced in immigration. Therefore a project such as Committed Fathers aims

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Europe: beyond gender

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Gender equality,
a subject of study and research
The Athena network groups together approximately 100 higher education institutions located in 30 countries. Through this synergy, it aims to stimulate cooperation and debate regarding the analysis of various issues in society linked to gender problems. Coordinated by the University of Utrecht in the Netherlands, this thematic network

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framework of the Socrates programme.
Why study gender issues? This is the first question we asked Marlise Mensink, coordinator of the Athena network. Marlise Mensink: The gender dimension comes up time and again in the life of a society just as it does in the personal sphere of each individual. It is present in the world of work, in issues concerning public health, in cultural frameworks, etc., with consequences for individual identity. Gender studies allow us to approach this dimension in a scientific manner. By explaining the mechanisms according to which identity and individual roles are built socially, such studies provide useful information for society. The findings of our research allow us to objectively compare situations over periods of time and in different geographical regions, and this could prove to be of great help within the framework of a policy to promote equal opportunities. Is the situation the same across Europe? Historically, the Scandinavian countries were the first in Europe to devise, set up and recognise study programmes on women and gender at university level. On this basis, similar programmes were set up in the rest of Europe, but the idea has not yet been accepted everywhere. Significant residual resistance remains. We must fight every day to have this kind of study recognised as a discipline in itself. In this respect and generally speaking, I am not convinced that the university environment really plays a driving role as regards equal opportunities. One of Athenas tasks is to measure the consequences of the Bologna process for studies dedicated to gender... The initial results of our survey concern 74 universities in 26 countries. This year, 41 of these partners are offering a masters degree in gender studies. The remaining universities blame delays in setting up the system, but the cause is sometimes a lack of clarity in the recommendations of the institution concerned. Masters degrees in the domain of gender studies are offered through programmes in different disciplines, although this is in fact essentially an interdisciplinary issue. Some of the study programmes offered focus on practice and others, of course, research. The main disciplines that include gender studies programmes are the social sciences, sociology and anthropology, as well as equal opportunities itself, social work and even the arts, literature, political science, history, international relations, European studies, education, psychology and theology. Although the transition has taken place quite easily in certain universities, it is necessary to take into account the real risk that gender studies might not be perceived as an individual discipline. And that is worrying insofar as this situation makes it particularly difficult to disseminate and exchange certain data and the results of various pieces of research.

is supported by the Erasmus action within the

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Europe: beyond gender

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Athena

Athena

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Apart from the Bologna process, which major issues is the Athena network dealing with at the moment? First of all, it is strengthening the links between university teaching and research through the development and improvement of European courses at doctorate level, a theme we are paying particular attention to this year. We must also continue to build bridges between academia and the rest of society. This is why we encourage cooperation with study and documentation centres on womens positions in society, public libraries and organisations that run training courses for women. We also dedicate work seminars to certain precise themes, such as public health, in order to supply the debate with research results. The network organises conferences and training courses and produces publications (The making of European women's studies series). We are also organising Noise, a summer school that is taking place in Barcelona in 2005, as well as meetings within the framework of our student network the Athena Student Forum, which gives students from a large number of countries the opportunity to exchange their thoughts on major issues concerning women. Furthermore, a host of information on the various actions of our workshops can be found on our website (http://www.athena2.org). Contact Athena: Advanced Network in Activities in Womens Studies in Europe Athena Central Coordination c/o International Office Womens Studies Utrecht University, Faculty of Arts Muntstraat 2A 3512 EV Utrecht, The Netherlands E-mail: athena@let.uu.nl Internet: http://www.athena2.org

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Europe: beyond gender

words words to
say say to

The The

it

it

choolbooks convey a large number of female and male stereotypes, reflecting a traditional sociological reality without fully taking into account the evolution of roles, identities and customs. In order to encourage people to think about the continued existence of these preconceptions and commonplace ideas, the Polite project is working on raising the awareness of publishers and authors of school publications worldwide as to gender issues. This project, which benefits from the support of the association of publishers and the Italian department for equal opportunities, is supported by the Socrates programmes Comenius action.

After reviewing the most common textbooks in use, the Italian sponsors of the Polite project (Pari opportunit nei libri di testo or Equal Opportunities and Textbooks) drafted an ethical code according to which publishers of textbooks agree to focus particularly on the development of gender identity and the culture of equal opportunities as decisive aspects in the education of people in training, whatever their gender. The publishers have access to a variety of tools developed by the Polite project, in particular a handbook which outlines various available teaching media that meet with equal opportunities criteria. This handbook, entitled Knowledge and freedom Male and female in textbooks, schools and life, is available on the projects website (http://www.aie.it/polite).

Migrant father, missing father?

