Interculturality Moving Towards a Dialogue Among Nation!

"The future will bring us a diversified and complex world, and not [a] uniform cultural landscape…" ¹

"Culture, however we define it, is central to everything that we do and think. It is what we do and the reason why we do it, what we wish and why we imagine it, what we perceive and how we express it, how we live and in what manner we approach death. It is our environment and the patterns of our adaptation to it. It is the world we have created and are still creating; it is the way we see the world and the motives that urge us to change it. It is the way we know ourselves and the other; it is our web of personal relationships, it is the images and abstractions that allow us to live together in communities and nations. It is the element in which we live." ²

1. Introduction

At the last Annual Ministerial Meeting of the International Network on Cultural Policy (INCP), that was held in Cape Town, South Africa, in October 2002, the concept of Interculturality was identified as an important emerging issue, which INCP Ministers agreed needed to be explored further. Therefore, the Liaison Bureau has prepared this short overview of current thought on the topic to initiate a reflection on the important place this concept occupies and will continue to occupy within International discourse.

While the definition of this concept continues to evolve, consensus has emerged that it can be described as the interaction, exchange and communication between cultures where the individual recognizes and accepts the reciprocity of the other's culture.³ The concept of Interculturality takes the concept of Multiculturalism one step further.

2. Moving Beyond Multiculturalism

As noted by UNESCO, "throughout history, peoples have exchanged cultural experiences, ideas, values and goods through art, trade and migrations."⁴ Over the past few decades, governments have aimed at ensuring the continuation of such exchanges through the implementation of national and regional policies of multiculturalism. With the aim of ensuring the development and safe-guarding of cultural diversity within their borders, governments have applied the principles of multiculturalism in the development of their respective cultural policies.

Multiculturalism principles and policies have, up to now, focused on:

• State recognition of the cultural plurality, which exists at the heart of society.

• The reduction of the obstacles that hinder the social participation of marginalized cultural groups.

• Support for the reproduction of cultures.

To some extent, multiculturalism is an addition of different cultural particularities without a real coherence between the parts of a highly fragmented whole.⁵

Within the context of today's world, prevalent situations such as immigration, migration and conflicts which cause the displacement of peoples, the question governments will need to pose themselves becomes, "Does the multiculturalism approach, which was born in the 19th century, still remain an appropriate model in a world where everybody is searching for values and codes which allow them to ensure good relations with others and with society?"

It is important to note that in attempting to answer this question, one does not merely discount the concept of multiculturalism, as this one remains an important and valid guiding principle for the development of cultural policy. The concept of Interculturality, however, adds important elements to the concept of multiculturalism. More than calling for the State's recognition of the cultural plurality within it's own borders, one of the elements which the concept of Interculturality calls for is the creation of spaces where diverse cultures not only co-exist, but also interact and come to know one-another, thus allowing people to come together to create linkages to and with each other within a society. In other words, Interculturality can be seen or defined as a way of being, a view of the world and other people, a kind of egalitarian relationship between human beings and peoples - thus, the opposite of ethnocentrism.

As the focus and fora surrounding this concept continue to grow among scholars and international bodies, so too does its definition continue to evolve. But while the search for a concise definition for the term continues, consensus on certain elements does exist.⁶ Agreement exists on the notion that the concept of Interculturality indicates and implies a change in the perception of "the Other". What is meant is that as it is often the case in a society, host/norm cultures (also referred to as 'self') would tend to view new/diverse cultures (also referred to as 'other') entering or already existing within it's borders as a potential threat to it's own survival.

This view would then construct a seemingly unbridgeable divide between the 'self' and the 'other'⁷, often leading to misunderstandings, misinterpretations and conflict. This view then becomes the catalyst for the development of policies that ensure the survival of the host culture but may be detrimental to other cultures existing within its borders. Through the intercultural approach, this perception of threat is altered and replaced by a sense of mutual interest in one another.

Interculturality calls for the embracing of cultural diversity as something natural and evident. It calls for mutual listening and dialogue between cultures which in turn would lead to intercultural understanding and respect.⁸ In essence, the intercultural approach promulgates the view that cultural diversity does not threaten but rather, enriches the social fabric of a society.

As discussed in the document INCP "New and Emerging Issues: Concept of Culture and the Creation of Cultural Observatories", in 2002, the intercultural approach has come to be commonly marked by three stages:

• Decentralization: Taking a more distant view of oneself, trying to define one's frames of reference as an individual with a culture and sub-cultures blended together in one's personal development. Through this reflection on oneself, realizing what is relative about one's observations and making sense of one's reading references.

• Penetration of the other's system: Getting out of oneself to see things from the Other's perspective. It is an attitude of opening up, a personal effort of inquiry.

• Negotiation: Finding the necessary minimum compromise and understanding to avoid confrontation.

More concretely, Interculturality can happen in two major ways in order to ensure the learning of the realities of one's culture and not just conceptions and discourses regarding the culture of the other:

• Intercultural learning: meeting the other in order to improve communication and encourage learning and understanding of the other's culture.

• Exchanges with the country of origin: to establish joint training between actors from the country of origin and from the host country.

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3. Interculturality and the International Community

As noted above, discussions revolving around the concept of Interculturality have over the last few years become the focus of much International cultural policy discussion. The concept has become so important that 2003 has been declared the United Nations Year of Dialogue Among Nations. The concept continues to resurface as the central theme of numerous international conferences such as the World Conference: Dialogue Among Civilizations "The Key to a Safe Future" which was sponsored by UNESCO just last April.

