Internet: MyEurope and web-site reviews

myEUROPE is a web-based project developed by European Schoolnet. It aims at helping teachers raise their pupils' awareness of what it means to be a young citizen in Europe.

Next to this small reviews of some new web-sites that hope to use the potential of the Internet in achieving the goal of furthering and enhancing democracy, and attention for a newly founded NGO in Belgium that focuses on citizen participation.

INTERNET

myEUROPE

myEUROPE is a web-based project developed by European Schoolnet. It aims at helping teachers raise their pupils’ awareness of what it means to be a young citizen in Europe. It is a network of more than 4000 schools that work together, exchange and share information relating to European themes. In this way they bring the diversity of Europe into the classroom via the Internet, proving that the path to living together in Europe starts at school.

Launch

Since its launch in May 2000, the project has focused on European citizenship and intercultural education through online activities and classroom practice examples at primary and secondary level. During the past five years, myEUROPE has become one of the largest networks of schools in Europe. It has encouraged contacts between teachers and their classes from Member States, new Member States and Candidate Countries, involving students in collaborative educational projects and activities.

Languages

The myEUROPE website provides content in three languages (English, French and German), but contributions to the activities are available in all European languages. The project audience are classes with students from 5 to 20 years old.

Petru Dumitru, European Schoolnet, Brussels

myeurope.eun.org

What’s Wild on the Web

Democracy-international.org

Parallel to the making of this newsletter, a number of referenda were being held on the European constitution. The Spanish have spoken out in favour of the European constitution, the French and the Dutch have rejected it. An interesting website to keep up-to-date on the progress of ratification of the EU constitution in all the member states. Per country one can find information on the current position and the status of a referendum.

This newly founded Democracy network advocates a more democratic Europe, starting with as many referenda as possible in the European states. They have an ambitious agenda for the future however, you can read in the founding statement that the network has expansion plans to promote world democracy at the UN level.

Sociumi.be

Sociumi, the Flemish Centre for active Citizenship, has a new website. The people of Sociumi have set as their goal to let citizens participate in society and politics. They argue that participation is the building brick of democracy. Since 2003 they have transformed into a ‘movement’ working on different themes: active citizenship, European citizenship, voluntary work and lifelong learning.

Sociumi is a very locally based organisation, focusing exclusively on small projects in Flanders and Brussels. The website is in Dutch, but you can also contact the staff for more information on their projects.

Opendemocracy.net

Open Democracy wants to use the full potential of the Internet to create an open debate between everyone in the world who wants to participate. Free thinking and debating in a democratic space is their mission. The topics dealt with on the website are related to politics or culture and are organised by theme ranging from art or conflicts to media and power politics. There is a wealth of information on any topic.

The strength of the website is that it can utilise a vast database of gifted and knowledgeable writers and pundits, coming from different fields (e.g. journalists, scholars, artists, politicians), but also has a debate function so that anyone can participate. Use the search function at the top to find relevant articles and debates on for example citizenship or empowerment.

Politeia.net

Currently we are revising, updating and improving the Politeia website. Especially when the printed newsletter will no longer be published it is essential to the Politeia network to use the opportunities of the Internet more than at the present.

The layout will stay similar, but more functions will be added such as the possibility to post reactions to articles or to post news facts (e.g. events or projects your organisation is working on). Also, the content will be revised with a clearer outline of what Politeia is about and what its goals are. The news page will be updated more regularly to keep our readers updated with interesting websites or articles. So please come and visit us more often!

Talitha Koek