Still today, bringing up the children within the family remains the exclusive domain of women particularly within migrant families. Fathers do not perceive themselves as playing an active role in the upbringing of their children, states Elfi Thurow, coordinator of the Committed Fathers project. Thanks to pilot experiments conducted in seven countries, this project, supported by the Socrates programme's Grundtvig action, is encouraging fathers to get more involved. Making fathers more sensitive to how their children are brought up may help them to make current models less rigid and existing roles more flexible, both at an individual and social level, Elfi Thurow believes. Supported by the Grundtvig action, which encourages lifelong forms of adult education, the Committed Fathers project has attempted over two years to identify efficient forms of dialogue with a view to making migrant fathers aware of the part they can and must play in order to provide their children with a successful upbringing. Ten organisations have set up pilot projects in seven countries (Austria, the United Kingdom, Romania, Poland, Germany, Italy and Spain). In seeking to perfect a system of teaching that particularly addresses fathers, our approach also aimed at improving democracy between the sexes in these families. But the question was how to reach this target group. At the beginning of the operation, we were not at all sure that people would understand us. But after two years of work, I believe that the project has met the challenge with great success, states Elfi Thurow.

instance, the health centre for migrants targeted fathers of Turkish origin, seeking to make contact with them by organising seminars and meetings in mosques and tearooms. During these meetings, different themes concerning, for instance, the role of parents and child development were broached, including the problems of drug and alcohol dependency in teenagers. In Florence (Italy), the project endeavoured to encourage the husbands of pregnant women to take greater responsibility for the preparations for the birth. In Barcelona (Spain), the focus was placed on improving the contact between fathers and the schools their children went to, through cultural mediators and the organisation of extracurricular events. Other initiatives were undertaken in Graz (Austria) seminars on the respective structures of the education system and the family, with the emphasis on the role of the father as well as in Manchester, where men recorded traditional stories and tales for children within the framework of activities that allowed the involvement of both fathers and children. In Poland and Romania, discussions on intra-family relations made it possible to identify and sometimes go beyond traditional automatic reflexes and become aware of the stakes of parental upbringing and the consequences of certain types of behaviour.

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In the end, we managed to reach fathers originally from some 20 countries, from Iran to the Congo to Russia, says Birgit Oberhofer, whose school for adults, PBW, based in Cologne, headed the European project. Each initiative involved a detailed analysis of the methods and results it was able to gather. All this information allowed us to highlight the linguistic, cultural, religious, administrative and practical factors that can be Meetings in a tearoom The approaches used in the seven different countries were problematic in the way in which these fathers live out their role. adapted according to situation. In Cologne (Germany) for Amongst all the operations carried out in these different

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As it includes a series of highly in-depth analyses on learning with the help of textbooks, the handbook proposes ideas that help in understanding the different ways of approaching the knowledge and culture of those people in training, who are not neutral, but female and male. Like knowledge itself, which is never neutral either.

cassette which features examples of dramatised situations with fictitious dialogues as a basis for discussion within the framework of actions to raise awareness. This tool was presented before a group of education professionals during an international conference that included teachers from Austria, Spain, France, Ireland and Portugal. The fight against dropping out and exclusion from school, specifically through the promotion of equal opportunities, is also one of the priorities of the Comenius action and covers the entire education cycle from nursery school to secondary education. It aims to strengthen quality, the European dimension, mobility and the teaching of languages.

Beyond borders Depending on precise teaching need and the lessons of individual past experience, this publication provides inspiration for all. Amongst its numerous themes, it offers thoughts on the use of linguistic forms in the construction of sexuation or on the psychology of development and learning. Polite has also made a video

Contact The Polite project website: http://www.aie.it/polite/

,
countries with a view to interacting with migrant fathers, we were able not only to find a large number of differences and specific characteristics but also major abiding features; and this confirmed our conviction that in all cases, cultural mediation and cooperation with migrant organisations are crucial in helping fathers fulfil their role.

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children often find it easier to integrate than adults. They adapt more quickly to the new culture, which also engenders conflicts in the contrast between this new culture and the values and traditions of the parents generation.

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The multilingual CD-ROM referred to by Birgit Oberhofer was created within the framework of the project to bring together an analytical presentation of all the projects that come under the aegis of Committed Fathers, by showing the underlying Community associations These sorts of actions would be worthless if the migrants theoretical concepts and offering and critically evaluating themselves did not get involved. This is a prerequisite for greater a series of educational tools (1). mutual understanding between the educational institution and the migrant families. Indeed the children, who are at the centre of this action, are the ones who suffer the most from being uprooted, from the often harsh and precarious living conditions of their parents and the cultural shock they have to overcome to get the best out of their schooling. By involving Community associations, we have achieved much better results, explains Birgit Oberhofer. We also had to adapt to the daily routines of the people we wanted to reach. If the men work all day, how can you possibly hope that classes organised in the afternoon will achieve their objective? What we learned through these experiences was that each time, we have to adapt our method of communication to the situation at hand, and carefully choose the place and time for the meetings. Comprehensive information concerning the pilot project, including the main broad conclusions, is available on CD-ROM. This is a long-term job: it is not only about educating the fathers, it is also about making them responsible and bringing them closer to their children and the latters experiences, because the main problem is the situation created by immigration itself. Indeed, Contact Birgit Oberhofer Parittisches Bildungswerk Landesverband Nordrhein Westfalen e. V. Loher Str. 7, DE-42283 Wuppertal, Germany
(1) To obtain the CD-ROM, contact: birgit.oberhofer@paritaet-nrw.org

