Tenth edition of the Group for Exchange and Support on Integration at the Local level

Political leaders, municipal representatives and agents as well as members of the Municipal advisory committees on integration met face-to-face as well as by videoconference to discuss the topic "Noper sinn - Noper ginn: Strengthening intercultural living together at local level – Actively promoting good neighbourhood".

A total of 110 participants attended the event, representing 50 municipalities. In addition, integration advisors were present as well as representatives from different ministries, the CNE and a number of associations working in the field of integration and intercultural living-together.

The session was opened by Malou Kasel-Schmit, 1st alderman of the municipality of Colmar-Berg, who hosted the event at the Cultural Centre in Colmar-Berg. The Minister for Family Affairs and Integration, Corinne Cahen, and Emile Eicher, President of Syvicol, welcomed the GRESIL participants. Conny Heuertz from the Department of Integration moderated the event.

Following a brief introduction by Marc Piron, project director at the Association de soutien aux travailleurs immigrés (ASTI), Norry Schneider from the Association des solidarités de proximité (ALSP) presented the European Neighbours' Day initiative (Nopeschfest), which this year will take place on Friday 26 May. Then, Stéphanie Laruade, architect and urban planner, stressed the importance of designing dynamic neighbourhoods, with urban spaces that encourage inhabitants to meet their neighbours. The GRESIL participants were also presented with a range of ideas for shaping good neighbourhood in Luxembourg municipalities: Isabelle Wickler from the municipality of Colmar-Berg, Annabelle Laborier-Saffran and Vania Ferreria from the municipality of Dudelange, Cédric Czaika of the Service Ensemble Quartiers Dudelange of Inter-Actions, Romain Juncker and Patricia Zuccoli from the municipality of Hesperange, and Margaretha Inghelram-Maeyens from the municipality of Niederanven shared good practices from their respective municipalities.

 The plenary session was closed by a question and answer session.

During the second part of the GRESIL, the participants present in Colmar-Berg had the opportunity to exchange around 15 thematic stands on the subject of good neighbourhood.

ASTI, Syvicol, CEFIS, the municipality of Colmar-Berg and the Department of Integration of the Ministry of Family Affairs, Integration and the Greater Region, co-organisers of this event, would like to thank all those present or attending online for their active participation in this platform for exchange among local actors.

Born in 2018 out of the strong interest and need of Luxembourg municipalities to network on issues related to integration and living together, the GRESIL, of which there have been ten editions to date, offers municipalities a platform for gathering, exchanging, creating synergies, providing information, training and support on integration issues at local level. The next GRESIL meeting is planned for autumn 2023.

A full recording of the first part of GRESIL 10, as well as all presentations on best practices presented, will be available shortly on the integratioun.lu website under the link https://integratioun.lu/gresil/.

Press release by the Department of Integration of the Ministry of Family Affairs, Integration and the Greater Region, the municipality of Colmar-Berg, the Association de soutien aux travailleurs immigrés (ASTI), the Syndicat des villes et communes luxembourgeoises (Syvicol) and the Centre d'étude et de formation interculturelles et sociales (CEFIS)