Other international bodies such as the Council of Europe have over the last few years dedicated much of their time and research to the concept of Interculturality. For example, the Centre for International Studies was created in 1999 as the result of almost a decade of close cooperation between various departments at the Council of Europe and staff members of the University of Klagenfurt (Austria) in the field of intercultural communication and education, human rights, minority rights and multilingual matters. The close cooperation between the University of Klagenfurt and the Council of Europe allowed the university to host six international workshops and conferences around the topic of Interculturality and also allowed for the development of the "Klagenfurt Network" which today includes about 200 experts and project managers of intercultural projects in fields such as education, media, social welfare and cross border cooperation.⁹

It is through co-operation such as the one stated above that new light continues to be shed on the concept of Interculturality. For example, for the Council of Europe, Interculturality in a European context must be based on:

• The recognition of the rights of the individual, and;

• The granting to a national minority of not just free choice for the individual, but also open spaces for the social and human realities, articulations between the public and the private systems.

Therefore, what should be borne in mind if intercultural multilateral exchanges are to be successful involves:

• Exploiting individual contacts and exchanges as a follow-up to school exchange, and the educational strategies used in multinational classes.

• Combining youth and school exchanges, particularly in connection with the training of group leaders.

• Instituting more systematic training for teachers and school heads in community and individual pupil exchanges.

In the Latin American context, the word 'inter-cultural' refers specifically to the cultural dimension within the educational process and to socially and culturally meaningful learning. The 'inter-cultural' dimension of education also refers both to the curricular relationship established between native or appropriated wisdom, knowledge, and values, and those unknown and foreign.

Furthermore, following the events of September 11, 2001, entities such as the Council of Europe have come to realize "that culture, being an excellent means of communication, is a factor that must be taken into account both in the prevention of conflict situations and in post-conflict social reconciliation."¹⁰ It is in essence this realization that prompted the Council of Europe to create the Intercultural Dialogue and Conflict Prevention Project, which will be the central focus of a Conference to be held in Opatija from October 20-22, 2003, immediately following the Annual Ministerial Meeting of the INCP.

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4. Conclusion

Given the prevalence of concept of Interculturality on the world scene among international, national and local organizations, as well as civil society, it has as become essential for governments to not only become aware of but also involved in the discussion of this concept and the elaboration of it's definition.

It is important to note that for a successful transition toward a truly intercultural society, governments will have to be proactive and consider what the implementation of this concept will mean for them in terms of possible future policy making. New policies, programs, services and also an information campaign may be needed to help change the behavior and attitude of its population in order to establish a mind frame of openness to the interaction with other cultures increasingly present within borders. Thus, allowing for the development of a nation, which views the existence of a multitude of cultures within its borders as enrichment to its social fabric and a strengthening of its social cohesiveness.

5. Next Steps for INCP Members

As there are several clear and evident areas of convergence between the concept of Interculturality and Cultural Diversity, the Liaison Bureau recommends that the close monitoring of and involvement in discussions revolving around this topic by the INCP is essential. As the international trend of moving towards Interculturality continues to gain ground, Ministers will need to consider the following questions.

• What implications does the concept of Interculturality have for respective INCP member countries?

• Do ministers want to see further research on the concept of Interculturality be undertaken? If so, what do ministers feel would be the most productive method to undertake this research? (i.e. the creation of a new Special Project Research Team?, Should this be a new mandate for the Working Group on Cultural Diversity and Globalization?, etc…?)

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Sources

Affaya, M. N. E., "l'interculturalité du McWorld dans le Paradigme Globalitaire",

Barloewen, Constantin von, "Overcoming Otherness: The Search for Interculturality", http://www.magazin-deutschland.de/content/archiv/archiv-eng/00-03/art6.html.

Brandner, Rudolf; Interculturality: A Philosophical Approach, Paris, January 1999, http://unesdoc.unesco.org/images/0011/001146/114621eo.pdf.

Centre for Intercultural Studies, http://cis.uni-klu.ac.at/

Kalscheuer, B. & Allolio-Nacke, L. "Why does the current debate on Interculturality Prevent the Development of Intercultural Communication?: A Critical Note on the Interculturality Discourse", http://sietarcongress.wu-wien.ac.at/docs/T6_Kalscheuer.pdf .

1. Pixten1994: 133, translated from Dutch by Z. Laskewicz
2. Bernard Ostry, as quoted in Culture: the Beacon of the Future.
3. INCP, "New and Emerging Issues: Concept of Interculturality and the Creation of Cultural Observatories, 2003", Cape Town, South Africa 2002.
4. UNESCO, http://www.unesco.org/culture/dialogue/html_eng/index_en.shtml#Roads
5. INCP, "New and Emerging Issues: Concept of Interculturality and the Creation of Cultural Observatories, 2003", Cape Town, South Africa 2002
6. Interculturality: http://www.ylg.ac.be/geoeco/lmg/articles/intercult_en. Html
7. Kalscheuer, B. & Allolio-Nacke, L. "Why does the current debate on Interculturality Prevent the Development of Intercultural Communication?: A Critical Note on the Interculturality Discourse", http://sietarcongress.wu-wien.ac.at/docs/T6_Kalscheuer.pdf
8. ibid
9. University of Klagenfurt, Centre for Intercultural Studies, http://cis.uni-klu.ac.at/about.html
10. Council of Europe, http://www.coe.int/T/E/Cultural_Co-operation/Culture/Other_projects/Intercultural_Dialogue_and_Conflict_prevention/

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