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Europe: beyond gender

Women as senior executives: the right vocational training

To encourage top women managers to fully exercise managerial positions within the public health sector, the Swedish region of Vstra Gtaland has introduced new vocational training methods. ith 49 000 employees, the regional authority of Vstra Gtaland in the west of Sweden is the countrys second-biggest employer. The public health sector has 17 hospitals, of which only seven are run by women. Although women represent 83 % of staff, their numbers become fewer and fewer the higher up the hierarchical ladder they climb.

exchange of experiences and the construction of knowledge exchange networks with female colleagues in partner regions. Work visits have been organised in Catalonia (Spain), Wales (United Kingdom) and Tuscany (Italy). This cooperation will allow us to exchange our knowledge and training methods, while better pinpointing the difficulties encountered by women who hope to embark upon a career anchored in their skills and qualifications. It is a question of using mobility in training alternated with group meetings to plan and assess the experiences of colleagues in other countries and plan out one's own training. All this based on the tools produced by an earlier Leonardo da Vinci project, entirely supported by the Vstra Gtaland region. Following the assessment of this vocational training programme in the autumn of 2005, the Vstra Gtaland region plans to concoct a new pilot project in collaboration with six regions from other countries and several European universities. We are in the process of developing international cooperation with training programmes that fully embrace the gender dimension. Our project uses examples of current managers whose experiences and competences can help the leaders of tomorrow. This will enable us to calm the fears encountered in various European countries and to offset the lack of qualified professionals including managers and administrators in the healthcare sector. The public sector must ensure it is able to attract and retain more competent leaders [...] amongst whom numerous women, concludes Carina Abru.

Training adapted to senior women executives There is considerable demand in Sweden for learning, training and education throughout working life. A wide range of skills are offered but they do not meet the specific needs of top managers, in particular women, says Carina Abru, head of the Women and Management project for the Vstra Gtaland authorities. The region of Vstra Gtaland has extended this initial experience by setting up new training programmes within the Earlall network the European Association of Regional and Local Authorities for Lifelong Learning. We have designed a programme aimed at the acquisition of new skills in areas related to leadership and management in conjunction with the gender dimension, issues of internationalisation in the public sector and trans-regional perspectives, points out Carina Abru. While training allows people to better understand the psychological motives behind decision-making and conflict management, it also relies on the

Contact The Earlall network: Internet: http://www.earlall.org Vstra Gtaland region: Internet: http://www.vgregion.se E-mail: Abreucarina_2@hotmail.com

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To encourage more women to occupy managerial posts, the Vstra Gtaland department of regional development and human resources has set up a certain number of vocational training projects, which have been earmarked by the Leonardo da Vinci programme for financial support. Starting in 2002, the regional government drew inspiration from leadership methods specifically designed for women and formally set out in a publication entitled A start guide for attracting and sustaining women in leadership positions, the fruit of an earlier Leonardo da Vinci project. The results of this programme were also used by the Directorate-General for Education and Culture to devise support actions.

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Technical training courses case studies

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By encouraging active learning methods based on corporate experiences, the Loupe project renders technical subjects more attractive, in particular for girls. A project supported by the Leonardo da Vinci vocational training action programme.

website (http://www.loupesearchtool.net). Within the context of proactive learning, this tool allows users to design innovative, tailored projects, which take the gender dimension fully into account. The main idea is to indicate certain constraints that must be borne in mind in order to come up with a truly efficient project. Designed as a tool to raise awareness, this search engine igher education in technical subjects is suffering from invites users to think about innovation and the impact of gender dwindling interest from students in general and in on their projects. particular girls. Across all of the countries of the European Union, female students are in the minority in technology, Furthermore, from June 2005, all teachers will be able to consult mathematics and science subjects in non-university higher detailed descriptions of concrete examples on the Loupe project education. The proportion of young women rarely reaches 30 %. website and assess whether they are adapted to their subject area For Eliane Smits van Waesberghe, from the national Dutch as well as to the objectives they have fixed with their students. association for women in technical education (VHTO), schools Taken from experience and tested in the field of education, each need to have greater recourse to active learning methods in order case comes with a detailed description, which, amongst other to attract more students, including girls. Indeed, these methods things, specifies the tasks attributed to each student. Before strengthen the relationship to the concrete and real, thus submitting the cases, we analyse them according to three criteria: reassuring students who risk being scared off by the abstract practical reality, innovation and taking gender into consideration nature of mathematics. They restore the pragmatic dimension, in the different disciplines, explains Eliane Smits van Waesberghe. which is essential for technical and professional training. This is the hallmark of the European Loupe project, which is the fruit of The Loupe tool highlights those experiences that were the most cooperation between organisations based in Spain, Estonia, Italy, appealing to both teachers and students, including girls. But it Sweden and the Netherlands, and is coordinated by the VHTO. also suggests elements that could strengthen the appeal of a Loupe not only gathers, analyses and distributes available project. Multidisciplinary projects are generally the most information on the various existing active training courses, but successful: they are linked, for instance, to the environment or also offers a selection of practical work typical of this form of health. This helps to explain their integration and their role in the education, in order to make it more attractive to students who functioning of society, observes Eliane Smits van Waesberghe. wish to choose technical training. Vocational training based on Moreover, subjects based on these principles attract more girls, the completion of practical work, according to a format dictated as do technologies linked to the environment, medical research by the reality of corporate life, facilitates the insertion of and industrial design. qualified young men and women into the job market. But this method of learning requires a closer link between the world of technical teaching and the private sphere. Another appealing feature of the Loupe project is that it provides information on innovative teaching experiences that have been successfully employed in specific countries in the Union. The vocational Contact training systems used in Sweden and in the Netherlands have VHTO broad experience of this methodology. But this is not yet the case National Organisation for Women in Technical Education and Functions in countries like Spain, Estonia and Italy. Eliane Smits van Waesberghe PO BOX 2557 1000 CN Amsterdam The Netherlands More girls At the final conference of the Loupe project (http://www.vhto.nl/ Internet: http://www.vhto.nl loupeconference), a specific search engine was presented in the The Loupe project website: form of a CD-ROM. It is also available on the Loupe project http://www.loupesearchtool.net

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@lfa-bet@ or how to teach migrant women the numerical approach

The level of education and skill of migrants, and especially migrant women, is highly varied. In general, the latter tend to be on the wrong side of the numerical gap, with no numerical skills or access to information and the latest forms of communication. However, in a great many cases, with a little help, access to new information technologies can offer migrant women the means to better integration and real emancipation. With this in mind, Piazza Pucci is coordinating a project entitled @lfa-bet@, for which the association Formazione 80, based in Turin and specialising in adult education, has received the support of the e-Learning programme. This new education and culture programme encourages recourse to technology in lifelong learning to train people in the new technologies who have not benefited from complete and uninterrupted schooling.

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The @lfa-bet@ project unites organisations that work in very different contexts with highly varied population groups. Why? There is significant variation in the living conditions of migrant people, and in particular women, according to socioeconomic environment. Furthermore, the possibilities for access to a computer at work are not the same in an agricultural region as they are in a big town. Through the @lfa-bet@ project, we are hoping to bring together the most complementary skills in order to efficiently deal with all eventualities. Amongst the partners, therefore, is an association specialising in adult education (Formazione 80 in Turin), an organisation (Heure exquise!) which designed a telematics network in Mons-en-Baroeul (a dormitory town in the suburbs of Lille where around 30 groups of different ethnic origins co-habit), a teaching network (in the north of London) which encompasses some 100 000 school children as well as adults, and the Slovak Technical University and Institute of Education Sciences in Bucharest, both specialising in distance learning. What are the objectives of the platform? The @lfa-bet@ project aims to identify and pool the most efficient teaching models, both from an organisational and educational point of view, in order to come up with numeracy actions that can be easily adapted to the constraints imposed by the considerable disparity in the places in which we offer our training courses. It is important to remember that we especially want to reach migrant women. We have already gathered all the necessary information on what are known as good practices, i.e. proven types of

training in other parts of Europe from which we can take inspiration to set up similar actions. Moreover, we have planned a series of publications to make this type of information more accessible and we also want to increase the number of multimedia access points in certain areas so that migrants, who are our primary target in this project, have as much access to electronic services as European citizens. The platform reinforces local synergies between all the people involved in the course of migrants lives: cultural mediators, public authorities, schools, institutional decision-makers, etc. To what extent can computer training, even where this is elementary, improve the quality of life of a migrant? The rudimentary skills needed to use the resources offered by the new technologies known as numerical competence as well as access to an appropriate computer, are sufficient to transform a life. In my town of Turin, a Peruvian woman who earns a little money by doing cleaning jobs spends a large share of her earnings on calling her family. Despite the high cost, in her eyes the public telephone remains the most accessible way of staying in contact with her country. If this woman had the simple possibility of exchanging e-mails with her friends and family, this would bring about a change to her life. Furthermore, by learning a few basic notions, and provided she had adequate access to a computer, she would also be able to deal with certain administrative formalities and would not waste entire mornings waiting in queues to obtain forms on paper that are easily available online. Finally, thanks to the computer, she could acquire new knowledge and skills and improve her employment potential.

The main beneficiaries of the @lfa-bet@ project are people of extra-Community origin. What is the specific situation of women in this respect? Immigrant women very often have to take on enormous responsibilities, and they need a maximum of support. They are also in the majority in a large number of schools for adults, where they show their willingness to master all the tools that could further their social integration. Many women are keen to study in the evening, after completing their domestic tasks. They also wish to help their children in their schooling, and all the more so if they encounter problems at school. This reality can be seen day in, day out in schools for adults. But this does not mean the project is closed to men!
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Contact Associazione Formazione 80 Corso Re Umberto 10-12 10121 Turin, Italy Internet: http://www.formazione80.it

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Soccerlingua: scoring goals

Boys seem to find learning languages more difficult than girls. This is both a question of motivation for foreign languages and the more pronounced disinterest in boys than in girls for the school environment as a whole. Within the framework of the Socrates programme, the Lingua action raises awareness of the diversity of languages within Europe and, in so doing, has found the ideal stimulus for encouraging a taste for languages amongst adolescent boys: football.

Players like Zidane, Ronaldinho, Nedved and Ballack speak three languages. A player like Ruud van Nistelrooy speaks Dutch, English, German and Spanish. The stars have to speak to the rest of their team, understand the referee, catch what the public are singing, but also manage in everyday life and do the shopping at the supermarket, emphasises Richard Weaver, the promoter of Soccerlingua.

through Sport (2004), has aroused the curiosity of clubs such as Barcelona (a partner in the project), Bayern Munich, Schalke 04, Manchester United, Arsenal, Lazio, Real Sociedad, etc.

Currently, only some major professional clubs are known to maintain preferential ties with local schools. But all the teams train young players. A certain number of these young players already have the opportunity to travel. We help them to become With the help of an interactive DVD in five languages, an album aware of the possibilities offered by these trips to meet other and a website, this project encourages fans and young players, cultures, providing they are interested in languages. aged between 10 and 14 years old, to be inspired by their idols, not only for their ability as footballers, but also for their multilingual talents. We show them that learning English, German, Catalan, Italian or Spanish can be fun, especially in the company of a few of these famous players, points out Richard Weaver. We make them feel that the knowledge of other languages is useful for everyday life. For instance, speaking about football in another language can lead to making acquaintances in other countries. A quiz on football knowledge, linguistic tests and interviews feature on the menu of tools developed for this initiative. Different football stars relate their experiences of multilingualism in particular stars of womens football. The project has succeeded in giving an equal part to men and women. For instance, interviews were recorded with female players from the English, Spanish, German, Czech and Brazilian national teams. We really want the results of our project to be as attractive for the girls as for the boys. Womens football is the fastestdeveloping sport in the entire world and in our DVD and book we present the greatest female and male players together. Contact European Sports Linguistics Academy The tools will be available in the summer of 2005. We will 31, rue Keyenveld distribute several thousand free copies to football federations as B-1050 Brussels, Belgium well as to sporting club networks and schools. We also have Tel. (32-2) 513 51 74 contacts with magazines that will publicise this initiative. The E-mail: richard.weaver@soccerlingua.net project, which is also included in the European Year of Education Internet: http://www.soccerlingua.net

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The voice of women

Gender equality is also promoted through youth, culture, sport and civil society: all domains in which the Directorate-General for Education and Culture is active.

Sport:
its the taking part that counts

Youth
and equality
In 2003, girls accounted for 52 % of the participants in all of the programmes under the Youth project. With actions such as the European Voluntary Service and Youth for Europe (exchange programme for young Europeans), this programme stimulates active participation and citizenship in young people through voluntary work. How? By encouraging mobility, international exchange and meetings combined with debates. Thanks to the actions of the Youth programme, thousands of young people travel abroad and get together every year, sharing new experiences. In Cyprus and Israel, for instance, young girls from a variety of horizons have taken an active interest in the specific role that women can play in resolving conflicts. In Finland, a group belonging to the Swedish-speaking minority brought together young people from Bosnia and Herzegovina and Serbia and Montenegro to discuss the links between cultures and genders. Year after year, the Youth programme ensures a balanced distribution of young girls and boys amongst the participants according to the different participating countries. We all know that a stark contrast between the roles of the sexes is more predominant in Mediterranean cultures than in any other in Europe. There is probably no answer to the question of whether the behaviours of the sexes are more theatrical than real, all the more so given that the evolution of European society is very sensitive in the south, where traditional reflexes are juxtaposed with resolutely modern ways of living and thinking. Euro-Med Youths objective is to intensify the participation of young women from the southern Mediterranean in all levels of economic, social and political life by financing a series of projects that bring together young people from Europe and Mediterranean countries around a series of societal themes: womens rights, the impact of religion, the situation of single mothers and access to work, culture and healthcare.

The European Year of Education through Sport in 2004 made it possible, amongst other things, to support the emancipation and improved status of young girls, in particular immigrants and those from underprivileged backgrounds. The 200 or so projects co-financed within this framework created links between educational or academic institutions, and sporting organisations from 28 countries. Some of these projects aimed expressly to modify attitudes and stereotypes linked to gender. In Sweden, for instance, young immigrant girls were invited to discover team sports, enabling them to establish links with educational structures and associations. Another pilot project, also conducted in Sweden, was given the mission of training sports managers amongst young underprivileged people, including girls. In Greece, the European Year took advantage of the Athens Olympic Games to create a network of teachers and educators seeking to overcome discrimination through sport. Subject to its ratification and its coming into effect, the Treaty establishing a Constitution for Europe offers new perspectives for European action in the domain of sport. And a host of indicators stress the extent of the task to be accomplished in the area of gender equality in sports. In 2003, the European Parliaments report Women and sport, established on the initiative of Mrs Genevive Fraisse, drew particular attention to the strong disparities in access to sports activities between women and men, and also between women themselves, based on social background and conditions of employment. Within the European Union, 29.5 % of men, as opposed to 16 % of women (and 63 % of young men aged 15 to 24, as compared to 37 % of young women of the same age) say that they regularly take part in physical or sporting activity. Contrary to other equal opportunities themes, the parliamentary report points out, the number of women practising sports corresponds to the classic north-south divide in Europe. For instance, according to the Kompass study carried out on the Council of Europes initiative in 1999, 70 % of Swedish women practise a sport (an identical rate to that of men) compared with only 15 % of Italian women (32 % of men).

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Culture:
dialogue and opening minds

The standards and values that define male and female roles in society, as well as mens and womens perception of behaviours and attitudes, are greatly shaped by culture. European action in this domain aims, in particular, to eliminate certain cultural prejudices and social stereotypes. For instance, the Face of 20th Century Woman project allows us to take a critical look at female characters in European stage productions at the beginning of the 20th century. German, Danish, Italian, Norwegian and Swedish theatrical research organisations pooled their competences to analyse the works of Strindberg, Ibsen, Chekhov, Brecht, Pirandello and Garcia Lorca. Other initiatives highlight womens creative output in Europe up to the present day as the CyberfeminismLab project shows. This network of Belgian, Dutch, German, British and Finnish associations uses the best of the new technologies to improve the visibility of female artists and theoreticians. But despite the wealth and relevance of these few examples, we must not lose sight of the groundwork done by the Culture 2000 programme to encourage the opening of minds to intercultural dialogue and to respect for difference, whether cultural or sexual. Designed to highlight both the common cultural space and each of its components, the European Unions Culture 2000 programme encourages people to meet and share the ways in which they live and how they see and observe things, so that diversity is no longer an obstacle, rather on the contrary is the basis for cultural wealth.
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Civil society:
networks taking shape

For many years now, the European Commission has overseen different actions aimed at stimulating civic participation. The Community action programme for the promotion of active European citizenship supports non-governmental organisations and associations, some of which work towards promoting gender equality. Full implementation of the social rights applicable to all women and all men is one of the European Unions objectives. It is within this context that the Commission supports, for instance, the Women in Europe for a Common Future (WECF) organisation, a network of around 50 womens associations based in 29 countries, and which is particularly active in the areas of sustainable development, social justice, the environment, health and participative democracy. Another example is the Facepa network, which groups together womens movements specialising in adult education. Its Ponts de Dialogues project, in particular, supports movements of gypsy women, in whose eyes the fight for gender equality means going beyond both sexism and racism.

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WWW Women Writers Words

Women who write
Passion underpins the project to promote women writers developed by the department of literary studies at Romes La Sapienza University, with the support of the Culture 2000 programme. The works of Paola Masino or Alba de Cspedes are relatively well-known in Italy, but it is not easy for their names to cross borders, laments Francesca Bernardini, professor of literature at Romes La Sapienza University (Italy). Both the public abroad and young Italians are not given enough opportunities to discover these writers. By working specifically on available archives, within the framework of the Women Writers Words project (WWW), we have sought to publicise these authors. The works of female writers represent a magnificent heritage: we must make them more accessible.

Intense European collaboration

This work to consolidate archives and coordinate existing material highlights womens literary output. Numerous experts and lovers of literature across Europe have shown an interest. Several conferences, bringing together a panoply of experts, have been held in France and Spain dedicated to themes such as women writers and the holocaust, says Francesca Bernardini. We have worked with the universities of Madrid, Lille and Paris, with various private institutions, Italian foundations (such as the Fondazione Mondari), public organisations, the Ministry for Equal Opportunities, the Institute of Statistics, as well as various journals.

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Through projects such as this the Culture 2000 programme is able to shed light on womens contribution to Europe's cultural and artistic heritage. Other projects emphasise the evolution of sociocultural stereotypes through time and space, or improve everyones access, whether man or woman, to cultural and artistic The initiators of Women Writers Words have carried out an activity. investigation and drawn up an inventory based on the archives of various female writers. Research dedicated to Paola Masino has led to the publication of an eponymous work written by Contact Marinella Mascia Galateria, published with the support of the Universit della Studi di Roma La Sapienza Fondazione Arnoldo e Alberto Mondadori (126 illustrated pages, 2001). Dipartimento di studi filologici, linguistici e letterari Piazza Aldo Moro, 5 III Piano, Edificio ex Facolt di Lettere e Filosofia I-00185 Rome, Italy E-mail: dsfll@uniroma1.it Internet: http://dsfll.scu.uniroma1.it/

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Meetings without borders

When young girls from Algeria, Finland, France, Israel and Malta get together for 10 days to talk about their identity, ideas start to buzz. This project was supported by the Euro-Med Youth action, an activity within the Youth programme that encourages intercultural dialogue and mutual understanding in order to combat racism, discrimination and xenophobia.

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fter many months of preparation, the 45 girls taking part in the Modern Girl and Ancient Womanhood project finally got together in Finland. In the small town of Kokkola, the Villa Elba youth centre welcomes young girls from the underprivileged strata of the population every day. Modern Girl and Ancient Womanhood is an ambitious project. In order to improve the quality of our communication, we have used drama, music, dance and photography. These tools have allowed young women to say a great deal about themselves, to better understand one another and better define themselves, says Ritva Saarikettu, who coordinates the international department of the Villa Elba.

For Sagier-Fathia, everything is political: It is impossible not be affected by politics when you live in Israel. First of all, I consider myself to be an Arab woman. Nevertheless, Im Israeli [] while being Palestinian at the same time. The conflict is tearing me apart, it is cutting me into pieces.

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Ritva Saarikettus conclusion: During discussions, we sought to determine what constructs the reputation of a girl. In spite of the variety of contexts, certain similarities were revealed. The girls considered that it was frowned upon to drink and smoke in public or to have numerous relationships. We also discussed womens power of decision, regarding their bodies as well. On this subject, the issue of abortion provoked highly turbulent debates. Amongst Our joint project involved comparing the feelings of young girls the other themes which provided food for discussion was the who have experienced very different situations, so as to uncover general situation of migrant women. what they had in common as well as their differences. We worked in Algeria, Finland, France, Israel and Malta [] with a great A short video documented this meeting. The cassette was sent to variety of social strata, religions, political situations and relations all the participating organisations. At the Villa Elba, we still use with modernity. We wanted to pinpoint the influence of the it a lot. We show it to different groups of girls [] in order to continue the discussion. expectations of the social environment, context and family.

Selected passages In 10 days, the young girls had the time to broach a great many subjects. This is what Katri, a Finn, had to say about the media: Neither advertisements nor the media transmit a realistic or desirable image of women. But the media has tremendous influence [] and it is not easy to manage this problem. And Malika and Nadira from Algeria: In general, there are two groups of women, a minority group made up of independent women who have a professional career, and a large majority group consisting of housewives who obey the man of the house. In our country, even womens organisations reflect this duality.

Contact Villa Elba Youth Centre C/o Villa Elba, Sannanrannantie 60 FIN-67100 Kokkola Suomi/Finland Ritva Saarikettu E-mail: elba@kokkola.fi Internet: http://www.kokkola.fi/elba

New

Europe, new equality, new citizenship

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The Womens Issues Information Centre, based in Vilnius in Lithuania, is coordinating a project supported by the Community action programme in favour of active citizenship. Can being a member of the European Union modify the lives of women in the Baltic States? Dovile Rukaite, coordinator of the New Europe and Perspectives for Women in the Baltic States project, gives her point of view.
What are the main challenges women face in the Baltic States? The main problems concern violence towards women, their low numbers in politics and in decision-making processes, the poverty of single-parent families and the difficulty for women to penetrate the job market. There is not a profound difference between the women of western Europe and the women of the Baltic States. This issue was extensively debated during seminars we recently organised in different towns in Lithuania within the framework of the European project New Europe and Perspectives for Women in the Baltic States. These 12 seminars brought together 200 women working in womens associations. The majority opinion that came out of these round tables was the following: the women in the EU-15 are freer. They have more choice regarding their professional career, spend less time in the kitchen, travel more and are more emancipated. The differences between the countries can be felt in particular from an economic viewpoint, even though Lithuania does hope to make rapid progress in both the economic and social spheres. The womens movement has been active in Lithuania since the beginning of the 19th century. What is the current situation of womens organisations? Some 105 organisations currently belong to the Womens Issues Information Centre. Most of them are working towards obtaining equal opportunities for women and men in Lithuania. Some 32 institutions, some of which are supported by municipalities, come to the aid of women who are victims of domestic violence. Around 20 associations focus on the victims of human trafficking and prostitution. Last but not least, certain womens organisations organise computer training courses. What is the role of your Womens Issues Information Centre? The Centre coordinates these organisations in order to emphasise the gender perspective in all aspects of womens lives. Our platform works in partnership with the governmental sector and international agencies so that this perspective is taken into account in both development programmes and in political and social reform choices. The Centre also publishes materials that enable women to find out about their rights. By compiling statistics on gender, initiating research projects and organising conferences and seminars, we are dealing with the most critical issues and we are drafting recommendations for political and legislative change. What are the objectives of the New Europe and Perspectives for Women in the Baltic States project, supported by the European Union, and which you are conducting together with an organisation in Riga? The project aims to encourage the women of Lithuania and Latvia to play an active part in the changes that have been occurring since our accession to the European Union. European legislation, and all its various components, has numerous consequences for women, especially as regards equal opportunities, equal employment and social security, but also as regards domestic violence. We rely on our network of NGOs that are active in the domain of equal opportunities, as well as all other players in the field, including the municipalities. The 12 days of seminars organised in Lithuania and the three seminars hosted in Latvia have provided material for brochures, published in both languages, on equal opportunities and related European legislation. A major part of this awareness campaign also features on our website (www.lygus.lt/mic) and in our electronic newsletters. This is how the project reaches all the professionals in the sector, as well as any citizens interested in womens issues. What future milestones does your programme foresee? The fourth national conference on women will be held on Sunday 27 August 2005 in Vilnius. Some 500 participants from 10 of Lithuanias regions will review the 15 years of their countrys independence and provide details on progress made since the Beijing conference in 1995. The parallel celebrations and events will attract several thousand people. The regions will present their situation before speaking about the challenges and expectations in each of the domains covered by the Beijing action plan.

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Contact Coordination: Womens Issues Information Center (WIIC) Vilnius, Lithuania Internet: http://www.lygus.lt/mic Partner: Coalition of Gender Equality Valnu iela 32-506 LV-1021 Riga

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Girls in the scrum

Can a sport as seemingly virile as rugby encourage mutual respect between men and women by mixing the sexes? This is what the Oval Planet project is attempting to prove, an experiment conducted in France within the framework of the European Year of Education through Sport 2004.

oordinated by the French Rugby Federations national strategic management team, Oval Planet aimed to promote the educational values conveyed by the practice of this team sport within secondary schools in France, beginning with the training of physical education teachers. When the project was reviewed by the Directorate-General for Education and Culture, Frances national trainer, Fabrice Brochard, was delighted: The Oval Planet project has trained 745 physical education teachers in the game of rugby to be taught in schools. And of these 745 teachers, almost half of them are women! Nearly 41 000 pupils have come into contact with the game.

people find the means to deal with their physical, energetic and mental burdens, while adhering to the rules and developing a mutual understanding of the word respect. In a context such as this, barriers fall.

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A mixed sport While Fabrice Brochard is clearly overjoyed with the success of Oval Planet, he is not overly surprised by the proportion of women teachers attracted by the operation. Physical education lessons in secondary schools are often mixed. Unless you separate the classes, mixing the sexes is standard. Furthermore, we have paid particular attention to adapting our training to teachers, in An experiment that is set to continue: This year, following the particular women, who were not accustomed to teaching field Oval Planet operation, we have received six times as many sports. As well as practical lessons, we developed efficient requests for training as in former years. documentation: a pack containing written documents, a CD-ROM on teaching the game and video cassettes concerning refereeing and safety conditions for players. We have distributed nearly 1 220 packs in total. In the eyes of the specialists, the success of mixing the sexes on the rugby field demonstrates, amongst other things, the virtues of the social dimension of this sport. Rugby offers a new dimension to the life of a group, says Fabrice Brochard. Following this experience, teachers say they have learnt something about their pupils. Rugby involves physical contact, like some combat sports, but with the added dimension of the team sport. This is why rugby matches organised in tense situations for instance in districts ravaged by ongoing conflict profoundly modify human relations. Within the structured framework of a sport,

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The trigger The boost provided by the Commission through the European Year of Education through Sport has proved to be decisive in uniting energies, creating a project around recognised values, providing the human and financial resources to succeed, and setting up the conditions for lasting action, says the French trainer. The validation of our project by the European Commission has acted as a real trigger, by somehow providing a certain nobility and a passport to enter into the education system, which has often shown great caution in the past towards external initiatives.

Contact Fdration franaise de rugby 9, rue de Lige F-75431 Paris Cedex 09 France Internet: http://www.ffr.fr

EN

Education and Culture

Directorate-General for Education and Culture: http://europa.eu.int/comm/dgs/education_culture/index_en.html

NC-BT-04-025-EN-C

Culture Portal: http://europa.eu.int/comm/culture/index_en.html

Youth Portal: http://europa.eu.int/youth/index_en.html

Ploteus Portal: http://europa.eu.int/ploteus/portal/home.jsp

e-Learning Portal: http://www.elearningeuropa.info/

Subscribe to The Magazine The Magazine provides a periodical survey of education and culture issues in Europe with in-depth articles and reports on EU policies in the fields of education, training, youth, culture, languages, sport and civil society. It is available in German, English, French, Spanish and Italian. To subscribe see: http://europa.eu.int/comm/dgs/education_culture/mag/index_en.html Do you need further copies of The Magazine? Order them from eac-info@cec.eu.int